March means spring!
Spring means outside!
Outside means FESTIVALS!

It’s time to get outside and breathe some fresh (not frozen) air.

Fill your calendar with these awesome outdoor activities:

March 6, 2015

Squirrels First Friday Fan Fest & Ticketpalooza
5:30PM-8:00PM
The Diamond
In homage to the Squirrels 2015 Free Shirt Fridays, the first 100 fans who purchase tickets during the First Friday Fan Fest & Ticketpalooza on March 6^th will receive a free T-shirt. Happy hour drink specials will be available from 5:30PM-7:30PM just as they will be all season long during Free Shirt Friday games. Fans can also enjoy live music, concession items and a sneak peak at the new upgrades taking place at The Diamond. FREE to attend.

March 14, 2015

Shamrock the Block
11:00 am- 5pm
1301 North Boulevard, Richmond , VA 23230

Shamrock The Block is free to attend, with great food, live music all day and plenty o’ green beverages for you to enjoy safely, so bring a designated driver. Special kids area with face-painting, bounces, games and more. Come early though, as some lines can get long. FREE.

St. Paddy’s Day Palooza  ***THIS EVENT HAS BEEN MOVED TO SUNDAY MARCH 15***
11:00am-5:00pm
Innsbrook Pavilion 4901 Lake Brook Dr.

Last year over 10,000 people attended the family-friendly St. Paddy’s Day Palooza a benefit for St. Baldrick’s Innsbrook is gearing up to help you shake off the winter doldrums and enjoy everything Irish! Families can enjoy live music, Irish dancing, bands, food, inflatable: slide, moon bounce, and obstacle course, ice cream, face painting, a petting zoo, pony rides and a hot air balloon.  Free to attend.

Shockoe Festival
11:00 am – 4:00 pm
17th Street, Richmond, Virginia 23220

Live music, Irish dancing, beer, Irish coffee and food. More information to come.

March 15, 2015

St. Paddy’s Day Palooza 
11:00am-5:00pm
Innsbrook Pavilion 4901 Lake Brook Dr.

Last year over 10,000 people attended the family-friendly St. Paddy’s Day Palooza a benefit for St. Baldrick’s Innsbrook is gearing up to help you shake off the winter doldrums and enjoy everything Irish! Families can enjoy live music, Irish dancing, bands, food, inflatable: slide, moon bounce, and obstacle course, ice cream, face painting, a petting zoo, pony rides and a hot air balloon.  Free to attend.

March 21 & 22, 2015

Church Hill Irish Festival
March 21 10:00 am – 7:00 pm.
March 22 the HillTopper 5K race will begin at 8:00 am. The festival closes at 6:00 pm

In addition to great entertainment, there will be plenty of family fun, including children’s games, a large children’s play area, face painting and Irish-themed crafts. Over thirty Irish vendors will be in attendance. Food and refreshments will also be available. Enjoy wonderful “Irish Lasagna” prepared by the Ladies of St. Patrick’s, “Fish and Chips” and other favorites provided by Rare Olde Times Irish Pub, and many more.
A $5.00 donation will be collected at the gate, proceeds benefit neighborhood causes as well as St. Baldrick’s Society and the historic preservation of St. Patrick’s Church.

March 27-29, 2015

Virginia Horse Festival 
March 27: 1-9 p.m.
March 28: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
March 29: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

A three day festival perfect for horse owners, riders and enthusiasts. Food vendors, storytelling, horse shows and more.  Find out more about this family friendly event here.

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*Oyster Festival Parking – Friday is $10.00 and Saturday is $20.00.

*Oyster Festival Parking – Friday is $10.00 and Saturday is $20.00.

Touch a Truck 
Saturday, October 4, 2014
General Admission: 10:00am – 3:00pm
Richmond International Raceway (RIR) – Main Gate
Kids love trucks! At the 9th Annual Touch a Truck kids will be able to look with their eyes and their hands when they climb and explore big trucks and heavy machinery at theRichmond International Raceway.
RAIN or SHINE

2nd Street Festival
October 4-5
Saturday: 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday: Noon to 6 p.m.
As always, the 2^nd Street Festival takes place the first full weekend in October.  Over the years it has grown to be one of the Mid-Atlantic’s largest street festivals. Nearly 40,000 people visit historic Jackson Ward to reminisce about the days when 2nd Street was the heart and soul of Richmond’s African American community, and was known as “the Harlem of the South.”  The festival features four stages of musical entertainment, along with food vendors, a marketplace, a Kidz Zone programmed by the Children’s Museum of Richmond, and Artists Row featuring Larry “Poncho” Brown, Karen Buster, Debbie Crawford, Greg Paige and Kelvin Henderson.

 Fall Festival Day at Gallmeyer Farms
October 4
The Pumpkin Patch
4506 Millers Lane  Richmond VA 23231

Live music from Nick Smith, Amy Ladd, Southern Comfort Band and Heart of Country with Mark Daniel.  Craft vendors, food vendors & local businesses will be there and activities for the kids includes a spooky hayride, pony rides as well as the hay maze and playground.  Fresh fall vegetables at The Veggie Stand and PICK YOUR OWN and pre picked pumpkins.
Coolers, chairs & picnics welcome. No pets.
Admission is free.

LEGO KidsFest
October 3-5
Greater Richmond Convention Center
Create something amazing (and check out some incredible creations) at the LEGO KidsFest.
Find out more here.

Richmond Folk Festival
October 10 – 12
It’s probably the festival of the season, the Richmond Folk Festival is a three-day event that boasts over 30 performers on seven stages, kids activities, a folk art marketplace and of course, food.  Check out the website for a full line up of a packed weekend schedule.
The 2014 Genworth Financial Family Area is featuring an “Under the Big Top” theme.

Henrico County Harvest Festival
October 18, 2014
12 – 4 pm
Meadow Farm Museum/Crump Park
The whole family will enjoy hand-pressing apples to make cider, dipping string into wax to create your own candle, riding a pony, viewing the vintage carriage display, and meeting sheep at the “Children’s Farm.” Be sure to visit the “Great Pumpkin Patch” where children ages 3-12 can pick out their very own pumpkin to take home! Concessions will be available for purchase. (Rain date: Sun, Oct 19)
Admission is Free

The 22nd Annual Spooky Saturday Fall Festival & Craft Fair
Saturday, October 25th
2-6pm
Mary Munford Elementary School’s grounds.
There will be food and fun for ALL ages, including some brand new games this year: Grab-A-Ghost, Haystack Search and back by popular demand, the mechanical bull!

Scotts Addition Pumpkin Festival (and movie night)
Saturday October 25, 2014
2-6pm.
Immediately followed by Family Movie Night at 6pm.
Bigger and better this year with more space and more activities for the entire family. Including Family Movie Night showing It’s Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and Monsters Inc. hosted by movin’ mania at the Bon Secours Redskins Training Camp beginning at 6pm.  Kids activities, foods and beer can be purchased with tickets. 1 ticket is $1.

Curious George’s Halloween BooFEST
Sunday, October 26 from 1:00-4:00 p.m.
PBS KIDS will premiere the first ever Curious George Halloween special – Curious George: A Halloween Boo Fest and WCVE and Curious George himself are inviting you to join in the celebration! Find out more here.

Did we miss a great family friendly festival?  Email us the details: Sarah@Richmondmom.com

Thankfully, we had the chance to chat with two amazing women on Collegiate School’s Upper School faculty…RichmondMoms who also happen to be a part of the RVA MakerFest Leadership Team, Allen Chamberlain [below left] and Melanie Barker [below right]. Here are their first-hand insights on what’s happening this Saturday from 10am-5pm at the Science Museum of Virginia…

So what IS RVA MakerFest?

Allen: The RVA MakerFest is part science fair, part shop class, part idea incubator, part entertainment, part education. To me, the real spirit of the MakerFest is what happens when you bring sixty-five talented makers together with an eager audience of participants. It’s that perfect recipe: 1. Start with conversation and inspiration. 2. Add learning something new. 3. Top it off by heading home excited about your city and what you’re going to make next!

What can visitors expect?

Melanie: Visitors can expect a little bit of everything: noise, fire, lasers, a steamroller, robots, potters, a muralist…the RVA MakerFest is a smorgasbord!  Many of the makers will offer demonstrations of their work.  RVA MakerFest guests will have many opportunities to make things themselves. You may not be able to shape your own sword at the blacksmith’s forge, but perhaps you can tie-dye a t-shirt with 2 Dye 4 or make your own RVA MakerFest passport with RVA Maker Guild.

Some makers will also be selling their wares.  Not only will you have the opportunity to buy some really beautiful, carefully crafted things, but you’ll also have the chance to talk to the people that make those things about their inspiration and process.

 ‘Fess up! What are you two most excited to see or do?

Allen: The first thing I want to do is make an LED throwie and join others in lighting up the LOVE sign at the front of the Science Museum. By the end of the Fest, those letters will be so bright you just might be able to see them from outer space!

Melanie: Hack.RVA, the local hackerspace, is offering soldering workshops.  Soldering is essential for so many electronics projects, but it’s intimidating if one has never soldered before. It’s empowering to see LEDs light up or motors run as a result of the awesome soldering you’ve done.

What made you decide YOU personally needed to be involved in the organization of the RVA MakerFest?

Melanie: I really believe in learning by doing. The experience of renovating my house [with my father] shaped some of my philosophies as a librarian [at Collegiate School]. A fellow independent school librarian once said it best when she said that libraries have always been a place for inquiry. Making things and doing things are forms of inquiry. Nurturing curious spirits is important to me as a librarian and as the mom of an almost-five-year-old.

Allen: In my work as a teacher and librarian at Collegiate, I like to have fun. It’s a good day when my students and I are surprised by something playful or challenging. When a student says, ‘I’ve got a different idea for that project assignment,’ I’m delighted. Joining the MakerFest Leadership Committee had that kind of feel—let’s do something different. I’m all in when an invitation like that comes my way. It was also an opportunity to be part of a brand new celebration of Richmond, to give a gift to the city I love, a city that has been part of my life for the past twenty-eight years.

What is the ultimate goal of the event?

Melanie: The goal of RVA MakerFest is to not only show off the talents of the city’s makers, but to give them a place to really show what goes into their work and projects.  The Fest definitely celebrates the planning, sweat, and iteration that go into making things.

Allen: The ultimate goal—short and sweet—bringing more people into the vibrant RVA maker community and celebrating the kind of creative energy that fuels our city.

Why should families attend together?

Melanie:  There’s going to be something for everyone at the RVA MakerFest. My husband and I took my four-year-old son to the Charlottesville MakerFaire last fall.  We had the best time driving robots, building wooden toy trucks, and contributing to a community-built paper rollercoaster.  The RVA MakerFest is a chance for families to get their hands on tools and toys they may not have ever considered.

Allen: It’s kind of a sentimental reason, but some of the happiest times I had with my family growing up and with my daughter all involved making—whether it was a dewberry cobbler or carving the Parthenon out of an Ivory Soap bar for a school project or a building a treehouse or molding a paper mache dog for a fourth grade book report. There’s something about being deeply engaged in a project, figuring it out, and celebrating when you step back and say, ‘I made that!’ RVA MakerFest offers families many possibilities for times like these. The MakerFest guarantees visitors will be awestruck by the creativity of local makers and be inspired to try something new.

Mark your calendars, and make a point to enjoy RVA MakerFest!

Learn more about RVA’s participating makers at RVAMakerFest.com — and build your excitement for the event by watching the RVA MakerFest documentary series “Made in RVA.”

RVA MakerFest
September 27, 2014
Science Museum of Virginia
2500 W Broad St, Richmond, VA 23220, USA
10AM to 5PM
Admission is FREE

Kids will be able to explore tractors, backhoes, emergency responders, tractor trailers, utility trucks, and even a helicopter. Pretty cool for adults, and practically mind-blowing for kids.
In addition to all the truck-love, Touch a Truck will feature area mascots, special performances, crafts, food trucks (of course), face painting, bounce castles, and games.

Who knows, you might find yourself in awe along with the kids.

The annual event is a fundraiser for the Junior League of Richmond
The Junior League of Richmond is an organization of women committed to the mission of promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.

Touch a Truck Tickets
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Richmond International Raceway (RIR) – Main Gate
600 East Laburnum Avenue, Richmond, Virginia
General Admission: 10:00am – 3:00pm
RAIN or SHINE

Saturday, September 20, 2014
10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Benefiting VCU student scholarships and over 50 area charities
The festival is FREE & open to the public.
See website for individual run costs.

The Broad Street Mile
September 20
Part street festival part race, VCU is taking over Broad Street (you, know, even more than usual).
The free festival will feature live music, food trucks, local vendors, kids activities and a new RVA Sports Zone featuring the Richmond Flying Squirrels and other local professional sports teams.

St. Benedict Oktoberfest
Friday, September 19, 4pm-11pm
Saturday, September 20, 11am-11pm
Sunday, September 21, 12p-6pm
Break out your favorite lederhosen and head over to the St. Benedict Oktoberfest for all things German.Beer and brats for the grown ups and a special Kinder Meal, for the kids (which includes a Kinderdog, drink, and apple sauce, all served in an Alpine Hat)!  Kids area will have a moonbounce as well as other kid focused activities.
All proceeds from Oktoberfest are used to support Catholic education at the Catholic Schools historically associated with Saint Benedict Parish. Admission is Free.

Diggity Fest
Sunday, September 21st from noon til 5:00
Westchester Commons
FREE
Bring the entire family, blankets and lawn chairs and get ready for the most DIGGITY DAY of the year.
diggityFEST is Central Virginia’s first and ONLY all kids music festival.  In addition to a featured performance by the Diggity Dudes, a Richmond-based, nationally touring “kids band”, the festival also will include other national family music favorites and loads to do.  All proceeds from diggityFEST go to support Connor’s Heroes, which supports families of children cancer patients and survivors.

RVA MakerFest
September 27, 2014 10AM to 5PM
Science Museum of Virginia
Admission is FREE
Read all about this awesome family friendly festival  and an interview with the Richmondmoms who to it started here.

Chesterfest
September 27, 10am – 5pm
Chester Village Green
The KidZone at Chesterfest includes a petting zoo, face painting, carnival games, inflatables, activities and an art station as well as a “kids pit stop” where nursing mamas can take a load off to feed their babies, booboos can get treated and diapers can be fresh again.

Happy Camper Fest
September 28, 12 – 5:30pm
Hardywood Brewery
FREE
celebrating all things happy in Richmond at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, with the space of Hardywood’s grounds to spread out and dance around. Happy Camper Fest is outside with local food trucks, artists, vendors, and great music.  Family friendly businesses will be participating.  Pets are welcome too!

10th Annual Italian Street Festival
17th Street Farmers’ Market
Sept 27, 2014 11am – 8pm
Sept 28, 2014 11am – 6pm

Richmond’s 17th Street Market will be magically transformed into an authentic Italian village for this year’s 10th Annual Italian Festival. Get ready for the sights, sounds and aromas of the Italian countryside – and a chance to experience what Italian’s call “la dolce vita”, the sweet life.
A children’s area will have live entertainment including a clown, face painting and magic as well as activities and a bouncy house.
$5 donation, kids under 6 free

Over 35 Richmond area food trucks will offer just about anything your taste buds desire with a wide variety of cuisines, deserts, and coffees.  Wash it down with your favorite local craft beers, ciders, Virginia wines, meet some local businesses and charities, and pick up a few handmade arts and crafts.

“Our goal is to create a family friendly event that we can recreate 2-3 times a year, allowing people of the Richmond area to see what’s new and exciting in the regarding food, music, and local business,” says Bobby Wilcox with the VMRCE.

It’s not a proper festival rodeo without music, “American Idol” alum Gedeon Luke will be there with his band Gedeon Luke & the People as well as Richmond favorites Cosby, Everwilde and more.

Admission for the Central Virginia Food Truck Rodeo is free.  Everyone is welcome to bring a blanket or lawn chair for comfort, however, please no coolers, baskets, knapsacks, or pets.

To keep up to date on the Rodeo, check out their website here or find them on Facebook

The Central Virginia Food Truck Rodeo
Chesterfield Towne Center
Sunday, September 14
12pm – 7pm

Nothing goes better with BBQ than a delicious cold local craft beer… and summer isn’t really summer without a barbecue (and beer) which kinda makes the RVA Brew-B-Q the ultimate celebration of summer (and beer).

All 11 Richmond area breweries are going to there to compliment almost any type of barbecue you can imagine from some of central Virginia’s most loved BBQ experts. There will also be live music and an expanded produce & crafts marketplace.

From the Enrichmond website:
RVA Brew B Q features some of the region’s most loved barbeque producers, from the well-known, to the whole-in-the-wall weekend barbeque warriors, you’ll be able to taste it all. After enjoying choices pulled, minced, smoked, saucy, vinegar-based, sweet, sandwiches, plates and more, wash down your favorite bites with cold suds from more than 15 local craft breweries, including Legend, Hardywood, Center of the Universe and more!

The RVA Brew-B-Q is free to attend. Food and beverages available for purchase. Beer samples $2.00 each, full pours are $6.00.

Find the band line up on the Facebook Event Page

3rd RVA Brew-B-Q
Sunday,  August 17 12-5pm
17th Street Farmers’ Market
100 N 17th St, Richmond, Virginia 23219

All proceeds benefit the Enrichmond Foundation