Gayle's Guide ✨ 3rd July 25
Issue 62 - A creative networking event you can bring your kids to, a pay-what-you-can Nearly New Sale, outdoor cinema at Dalkeith Country Park, and much more!
Just treading water this week, life-wise, so not much time to do my usual deep dive into event research. Lots of events are selling out so better be quick off the mark, there’s clearly lots of competition with the school holidays. Still plenty to check out though so let’s just cut to the chase!
🌻ASN 🐣Baby 🐤Preschool 🐔Primary
Friday 4th
🍪 Rainbow Cookies 09.30-10.15 🆓
📍 The Edinburgh Bookshop, Bruntsfield
Here’s another of The Edinburgh Bookshop’s fantastic free author storytime sessions. This one will feature Rainbow Cookies, a story celebrating a grandparent’s bond with their grandchild, presented by the author herself, Maggie Byrd.
👟 Fitness Fridays with Småland 10.00-16.45 🆓
📍 IKEA, Straiton
Looks like IKEA is scheduling some weekly activities in its Småland creche over the summer holidays. IKEA has a creche? Yes, you can get 60 mins of childcare for free for 3-10 year olds while you go off and buy your candles and house plants, uninterrupted. I’ve not quite been brave enough to try this out yet but that’s mostly just because IKEA is one of my kids’ happy places. They're also doing:
Rhyme Time on Wednesdays and Stories on Thursdays. Fantastisk!
🦖 Dinosaur Day 11.00-14.00
📍 Edinburgh Zoo
With dinosaur themed tours, fossils, games and crafts, all this extra stuff is included in your usual zoo ticket or membership... if you’re feeling brave. Hope you like bloody LOADS of excitable kids!
🎶 The Greatest Showman Sing-a-Long (gates at 18.00) 19.30
📍 Dalkeith Country Park
Adventure Cinema is coming back to Dalkeith Country Park and kicking off with The Greatest Showman. Ok I’ve still not actually seen this film (hangs head in shame) but I can’t imagine something much more uplifting for a Sunday evening than to get snuggled under a blanket on a deck chair and bellow out a load of songs with a bunch of strangers! ✨ There are more kids’ films on Sunday so read on for details.
Saturday 5th
🧸 Nearly New Sale 10.00-13.00 🆓
📍 Pregnancy and Parents Centre, Pleasance
Expect lots of pre-loved baby and maternity clothes, equipment, toys and real nappies plus a wee cafe with home baking and tea. The centre is open to donations of items until the 3rd and the sale will operate as “pay what you can” on the day. Kids are very welcome to join and the proceeds will go towards funding the great support the centre provides to families.
🥕 Vegetable Growing Group 11.00-12.30 🆓
📍 Gilmerton Community Centre
Love this! Here’s a new weekly group where kids can go plant seeds, learn about growing food, do scavenger hunts and have jelly and ice cream!
Sunday 6th
🎞️ Adventure Cinema
📍 Dalkeith Country Park
More outdoor cinema today. Here’s are the show times with gate times in brackets.
11.00 (10.00) The Gruffalo / Stick Man
15.00 (13.30) Moana 2
19.30 (18.00) Wicked Sing-A-Long
⛔️ SOLD OUT! Sensory Sunday (5-10y) 14.00 🌻🐔🆓
📍 National Museum of Scotland
These monthly sessions are for children with additional support needs and disabilities to get creative and explore the museum. This month will be all about primates and a visual story will be emailed in advance. Today is also the museum’s Relaxed Morning 10.00-12.00 🌻 where lights will be lowered, sounds switched off and staff will be available to assist those who would prefer a quieter, calmer experience.
Monday 7th
⛔️ SOLD OUT TOO… SORRY! Scots Language Bookbug (0-5y) 10.30-11.00 🐣🐤🆓📍 National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge
Wid ye like tae coorie in and gie's yer lugs, for a wee story? A Bookbug session featuring songs, stories, and rhymes in Scots. These are pretty few and far between across the city so they usually book up quickly. If you’re interested, check out BBC Sounds Stories in Scots too.
✂ Crafternoons (MON-SAT) 14.00-16.30 🆓
📍 The Scottish Parliament
If you find yourself wandering the Mile or Holyrood Park and you need an emergency distraction from a potential meltdown, pop into the Scottish Parliament where there will be crafting activities on every day during the school holidays. It’s geared up for all ages too so everyone can get stuck in.
Tuesday 8th
🧵 Collective Costume Making (8th-10th) 🆓
📍 National Museum of Scotland
Design and decorate a strip of fabric which will be made into a collective costume to celebrate Scottish Caribbean culture. The event link for this seems to have dropped off the NMS website so better double check before you travel. Hopefully it’s still going ahead.
👩👧 Creatives With Children 10.00-12.00 🆓
📍 Little Plaza, Leith
Creative Edinburgh runs monthly casual meetups for “creatives, techies, makers, students, freelance folk and everyone in between who is interested in discovering more about what's happening in Edinburgh.” This one is a special edition aimed a creative families where you can bring your kid(s) along for a play in the wonderful Little Plaza. What a great idea for parents in the creative industry!
⛔️ ALSO SOLD OUT! Shoebox Story Craft (8-12y) 14.00-15.30 🐔🆓
📍 Edinburgh Central Library, George IV Bridge
How cute is this? Kids will make their own shoebox creations inspired by their favourite stories and get to explore nature through art. These workshops run will run weekly on the 8th, 15th, 22nd and 29th July.
Wednesday 9th
✂️ Summer School (7-12y) 9th/16th/17th - 10.00-16.00 🐔
📍 Edinburgh Remakery, Leith
Holiday clubs don’t usually make the cut for this newsletter but since my eldest is starting school in August and we have no support for childcare, I’m definitely becoming more interested… Plus, these are bookable for individual days so it fits my main goal with kids’ stuff which is lack of commitment! These will involve lots of creativity and crafts (such as these collage books) with an emphasis on sustainability.
Thursday 10th
🐭 Children’s Book Reading and Craft Event (3-7y) 11.00 🐤🐔🆓
📍 Corstorphine Library
Here’s a wee story and craft session led by author Fiona Lowry featuring her book Mousey Mornings. I’m always impressed at all the kids’ activities Corstorphine Library host over the school holidays so fair play to the library staff! 👏🏻 You can see the first two weeks worth here.
✨ Granton, Drumbrae and Balgreen Libraries also have full programmes of stuff to do. Most likely, your local library will have a plan too so check it out!
Sorry but I couldn’t be arsed making my own event out this poster… did I mention it’s been a busy week??
🎭 And finally… the Festival
Most of you reading this are lucky enough to live in a city which hosts thousands of artists and performers every August for an incredible and intense marathon of culture and entertainment. Last year, I wrote about my Festival FOMO and the fact that I'm never organised enough to book the early deals or hear about the sure fire hit shows before they sell out. I’m definitely feeling better armed this year but I’d love your help again to compile a Festival guide for local families, by local families. So if you loved something you went to during last year's festivities, please click the button and take a minute to share your suggestions with the rest of us hoping to get the most out of August. Go on, help your fellow readers avoid the dreaded Festival FOMO!
✨ The rest is for those of you paying to support my work. I really do appreciate it and there’s no way this newsletter would still exist if ye weren’t all keeping me in line every week!