Old Fasioned Christmas in EGF

East Grand Forks Heritage Center

December 14th

1-4 pm

Free Sleigh Rides, Hay Rides, Live Reindeer, Santa Claus, Homemade Cookies, Cocoa, and more!

There will also be entertainment and crafts to make.

I know we won't be missing this great winter activity!!

Santa Sighting

Canad Inn

December 14th

12:00 noon

Visit Santa at Splashers and the AAlto's Cafe

Sale at Art and Learn

Art & Learn

120 North Washington, GF

25% off store wide

My kids love this store!! It is a great place for fun stocking stuffers and educational games. If you bring the kids just set them up by the train and they'll never know what you are buying!

Sale runs through the 15th.

Santa's Village Opening Day!!

Today is the opening day of Santa's Village!!

All the details are here on the Simply Grand Site.

Free Movie!!!

River Cinema 12
EGF



Free Christmas Movie

Saturday Morning, Dec 13

9:00am, 9:30am, and 10:00am



HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS
(live action with Jim Carrey) PG



Questions? 218-399-9000

AMERICAN GIRL DOLL CLOTHES SALE

We spent the summer in Oshkosh, WI, home of the American Girl Doll Outlet and yearly GIGANTIC SALE! People come from all over the WORLD to buy at this sale. If you couldn't make it to Oshkosh, but you still want American Girl Doll clothes at a great price, check this sale out!

C'Mon Inn

Grand Forks

December 6th, 10am-4pm

Art Wise

Art Wise is coming up again soon!!

Go now to their site and vote for this years theme.

ARTWISE

Canad Inn's Splasher's of the South Seas Special!

Monsoon Monday's

Starts today and runs each Monday through May 18th

Half Price Admission on all Day Water park Pass's
With each wristband purchase you will also receive free tokens for the game room.
At 6pm on Monday's enter the Whole Pool Shot Basketball shoot off, win passes to the water park and more!

$8.49 Adult 6yrs +, plus tax
$3.99 Child 3-5 yrs, plus tax

If you are wanting to have a birthday party at Splashers, do it on Monday and save $20!!

It's December 1st!!

I can't believe it's December already! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We have been so busy having our own Family Fun that I haven't had time to update until now.

There are many new items on the calender for December, if you're looking for Santa, we know where to find him!!

Keep checking back as we have lots to share this week, and a fantastic prize this Thursday!!

Fire Prevention Safety

House fires have been making many of the headlines in the Grand Forks area recently. Safe Kids would like to provide some fire safety tips and also make you aware of a unique opportunity to make your home safer this holiday season.

Fire Safety Tips:
** Make sure that you have working fire alarms on each level of your home and near sleeping areas. It is important to check the batteries two times per year to make sure they are still working. Spring and fall with daylight savings time is a great time to do this.
** Plan and PRACTICE fire escape plans, especially if you have young children in the home. Make them aware of a meeting place outside and remind them to NEVER go back inside a burning building. Leave the rescue of pets, siblings, or favorite items to the professional fire fighters.
** Sound your smoke/fire alarms during the night to assure that those in your household will awaken to them. If not, consider purchasing a voice recorded alarm instead.
** Sleep with bedroom doors closed to contain the smoke and fire. If the door is hot when you touch it, go to the window and use that as an exit. If you cannot get out the window, turn on the lights and stand near the window where rescue personnel will look for people.
** Never leave a candle or fire burning unattended. Safe Kids now has available beautiful candles that look real but work off of a battery. They are scented vanilla, made of real wax and actually "flicker". Consider replacing your burning wax candles with one of these. A flyer is attached and samples can be viewed in the Worklife Center. Feel free to pass this flyer on to others you think would be interested.
If you would like more information on fire and burn safety, please e-mail me and I would be happy to send out a fire and burn safety brochure.
Have a safe and happy holiday season!!

Carma Hanson, MS, RNCoordinator - Safe Kids Grand ForksAltru Health System
P.O. Box 6002860 South Columbia Road - Building 1Grand Forks, ND 58206-6002
E-mail: chanson@altru.org

Game Night

This week is National Game and Puzzle week.

I have really been loving playing games with my kids now that they are getting old enough to follow some simple rules!

If you'd like to play more with your family, but aren't sure what to do check out these sites,

• http://www.millionminute.com/
• http://fun.familyeducation.com/games/33076.html
• http://boardgames.about.com/od/toppicks/tp/familygathering.htm

Our favorites right now are charades, dominoes, uno, and scrabble. I'd love to hear what your family loves to play together!

Last Minute Notice

INTERNATIONAL NIGHT OF THE ARTS

Tuesday, Nov 25th

6-7:30 pm

Holy Family - St. Mary's

School Cafeteria

1001 17th Ave S

Grand Forks

FREE

-Travel to Norway, Italy, Mexico, Spain, India, and Nigeria with your family all in one night!
-Food Samples
-Learning Opportunities
-Music
-Make and Takes

Evans Coffie will be performing the music and dance of West Africa!!

I know we will be there! What a great opportunity to give our children a larger picture of our world.

And the winner is....

My daughter Sophie pulled the numbers out of an ikea storage bin (to be exact) and #1 won, but they didn't leave ANY info, soo she pulled another and #2 won! I will look and see if I have contact info for Amandafi, if not we will have to draw again.

If you are Amandafi, please email me!!! grandfamilyfun@gmail.com I will have your pass waiting for you tomorrow morning!

Have a great weekend everyone, and keep coming back as we will be adding much content next week and more prizes are on the way!

This Weekend

If you are staying in town this weekend I highly suggest taking your family to see the Grand Cities Children's Choir at the United Lutheran Church tonight. (details on the calender)

Also, pancakes are a great treat, and where else could you take your entire family out for breakfast for just $10??? If your kids love to eat out as much as mine (doesn't it just make them feel special) then Applebee's in EGF is where you need to be on Saturday morning.

On Sunday night there will be a community Thanksgiving Celebration at The Empire Art Studio downtown from 7-8, free

Enjoy your last weekend before the Holiday rush really takes over!

MMMMM, Pancakes!!

Pilot's For Kids is a national organization that has a branch here at UND. Last year they had a Christmas party for the kids affected by the Northwood tornado. This year they want to help children in our area that are in foster care.

Applebee's of East Grand Forks has graciously offered their site for a fantastic fundraiser this year! Take your family out for breakfast this Saturday and help raise money for children right here in our area!!

The details are on the Calender above.

For our prize this week we will be giving you a family pass to the pancake breakfast this Saturday at Applebee's!!

Of course I love to pick your brain, sooo when you leave your email please also let us know what your families favorite Saturday morning breakfast is. Ours would have to be German pancakes with fake Orange Julius smoothies!!

Just like last time it will be open until 3pm tomorrow.

Also, this post will stay at the top of the site until 3 tomorrow, so be sure to scroll down for updated info.

Need a Reason To Party??

Mom's November Birthday Bash

Come to McDonald's on Washington

Wed, Nov 19th at 11 am

Meet other mom's in the Grand Forks area, let your kids run around together and help celebrate the women who's birthdays are in November.

(don't worry, we'll party during your month too!).

Stacey Rygh is heading this up, questions? mochabat@hotmail.com

Possible Language Program

Some instructors from our area are considering offering a language camp this summer for elementary aged children. They are in the process of applying for grants for this opportunity. Could you please take a couple of minutes and fill out the attached online survey?

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=141oQOUnzXtHeuElt54xJQ_3d_3d

Thanks Kristin Pauls!!

It's a new week!!

Take a moment to check out the calender link above, there are several additions.

I hope you all had a great weekend with your families!

We are feeling better, the beautiful snow helps!!

Soon we'll have to talk about sledding spots.....

And the winner is....

Jodee is Grand Family Fun's first winner!

Have fun at the movies Jodee!!

Keep checking back as we will be having more drawings, and of course all the goods on what is happening in the area.

I'm a bit under the weather so I think my family will be hanging out close to home and watching movies from the library for our weekend. Have fun with your family this weekend, take the time to make some memories!!

This weeks prize!!!

Hello Everyone!!

Today is the big day!!

For our first of hopefully many weekly giveaways we have a pack of FOUR tickets to the

River Cinema 12.

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment (click on the word "comment" at the bottom of this post) about your families favorite movie to watch together. You have until 3 pm on Friday to enter. At that time a random # will be drawn and notified! Make sure you leave an email address that I can reach you at when you leave your comment. (if you don't want to leave your email address there, you can leave a comment there and then email me your contact info at grandfamilyfun@gmail.com)

You can see what is playing at the River Cinema 12 by clicking here.

Make sure to tell your friends to come and enter as well!

This Weekend

There are several things going on in the community this weekend.

I will not be posting about all of the UND sports that are going on (there are just too many to keep up on :-)), but you can go here to see that schedule if you are interested. To join the Sioux kids club, go here, it is for kids age 3-14.

If you like High School Football, then head to the Alerus Center this weekend! The Dakota Bowl XVI State Football Championships are taking place there Friday and Saturday. Click here to get all the info.

Maybe you'd rather send the guys there and bring the girls to the ND State Cheer Competition. Head over to the Red River High School from 11-2 on Saturday for all the school spirit you can handle!!

Public viewing of the Space Shuttle Launch

There will be a public viewing of the launch of the space shuttle Endeavour,

NASA mission STS-126,

in the Clifford auditorium this Friday, Nov. 14 beginning at 6:00 pm.

The launch is scheduled for 6:55 pm Central Standard time. We will show NASA-TV's live coverage of the countdown and the launch. UMAC's AgCam is onboard the Endeavour, on its way to the International Space Station, so this is an exciting launch for us. Two of the AgCam team, Nate Ambler and Richard Schultz, will be present to narrate the event.

The public is welcome, so please bring your family and friends! Refreshments will be provided! If the launch is postponed by a day or more, we will reschedule the viewing accordingly. For updates on the launch visit:http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/index.html

Thank you,

Karen Katrinak

Center for People and Environment University of North Dakota, Clifford Hall Room 3334149 University Avenue Stop 9011Grand Forks ND 58202-9011Telephone (701) 777-2482Fax (701) 777-2940katrinak@aero.und.edu

Mothers of Multiples

If you are mom of Multiples here is a great group for you! If not, then here is a chance to support those mom's who sure have their hands full!

NVMOMSHoliday Vendor Blender

Thursday, November 13th6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

St. Paul's Episcopal Church319 5th St. S. Grand Forks, ND

Enjoy Stress Free Shopping with: Cute Cards & Gifts by Jen, Body Shop, Gold Canyon Candles, Lia Sophia, Norwex, Once Upon a Family, Pampered Chef, Shaklee , Signature HomeStyles, SlingsAndMore.com, Taste of Home, Tastefully Simple, Tupperware, & Uppercase Living.

Northern Valley Mothers of Multiples nvmomsnd@aim.com

This weeks ideas

Now that the cold weather has come to stay for longer than I am willing to put in writing, it is time to head back to open gym.

My family LOVES going to the open gym at Red River Valley Gymnastics. Their favorite thing is probably the foam pit, but my monkeys enjoy all of it from the many trampolines to the uneven bars.

I try to not go during good weather and let them just use the great playgrounds in the area to burn off steam. But, come winter it is so nice to have a place for them to run around and work up a good sweat!

That's where I'll be this week, hopefully I'll see you there! Click here to check out their site. The open gym info is also on the calender at the top of this page.

Money Saving Monday

Welcome to another new feature of

Grand Family Fun,

Money Saving Monday!!

I am always looking for a good deal when it comes to going "out" with my family. Here is a favorite that I have found recently.

In the Grand Forks Herald, Sunday paper there have been coupons for Canad Inn. I am especially excited about the 8 free token coupons to use at Captain Cook's Cove! If you couple this with a dinner at their Aalto's restraunt on Thursday which runs a Kids eat free with an adult buffet you could have a great family night out for under $20!!

Sick Days!

My family has been sick for about two weeks. It has been horrible! First off I am not a very compassionate person when it comes to physical things, and secondly I have a hard time just being home for so long!


We have played many board games, watched more t.v. than I'd like to admit, and a couple of times did something really crafty.



If you are trapped at home for a few days I highly suggest checking out this site as there are many, many ideas for having fun at home with kids ages 2-12.



I'd love to hear how you spend sick days!

Freebies are on the way!!

One part of Grand Family Fun that I have been very excited about is giving things away! You say I haven't given anything away yet, well this is true, but the times they are a changin!

Stay tuned because next Thursday will be the first of our give aways!! These of course will all be geared towards Family Fun.... hmmm what could it be???

Now would be a great time to subscribe if you haven't already, I'd hate for you to miss out on all that is coming!

Safe Kids Grand Forks

Don’t “Thump Your Melon” This Winter!!

Protect yourself from a serious head injury this season!
Wear a helmet when you are skiing, sledding, skating or snowboarding. There are special helmets made just for these sports.
Safe Kids Grand Forks is now taking orders for ski/snowboard helmets available at a greatly reduced price.

Ski/snowboard helmets are available in five colors and cost $22.

Safe Kids Grand Forks also has Inmold ski/snowboarding helmets available. These helmets have built in speakers in the earflaps for use with your iPod or MP3 player.

Inmold ski/snowboarding helmets are available in two colors and cost $35

To order your winter sports helmet, call 780-1489 or stop by Altru’s WorkLife Center. These helmets are not in stock and must be special ordered. Orders must be in to Safe Kids by November 28th and will arrive the second week in December.

Art Wise

Would you like to help Plan this years Art Wise?

Come to the Purpur Arena

Thursday, November 6th

6-7pm

Activities for adults and kids!

Stop and Go activities.

Art Show info booths,

and indoor playground!

www.Artwise4kids.com

Attn Grand Forks Library Story Time attenders

There won't be story time at the Grand Forks Library this Tuesday due to elections, instead it will be held on Thursday.

PLAY AUDITIONS

Do you have a child that loves the spotlight? Do you have to continually tell your child to "be quiet!"?? If this sounds like your child then bring them to the

Empire Arts Center

for

C.A.T.S. Children's Theater

"Aladdin" Auditions

November 4 &5 6:30 pm

Lee Barnum, Director

questions? 701-795-5610

Last year my daughter and I performed with C.A.T.S. in their "Winnie The Pooh" play. It was great and Lee is wonderful!

Let Your Voice Be Heard!

Every Vote counts, if you haven't voted yet, GO NOW!!!

Don't forget to bring your kids with you!!

Last Minute Updates

Tonight,

6-8 pm Trunk or Treat, Culver's on 32nd Ave

A free goodie fest for kids, 1st 200 people will receive free ice cream from culver's, lots of treats/ gift certificates. There will also be many hot rods and antique vehicles!!

Saturday

There is a fundraiser for Jane Loscheider (She was diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma this last July. Currently, she is undergoing chemotherapy. Jane is 34 years old married with 3 children.) at the Eagles Club in EGF, kids carnival from 5-7. Sorry not sure of the price

Remember to check the calender as there are MANY activities going on around the community this weekend.

Saturday's Pick

WIZARD OF OZ on the BIG SCREEN!

Come see the Wizard of Oz on the big screen at the Empire Arts Center!
Costumes and singing are optional, but having fun is a must!
All net proceeds will be donated to Filling the Gap, a program that helps Altru Cancer Center patients with travel, lodging and nutritional expenses during treatment.

There will be two showings on Saturday - 1pm and 4pm.

To get tickets visit Porpoura Coffee House or Altru Cancer Center, or call 701-780-HOPE to reserve tickets! $10 adults / $5 for 18 and under (suggested donation)

GUEST PERFORMANCE OF "OVER THE RAINBOW" BY LOCAL ARTIST AND MUSICIAN, JOB CHRISTENSEN Dorothy and her friends will be at the door, waiting for you to arrive! See you on Saturday!

The families that are putting this on were just named the Grand Prize winners of The FamilyFun Volunteers Contest. Check it out here.

Thursday's Pick

Nordic Days

East Grand Forks Campbell Library

5:30 to 7:30 pm Oct 30,

Learn about Nordic culture through music, food,an art exhibit, artist and author residencies and other family activities.

Info:(218) 773-9121

Did you know that the term "Nordic" refers to Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden? I'm excited to go and learn more about my Finnish heritage!!

Halloween Options

Wow, there are really a lot of great options for fun this week!

Whether you celebrate Halloween or not you can find something to do most everyday this week for free or very little money.

If you click on the calender tab at the top of the page you will be able to see a lot of what is being offered in town. I'm sure I am missing some. If you have any info to add please let me know. If you click on the "week" button it will be easier to read.

Halloween is one day of the year that I know as parents we think about protecting our children even more than usual. Check out this page for great safety tips pertaining to Halloween.

There are many opportunities to play with your family this coming weekend.

Some are already on the calender and more will be added tomorrow.

I'll post more about it on Monday.

Have a great Sunday with your family!!

YMCA HALLOWEEN PARTY

Sunday, October 26th 6-8pm
$3 per child or $6 per family
preschool- 4th grade

Come enjoy a haunted house, carnival games, prizes and treats!
You do not need to be a member.

215 N 7th St
questions? 775-2586

Last Minute Notice!

Waldenbooks in the Columbia Mall
is having a kids party today from 2-4.

There will be craft goody bags and more!

Thank You

Thank you to everyone who sent me a note. It is very exciting to see how many people are excited about this site! With all the great things to do in Grand Forks sometimes it is hard to keep them all organized. I hate it when I hear about something really cool the day after it happened!!

I hope that this will continue to be a blessing to you all! I fixed the subscription button, so enter your email and never miss out on all the fun that is to be had!

Melissa

Friday Pick!!

Has anyone checked out the Choice Financial/UND's Delta Gamma Sorority Corn Maze yet? I would love to hear your comments if you have.

We got the details today, so I think we'll have to check it out later tonight!

A Festival of Fun

Corn maze, face paintings, and pumpkin give aways
$3 per person, 12 and under free
all proceeds donated to North Dakota School for the Blind.

Friday the 24th 5-7pm
Saturday the 25th 12-5pm
Sunday the 26th 12-5pm

Park in the very South West parking lot at the Alerus.

It looks huge! I think my kids could run off some serious energy there. One rule on the sign outside of the maze says "no terrorizing", I'm wondering, could I get that for my house??

I'd say this looks like a great activity for the family. Save some gas money and support a great cause at the same time!

See ya there!

Local Restaurant Kid Specials

Thinking about eating out with the family, but when you add up all the kids meals it just seems too expensive?? Here are the restaurants in the Grand Forks/ East Grand Forks areas that offer specials.

Aalto's (at Canad Inn) Thursday night, Free kids meal with an adult buffet
Applebee's Tuesday, kids eat for .99, 2 kids meals per adult entree
Blue Moose Sunday, kids eat free with each adult entree
Buffalo Wild Wings Sunday, kids eat free with each adult entree, dine in only
Green Mill Sunday & Tuesday, kids eat free with an adult entree purchase
Grizzly's Sunday, kids eat for .99 with an adult entree
Mexican Village Sunday, kids eat free with an adult order
Paradiso Sunday, kids 8 and under eat free with an adult order
Village Inn Wednesday, kids eat free with an adult order

If you know of any others please let me know so I can add them to the list, thanks!

Pumpkin Patches

If you still haven't ventured out to one of our local Pumpkin Patches now is the time to do so! They will be closing soon!!


Nelson's Pumpkin Patch
2448 20th Ave NE
Emerado, ND
701-610-9564

open weekdays 3-6 $1 admission, weekends 11-6 $2 admission

Nelson's offers several games and all the regular pumpkin patch fun. They also have a small hayride and a huge autumn harvest of goodies for sale.

If you are going on a weekday I would call ahead to see if groups are going to be there, it can be a bit crazy! The corn maze is great, and there are several places set up for some wonderful family pics!!



Hendrickson's Pumpkin Farm
North of the Air Force Base
701-594-5022

call on weekdays to set up a hayride
hayrides available after 1 on Sat & Sun
No admission fee, although it does cost $2 per person for their hayride.

Hedrickson's offer several activities for the entire family including, a great corn maze, huge pumpkins, and yummy treats. Their hayride is really fun, especially watching their dog lead the way!

About

Hello and Welcome to Grand Family Fun!


I am Melissa, wife to a soon to be UND graduate, and mom to three adventurous kids! We love to explore all there is to do around the Grand Forks area and tell everyone else about it.

I am dedicated to helping families that are living here or just here to visit find all of the great things going on in the Grand Forks, North Dakota area. And believe me, there are a ton!

Too many times I have met parents that just didn't know what to do with their babes, especially during the long, long winters here. I hope that this site will give you plenty of ideas of great ways to spend time together as a family.

Please check back often as many new links and info will be added!! (subscribing is a great idea!!)Please contact me if there is anything you would like to see added to this site.

Contact Me

The best way to reach me is by email at

grandfamilyfun@gmail.com

I will respond as soon as we are done playing.

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