(cool) picks for the weekend: week 3

Looking for fun things to do this weekend with your kids? Check out this weekend's (cool) picks!
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Get Your Bacchus on at Great Grapes! Wine, Art and Food Festival in Annapolis
Ok. So this might not exactly be a 'nearly free' event - - but it IS free for your kids under 12 and promises to be a Foodie Heaven! If you're thinking that wine and tots aren't simpatico, you should reconsider. Held at the Annapolis Fair Grounds from 12-6 on Saturday and Sunday, Great Grapes! promises fabulous food, more than 300 wines and 40 beers to sample, and a fantastic kids' playground area. We're kind of ecstatic that one of our favorite vineyards, Hogue, will be there! There will be live music on the mainstage, 60 craft vendors, organic farm produce and cooking/wine pairing demos onsite. Parking is FREE, too! Tickets for adults are $20/pp in advance or $25/pp at the event.

2010 Montgomery County Farm Tour and Harvest Sale
Have a kiddo dying to see a tractor up close? Or want to take your family on a pick-your-own berries excursion this weekend? Try the 2010 Montgomery County Farm Tour and Harvest Sale! All of the farms on the tour seem to be capitalizing on the fun. Butler's Orchard is offering hayrides, giant slides, a moonbounce, pedal tractors and produce specials. Rock Hill Orchard will have hayrides drawn by antique tractors and ice cream sundaes topped with their own juicy peaches. Visit the Farm Tour website for more info and a list of participating farms.

Take Your Tot to a Puppet Show!
The Puppet Co. Playhouse in Glen Echo Maryland has special puppet shows for the 0-4 crowd. Their Tiny Tots programs are shorter, the lights stay on, the doors stay open and the show is set up on the floor! This Saturday at 10:00 AM, take your tot to see their Dragon Feathers tot production! Tickets are only $5/pp (including babes in arms). Tickets are available online.

Magical Afternoon Tea Party at the Kennedy Center
Ok, again, not-so-free. But how cool? Mary Poppins is floating into The Kennedy Center this summer and in honor of the charmed caretaker, the KC Café is hosting a Magical Afternoon Tea Party after every matinee performance. Starting on Saturday, July 3rd through August 22nd, the KC Café will welcome youngsters for a late afternoon tea with cupcake decorating, mini-sandwiches, “a spoon full of sugar”, and a visit by a chim chim-in-ey chimney sweep. The tea party will take place from 4:15 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. and is priced at $25 for children and $29 for adults. Space is limited and reservations are required. To make reservations please contact Jeff Wingate at 202-416-8559. Download the event flyer.

Bubble Days at the Maryland Science Center
Join the Maryland Science Center for their 5th Annual Bubble Days! The fun will be bubbling up all over the building—and outside too as they celebrate the art and science of bubbles. Their feature event is internationally famous bubble artist Casey Carle who performs his bubbly brand of humor and artistry in BUBBLEMANIA. They promise you'll be amazed at what Casey can do with seemingly ordinary soap bubbles. Performances on the Atrium Stage at Noon, 2:00, and 4:00. Check out the other events on their website! FREE with paid Science Center admission.

Note: All images from featured event websites.