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What’s to Love:  We finally returned to The Stoneworks Gym in Beaverton, OR, and I’m happy to report that it’s still the same quality business that it was 3 years ago.  Super friendly, helpful, excellent instruction, unpretentious, and no attitude whatsoever from fellow climbers.  If your kids have never climbed before, Stoneworks Gym is an excellent place to learn the basics!  Matt Spohn, the gym manager and son of the owner, takes the family business seriously.  It’s obvious that his first priority is customer service, which translates into a pleasant environment.

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A Portland Trail Blazer game is fun for the whole family! There are many packages and ticket options for families.

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What’s to Love:  On our ever continuing 2011 skatepark tour, we managed to find this gem in Vancouver, WA.  Ripzu has been open about a year and a half, but it seems like a brand new facility to me. Everything is in excellent condition with a superior riding surface and one of the nicest layouts for beginning riders in the Portland area.  

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What’s to Love: I feel rather ashamed that it has taken me so long to highlight our exceptional Portland Art Museum. It’s not like I haven’t taken my kids there in the past four years – I have…really! It’s just that with two young boys, a visit to an art museum is usually not high on the adventure list. I feel like you have to use this type of activity strategically; perhaps, visiting when there is an exhibit that appeals to children. That’s EXACTLY what is happening now at the Portland Art Museum!

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What’s to Love:  My band for kids and families (The Toy Trains) recently had a show at The Curious Comedy Theater with other local “Kindie” artists Johnny & Jason and Mo Phillips.  Check-out the video clips below in the text of the article.  I wanted to do a short write-up about this wonderful little (non-profit) theater that provides a wide variety of comedy shows and special shows just for kids and families.

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What’s to Love: I’m republishing this article because The Circuit now has a Northeast location (410 NE 17th Ave.) as well as their SW Macadam location (6050 SW Macadam Ave).  The NE location is EVEN BIGGER than their Macadam spot, which is hard to believe.  Also, the NE location has more kid-friendly climbing with a cool slide and bridge structure.  I’ve included some pictures and a video clip.

Over the years, The Circuit has been one of my absolute favorite indoor places to take my oldest son (now 7). We were going so often that I had to get a yearly membership, which can be paid monthly via automatic debit (nice!). This is an amazing experience for young children, and we started our first son here when he was around two years old. Bouldering is a form of climbing where there is no need for a rope due to the fact that you’re never very far off the ground. The emphasis is practicing and mastering hard sequences of moves.

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What’s to Love:  ”Functional Fitness” is a trendy term these days.  What does it mean?  I’m sure I could gather many definitions from practicioners, teachers, and students.  To me, it means exercising in dynamic/non-linear ways like rolling, tumbling, climbing, twisting, turning, jumping, leaping, grasping, etc.  Most importantly, the movements have to be done with a mindful intent on the technique.  Oh yeah, it MUST be fun!  It’s the type of fitness that makes you feel like a kid again.  Revolution Parkour houses one of the first Parkour Academies in the country and after experiencing a course first-hand with my 7-year old son, I can certainly attest to the “having fun” aspect.

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What’s to Love:  Open just a couple of weeks now (Grand Opening on Tuesday, March 29th, 3PM to 9PM), we spent nearly 3-hours at John’s Incredible Pizza playing games, enjoying the rides, and eating.  This place is HUGE (46,000 square feet) with over 110 games, but it’s the little things that actually make John’s worth a visit.

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What’s to Love:  Love art at home but hate the mess and clean-up?  Simple solution – turn your kids loose inside the Art Factory of the Children’s Healing Art Project.  It’s sort of like being inside Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory but with paint, brushes, push carts, and colorful smocks.  Don’t be afraid to make a masterpiece or a mess.  All the while, know that your dollars are helping fund an innovative nonprofit that helps ailing children and their families.

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What’s to Love:  Playdate PDX features a 7500 square foot indoor play space for kids, which is certainly one of the nicest I’ve seen in the last three years of Portland Family Adventures.  The facility is perfect for parents who want to both interact with their kids and relax a bit.  The business model is another home run in a town that offers so many great opportunities for families.

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What’s to Love:  File this under “MUST VISIT NOW!”  This place is AMAZING!  Even a week after the visit, our kids were still talking about it, and I’m trying to fully grasp and articulate our experience.  I cannot believe we hadn’t visited these incredible museums.  Out in what seems like the middle of nowhere, Portlanders have access to aviation and spaces museums that rival anything you’d see at Cape Canaveral or Washington D.C., or anywhere else for that matter.  These museums are squeaky clean, full of helpful volunteers, and will literally make you just stare around in awe.

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“The Playground Gym provides kids with an environment that nurtures physical, mental and emotional development. Kids are built to play, and skills learned from physical activity combined with social interaction are the foundation of a healthy life. For many parents, its easy to forget the energy and curiosity that we took granted as children.” (http://www.theplaygroundgym.com/about/)

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The Department of Skateboarding is an indoor skate park in North Portland near the Rose Garden arena. They have kids’ lessons every Saturday morning from 9AM – 10AM. The kids who participate in the lessons get to stay until 1PM. Excellent for beginners!

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CW Carousel is located at the Jantzen Beach Supercenter.

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What’s to Love:  Spielwerk has long been my favorite toy store in Portland.  The owners (Sonja Barclay & Stacee Wion) filled a stellar Sellwood location with Waldorf-inspired toys, games, tools, and art supplies.  Forget about the plastic junk you’ll find at places like Toys R Us – this is a Portland original featuring toys that you’ll hang onto for years and years.

Plus, you’ll feel good about supporting a local business like Spielwerk.  It’s obvious Sonja and Stacee realize the importance of building strong relationships with their customers and the community, which is why they host some inspired “werkshops” for kids and their parents.

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Safari Sam’s Jungle of Fun has Oregon’s largest indoor jungle-gym/playstructure. Your kids will have a great time running around in the jungle gym, playing 18 holes of miniature golf, and having fun with arcade-type games. It’s the perfect location for a birthday party. They also have a sports-gym that can be rented out.

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I don’t think it’s a big revelation to anyone that our incredible fall weather is winding down. At Portland Family Adventures, we had a very active summer. Since June 1st, we’ve published 34 articles, and experienced a 2500% increase in site traffic! We published two of our most popular articles “Tips for Biking with Kids” and “Top 10 Summer Activities.” In that same vein, I’m going to highlight some of our favorite rainy-day-activities. Although the outdoor activities may start to decrease, remember that Portland Family Adventures documents indoor activities as well.

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What’s to Love: Awesome indoor playpark! When I’m out investigating businesses that bill themselves as “family friendly,” it’s obvious that the majority of these businesses have good intentions. However, all too often, I’ve discovered the list of caveats to be as long as the list of good intentions. For example, your kids may have a great time somewhere, but exorbitant costs come close to driving you into bankruptcy! It’s definitely hard to find a place with high marks in a wide variety of areas (e.g., decent food, fair prices, accessibility, plenty of options for fun, low stress, etc.). Well, I’m happy to report that “Out of This World” owners Don and Linda Milford used their good intentions wisely, and absolutely nailed the indoor playpark concept!  This is without a doubt the best multi-use, indoor playpark in the greater Portland area. Here is why…

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What’s to Love: This is definitely one of the nicest climbing facilities I’ve ever seen. Part of the reason – it’s practically brand new. Many climbing gyms rent out old warehouses and build walls inside. The Portland Rock Gym was built from the ground-up with an aesthetically pleasing design both inside and out. The walls are high with what appears to be an infinite number of climbing routes and boulder problems. I’ve taken my son here on two occasions, and he loved it both times!

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What’s to Love: Established in 1920, The Sellwood Community Center remains an important fixture in the neighborhood.  While a bit worse for wear, fans of Sellwood’s small-town-feel will ultimately enjoy the space.  The Center offers a plethora of programs throughout the year and a day camp program in the summer.  This small space has plenty to offer!