May 242013
 

Bradley Fair Jazz at NightBring your lawn chairs and blankets to enjoy some really wonderful free summer concerts in June and on July 4. The Bradley Fair Summer Jazz Concert Series begins Thursday, June 6, 2013.

These are great for the whole family. If you want to be close to the band, arrive early and sit in the plaza area. But across the lake behind the shopping center there is a spacious grassy area that’s great for spreading out a little bit, and the sound carries very well over the water.

The concerts begin at 7:30 p.m. Here’s the complete schedule for this summer:

  • June 6 • Julian Vaughn
  • June 13 • Greg Adams & East Bay Soul
  • June 20 • Steve Cole
  • June 27 • Denny Jiosa
  • July 4 • Joseph Vincelli (Celebrate America – spectacular fireworks show following the concert)

This is one of our family’s favorite summer activities in Wichita. It’s always so relaxed, and a great time to spend with friends. Bring bottles of water, maybe some bug spray, and wear sunscreen, because the concerts begin before the sun goes down and at times it is pretty hot.

The Bradley Fair shopping center is at Rock Road and 21st Street East in Wichita.

May 222013
 

New free summer concert series: Wichita Old Town RocksWoot! There’s a new free summer concert series coming to Wichita this summer, and it will be held in Old Town Square each month throughout the summer.

The Old Town Rocks free summer concert series in downtown Wichita kicks off with a live musical performance by David Vidal on Friday May 24, 2013. Future concert dates are planned each month through September 2013:

  • June 21
  • July 26
  • August 23
  • September 27

Check back for more info about the artists who will perform each month.

Find out about more FREE Summer Concerts in Wichita by subscribing today: Subscribe (for FREE) to Wichita on the Cheap

The free summer concerts will go from 5:30-9 p.m. on the scheduled Friday nights. Parking is available in the square and in the free parking garage adjacent to the Old Town Warren Theater.

Thanks to Jennifer for letting me know about this new concert series on Facebook!

Find out about more FREE Summer Concerts in Wichita by subscribing today: Subscribe (for FREE) to Wichita on the Cheap

May 222013
 

Free Lowes Build and Grow workshops for kids - Monsters Inc.Lowe’s home improvement stores in Wichita offer free Build and Grow clinics for kids in grades 1-5.

Clinics begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday or 2 p.m. on Sunday. To participate, register at the Lowes Build and Grow site. The first fifty kids registered and in attendance will receive a free project kit, work goggles, and apron. I have it on good authority that the projects are fun and educational.

Here are the upcoming Lowes Build and Grow workshops in Wichita for June 2013:

Date Day Kit Time
Jun 08, 2013 Saturday Monsters University Scarers 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
Jun 09, 2013 Sunday Monsters University Scarers 02:00 PM – 03:00 PM
Jun 22, 2013 Saturday Monsters University Chest 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
Jun 23, 2013 Sunday Monsters University Chest 02:00 PM – 03:00 PM
May 222013
 

Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical MuseumIn June, the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum will have a temporary exhibit that gives us a glimpse into Riverfest past.

A complete set of Wichita River Festival Buttons, beginning with the “Wichitennial River Festial and Traders Day” button from 1972, will be exhibited on the first floor of the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum from June 1st through June 30th, 2013.

The new exhibit is on the first floor and can be seen for free by public. Regular admission applies to other Museum exhibits. (Regular admission is $4.00 adults, $2.00 children; members and children under 6 get in free.)

The museum is open Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and closed on Mondays.

Date: June 1-30, 2013
Time: See museum hours above.
Location: Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum
Cost: Free
For more information: http://www.wichitahistory.org

Related: Riverfest Button Discounts

May 212013
 

Blue Star Museums in Kansas Free Admission to Members of the Military and Their FamiliesThis Memorial Day, the Blue Star Museums program opens again for the summer. Blue Star Museums offers free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day, May 27, through Labor Day, September 2, 2013.

Wichita has several participating museums, but this can also be a great way to enjoy museums when you go on vacation. For a complete list of participating museums, go to www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums and click on the map.

Blue Star Museums in Wichita:

  • Botanica
  • Old Cowtown Museum
  • Ulrich Museum of Art at Wichita State University
  • Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum

Hutchinson:

  • Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center
  • Kansas Underground Salt Museum
  • Reno County Museum

Newton:

  • Harvey County Historical Museum & Archives

Emporia:

  • Lyon County Historical Society Museum
  • Richard Howe House Welsh Farmstead

Topeka:

  • Alice C. Sabatini Gallery, Topeka & Shawnee Co. Public Library
  • Museum of the Kansas National Guard, Home of the Museum of the 35th Division

Elsewhere around the state:

  • Ashland – Pioneer-Krier Musuem
  • Dodge City – Boot Hill Museum, Inc.
  • Franklin - Miners Hall Museum
  • Great Bend - Barton County Historical Society
  • Independence - Independence Historical Museum & Art Center
  • Iola - Allen County Historical Society
  • Lansing - Lansing Historical Museum
  • Leavenworth - The Carroll Mansion Museum Home of The Leavenworth County Historical Society
  • Lenexa – Legler Barn Museum / Lenexa Historical Society
  • Lyons – Coronado Quivira Museum
  • Manhattan – Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art, Kansas State Univ.
  • Newton – Harvey County Historical Museum & Archives
  • Olathe – Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm Historic Site
  • Ottawa – Old Depot Museum
  • Overland Park – Overland Park Historical Society
  • Salina – Smoky Hill Museum
  • Shawnee – Wonderscope Children’s Museum of Kansas City
  • Syracuse – Hamilton County Historical Society/Hamilton Co. Museum
  • Westmoreland – Rock Creek Valley Historical Society Museum
May 212013
 

The Wichita Art Museum and the Tallgrass Film Association are teaming up for a free night of music, film and fun. The event will be held on the museum’s brand new outdoor terrace.

*Tunes + Tallgrass on the Terrace happens on Friday, June 14. Live music by Kansas City’s Sundog Surf Band begins at 7 p.m., followed by the 1966 cult-classic movie Endless Summer.

Wichita food trucks will be parked nearby selling food, and beer and wine will also be available to purchase.

Bring your beach chairs and blankets for seating. Admission to the event is free.

*Not to be confused with Tuesdays on the Terrace at Botanica.

May 212013
 

Smallgrass at Exploration Place during Riverfest in WichitaSMALLGRASS features family-friendly films and a family-friendly price. Offered by the Tallgrass Film Association, SMALLGRASS is a program of specially curated short movies for the young and young at heart.

Screenings will be held Tuesday, June 4, Wednesday, June 5, and Thursday June 6 at 11:00 am and 2:00 pm in the Kemper Auditorium at Exploration Place.

Admission to Exploration Place is only $5 with your Riverfest Button, and the screenings are free with Exploration Place admission.

If you’d also like to check out a movie at the Boeing Dome Theater while you’re there, admission to that is only $2.50 with your Riverfest button.

I have my Riverfest button, and the Riverfest Child button! This year, the Riverfest Button Discounts are great.

May 212013
 

FREE Summer Concerts in Wichita: Art for Your Ears performersFind out about more FREE Summer Concerts in Wichita by subscribing today: Subscribe (for FREE) to Wichita on the Cheap

The Ulrich Museum of Art holds free outdoor summer concerts on campus at WSU. The “Art For Your Ears” series begins Thursday night, June 6, 2013. Performances begin at 7 p.m. on the McKnight Plaza, which is between the Ulrich Museum and the School of Art and Design. Bring your your friends and your lawn chairs. Refreshments will be provided.

Ulrich Free Outdoor Summer Concerts Schedule:

June 6 – Chuck Pyle
July 11 – Vance Gilbert
August 1 – Mark Selby and Tia Sillers

May 172013
 

Family VideoThis is a new promotion as far as I can tell, but we just rented 4 new release movies at Family Video in Wichita and paid $1 each, plus tax. (Watch your mail for a coupon good for a free movie too.)

The clerk told me the promotion would be going on for the “whole month, if not longer” and I didn’t think to ask if she meant for the whole month of May or if she meant June.

As soon as I get more information, I’ll update the post. For now I just wanted to get the word out about it. This is great for summer movie-watching!

**I also don’t know for sure if the movie deal is good at all Family Video locations.

May 162013
 

Could you actually do EVERYTHING on the “cheap” calendar this weekend? The short answer is no. I don’t think it’s humanly possible. But if you tried, it might go something like this:

FRIDAY
7-9 a.m. Ride your bike to work, stopping for free breakfast along select bike routes. Try to get a little work done but then hop back on the bike and ride to…
11:30 a.m. Old Town Square to grab your FREE lunch from Jimmie Johns. Scarf your sandwich because you have to hurry to make it by …
Noon for Bicycle Xchange’s FREE Fix-a-Flat workshop. It’s in Delano, so you don’t have far to ride.
After work On your way home from work, stop by Ribfest for dinner, drinks, and live concerts. Admission is $4; food and beverages are extra. (This is actually going on Thursday through Saturday, so you could go any time. But if you’re trying to do everything, Friday after work is the only time slot that will work.)
7:45 p.m. Show up at the Starlite Drive-In for a triple feature with a carful of friends. It will cost you $12, split between all of you. (Who among your friends has the biggest car?) Choose between Screen 1, which is showing Star Trek Into the Dark, and Screen 2, which featuring Ironman 3, all in digital picture and sound.

SATURDAY
7 a.m. Hit the Derby Citywide Garage sale or any number of neighborhood garage sales.
9 a.m. Stop by one of the Wichita area farmers markets. If you choose the Old Town Farmers Market, you’ll be in the neighborhood of the Wichita Art Museum, so you can swing by for free admission, and pretty near to the DAV 25-cent Book Sale.
Noon Experience the Aurora in the Boeing Dome Theater at Exploration Place for $5. Admission to EP is not required to see a movie in the Boeing Dome Theater.
(9 a.m. – Noon If you’re a new dad and you’ve already registered, skip the farmers market and show up for the FREE Boot Camp for New Dads at the Downtown YMCA.)
(10-11 a.m. If you have access to McConnell and a daughter who is in grade K-5, drop her off for a safety-themed get-together from the Girl Scouts of Kansas. It’s $2.)
1 p.m. – 4 p.m. Go directly back to Derby so you have at least a few minutes to spend at the Derby Kite Festival being held in High Park. Actually, I kind of want to stay the whole afternoon, but if your goal is to do everything, you have to keep moving.
2-5 p.m. Bring your family and your bikes for the Ozsome Bike Festival at O.J. Watson park. You might have to leave early if you want to catch a few minutes of the…
2-5 p.m. Meet and Greet Spiderman and Ironman at All-Star Sports in west Wichita.
5 p.m. You won’t have time to cook, so grab a large one-topping pizza from Papa Johns for supper. At only $5.99, it’s a steal.
6:30 p.m. Pack up your lawn chairs and drive back to the east side of Wichita to catch a bit of the FREE Opera on the Lake at Bradley Fair shopping center.

SUNDAY
9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Go to the Kansas Coliseum pavilions for the Mid-America Flea Market. Admission is $1.
Noon – 5 p.m. Since you’re north of Wichita anyway, drive to Whitewater and tour the Grace Hill Winery. The tour and tasting are free, but you might want to spring for a nice bottle of Kansas wine while you’re there. If you had the energy and foresight to pack a picnic, bring it with you.

Of course, doing it all is a silly idea unless you’re REALLY energetic. See the full Wichita cheap events listing here.

May 162013
 
KS Hawking Club at Walk with Wildlife

Paul Spexarth of the Kansas Hawking Club –  This is one of my favorite pictures from the event. :)

This is an activity that could easily become an annual family tradition. It makes for a fun and interesting day spent outside.

Get up close and personal with as many as fifty species of wildlife at the 29th annual Walk with Wildlife at the Great Plains Nature Center here in Wichita on Saturday, June 8, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Admission is only $2 per person for the whole day.

Volunteers will be stationed along the 1/2 mile handicap-accessible walk at Chisholm Creek Park to show visitors various insects, reptiles, mammals, birds, and amphibians and to answer questions. When you’ve had enough of the Kansas heat, head indoors to the Koch Habitat Hall to explore $1 million dollar’s worth of hands-on nature displays in air-conditioned comfort. Catch a fun and educational movie in Coleman Auditorium and shop in the Owl’s Nest Gift Shop. Don’t miss some of the outstanding publications and guides by local authors and photographers. In the lobby there are usually a few free games or activities for the kids.

Lunch concessions will be available for purchase.

Bring your camera! I have several really nice pictures of the wildlife and the people.

Walk with Wildlife
Date: Saturday, June 8, 2013
Time: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Location: Chisholm Creek Park, Great Plains Nature Center, 6232 E. 29th Street North
Cost: $2 per person