Toby B

Toby is our uber-busy events editor for Mommy Poppins LA. Feel free to email Toby about events for our LA area calendar.

Latest posts by Toby

Thanksgiving Day Weekend 2024 in Los Angeles: Parades, Turkey Trots, and More Things To Do

Submitted by Toby B on Tue, 11/26/2024 - 6:43am

Earn those Thanksgiving pies! Photo courtesy of Turkey Trot Los Angeles

Looking for the best things to do in Los Angeles on Thanksgiving Day and all Thanksgiving Day weekend? Here are some events and activities to add to your list for this long holiday weekend!

Can we say it? We’re thankful. Our Thanksgiving Day Weekend calendar is stuffed with activities that reflect the season's joy. Take part in a Turkey Trot and visit a flurry of holiday light displays such as Tanaka Farm's Hikari and Holiday Road at King Gillette Ranch. Don't be a Grinch this holiday — check out festive happenings of Grinchmas and Super Nintendo World with the Holidays at Universal Studios Hollywood. To top it off, on Sunday, claim a spot on Hollywood Boulevard to watch the Hollywood Christmas Parade.

Plus, discover all the activities and events open on Thanksgiving Day, find out which restaurants are open on Thanksgiving, and check out our Thanksgiving Activities Guide for Families for Thanksgiving crafts,Thanksgiving movies, and even Thanksgiving jokes. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Mommy Poppins!

Best Holiday Lights Drive-Thrus and Christmas Light Shows in Los Angeles

Submitted by Toby B on Sun, 11/24/2024 - 6:33am

Enchanted: Forest of Light. Photo by Kathryn Rapier, courtesy of the event.

Holiday lights twinkle extra brightly in a city known for Hollywood, glitz, and glamour. Holiday light shows and Christmas light displays are all over Los Angeles. These festive light shows dazzle and get you in the holiday spirit. Stroll through immersive light displays, wander through Christmas lights in gardens, zoos, and farms, climb aboard a holiday lights train, or enjoy a Christmas light show by the water.

If that's not enough holiday lights in Los Angeles for you, festive SoCal neighborhoods go all out with their annual decorating traditions to treat Angelenos to some incredible neighborhood holiday light displays. For even more holiday fun, check out our Guide to Holiday and Christmas Events in Los Angeles.

16 Must-Do Christmas Events and Holiday Activities in Los Angeles for Kids

Submitted by Toby B on Fri, 11/08/2024 - 1:30am

Try sock skating at Kidspace Winter Frolic. Photo by Jamie Pham courtesy of the Museum

'Tis the season for Christmas events and holiday activities in Los Angeles! From the hundreds of Christmas events and holiday activities taking place this year, we've managed to trim our list to the top family favorites.

This year, Santa's bag is overflowing with festive fun for families in Los Angeles. This holiday season's stockings are full of theme parks dressed up in their holiday finest, traditional holiday parades, only-in-LA holiday shows, and other beloved holly jolly traditions. We can barely keep up with all the fun Christmas events and holiday activities in Los Angeles this year.

For more holiday activities, don't miss our Holiday Events and Christmas Activities Guide for Los Angeles, packed with every possible Santa breakfast, holiday and Christmas light shows, Nutcracker shows, Polar Express holiday trains, outdoor ice skating rinks, and so much more.

Veterans Day Weekend 2024 in Los Angeles: 13 Best Things To Do With Kids

Submitted by Toby B on Wed, 11/06/2024 - 1:01am

Veterans Day celebrations take place across LA. Photo courtesy of Canva

Looking for the best things to do in Los Angeles this Veterans Day weekend? Here are some family-friendly events and activities to add to your list for this long weekend!

We owe so much to our veterans—those who have put themselves in harm's way to defend the liberties we hold dear. This weekend also marks the start of several limited experiences and holiday-favorite events, such as Lite-Brite Worlds of Wonder in Santa Monica, Kidspace Winter Frolic, and the new Friends-themed Warner Brother Studio Tour.

Art and science collide with a three-day weekend at the PST ART + Science Family Festival at La Brea Tar Pits. Guests can make a California pollinator puppet, build with Adobe (the mud, not the software), make a colorful stop-motion animation, craft LED flowers & eco-friendly bracelets, look at the sun through solar telescopes, and so much more. Kid's favorite music makers performing include Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band, Jazzy Ash and the Leaping Lizards, and Rhythm Child Network. Sounds good to us!

With a three-day Veterans Day holiday ahead, more upcoming holidays are top of mind, like restaurants open on Thanksgiving in Los Angeles, and holiday and Christmas events in Los Angeles to book now. Plan for more holiday fun in our Guide to Holiday and Christmas Events for Los Angeles Families.

14 Best Things To Do in Los Angeles November 2024 with Kids

Submitted by Toby B on Sun, 10/27/2024 - 7:43am

LA Zoo Lights dazzle. Photo by Jamie Pham

November brings plenty of things to do in Los Angeles as we gear up for holidays from Veterans Day to Thanksgiving and full steam ahead to Christmas. Don’t miss our favorite kid-friendly events and activities in Los Angeles this month.

It's a good thing that November starts with an extra hour of sleep. With our LA calendar jam-packed with fun things to do, that extra hour will be much very much needed. Step into a favorite childhood toy at the immersive Lite-Brite Worlds of Wonder in Santa Monica. The Natural History Museum's new wing opens with a day-long celebration. You'll find NHM Commons at the intersection of science, nature, and culture, with new outside and inside spaces, free experiences, and a green-boned dinosaur named Gnatalie. And the countdown to the holidays begins with tree lightings, holiday trains, and twinkling lights!

For more fun things to do in Los Angeles this November, see what's open in LA on Thanksgiving, start planning those holiday outings with the best holiday activities and Christmas events for kids, and prepare for more than just a turkey with our Thanksgiving Activities Guide for Families.

Halloween Weekend 2024 in Los Angeles: Trick-or-Treat and More Things To Do with Kids

Submitted by Toby B on Wed, 10/23/2024 - 2:28am

Kidspace Halloween is a real treat. Photo by Jamie Pham, courtesy of the event.

Looking for the best things to do in Los Angeles this Halloween weekend? Here are some events and activities to add to your list for Halloween 2024.

This weekend in Los Angeles, there is one trick and many treats. The trick? Halloween is next Thursday. The treats? Many of the most popular Halloween events are this weekend! Among the favorites is the Marina Spooktacular in Marina del Rey, two days of free fun for all ages, and all scare levels. The Anaheim Halloween Parade marks its Centennial. Babe Ruth was one of its first Grand Marshalls 100 years ago! Many Día de los Muertos events are held this weekend in Los Angeles, including the annual observance at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

These are only the beginning of Halloween weekend events. Los Angeles is flush with Halloween celebrations, and our event calendar, just like your kid’s goodie bag, is overflowing with Halloween goodness!

Don’t miss our roundup of free Halloween events in Los Angeles, the best pumpkin patches near Los Angeles, our favorite LA neighborhoods for trick-or-treating , and more Halloween activities on this wonderfully spooky weekend.

Best Attractions and Things To Do in Los Angeles

Submitted by Toby B on Sun, 08/18/2024 - 9:31am

Whether you're a first time visitor to LA or a lifetime Southland veteran, your question remains the same: what can I do with my kid today? Our daily calendar is filled with special and seasonal events, many of them found on our list of 100 things to do with your kids. But LA is also home to awe-inspiring museums and bucket list destinations for outings that are available year round.

Below you'll find some of our favorite must-see destinations for families in Los Angeles.

The Best Pride Events Happening in Los Angeles in June 2024

Submitted by Toby B on Sun, 06/02/2024 - 10:05am

WEHO Pride Parade. Photo by Jon Viscott, courtesy of the City of West Hollywood. Some rights reserved.

PRIDE Month in Los Angeles is a family affair!

The Southland celebrates the full spectrum of the LGBTQI+ rainbow, with many inclusive, family-friendly Pride events, including parades, picnics, block parties, and drag queen storytimes. This year's Pride Month celebrations include Pull My Finger, a Family Pride comedy show, Pride Night at the Aquarium of the Pacific, and Disney Pride in Concert with the South Coast Chorale. After-hours celebrations at our theme parks remind us that Pride is Universal and nothing sparkles like Disneyland After Dark.

As always, the stars show up for LA Pride: Star Trek's George Takei is the Grand Marshall of the 54th Annual LA Pride Parade; Ricky Martin headlines 2024 LA Pride in the Park, and Pickle is the belle of the ball at Drag Queen Story Hour at the Academy Museum.

Read on for our list of the best Pride events for families and children in Los Angeles.

Toby B

Latest posts by Toby

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