Birmingham Events Calendar: October 7th - October 14th

Finally! A little dose of some crisp, fall weather. Birmingham has a lot to offer this week! Why not kick it off at the Cahaba River Fry Down, check out a storytime, hit up the Barnes and Noble Harry Potter Costume Contest and end the week by checking out Homestead Hollow!

If you’re ready to get your Pumpkin On, check out our list of patches and festivals. Don’t forget Boo at the Zoo is underway!

Have a Great Week, Moms!

It’s Not Our Fault if Your Kids are Bored!

Sunday October 7th

Cahaba River Fry Down – Trussville Springs
The best amateur catfish fryers in Alabama will square off for the Annual Cahaba River Society Fry-Down, a competitive catfish cooking contest and riverfront festival to celebrate the beauty and significance of the Cahaba River. A fundraiser for the is Trussville Springs, along the banks of the Cahaba in Trussville, Ala.

The Fry-Down is like a BBQ or chili cook-off, but with catfish and hushpuppies. Local teams of enthusiastic chefs will prepare catfish and fixings for a panel of celebrity judges. Fest-goers can sample their efforts and learn about the diversity of the Cahaba River and its role as a source of drinking water and recreation for Alabama.
11am

Whisper from the Past, A Native American Experience – Aldridge Gardens
Take a trip back in time to rediscover the culture and contributions of Native Alabamians. Native American life will take shape through demonstrations featuring flint knapping, cooking; activities like leaf pounding, beading, corn grinding, gourd painting, Native American temporary tattoos, a scavenger hunt for native medicinal herbs and the Three Sisters Garden; and an exhibit of ancient artifacts from the Josselyn Collection housed at UAB. Enjoy the sounds of drums and flutes and the highlight of the day three dance performances by the Sylestine Legacy—including a black-light performance at sunset! Food vendors will sell fry bread, Indian tacos and roasted corn. Offsite parking and free continuous shuttle will be available.

$5 for adults 18+,
$3 activity card for school-age children
12:00-7:30 p.m.

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Monday October 8th:

Character Kids – Gardendale Public Library
A fun interactive program for kids K5, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades. Ms. Molly uses character development through games, stories, science, and more.
3:30pm

Toddler Tales – North Shelby Library
A story program for children and a caregiver. Stories, songs, finger plays and crafts make up a lively program designed especially for short attention spans. Best suited for ages 19 months to 3 years. Must Register
9:30am and 10:30am

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Tuesday October 9th:

Storytime – Homewood Public Library
Join us for the best part of your week with stories that make you laugh and songs that make you dance! Join us for the fun of it! All ages welcome. For large groups, a call to 332-6619 is nice.
10:30am

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Wednesday October 10th:

Storytime – Barnes and Noble Summit
Join us for Storytime as we read Bear Has a Story to Tell. Find out what happens when a bear tries to tell his story to his animal friends who are getting ready for winter. We will make something fun and have a yummy treat from the Cafe.
11am

Family Story Time with Mr Mac – North Shelby Library
Storyteller Extraordinaire – Come join Mr Mac and his musical storytime complete with puppets! All Ages, no registration required.
10:45am

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Thursday October 11th:

Holy Inappropriateness! We couldn’t find any special events happening in the ‘Ham today. Make sure to check our list below for fun exhibits happening daily at our local attractions.

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Friday October 12th:

Homestead Hollow Harvest Festival
Featuring fine arts, unique, hand made crafts, pioneer demonstrations of the old time days- see wood carving, ironwork, blacksmithing, smoke house cooking, gardening, quilting, whiskey making at our original working still, tour our original cabins as they were built by the early settlers. Relax by one of our many streams and listen to live local entertainment all day. Enjoy our great food that makes your mouth scream for more.

Children’s activities: ride the ponies, circle in our wagon ride, jump in the moon walk or climb the rock wall. Kids and adults all enjoy our petting zoo. Visit and talk with our Herbalist and find out more about grandma’s remedies or those nature produces naturally.

Homestead Hollow’s General store is open for you to visit and shop for those home-made fried pies and other great items during show dates.
Adults $7.00
Children ages 3 – 12 $3.00.
Children 2 and under free.
Free parking No pets.
Groups of 20 $6.00 each
9am – 5pm

Storytime with NeNe – Whole Foods
NeNe is back and better than ever! Join Whole Foods most Fridays’ for storyday! There will be storyboards, songs and snacks!
10am

Friday Night PE – Railroad Park
Friday Night P.E. is a mix of your favorite childhood games such as kickball, dodge ball, ultimate frisbee, musical chairs, Simon says and 1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.10 Red-light to help you burn calories and improve your health. This class is perfect for groups. So if you want to socialize, have fun, get heart healthy and celebrate the the inner kid in you try Friday Night P.E., the reason people say, T.G. I. F. This class is FREE thanks to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama!
6pm – 7pm

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Saturday October 13th:

Harry Potter Halloween Costume Contest – Barnes and Noble Summit
Teen Event, Special Event, Young Readers
Select Barnes & Noble stores will host a Harry Potter Halloween Party for ages 7-16 on Saturday, October 13. Dress up as your favorite Harry Potter character and join us for a scavenger hunt and costume contest.
7pm

Fiesta 2012 – Linn Park
This year will be Fiesta’s 10th anniversary celebration, and a new energy is in the air as the event moves to Linn Park in Birmingham, AL. Throughout the State of Alabama, many different cultures and backgrounds are represented, specifically, a large Hispanic population. The success of Fiesta continues to grow and evolve because the community continues to embrace this event as its own and has done so since its inception. As in past years, Fiesta will continue to showcase what the Birmingham Region can provide to its community in terms of multiculturalism, sensitivity and acceptance. All Hispanic cultures will be celebrated, and patrons will leave Fiesta with a rich appreciation of our Latino neighbors!
Adults: $5
12 and Under: Free
Noon – 7pm

Lowe’s Build and Grow Clinic
Halloween is right around the corner, celebrate by making a Ghoul Bus!
10am – Register Here

Founders Day Festival – Black Creek Park, Fultondale
Live entertainment, Arts & Crafts, kid’s zone, food expo, car show and fireworks.
Admission is FREE as always, but if you want to support our local effort Christmas For Kids please bring a New Unwrapped Toy or make a Donation to Christmas For Kids the day of the event.
10am – 9pm

Saturday Market – Pepper Place
Pepper Place Saturday Market brings the best local growers, food producers and artisans to you each Saturday morning. Rain or shine!
7am – Noon

Family Storytime – Emmet O’Neal Library
Bring the entire family and join Mr. Mac for stories and music each Saturday morning.
10:30 a.m.

Storytime – Barnes and Noble Summit
Join us for Storytime as we read Clifford the Big Red Dog. Find out about Clifford’s adventures and come to meet Clifford in the store. We will also have a treat from the Cafe.
11am

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Sunday October 14th:

Break N’ Bread – Railroad Park
The Birmingham Originals, an organization of the Magic City’s finest locally-owned restaurants, gears up for the 2012 Break ’n Bread food and wine festival. Touted as one of the top food events in the state of Alabama, the festival will once again be held at Railroad Park, downtown Birmingham’s premier urban oasis.

While food enthusiasts gather at the tasting tents, just a few steps away will be a dedicated children’s area featuring face painting with clowns from the Children’s Hospital of Alabama, petting corner and entertainment from the Birmingham Zoo, healthy kids cooking demonstrations, Desert Island Supply Company writing workshop and a pumpkin decorating station. Local farmer’s market vendors will also be stationed in and around the park, offering a variety of fresh produce and artisan products.
$35 for regular
$75 for VIP
Free for children under 12 years old
1pm – 5pm

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Local Attractions Open Daily!

McWane Science Center:

IMAX
McWane Science Center’s IMAX® Dome Theater puts you in the center of the action by projecting breathtaking quality images onto the 5-story-tall dome screen and delivering intense surround sound through almost 3 tons of speakers and subwoofers.
Now Showing: Rescue and The Last Reef

The Tornadoes of April 27th – Looking Back — Moving Forward, a new exhibit at McWane Science Center, reflects on the experiences of the April 27th, 2011 storms. The exhibit shares personal stories from those who experienced the devastation of the storms firsthand, while emphasizing the importance of tornado preparedness and explaining the science behind tornadoes.

Photos and stories from The Birmingham News help tell the story of the storms and the affect they had on survivors, volunteers, and the community as a whole. Students from Daniel Payne Middle School also help tell the story of their school and community through photos and artifacts from the storm for the exhibit. UAB students worked with the children from Daniel Payne Middle School to create short documentaries that can be seen in the exhibit as well.

In addition to sharing the personal stories from that day, the goal of this exhibit is to inform the community about how to prepare for extreme weather conditions, explaining the science of tornadoes and stressing awareness.

With vivid displays, the exhibit allows visitors the opportunity to learn about the scientific side of tornadoes. Graphics within the exhibit illustrate tornado formation and anatomy, educating visitors on how such extreme weather conditions develop. Additionally, the exhibit displays statistics and disputes common myths concerning the destructive storms.

Guests can watch live video from the storms that rolled across our state on April 27th, 2011, including the
weather forecasts from that day and actual images of the tornado as it made its way through our area provided by FOX6 WBRC. The exhibit is located in the City Gallery on Level 2 of the museum this summer.

Be Ready Alabama Exhibit Presented by:
The Governor’s Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives
www.readyalabama.org

Dora and Diego, Let’s Explore Exhibit
Get ready for adventure with Dora and Diego at McWane Science Center in the new exhibit Dora & Diego—Let’s Explore! The exhibit features beloved characters Dora and Diego from Nickelodeon’s hit preschool series Dora the Explorer and Go, Diego, Go!, along with their friends Boots, Map, Backpack, Isa, Tico, and of course Swiper, now in their own exhibit for children to explore as they learn and play along.

This new, interactive traveling exhibit, was created by The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis in partnership with Nickelodeon, and presented by the WellPoint Foundation.

Birmingham Zoo:

Lorikeet Aviary – Our Lorikeet Aviary has more birds than ever! Zoo guests can feed these exotic birds every day. You and your family will see these birds’ behavior as they eat nectar out of your hand.
Weekends 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

PELICAN FEEDING – A great way to see our pelicans in action is to witness them eating their favorite treats near the pelican boardwalk.

RHINO ENCOUNTER – Embark on an African adventure and experience one of the world’s most extraordinary animals, the Southern White Rhino. Watch from only feet away as our zookeepers engage in hands-on interaction with the animals inside their African-themed exhibit. Don’t miss this exciting encounter with one of the largest mammals on the planet!
Weekdays: 3pm – 3:30pm
Weekends: 11:30am – Noon & 3pm – 3:30 pm

GIRAFFE FEEDING – This up close and personal animal encounter is a memory you and your family will have for a lifetime.
Weekday: 11am – Noon
Weekends: 10am – 11am & 2pm – 3pm

Vulcan Park and Museum:

Vulcan is the world’s largest cast iron statue; made of 100,000 pounds of iron and 56 feet tall, he stands at the top of Red Mountain overlooking the city of Birmingham. But, Vulcan is more than a statue. Vulcan Park and Museum features spectacular views of Birmingham, an interactive history museum that examines Vulcan and Birmingham’s story, and a beautiful public park for visitors and locals to enjoy. With an official information center that is operated by the Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau, Vulcan Park and Museum serves as the first stop for visitors to the Birmingham area!

Railroad Park:

Railroad Park is a 19 acre green space in downtown Birmingham that celebrates the industrial and artistic heritage of our great city. Situated along 1st Avenue South, between 14th and 18th Streets, the park is a joint effort between the City of Birmingham and the Railroad Park Foundation. Hailed as “Birmingham’s Living Room,” Railroad Park provides a historically rich venue for local recreation, family activities, concerts, and cultural events, while connecting Birmingham’s downtown area with Southside and UAB’s campus.

Southern Museum of Flight:

Earn Your Wings – Bring your little pilot and soar above the clouds in our little pilots room. Kids enjoy building aircrafts, flying kites, and more.
Museum Open Tuesday – Thursday
9:30am – 4:30pm

Do you have or know of an event you would like to have added to our weekly calendar? Please email us at contact@birminghammommy.com, subject line “Events Calendar” – We would love to hear from you!

** All information listed on our calendar is subject to change without notice to us or you… We do our best to keep the information accurate and will always update as soon as we learn that something has changed. It’s always best to double check with the event via their website or a quick call, especially when weather can impact the event.