A Week Of Storytime Options – for Free (In NW DC)

Now that Violet has decided to drop her morning nap (not my idea!) I have found myself with a lot less free time on my hands (hence the slow down in posting) and researching ways to keep her occupied while my son Cameron is in preschool.  I decided to look into all the local (FREE!) story time options near where we live.  As it turns out, there is a story time for every week day – most of them offered by the local libraries.  FYI, the post below is filled with links to the locations as well as the schedules of the events – be sure to click through for more details.  Also, I added my favorite nearby lunch spots in case you happen to be hungry after listening to all those stories.

"I'm totally not napping mom, so make with the entertainment already!"

Monday -

10:30 am Politics and Prose Story Time with BearSong the Guitar man If you need a snack or some lunch, Politics and Prose has a coffee shop, and there is also one of my favorites, Marvelous Market, just down the block.

10:30 am Palisades Library Crafty Tales for Toddlers age 2  Palisades Library is my favorite library for kiddos near me – they have a train table and lots of spots for the kids to draw and do puzzles.  And, FYI, there is a Safeway just around the corner from the Palisades Library which makes really yummy deli sandwiches if you are looking to pick up some lunch while you are around!

11:15 am Palisades Library Baby Lap Time ages birth – 12 months

Tuesday -

10 am Chevy Chase Library Toddler Story Time Stories, songs and so much more ages 1-5

10:30 am National Zoo Bird House Story Time in the Bird Resource Room for special stories featuring our feathered friends. Come for the story time, but stay for the zoo!  There’s so much to see, be sure to make a morning of it!  And, if you are looking for some yummy lunch, check out my favorite Italian Delicatessen Vace just down Connecticut Ave for some to-die-for (and cheap) pizza and sandwiches.

Wednesday -

10 am Cleveland Park Library Terrific Twos Storytime ages 2-3 FYI – Vace is right across the street from the Cleveland Park Library – now you just have to try it!

10:30 am Palisades Library Preschool Story Time ages 2-5

11:15 am Palisades Library Music and Movement Music, dancing and instrument playing ages birth – 5

Thursday -

11 am Chevy Chase Library Toddler Story Time Stories, songs and so much more ages 1-5

10 am Tenley-Friendship Library Bilingual (English/Spanish) Story Time Stories, songs, rhymes and lots of fun with Miss Veronica 2nd and 4th Thursdays only

Friday -

10 am Tenley-Friendship Library Tales for Twos and Three Listen to stories and enjoy music, movement and other fun activities ages 2-3 Whole foods, and a just added Panera Bread are right across the street from the Tenley-Friendship Library.  These are both great spots to grab some snacks or lunch.

11 am Tenley Friendship Library Baby Toddler Lap Time ages birth – 24 months

I realize that a lot of you don’t live near me -  sorry that was so hyper local.  But, I do suggest that you check out your local library and see what they have going.  I am so impressed with the DC Public libraries – they offer so many incredible programs!  And when we were living in Brooklyn, Cameron was a big fan of the story time at Clinton Hill Library.  It’s great that there are so many free options out there to get our little ones interested in books – so be sure to take advantage of them!!

UPDATE! As of this week, story time on Tuesday at the Bird House is on break for the summer, but a new story time is starting up at the Kids Farm.  Check out this post for more information.

Story Time at the DC Public Libraries

Cameron and I have been looking for fun things to do since we’re in DC – and Library story time seemed like a great (free!) idea since he enjoyed it so much at the Clinton Hill Library in Brooklyn.  I checked on the DC public library website to see what kinds of things were going on.  It turns out, there are lots of options, and their website makes it really easy to see what is going on each day of the week at each location.  This is awfully handy when you wake up and it’s pouring rain and you wonder what in the world you are going to do with your busy toddler (like yesterday!)

I live near the Chevy Chase library (5625 Connecticut Ave. N.W DC), and they have two kids of story times there.  There’s a “lap time” for kids up to 24 months, and a “toddler time” for ages 2 and up.  I have checked out both since Cameron is right on the dividing age line.  Both of them were really fun for him – the lap time is more low key with some singing, less moving around, and is a little shorter (30 minutes).  The toddler time had more music (most played from a boom box and you sing along), moving around to the music, more reading of longer books, and lasted longer (45 minutes).  After each session we went to the children’s section to look for books and hang out with the other kids.

Check out the Story time Calender on the DC public Library website to find out what activities are going on at the library near you.

Also I wanted to note that on nice days, it’s fun to check out the small playground behind the library.  It’s made especially for kids age 2-5 which was perfect for us.  Cam had a ball.  It’s a great way to spend a few hours.

Children’s Programs at the Chevy Chase Library

This week I’m heading back to DC with Cameron (for more pool time at the Wilson Aquatic Center!) so I decided to do a little research on the local Library (the Chevy Chase branch located at 5625 Connecticut Avenue) to see what sorts of baby friendly reading programs they have in case we’ve got some spare time.  Here’s what I found listed on the Friends of the Chevy Chase Library web site.  Looks like they’ve got some good offerings!

Chevy Chase Library (via flickr)

Chevy Chase Library (via flickr)

Baby Time!
Thursdays at 9:30 am
Books, Lullabies, and Bonding
A program intended for babies and their caregivers

Story Time!
Thursdays at 10 am
Stories, Songs, and So Much More
A program intended for children ages 2-5 and their caregivers

Family Time!
Wednesdays at 7 pm
Stories, Arts & Crafts, and FUN
A program intended for children and their family members

I don’t think we will make Baby Time on this visit, but we will try to in the future!  I think this just goes to show that you should check with your local library to see what kinds of things they have to offer you and your little one.