Gayle's Guide ✨ 13th February 25
Issue 43 - Singing with your preschooler, £3 sport taster sessions, lots of Valentine's themed activities and much more!
Valentine’s day tomorrow. I don’t care in the slightest but I’m looking forward to whatever my daughter brings home from nursery. Last year, her card said that she loved her dad cos he hangs her upside down and tickles her. 😍 Anyway, there’s a few love-themed events this week if you’re interested so let’s jump in!
🌻ASN 🐣Baby 🐤Preschool 🐔Primary
❤ Friday 14th
🎼 Singing Mamas - One off Feb Holiday Class (0-3y) 10.30-12.00 🐣🐔
📍 Palmerston Place, West End
I was in the choir in school and briefly sang in one as a responsibility-free adult but joining one while the kids are small seems so out of reach since they often meet over dinner/bedtime when the kids need the most input and my energy levels are that of a near-dead bee on a hot windowsill. So being able to go along in the morning for a cup of tea and a singsong while also minding the baby is amazing! The leader is very supportive and welcoming and the group just feels good for the soul. This session aims to give an option to those of us who need somewhere to go with their 0-3’s when other groups are shut down for the mid-term. Regular sessions run on Wednesdays at 10.30, the first one is free and you can book one-off classes or get a better deal for a block booking. Highly recommended!
💌 Valentine’s Day Storytelling Session (5y+) 11.00 🐔🆓
📍 Newington Library
An interactive Scottish storytelling session which is part of the new Love Libraries campaign, launching today.
📚 Toddler Tales 11.00-12.00 🐤🆓
📍 Waterstones, Princes St
Just came across this wee storytelling session but it’s been on daily during the midterm break and today is the last day (soz). Please support local, independent bookshops where possible, but it’s pretty hard to beat the views of Edinburgh Castle from the cafe in this place so definitely worth a visit for a coffee and cake if nothing else.
🎪 Citadel Youth Centre Wellbeing Festival - Carnival Edition 12.00-15.00 🆓
📍 Citadel Youth Centre, Leith
With carnival games, a Mad Hatter’s afternoon tea, face painting and loads more besides. Spotted in the North Edinburgh News.
🐇 Fun Friday with Magic Gareth (0-5y) 14.00 🐣🐤
📍 MakeBelieve, West End
The photo was too ridiculous to not include! Here’s a special Valentine’s themed magic show with entry to play at the cafe for the whole day.
🧸 Love Bear Craft Session (4y+) 14.30-15.30 🐤🐔🆓
📍 Morningside Library
Make some cute little bear Valentine’s cards.
🎺 Kids Valentine's with Jennifer Ewan Band 15.00
📍 The Jazz Bar, Chamber Street
”Join us for a fun-filled afternoon featuring the amazing Jennifer Ewan Band Trio, performing a soulful mix of original songs, Louisiana blues, and old-time Cajun dance music with a Celtic twist. Expect stirring sounds from accordion, flute, drums, and guitar with captivating vocals that’ll get everyone moving!”
🧱 A Town Called Panic (Panique au Village) (8y+) 20.00 🐔
📍 French Institute, Royal Mile
Part of the Manipulate Festival of puppetry, animation and visual theatre, this is the only thing suitable for kids in the schedule (apart from the One Bum Cinema Club above), but it’s a belter. My then boyfriend (now husband) and I watched this stop motion animation years ago and remember it to be great fun and very silly. It’s in French but don’t let that put you off - I don’t speak French (I just let the funky music do the talking) and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Saturday 15th
💥 Capital Sci-Fi Con 15th/16th
📍 O2 Academy, Corn Exchange
A celebration of all things Sci-Fi, raising money for CHAS.
🎞️ Toddler Club: Tiddler + The Snail and the Whale (1-5y) 10.15 🐤
📍 Everyman Cinema, St James Quarter
A Julia Donaldson double bill which includes a hot drink and slice of cake! Also on the 14th at 09.45.
🍿 Kids’ Club: Paddington in Peru 11.30
📍 Cameo Picturehouse, Tollcross
More Saturday morning cinema! Significantly cheaper than a typical trip to the cinema, this is only £4 a ticket.
☕ Dads Coffee and Play (0-3y) 11.30 🐣🐤
📍 Little Plaza, Leith
Nice to see another weekly Dad-specific meet up, especially in a more central location. Tickets are a fiver including a hot drink from the cafe but kids older than 6 months will need to pay entry to play which is an additional £3. Still, not bad for a bit of time with the lads.
👯♀️ How Do You Dance? (4-7y) 14.00 🐤🐔🆓
📍 South Queensferry Library
”This is a fun dance class based on the book "How do you dance?" by Thyra Heder. During this session we will explore the different ways the characters in the book move their bodies, as well as how we like to move our own bodies. We will move like Dads, like dinosaurs and like we've eaten something tasty.”
Sunday 16th
✨ I’m coming up short for today, folks. Get in touch if you spot anything and I’ll update but otherwise, take a walk in the park, build a sofa den, bake some banana bread, have a movie night under a duvet. Or leave them have control of the telly for the day and head back to bed! 💤
⛔SOLD OUT! Family Print Club (6y+) 10.15/14.00 🐔
📍 Edinburgh Printmakers, Fountainbridge
Here’s another of Edinburgh Printmakers’ family sessions. This one will give a child and their grown-up an introduction to collage relief printmaking. “Celebrate Spring and make imaginative images using textured paper and materials.”
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Monday 17th
🏅 Play and Try Week (0-5y) 🐣🐤
📍 Edinburgh Leisure
It can be risky signing your kid up for a block of classes without being certain they’ll enjoy them so if you’re quick, you can book one off taster sessions between the 17th and 21st Feb for just £3 a pop. Even if you have no intention of signing up for a full course, it’s well worth it to be able to do something a bit different to the usual baby/toddler groups. I’ve booked a couple myself already!
🍿 Baby Club: Bridget Jones (0-1y) 11.00 🐤
📍 The Everyman Cinema, St James Quarter
Bring your baby to the cinema and get a hot drink and slice of cake for yourself. Also showing on Fri 18th at 10.00. ✨ Plus at the Dominion in Morningside on the 19th and 27th Feb.
🛠️ Woodwork & DIY for LGBT+ Families 8 Week course (12y+) 16.00-18.00 🐔🆓
📍 Custom Lane, Leith
Ok, this doesn't technically fit my newslettering criteria cos of my no-courses rule (and it’s for teens) but the parents I know from the LGBT+ community have told me they find it difficult to find family activities specifically for them so I've made an exception. This is for a teenager and their grown up to learn woodworking skills and build a lamp together over the course of 8 weeks. Lovely!
🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Non-birth Parents Group 18.00-19.30 🆓
📍 LGBT Health and Wellbeing, Leith
This group meets the 3rd Monday of the month for parents only (no kids) and is a “social and supportive group for LGBTQ+ non-birth parents/carers in Edinburgh to connect and share their experiences on parenthood.”
🌈 It’s LGBT+ History Month! If you know of any other specifically LGBT+ family events, please get in touch! And if reading this offends you in any way, there’s an unsubscribe button at the end of the email 👋🏻
Tuesday 18th
🍼 Baby Group for Dads (0-12m) 18.30-19.30 🐣🆓
📍 The Gorgie Mem (opposite Aldi)
This weekly group hosted by Dads Rock gives dads and male carers a chance to bond over a cuppa and hang out with their babies. It’s particularly good timing to get the baby out of the house for a wee breather and chance to regroup before the dreaded night shift starts.
💻 Digital Skills 4 Girls (10-17y) 17.30-19.00 🐔🆓
📍 CodeBase, Castle Terrace
One for the older kids in your life, just as it says on the tin, these sessions teach girls and non-binary young people a variety of digital skills. They’ve explored topics like gaming, 3d printing, animation and sound design in the past and it’s completely free with all equipment provided. This month, they’ll be learning to use AI to make a British Sign Language interpreter. Pretty cool! If your young person can’t make it tonight, CodeBase also hosts Prewired 🆓, a free coding club which meets every Wednesday 17.30-19.30 for all varieties of young people.
Wednesday 19th
📚 Bookbug (0-4y) 09.30-10.30 🐣🐤🆓
📍 Pregnancy and Parents Centre, Pleasance
Bookbug sessions are held weekly on various days in libraries all over town but this one is at the Pregnancy and Parents Centre, which offers practical and emotional support to families and parents-to-be.
🎻 Dance N Play (18m-5y) 10.00-10.45 🐤
📍 Dance Base, Grassmarket
I’ve been going on about this fantastic class since the very beginning of this newsletter back in April. My older daughter and I used to go to this regularly before she started nursery and we've missed it ever since. The teacher Jo is incredible with the children and even plays her fiddle during the class to get everyone moving. It's honestly one of the nicest things we've ever done together and is just as much fun for the grown ups as it is for the kids. Plus, looks like the price has reduced dramatically since we last went. It’s now only £5.50 for the adult/child plus an extra £2.50 for a sibling ticket. Bargain!
✨ Jo also runs Toddler & Preschool Creative Moves at Out of the Blue Drill Hall in Leith on Fridays at 10.15.
Thursday 20th
🦘 Parent and Toddler Jump (18m-4y) 10.00/11.00
📍 Gravity, Fountain Park
These trampoline sessions run all week (different times at the weekend) and they’ve just launched a free craft activity after your bounce on Thursdays so a bit more bang for your buck. We go here a lot, especially when we need to burn off some serious energy and it never fails to do so. Bouncing along to Disney tunes is pretty hilarious and always turns my beautiful daughter (and myself) into a red, sweaty mess by the end. Just make sure you arrive in plenty of time to sign a waiver and don your mandatory, luminous orange socks.
🎶 Rhymetime (0-5y) 14.00-14.30 🐣🐤🆓
📍 Joy Tots, Ferry Road
A free, weekly song and rhyme session.
✨ Here’s another week’s worth of fun stuff for my paid subscribers. Thanks so much for your support!