Memorial Day Play List and Other Spring Adventures

Memorial Day weekend -- when many sprayparks and outdoor pools open and the festival season officially begins with Northwest Folklife -- is the perfect time to have a new family adventure, from tidepooling to riding a steam train to honoring service men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

Also see our our calendar for more long-weekend fun!

Rock on

- It's Northwest Folklife time! Seattle Center's huge, annual Memorial Day festival is free and packed with kid fun. This handy link goes to the festival's family activities, including singalongs, storytelling, a kindie showcase on Monday (sponsored by ParentMap!), an instrument petting zoo, a family band showcase, family dances, buskers galore, and on and on.

Play with water

- Memorial Day weekend is the opening weekend for many Seattle spray parks; check out the one-year-old spraypads at Northacres Park or Jefferson Park in South Seattle.

- Heated outdoor pools are beginning to open. West Seattle's Colman Pool (newly renovated last year) re-opens over the weekend. On Friday evening, head to Magnolia's wonderful outdoor pool for some family fun time.

- It's a low-tide weekend -- go tidepooling with people in the know, Seattle Aquarium naturalists, at many area beaches (Saturday-Tuesday) or at Edmonds' Marina Beach (Saturday-Sunday).

- Teach your kids to fish (or yourself) and, in the process, a bit about patience, at one of these local fishing spots.

Zoos, dinos and other science-y fun

- Visit some of the dozens of zoo babies (sloth bears, lions, bison, porcupette) before they start growing up, or visit farm animals at these local petting zoos.

- After a visit to the tigers and meerkats at Point Defiance, stop by Fort Nisqually to watch historic woodworking in action, through its summer Crafts of the Past programs.

- See the aquatic dinosaurs exhibit at Gig Harbor's Harbor History Museum, the first museum in the Northwest to show the collection, including a 45-foot fossil cast.

- Catch the Burke Museum's Plastics Unwrapped exhibit in its last weekend.

 

Get out and active

- Skiing over Memorial Day? Yep, Crystal has weekend skiing, is reporting new snow, and tickets are only $35 ($5 for kids).

- Think a hike involves lots of work and driving? Check out one of these close-in secret urban hikes, perfect for half a day, or grab a kite and head to one of these perfect kite-flying hills.

- Go on a family bike ride; Bicycle Sunday on Lake Washington Boulevard is a great option, or one of these awesome scoot-bike bike paths.

- Stay home and reinvent your backyard play space with these 10 nifty ideas.

Get artsy

- Fantasy fans in the house? Check out EMP's new-ish exhibit.

- See one of these compelling family films at the Seattle International Film Festival (Friday-Sunday).

- Visit Tacoma Art Museum's Eric Carle show before it leaves in July. Showcasing 60 years of the beloved artist's work, is truly designed to engage all ages. Make a day of it in Tacoma!

- Watch a production of the musical Narnia in a spot that sounds ideal: the 80-year-old wooded amphitheater at Kitsap Forest Theater.

 

Honor Memorial Day

- On Monday, celebrate Memorial Day at the Museum of Flight with a stirring concert by the Boeing Employees Concert Band.

- Another Memorial weekend tradition: Throughout the weekend, the Museum of Flight will also be hosting tours and rides of B-17 Bombers.

- Attend a ceremony at Joint Base Fort Lewis-McChord, with an army band and a 21-gun salute (May 27, 11:30-12:30).

-  Young kids will enjoy Memorial Day activities at the Children's Museum, including poppy-making and a Memorial Day collage.

 

Have a quick road trip

- Go on a last-minute weekend trip to Vancouver, B.C.  -- where you can eat exotic Asian food, visit China via Richmond, bike around downtown, and see a not-to-miss exhibit of comics genius Art Spiegelman.

- Not quite ready for camping? Try one of these affordable rustic retreats in Washington State.

- Take one of these four fantastic scenic drives in Washington State.

- Connect with native history by visiting the Hibulb Cultural Center & Natural History Preserve, just 45 minutes north of Seattle, with a replica of a longhouse, canoes, native crafts and a boarding-school exhibit of particular interest to kids.

 

Elisa Murray is ParentMap's Out + About editor. This article was originally written in April 2012, and updated in May 2013.