Each engaging, educational Abrakadoodle art workshop, camp, or party highlights a different artist - from Old Masters to Pop icons - and introduces children to different materials and art-making techniques.

Lessons never repeat, and each child leaves each one with a new piece of framed art. Classes are held at locations throughout the metro area, and for different age groups. Get contact information for your closest franchisee from the corporate website.

Birthday parties: Abrakadoodle books parties at its Maple Grove studio and kiddywampus in Edina, for children ages three through 12...and can also bring the party to the site of your choice. Select an art activity; materials and a teacher are provided. Face painting and party favors are available for an additional fee.

Summer camps: Full-day and half-day art camps are offered throughout the metro area for ages three through 12, in partnership with Crayola. Children are grouped by age and introduced to a wide variety of materials and techniques, including digital photography, mosaics, collage, and paint.

Each engaging, educational Abrakadoodle art workshop, camp, or party highlights a different artist - from Old Masters to Pop icons - and introduces children to different materials and art-making techniques.

Lessons never repeat, and each child leaves each one with a new piece of framed art. Classes are held at locations throughout the metro area, and for different age groups. Get contact information for your closest franchisee from the corporate website.

Birthday parties: Abrakadoodle books parties at its Maple Grove studio and kiddywampus in Edina, for children ages three through 12...and can also bring the party to the site of your choice. Select an art activity; materials and a teacher are provided. Face painting and party favors are available for an additional fee.

Summer camps: Full-day and half-day art camps are offered throughout the metro area for ages three through 12, in partnership with Crayola. Children are grouped by age and introduced to a wide variety of materials and techniques, including digital photography, mosaics, collage, and paint.

Each engaging, educational Abrakadoodle art workshop, camp, or party highlights a different artist - from Old Masters to Pop icons - and introduces children to different materials and art-making techniques.

Lessons never repeat, and each child leaves each one with a new piece of framed art. Classes are held at locations throughout the metro area, and for different age groups. Get contact information for your closest franchisee from the corporate website.

Birthday parties: Abrakadoodle books parties at its Maple Grove studio and kiddywampus in Edina, for children ages three through 12...and can also bring the party to the site of your choice. Select an art activity; materials and a teacher are provided. Face painting and party favors are available for an additional fee.

Summer camps: Full-day and half-day art camps are offered throughout the metro area for ages three through 12, in partnership with Crayola. Children are grouped by age and introduced to a wide variety of materials and techniques, including digital photography, mosaics, collage, and paint.

Teens in grades six to 12 have exclusive reign over the Apple Valley Teen Center, a unique facility managed by Apple Valley Parks & Recreation where kids can socialize, dance, play, and hangout.

The center features a big screen TV and over 100 movies, ping pong, board games, Wii, X-Box 360, Playstation 2, Guitar Hero, karaoke, and live music on select weekends. Basketball and tennis courts, a seasonal skate park, and the Apple Valley Family Aquatic Center are all nearby. The center a monthly dance and social for teens with disabilities, and center hours are extended on school release days.

Parties: Kids in grades six to 12 can decorate the space and bring in food and cake to celebrate their birthdays with friends, using the facility's equipment free of charge. Parents are welcome to help with set up and clean up; all guests must be in grades six to 12. Call 952.953.2385 to schedule a party.

Teens in grades six to 12 have exclusive reign over the Apple Valley Teen Center, a unique facility managed by Apple Valley Parks & Recreation where kids can socialize, dance, play, and hangout.

The center features a big screen TV and over 100 movies, ping pong, board games, Wii, X-Box 360, Playstation 2, Guitar Hero, karaoke, and live music on select weekends. Basketball and tennis courts, a seasonal skate park, and the Apple Valley Family Aquatic Center are all nearby. The center a monthly dance and social for teens with disabilities, and center hours are extended on school release days.

Parties: Kids in grades six to 12 can decorate the space and bring in food and cake to celebrate their birthdays with friends, using the facility's equipment free of charge. Parents are welcome to help with set up and clean up; all guests must be in grades six to 12. Call 952.953.2385 to schedule a party.

Located adjacent to the Armatage School, this park has a wide range of features to appeal to all ages: there's a large, colorful playground with swings, slides, and climbing structures for toddlers to gradeschoolers; restrooms and drinking fountain near the playground; football, baseball, soccer, hockey, and tennis areas; a picnic area; a seasonal wading pool; and a Skate Park for skateboarders, which is a big draw for teens.

The Recreation Center hosts classes and community events throughout the year, in addition to a summer schedule of camps and workshops. Call the park for current offerings, or get general information from the Park Board. There is also a full kitchen on-site, and meeting rooms can be rented for parties.

Speaking of parties, the park is also the site of Garden Party, an 18-foot high bronze sculpture that serves as the gateway to the Armatage neighborhood!

Adults and kids - even babies! - can explore and make art in innovative programs for all levels of experience. Create with drawing and painting materials, metal, fabric, clay, and more. ArtiCulture's new site also features retail space, with a store selling art supplies and the work of local artists.

Classes: ArtiCulture offers a wide array of classes for all ages, including the unique parent/child Art Sprouts program for tots as young as 12 months, themed family workshops throughout the year, and special school release day offerings that even cover that hard-to-fill remainder of the week after the last day of school in June!

Summer Camps: Themed half-day and full-day offerings for kids ages four and up, some of which incorporate drama, movement, or foreign culture and history. Camps priced about $100/half-day; $225/full-day.
Extended-day care is available for an additional fee.

Parties: Customized offerings for birthdays, scout and youth group meetings, and other events. Call for more information.

Membership: $40/Household. Benefits include a 15% discount on class and camp fees.

Donations: As a non-profit, ArtiCulture welcomes donations of time, skills, money, and materials. Check out the wish list to see if you can help.

ArtScraps - the reuse store and gallery run by ArtStart - turns one man's garbage into another man's treasure. ArtScraps works with businesses to keep remnants, overstock materials, and factory rejects out of landfills, then it sells the salvaged materials to schools, parents, and daycare centers.

The helpful, creative staff offers ideas for using the inexpensive goodies, which might, at any given time, include adhesive backed colored paper, plastic bottles, and feathers. The selection changes often. The store offers themed art-making workshops on Saturdays for kids and families throughout the year. Many of the materials are also used also by ArtStart's summer campers.

Parties: Birthdays at ArtScraps (best for ages five and up; maximum of 10 guests) cost $120 for a two-hour party which includes scrap materials for invitations, an artist-led themed art project, and treat bags from the store's wares for each guest. Parties are held at a long table on one side of the store and can be scheduled on Saturdays and Sundays; book three weeks in advance. A fridge is available for cake and treats. Sample themes include bookmaking, outer space, treasure boxes, and masks.

Camps: ArtStart offers themed, reasonably-priced summer and school release day camps that spotlight the art and culture of individual countries and regions. Visit the website for details.

Audubon Park boasts a playground, ball fields, and tennis and basketball courts, as well as shady paths and a volunteer-maintained garden. In winter, visitors can enjoy a sledding hill; in summer, a wading pool.

The Audubon Recreation Center has a lounge with a fireplace, and craft and meeting rooms that can be rented for parties (and an on-site kitchen). The center hosts recreational and community programming sponsored by the Park Board throughout the year. Summer hours: Mon-Thu 12n-9pm; Fri 12n-5pm. School year hours: Mon & Wed 2pm-9pm; Tue & Thu 1pm-9pm; Fri 2pm-8pm; Sat 10am-4pm.

It's meant as nothing but a compliment to say that Auntie Em's is a lot like a little Wild Rumpus.

It's got the books - gobs of them - new releases, board books, young adult titles, classics. Then there are the animals, including fish, birds, and a bearded dragon. It's even got its own interesting ceiling art, with the ductwork transformed into a store-long colorful caterpillar. (Or is it a bookworm?) A selection of interesting gifts rounds out the offerings.

What this place has that its venerable counterpart doesn't is a cafe area, where coffee drinks, smoothies, bagels, and baked goods are served. Enjoy them at the picnic table in the middle of the stacks. The prices are very reasonable, so parents can cave on kids' requests without breaking the bank - or, sometimes, even a dollar bill! It's good to keep in mind when coming in for one of Auntie Em's popular free storytimes.

The large restroom at the back of the store has a changing table.

Parties: Princess, pirate, and custom-themed packages for five to 12 people (Ages four to seven; $15/person) include storytime, a craft activity, cake, and beverages. Each guest also selects a book from a pre-determined selection to take home.

Give a dull day a jolt with a visit to the electrifying Bakken Museum & Library, located in an intriguing Tudor mansion just like the ones in spooky old Vincent Price films. Home to thousands of rare books and scientific instruments relating to the role of electricity and magnetism in life and medicine, The Bakken was founded by Earl E. Bakken, inventor of the first transistorized cardiac pacemaker.

The Bakken is an independent, nonprofit educational institution and hosts many hands-on learning events and exhibitions throughout the year, including weekly Family Science Saturdays and multi-session Saturday classes for budding inventors.

Its small museum store carries a bright and shiny array of unique toys and games. Mini-scientists are sure gravitate toward the wide selection of home experiment kits.

Parties: Available during Family Science Saturdays for $100, which includes use of kitchen space and a 2.5-hour room rental (10am-1pm or 2pm-5pm). Call 612.926.3878, ext. 200, well in advance to book.

Summer Camps: Offered weekly from late-June through August for ages seven through 14, with the largest selection of programming for kids entering grades four to six. Co-ed and girls-only options are sometimes offered as well. Expect to pay about $150/week (half-day) to $275/week (full-day); scholarships are available for those who qualify.

Bead Monkey - with locations in family-friendly neighborhoods in both Minneapolis and St. Paul - offers a seemingly infinite variety of beads in many materials from all over the world, hundreds of small charms, craft books, an extensive selection of tools and supplies, and an array of finished jewelry pieces.

Parties: Suitable for ages eight and up, parties here cost $90 for six guests, and $15 each additional guest, to a maximum of ten. Each guest makes a beaded necklace and bracelet during the 90-minute party, and the fee includes supplies and guidance from an instructor. Parents are welcome, but not required, to be on-site.

Classes: A quarterly newsletter, available online, lists offerings for beginners as well as advanced beaders.

Bead Monkey - with locations in family-friendly neighborhoods in both Minneapolis and St. Paul - offers a seemingly infinite variety of beads in many materials from all over the world, hundreds of small charms, craft books, an extensive selection of tools and supplies, and an array of finished jewelry pieces.

Parties: Suitable for ages eight and up, parties here cost $90 for six guests, and $15 each additional guest, to a maximum of ten. Each guest makes a beaded necklace and bracelet during the 90-minute party, and the fee includes supplies and guidance from an instructor. Parents are welcome, but not required, to be on-site.

Classes: A quarterly newsletter, available online, lists offerings for beginners as well as advanced beaders.

This small, friendly shop, located around the corner from Auntie Em's Books, offers a wide array of beads, charms, findings, and beading supplies, including unique beads from around the world in a variety of materials.

Classes: Kids ages 15 and up are welcome to attend classes at Beadhive throughout the year. Other offerings are for younger children, or parent-child pairs. Beaders who sign up for three classes in a six-month period get their fourth class free. Register in advance in person or by phone.

Birthday parties: Two-hours of beading fun are offered in Beadhive's basement party room for kids ages seven to 15. An instructor guides the guests through two projects, typically a bracelet and necklace fashioned from memory wire and beads. Time is also alloted for opening presents, socializing, and refreshments. Parents are welcome to bring in cake and beverages; there's a small fridge on-site. Cost: $12/child; six-guest minimum; project supplies and two hours in party room included.

The Bell Museum's exhibits encourage exploration, and convey the wonder and excitement of nature, science, research, and conservation. No flashy bells-and-whistles in the halls of this 130-year-old institution, just beautifully executed displays that harken back to a simpler era. With plans underway to move to a new and larger site on the Saint Paul campus of the University of Minnesota in 2009, time is running out for families to enjoy this more intimate incarnation of the museum.

Its renowned diorama halls span two floors, with all of Minnesota's habitats, animal life, and seasons represented - from the big woods to the Great Lakes to the prairies, and even a mushy carpet "bog" kids can squish across. Each scene is so detailed, there is always something new to discover, and the information provided with the displays is presented in a fun, easily-digested format. The West Gallery showcases temporary exhibits of artwork, but the dioramas themselves, painstakingly created from the 1920s to 1940s, are also works of art.

Kids gravitate to the Touch and See Room, the first of its kind in the country, to get up close and personal with the natural world by touching turtles, peeking inside animal skulls, and handling pelts and other objects.

The Bell Auditorium, the on-site cinema screening non-fiction works, sometimes runs films suitable for children, such as documentaries exploring wildlife or environmental issues.

Nature Play is the museum's series of themed family workshops, held the second Saturday of each month from 1pm-3pm for ages four and up. It's offered free with museum admission. Nature Tots, the museum's program for toddlers and preschoolers, is also free with admission, but advance registation is required. That program takes place the first Thursday of each month, from 9:30am-11am.

Family membership is $45/year and includes free admission as well as discounts on events, camps, and parties.

Parties: Starting at $125 for two hours and up to 12 guests, parties the Bell Museum include a tour and gallery games led by a knowledgeable, enthusiastic guide, usually a U of M science or education student. The museum will supply cake, treat bags and pizza for an additional charge; a fridge and freezer are available if you bring your own. The deluxe party option, available only on Sundays for $200 for up to 12 guests, includes an extra hour during which kids make nature print t-shirts. Book at least two weeks in advance.

Tours: Available for families, scouts and youth groups. Call 612.626.9660 for reservations.

Summer Camps: Check the website for a complete list of offerings.

Ben & Jerry's scoop shops use the freshest ingredients in their delicious ice cream, frozen yogurt, smoothies, and sorbet. Silly flavor names like Chunky Monkey and Apple-y Ever After make them as much fun to ask for as they are to eat! Cakes can be made to order, and a freezer is stocked with packaged treats.

Be sure to stop by on the designated day in April for "Free Cone Day," a tradition at Ben & Jerry's stores for over 25 years. No purchase necessary!

Ben & Jerry's scoop shops use the freshest ingredients in their delicious ice cream, frozen yogurt, smoothies, and sorbet. Silly flavor names like Chunky Monkey and Apple-y Ever After make them as much fun to ask for as they are to eat! Cakes can be made to order, and a freezer is stocked with packaged treats.

Be sure to stop by on the designated day in April for "Free Cone Day," a tradition at Ben & Jerry's stores for over 25 years. No purchase necessary!

Bielenberg Sports Center houses two indoor ice rinks, a track, and a multipurpose room that can be rented for parties. Skate rental ($2) and sharpening ($3.50) are offered on-site. Check the website for monthly calendars listing open skate sessions ($3.50/person).

Beyond the field house, the center has more than a dozen fields for softball, baseball, soccer, and football, as well as picnic tables, a volleyball court, a playground, and two miles of trails.

Lessons: Drop-in skating lessons are offered, along with family soccer programs, and other leagues. The track can also be used for walking and running during open sessions; seven laps equals a mile (Adults $2; Children $0.50).

Parties: Rent the multipurpose room for three hours (Resident $30; Non-resident $40), or rent rink time ($140-$170/hour) or the entire field house ($130-$170/hour). Call 651.714.3740 to reserve.

Bielenberg Sports Center houses two indoor ice rinks, a track, and a multipurpose room that can be rented for parties. Skate rental ($2) and sharpening ($3.50) are offered on-site. Check the website for monthly calendars listing open skate sessions ($3.50/person).

Beyond the field house, the center has more than a dozen fields for softball, baseball, soccer, and football, as well as picnic tables, a volleyball court, a playground, and two miles of trails.

Lessons: Drop-in skating lessons are offered, along with family soccer programs, and other leagues. The track can also be used for walking and running during open sessions; seven laps equals a mile (Adults $2; Children $0.50).

Parties: Rent the multipurpose room for three hours (Resident $30; Non-resident $40), or rent rink time ($140-$170/hour) or the entire field house ($130-$170/hour). Call 651.714.3740 to reserve.

Bielenberg Sports Center houses two indoor ice rinks, a track, and a multipurpose room that can be rented for parties. Skate rental ($2) and sharpening ($3.50) are offered on-site. Check the website for monthly calendars listing open skate sessions ($3.50/person).

Beyond the field house, the center has more than a dozen fields for softball, baseball, soccer, and football, as well as picnic tables, a volleyball court, a playground, and two miles of trails.

Lessons: Drop-in skating lessons are offered, along with family soccer programs, and other leagues. The track can also be used for walking and running during open sessions; seven laps equals a mile (Adults $2; Children $0.50).

Parties: Rent the multipurpose room for three hours (Resident $30; Non-resident $40), or rent rink time ($140-$170/hour) or the entire field house ($130-$170/hour). Call 651.714.3740 to reserve.

The Blaisdell Y offers free childcare (see website for schedule), swimming lessons for kids as young as six months old, gymnasium activities including indoor sports and fitness classes for kids and adults, and youth development programs such as Summer Uproar, which provides spirited activities, growth opportunities, and field trips for kids ages 11 to 13.

Book a gym or pool party by calling membership director Matt Tompkins at 612.827.5401.

Bottineau Park packs a lot into two square blocks, including playing fields, volleyball and basketball courts, a picnic area and playground, a wading pool, and a new skate park. Safety equipment and skateboards are available for checkout at the park - at no charge - for ages eight and up, with prior registration.

The recreation center complex, the first of its kind in the Minneapolis park system, includes a field house with gymnasium and indoor jogging and walking paths, and a kitchen and meeting rooms available for party rentals. The center is also a Rec Plus site, offering child care before and after school, and 6am-6pm in the summer. Rec center hours (apart from Rec Plus): Summer, Mon-Thu 12n-8pm; Fri 12n-6pm. School year, Mon-Fri 1pm-9pm; Sat 11am-3pm.

This 12-acre gem of a park nestled in the quiet, residential Longfellow neighborhood offers something for everyone in the family, and is well-worth seeking out.

The innovative playground puts a new spin - literally! - on those all-too-familiar modular play structures, with a tall, colorful roped climbing apparatus, challenging spinning and bouncing ride-ons, and slides and tunnels that would look right at home at the Walker Art Center. The sections for older and younger children are separated by a picnic area with kid-sized tables and several fixed and rocking park benches from which parents can keep an eye on kids on either side - or both at once! Families can also picnic on the grass.

Baseball, softball, soccer, hockey, and tennis players will find fields to use, and tiny tots can cool off in the summer in a circular zero-depth-entry wading pool. A skateboard park, opened in June 2006, gives teens a corner of the park to call their own.

The Recreation Center, a beautiful bright-red barn-style building, houses rooms that can be rented for parties, a full kitchen, and lots of space for the Rec Plus, sports, and enrichment programming offered here through the Minneapolis parks department.

The Brooklyn Park Community Activity Center hosts family-friendly events throughout the year, and offers hockey and skating in a two-rink ice arena that seats 1,200. The center also boasts an exercise room and running track, concession stands, and fitness classes. A public skate park on the grounds is open daily from 8am to sunset from spring until it snows. Meeting rooms can be rented for party use.

Parties: Birthdays can be celebrated in the gym or at the ice rink. Packages include a host and time in a private party area. Cakes must be commercially prepared and no tableware is provided. Cost: $80 for up to 12 guests; $4 each additional guest.

The Brooklyn Park Community Activity Center hosts family-friendly events throughout the year, and offers hockey and skating in a two-rink ice arena that seats 1,200. The center also boasts an exercise room and running track, concession stands, and fitness classes. A public skate park on the grounds is open daily from 8am to sunset from spring until it snows. Meeting rooms can be rented for party use.

Parties: Birthdays can be celebrated in the gym or at the ice rink. Packages include a host and time in a private party area. Cakes must be commercially prepared and no tableware is provided. Cost: $80 for up to 12 guests; $4 each additional guest.

The Brooklyn Park Community Activity Center hosts family-friendly events throughout the year, and offers hockey and skating in a two-rink ice arena that seats 1,200. The center also boasts an exercise room and running track, concession stands, and fitness classes. A public skate park on the grounds is open daily from 8am to sunset from spring until it snows. Meeting rooms can be rented for party use.

Parties: Birthdays can be celebrated in the gym or at the ice rink. Packages include a host and time in a private party area. Cakes must be commercially prepared and no tableware is provided. Cost: $80 for up to 12 guests; $4 each additional guest.

Brunswick Zone offers 38 lanes for bowling, as well as laser tag, bumper cars, a gaming arcade, billiard tables, a snack bar, and a lounge where parents can imbibe.

The arcade uses refillable debit cards (the machines don't accept cash), and many games dispense tickets that can be redeemed for prizes.

Leagues serve men, women, and families.

Brunswick Zone is open holidays, including Christmas Day.

Parties: Brunswick Zone offers several high-stimulation options for ages three and up. Prices start at $12.99 per person for a minimum six guests, and include 90 minutes of bowling and shoe rentals. Celebrating in one of the three private party rooms costs a bit more.

Brunswick Zone offers 38 lanes for bowling, as well as laser tag, bumper cars, a gaming arcade, billiard tables, a snack bar, and a lounge where parents can imbibe.

The arcade uses refillable debit cards (the machines don't accept cash), and many games dispense tickets that can be redeemed for prizes.

Leagues serve men, women, and families.

Brunswick Zone is open holidays, including Christmas Day.

Parties: Brunswick Zone offers several high-stimulation options for ages three and up. Prices start at $12.99 per person for a minimum six guests, and include 90 minutes of bowling and shoe rentals. Celebrating in one of the three private party rooms costs a bit more.

This is not your parents' bowling alley. For starters, the $9 million 60,000-sq.-ft. Brunswick Zone is entirely smoke-free. It's also got laser tag, bumper cars, a 65-game video arcade, fast-food service, and a lounge with a circular stone fireplace and billiard tables (where parents can imbibe). And, oh yeah...48 lanes for bowling, with comfy couch seating. Bumpers are available for those kids who actually make it over to a lane, and there's Cosmic bowling Saturdays from 3pm to 5pm.

It's the largest bowling complex in the metro area, and intent on luring in families with noisy, flashy fun - which means parents might want to pop an aspirin before going in. The staff ranges from bored and borderline-rude to helpful and engaged - the latter can make it a nice experience, the former might leave you feeling frustrated and fleeced. One important warning: don't just hop in the car and head over thinking you'll be able to bowl. When most or all of the lanes are in use for leagues (which is often), there can be a long wait for open bowling - long enough that you could drive over to bowl at Park Tavern or Bryant Lake instead.

The arcade uses refillable debit cards (the machines don't accept cash), and many games dispense tickets that can be redeemed for prizes.

A youth league meets weekly for semi-competitive fun, and there are also leagues for men, women, and families.

Brunswick Zone is open holidays, including Christmas Day.

Parties: Brunswick Zone offers several high-stimulation options for ages three and up. Prices start at $12.99 per person for a minimum of six guests, and include 90 minutes of bowling and shoe rentals. Celebrating in one of the three private party rooms costs a bit more.