Coweta County Cobra Football & Cheerleading Announces Play for Free Program

I am constantly going through the pages of LocalKidfun.com to update it and make sure all the information is accurate and complete. While adding some new gymnastics and cheerleading programs on the Sports page and contacting each place to make sure their info. is accurate, I came accross PLAY FOR FREE offer from Coweta County Cobra Football and Cheerleading. What a great idea!

While registering your child in person for football or cheerleading, let the representative know you would like the "play for free" option. You will be issued discount cards to local merchants. If you sell enough discount cards to the public, CCCYFA will waive your registration fee. That's a $150 - $200 savings, and your child will get to be a part of team sports. You must put your credit or debit card information down as collateral for the debit cards you will be trying to sell. CCCYFA will have full details at the time of registration and be able to answer any questions.

Registration ends on June 30, 2009. Live registrations will be held on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month at St. Smyrna Baptist Church, Smokey Road, Newnan, ga 30263 / (770) 251-0730

Coweta County Cobra Football & Cheerleading program is for ages 4-14. They compete in the Metro Atlanta Youth Football League (M.A.Y.F.L.). Their website states "Join the fastest growing Youth Football and Cheer program and become apart of something larger than yourself. CCCYFA is so much more than parents watching “THEIR” child play football and/or cheer. We are family bound by a common cause, to raise Tomorrow’s Leaders in Today’s World."

Local Youth Theatre Group to Perform Cinderella - June 13 & 14, 2009

One of my favorite discoveries in researching family friendly activities and events for LocalKidFun.com has been the access to quality family theater in South Metro Atlanta. Just go to the Family Theater page of LocalKidfun.com or view the monthly events calendar to see all that our area has to offer children interested in the theater.

The next local production you might wish to attend is Rodger's and Hammerstein's Cinderella, presented by Backyard Kids Theatre on June 13th, at 7 p.m., and June 14th, at 3 p.m. at Heritage Christian Church in Fayetteville. Tickets can be purchased for $8 from www.brownpapertickets.com/event/64423 (for early seating) or at the door.

Cinderella is the second show produced by student founded organization, Backyard Kids Theatre. The directors, musicians, cast, crew, costume advisor, choreographers, etc. are all youth aged 7-17. They look forward to amazing you with their fabulous talent.

Directed by 8th grader Chase Thomaston, music directed by Stephanie Earle, and starring Paige McCauley as Cinderella, the performance will be fun for the entire family. Other leads include: Camille Edwards as the Fairy Godmother; Ben Papac as the Prince; Micole Mayfield as the Stepmother; Hannah and Abby Feltner as the Stepsisters, Austin and Janina Monk as the Royal Stewards, Michael Reep as the King, and Stephanie Earle as the Queen. The ensemble features: Olivia, Grant, and Evan Krug; Jordyn, Jamie, and Zack Richards; Abby Mortensen; Anna Lee Robbins; Gillian Revoir; Reagan and Avery Grillo; Preston Earle; Payton Edwards; and Rachel Brown. Choreographers are Nora Wilfong and Brent Davis, and the show Pianist is 6th grader, Nathan Hung. For more information about the organization, go to www.backyardkidstheatre.org.

Local - Mom's Night Out or Date Night Idea

I know this is supposed to be a blog about what to do with your kids. Let's face it though, we parents are the ones staying up late at night searching the web for ideas, answers, etc. And for all our hard work, we deserve a night out on the town.

Here's one idea for something fun, local, and over 21. (This would make a great date night or a ladies night out. Wish my mom was going to be in town that weekend. We would have fun!)

Friday June 12th; 5pm - 9pm, Historic Downtown Newnan, GA will host the First Annual "Wine About" event. Downtown Merchants will be offering samples of over 15 varieties of wines as they Wine About The Economy! Each participant will receive a commemorative wine glass as well as an event brochure with information about the event and each wine being sampled. Local Mainstreet Newnan restaurants will be offering specials and live entertainment. Entry is $20 during pre-sell and $25 the night of the event.

Businesses participating include: The Alamo, Piedmont Newnan Wellness Center*, Smart Solutions, Mann Jewelers*, Two Sisters Knitting Nook*, Panoply Interior Design*, Edward Jones, Fines Lines Art and Framing*, Costume Shop*, 34 Madison Design Studio*, SMF Cycle, Newnan Computers, M. Cole Design*, Sports Dome, Star Salon*, Lottie Dottie, NuLink*, & 10 East Washington*

* Discounted pre-sale tickets can be purchased at merchants highlighted in bold.

Regal Cinemas Announces Summer Free Movie Schedule

Once again, selected Regal Cinemas will offer free movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 10am during their Free Family Film Festival. It’s a fun-filled nine weeks of movies for kids and parents. All of the free movies are rated G or PG. First-come, first-served seating is limited to theatre capacity.

You can go to the Regal Entertainment website http://www.regmovies.com/nowshowing/familyfilmfestivalschedule.aspx and click on a state to find the participating theatres in your area. Check it out before you go on vacation this summer as a back-up plan for a rainy day.

The Georgian Stadium 14 (232 Newnan Crossing Bypass, Newnan ,GA 30265) will host the FREE movies this Summer 2009 in the LocalKidFun.com area. Movies will be listed on the LocalKidFun.com Calendar and on the Free page. See schedule below.

June 2-4, 2009 - Kit Kittredge: American Girl (G) or Shrek The Third (PG)
June 9-11, 2009 - The Tale Of Despereaux (G) or Alvin And The Chipmunks (PG)
June 16-18, 2009 - Charlotte's Web (G) or Surf's Up (PG)
June 23-25, 2009 - Horton Hears A Who (G) or Journey To The Center Of The Earth (PG)
June 30-Jul., 2 2009 - Space Chimps (G) or Star Wars: Clone Wars (PG)
July 7-9, 2009 - Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: Veggie Tale Movie (G) or Spiderwick Chronicles (PG)
July 14-16, 2009 - Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium (G) or Nim's Island (PG)
July 21-23, 2009 - Everyone's Hero (G) or Madagascar 2: Escape To Africa (PG)
July 28-30, 2009 - Mr. Bean's Holiday (G) or Kung Fu Panda (PG)

Here is a good site where you can check the content of the movies, read reviews, and see if the movie is age appropriate for your child. http://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews

8 Ideas for Keeping Kids Busy While Waiting in Line

Summer is almost near. While we dream of the perfect family vacation, the reality may be long lines or long car drives. Sometimes it's hard to find ways to entertain the kids away from the comforts of home. I have come up with a quick list of tips that will help you keep your kids happy and occupied, whether you're in a long line, in the car or the kids are just plain bored.

1. Teach your kids how to thumb wrestle. Remember thumb wrestling? It was loads of fun when we were kids. How to play: Wrap fingers of your right hand around the fingers of your opponents right hand, leaving your thumbs out; Chant "One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war"; Try to get the opponents thumb pinned down under yours. No using your other hand.

2. Play “I Spy, with my little eye”. The easiest way to do this is to say the color of the object. If you are playing this with younger kids, you can come up with different variations that enhance learning. For example, you can "spy" something that rhymes with ten (answer: pen), you can give extra clues to help them figure out what you are spying.

3. A great grocery store game is to try to find items for each letter of the alphabet. This can also be played on car trips or while waiting in line as long as you are surrounded by lots of letters.

4. Rhyming Games (think of all the words that rhyme with “bee”), think of as many words as you can that start with a certain letter.

5. Alphabet Categories. Think of a theme like first names and take turns thinking of first names for each letter of the alphabet. Once while waiting in a long line to get into a zoo, we tried to think of animals that started with each letter of the alphabet. That was difficult, but fun. Not sure if we finished before we got out of line.

6. Bring a pad of paper and a pen or pencil. Draw a squiggly line or a shape. Have your child finish the picture by drawing anything they want out of the mark you made. Then they can draw a squiggle and have you finish the picture. When you've finished your picture that they started, you can ask them what they would have made from the squiggly line.

7. Start a story with "Once Upon a Time...". Take turns adding on to the story. Have fun listening to your child use his/her imagination.

8. Talk to your kids. Have a nice conversation asking specific questions about their day or their dreams. You may have to prompt them. Ask about their favorite thing to do with Daddy, Mommy or Grandma. If they still won't talk to you, kids love to hear stories about when they were younger. Tell them about time when they spit up on a family friend and everyone laughed.

If you need more fun games to play with your kids, here are another blogger's ideas:

http://healthy-family.org/caryn/161