Being Savvy: Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers and kids in West La, CA

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Art: Ink and Paper

Inauguration Day: Yes You Can Enjoy this Day with your child

January 20, 2009

This past election, my older daughter was asking a lot of questions. I won't tell you whom she would have voted for if she was old enough, but it is funny to me that she had a firm opinion about the up-for-grabs presidency post. With the inauguration underway today, this past Sunday's NBC Dateline special on Michelle Obama caught my daughter's attention, and my husband was forced to forego  Read more...

Ring in the New Year with Craft Ideas

December 31, 2008

For most New Year�??s eves, my family has been very low-key. Being Korean, New Year�??s Day is a bigger celebration with my whole extended family getting together to eat rice cake soup, play games, and enjoy each other�??s company. Plus, my husband and I figure that it is impossible to get a babysitter for this night anyhow, so we don�??t mind just staying home with the  Read more...

Looking back at 2008

December 30, 2008

What an amazing year it has been at Savvy Source West LA! The site officially launched in May with Nina Moon and she filled the treasure troves with tons of toddler-friendly times. Savvy source West LA has advice on what to do with your kiddies during sunny days , rainy days , weekend days , and special days . Interested in art ? music ? books ? No problem. We've got it covered. Want  Read more...

5 Places to Spark Your Preschooler's Imagination

October 14, 2008

If summer means ample opportunities to explore the world outside, the coming of fall - yes, even in Los Angeles - ushers in a cornucopia, if you will, of the arts and crafts. What it's too cold to play outside, what better than to experiment with paint and clay or curl up in a comfy corner and read a beautifully illusrated picture book? Or even write one? Here are five Los Angeles locations that  Read more...

The Getty Museum - A Preschooler's Guide Part 1

September 24, 2008

You exit the 405 at Getty Center Drive and make your way to the parking entrance where you fork over $10(!!!!) for parking. You enter the underground parking lot and pass several large school buses and your heart sinks as you anticipate large hordes of elementary school students ready to trample on your tiny preschooler. But you continue on (since you already paid the ten bucks, there's no  Read more...

It Takes Two - 5 activities that are more fun with a pal

September 23, 2008

Sometimes planning a playdate seems like more effort than it's worth. After all, it's hard enough to watch your own kid, let alone their friend too. But preschoolers are at that magical age where they're just learning to play with and not just alongside other children, and it's worth it to give them time with other children even outside of preschool. Here are a few better-with-two fun  Read more...

5 perfect preschool playdates

September 09, 2008

Preschool may make it a tad bit easier to set up playdates (no more desperately hoping that another lonely parent will send a friendly smile your way), but there always remains that question - where to go? Here are five perfect places for your kids to play and for grown-ups to bond. Play - I love that Play is set up to facilitate both playdates and one-on-one bonding between parent and child.  Read more...

5 tips for the first day of preschool

September 02, 2008

Whether you're sending your two-year-old to preschool for the very first time or your little one is an old hand at this whole preschool gig, here are a few sweet reminders for the start of the school year. 1. Notes in the lunch box - Even though your preschooler (probably) can't read, a few little silly pictures on post-it notes will put a smile on her face and ease those first-day jitters. 2.  Read more...

Scribble Press - for the pint sized author/illustrator

August 25, 2008

A couple of weeks ago my son and I visited Scribble Press, an entirely new kind of publishing powerhouse. Located in Westside Pavilion, Scribble Press aims to make authors and illustrators out of us all, particularly our little ones. Armed with Developmental Curprints fill-in-the-blank type stories that help children process difficult events and transitions or memorialize everything from  Read more...

Weekend Warriors -- Fines, Fire Trucks and Festivals

August 15, 2008

All of us, I'm sure, have had an overdue library book here or there. But what about those embarrassingly overdue books? Several months, even years, overdue? It's almost easier to just stop going to the library under the weight of that fine, right? Instead, you take advantage of the Los Angeles Public Library's Fine Free Week , which ends this Sunday. And it's still not too late to take  Read more...

Mozart, Moby and Miles -- SummerSounds at the Hollywood Bowl

June 04, 2008

There's nothing quite so romantic or fun as an evening at the Bowl, listening to music under the stars. Kids love the outdoor setting and the endless flights of stairs. And who wouldn't love eating a picnic dinner with hundreds of other Angelenos? Unfortunately, sometimes the evening concerts are just a little too late for our littlest ones. Luckily, every summer the Hollywood Bowl holds  Read more...

Budding Art Critic -- Boone Children's Gallery at the LACMA

June 02, 2008

LACMA is enormous, overwhelming even. Where do you start with a preschooler? Why, Boone Children's Gallery of course! There really isn't much not to love here. The gallery is really more like a gigantic warehouse separated into different art and activity stations by towering shelving units displaying children's artwork. The room's theme, construct, carries throughout each station children can  Read more...

5 Things To Do in Los Angeles on a Rainy Day

May 27, 2008

I know I'm not the only one that often finds myself wringing my hands on the rare rainy day around here. In Los Angeles, even rainy-day stand-bys like the mall are park-like ventures complete with farmer's markets (think: the Grove). So what is there to do in LA on a rainy day? Turns out, plenty. 1. California Science Center With special exhibits geared towards children under 7, the California  Read more...

5 Book Nooks for Tots

May 22, 2008

Some parents want to pass on to their children a love of music. Others long for their children to appreciate art. Others hope their children will love to cook. For me, it's literature. I want my children to delve enthusiastically into an afternoon spent reading, to get lost in an imaginary world (even to mourn a bit when it's over on the last page), to relish the smell of a new book. So  Read more...

Princess for a Day -- So you want to be the Greatest Mom on Earth?

May 19, 2008

Sometimes, girls just wanna have fun. I don't have a daughter (yet!), but I did have The Greatest Mom on Earth who made sure to plan special mother-daughter days where I was basically pampered silly. And although there are tons of places to have fun on a much more modest scale, why not splurge a little? After all, Los Angeles is such a great place to be pampered. Start your day at the Grove  Read more...

The Littlest Picasso - Lakeshore Learning Store

May 14, 2008

There are countless stores around Los Angeles to buy top-quality professional art supplies (for top dollar, of course). There also countless toy stores with an aisle or so devoted to paints and play-doh and Crayola crayons. But I've found no better place to buy kids' arts and craft supplies and educational toys of all kinds, than Lakeshore Learning Store . Located on Venice Boulevard near the  Read more...

More of Our Favorite Activities and Things to Do in west la

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Creatures & Critters:
Our Urban Jungle

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Do, Re, Mi! Places to Hear, Sing & Play a Tune

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Artistic Endeavors:
Our Favorite Art Venues

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Room to Run:
Run, Jump & Wiggle Outdoors

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Rainy & Quiet Days:
Cozy & Crazy Indoor Fun

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A Sense of History:
Our City's Stories

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Splash, Spray, Play! Local Spots to Get Wet

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The Most Fun in Life Is Free!

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The Best of... Our Top Can't-Live-Without Spots

The Voice of Being Savvy west la:
Elise Crane Derby, Susan Choi, Nina Moon

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