Gayle's Guide ✨ 22nd May 25
Issue 56 - Edinburgh International Children's Festival, Art for Gaza, a tribute band music festival and much more!
We’re just back from holiday and I’m dealing with what seems like endless Life Admin tasks plus solo parenting while my husband is away for work so please forgive any mistakes in this newsletter. Running on fumes here… Although I feel like I’m constantly complaining about my lack of energy these days.
Turns out (almost) 5 + (almost) 2 = (almost) out of steam
🌻ASN 🐣Baby 🐤Preschool 🐔Primary
Thursday 22nd
Just a heads up for anyone free this morning, bright and early. Come along and show your support for active travel and safer streets in the city.
Friday 23rd
🍿 Toddler Club: The Gruffalo + Room on the Broom (1-5y) 10.45 🐤
📍 The Everyman Cinema, St James Quarter
A ticket for this includes a seat for yourself and your little one plus a hot drink and slice of cake. Also showing on Sat 24th at 09.30 and Sun 25th at 10.00.
📚 Spanish Bookbug (0-5y) 10.30 🐣🐤🆓
📍 Moredun Library
Every fortnight! There’s also Spanish Bookbugs at Sighthill and McDonald Road libraries.
✂️ Wee Crafters (4y+) 13.30-14.30 🐤🐔🆓
📍Muirhouse Library
A straightforward wee after school arts and crafts sesh.
Saturday 24th
✨ The Edinburgh International Children’s Festival starts today and runs until the 1st June.
🌈 Elmer Day 10.00-17.00 🆓
📍 Drumbrae Library Hub
All Elmer, all day! There’s a themed Bookbug at 10.30 and crafts at 14.00.
🐝 Dino’s Science Sessions: Pollinators (6-12y) 10.00/11.30/13.30/15.00 🐔
📍 Dynamic Earth, Holyrood
”This week we will discover the importance of Bees and how we can help their populations by playing our nectar collector game, exploring wildflower meadows and making sugar water key chains and seed bombs.”
🥳 Family Day 10.00-16.30 🆓
📍 National Museum of Scotland, Chamber St
Kicking off the Edinburgh International Children’s Festival (24th May - 1st June), the museum is the place to be on Saturday where there will be performances, workshops and interactive play sessions all day. Check out the schedule here - it looks incredible, with stuff to entertain all ages. How lucky are we top be able to attend something like this for zero pennies? Well done, Edinburgh!
🎨 The Big Streetart Drop In (6-15y) 14.00-16.00 🐔
📍 Edinburgh Palette, London Road
Here’s another chance to for your kids to don their “I don’t care streetwear”, get creative with stencils and spray paint and unleash their inner Banksy.
🇵🇸 Art for Gaza 14.00-16.00 🆓
📍 Scottish Storytelling Centre, Royal Mile
Part of the Falastin Film Festival, this session will be full of creativity, healing and solidarity with Gaza.
🎻 Medical Aid for Palestinians Ceilidh 19.00
📍 Portobello Town Hall
”The Greater Spotted Ceilidh Band will be our band for a very special evening of music, dance, local bar, and raffle with special support from Portobello Community Choir.”
Sunday 25th
🎸 We Love It Festival 12.00
📍 Royal Highland Centre
An all-day, family friendly tribute band festival, celebrating the greatest rock and pop legends. Might be a good practice run for anyone considering taking the kids to their first weekend festival this summer?
🐝 World Bee Day 10.00-12.00 🆓
📍 Lauriston Castle
A nice excuse to head along to Lauriston Castle to celebrate and learn all about some of the tiny creatures responsible for the survival of the human race. There will be talks about bees over the morning, seeds to plant, tiles to paint (obviously) and Mimi's 🍰
🎻 May Family Ceilidh 15.00-16.00 🆓
📍 Corstorphine Parish Church
We’ve been to a couple of these family ceilidhs and they are so much fun! The dances are highly simplified so even very young children can keep up but you can definitely still work up a sweat. Aimed at 3-9 year olds but all welcome. Free or by donation, just drop in.
Monday 26th
🚽 Potty Training Workshop 10.00-11.00 🆓
📍 Dr Bells Family Centre, Leith
”This group is only open to families living within EH6/EH7 with at least one child up to 5 years old. Thinking about starting potty training and don't know where to begin? Join us for a session delivered by the community health visitor team to ask your questions regarding potty training.”
Tuesday 27th
🎭 Not Falling (4-10y) 10.15 🐤🐔
📍 Dance Base, Grassmarket
Part of the Children’s Festival, here’s a gravity defying dance and multimedia performance.
🍽️ Tiny Plates (0-5y) 13.00-14.30 🐣🐤🆓
📍 Pilton Community Health Project
Running on Tuesdays for anyone living in Granton, Pilton, Muirhouse, Drylaw, Royston or Wardieburn, here’s a chance to learn more about how to get your little one to eat healthy food. I dunno about you, but this photo looks exactly like my table at lunch time. 🤥
Wednesday 28th
🎻 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 a year ago. 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. I took both girls recently and I thought my heart would burst watching them run around at top speed, hand in hand to 500 miles by The Proclaimers. It’s only £5.50 for the adult/child plus an extra £2.50 for a sibling ticket. Bargain!
💤 Sleep Workshop for Dads and Mums (Online) 19.00-21.00 🆓
Ok, not a family friendly event but you might have more energy to do stuff as a family if the baby WOULD JUST GO TO BLOODY SLEEP! Honestly, what biological purpose does being “overtired” serve? Anyway, this is clearly a triggering subject for me. We did one of these zoom workshops when my eldest was a baby and it was great to get direction and perspective and know that you’re not the only one who feels like screaming sometimes.
Thursday 29th
🏃🏽♀️ Postnatal Fitness 10.00 🐣🆓
📍 Dr Bell’s Family Centre, Leith
Take your baby along and enjoy some gentle exercise while they play. This weekly class is exclusively for those living within EH6/EH7 and you must have at least one child under 1 year of age.
💃🏼 Fun and Dance Toddlers (1-3y) 13.15-14.30
📍 The Dance House CIC, Ocean Terminal
This is a weekly, term time, drop in dance class from walking to 3 years and includes some activities as well as time for socialising at the end with hot drinks and juice. Half price for extra siblings up to 4 years old.
👅 Tongue Twister (6y+) 13.45 🐔
📍 North Edinburgh Arts
”Tongue Twister is one man’s attempt to say tongue twisters in as many different languages as possible. Whilst also trying to dance. And make music. And do all the costume changes without leaving the stage.”
🤱 Asking for a friend: breastfeeding friendly cafes/venues?
I’d love to hear if you have any recommendations for places you’ve found particularly well set up for breastfeeding. My first was born during lockdown so we never got to go anywhere and my second always slept through cafe trips so despite having breastfed them both, I can’t think of anywhere. Comment below!
✨ Here’s a sneak peek at next week for my paid subs. You’re all just very nice.