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This is quite a deal for families. The Fox Theater in Hutchinson is showing Toy Story 3 Saturday, November 20, 2010 at 2 p.m. and admission is FREE.
I hear it would be worth the drive just to see the restored theater–they don’t make glam like that anymore! (You can see a photo slideshow at the Fox Theater website.) A free movie for the kids (grown-ups will like it too) is a great bonus.
Fox Theatre
18 E 1st Ave
Hutchinson, KS
Toy Story 3
Saturday, November 20
2:00pm – 5:00pm
Thanks to Wichita on the Cheap reader Sherry Black for mentioning this deal on Facebook.
Come take time to play and spend some quality time with family and nature at Wichita Play Day, hosted by Wichita Play Commission. There will be giveaways, parachute games, kayaks and canoes, train rides, face-painting, golf, music, pedal boats, and more, all at O.J. Watson Park.
Here is a link to the poster with all the details: Wichita Play Day 2010
This fun and frugal activity will be going from 1:00 -4:00 p.m. Saturday, September 18, 2010
[Note: This fantabulous piece of writing was done by a very talented fourth-grader! Yes, I'm very proud. 
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The Derby Summer Fest is a free event for the whole family with fun activities, an ice cream social, and a free Movie Under the Stars. What makes it even better is this year the festival will include the City of Derby fireworks show with a performance by the Derby Community Choir. (The fireworks had to be rescheduled because of rain on July 4th).
Summer Fest begins at 5 p.m. at High Park, which is just east of Derby High School on Madison. The event is sponsored by the Derby Community Coalition Promoting Healthy Choices, and will feature games and contests at booths around the park. The booths will be staffed by volunteers from community businesses and organization and are designed to encourage kids’ interest in healthy hobbies and activities.
This will be the fourth year that Summer Fest is host to the NFL Punt, Pass, and Kick Competition. Kids can register between 5 and 5:45 p.m. and the competition begins at 6 p.m.
Free ice cream will be available (while it lasts) beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The patriotic choir performance will begin setting up at about 8 p.m. and is immediately followed by the fireworks.
The free movie, Curious George, begins at 9 p.m.
To find out more about Summer Fest, visit the Derby Community Coalition website.
August 14th and 15th is another of the National Parks fee-free weekends.
Many of the national parks in Kansas, like the Tallgrass Prairie Nature Preserve, are always free. After searching the National Park Service website, I found only one–Fort Scott — that normally charges a small $3 entrance fee for people age 16 and older. (There may be others that I just didn’t find.)
And speaking of the Tallgrass Prairie Nature Preserve, I was surprised to learn that FREE 90-minute guided bus tours are available every day at 11 a.m. through the last Sunday in October. Another surprise: “Ranching Weekends,” held on the 1st and 3rd weekend of the month until October 17, let you experience what life was like on a working ranch. This is also free and features living history interpreters as well as participation in activities that would have been all in a day’s work on the ranch.
Go to the National Parks Service website to find a park in Kansas, or take advantage of the free weekend at other national parks around the country.
Thanks to Teresa Mears at MSN’s Smart Spending blog for sharing the tip about the national parks fee-free weekends.
Free with your Riverfest button:
The Wichita Children’s Theater performs “The Ugly Duckling” at Century II in the Mary Jane Teall Theater.
Seven performances are available:
The Sedgwick County Extension Center is holding its annual Herb Day and Plant Sale on Saturday, May 1st 2010.
This year the herb being highlighted is Anethum graveolens, a.k.a. Dill – makes yummy pickles and also excellent dip with rye bread. I don’t know how to make either of those — I just get them at Dillons — but throughout the morning there will be several seminars on growing and cooking with herbs, so maybe someone will have a recipe. Vendors will also be selling herb plants, herbal products, and other gardening-related items. Other plants will be on sale as well.
The Sedgwick County Extension Master Gardeners will also be on hand to answer your most challenging gardening questions. I’m particularly looking forward to the composting lecture in the demonstration garden at 10:30 a.m. Maybe I can finally figure out why my compost pile never actually turns into compost. (It’s still just, well, a pile.)
For full information about the Sedgwick County Extension Herb Day and Plant Sale, check out the website or the K-State Research and Extension Sedgwick County Master Gardener’s page on Facebook.
Sign the kiddos up for one of the Lowes Build and Grow workshops for kids in grades 1-5. In honor of teacher appreciation week, the project is a cute schoolhouse.
To participate in the workshop, you’re supposed to 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 actually educational (because you have to read the instructions, even if you’re a professional contractor, ha ha).
During National Parks Week, April 17 – 25, entrance to all 392 national parks is free. Go to the National Parks Service website to find a park in Kansas.
Saturday, April 24 is National Junior Ranger day. Kids can take part in special activities and earn badges at parks that have a Junior Ranger program. Junior Ranger programs in Kansas include: Brown vs Board of Education National Historic Site in Topeka, Fort Larned National Historic Site in Larned, Fort Scott National Historic Site Junior Ranger Program, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Junior Ranger Program, Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve Junior Ranger Program. (Call specific locations for information on planned activities.)
Thanks to Teresa Mears for sharing this tip.
Thanks to @TravelKS for verifying for me (via Twitter) that we do, indeed, have national parks in Kansas! I learn something new about my adopted home state on a regular basis.
The 85th annual Sunflower Cluster Dog Show is this weekend at the Kansas Coliseum. Admission is free, and it looks like it will be a great free family activity with the kids. Dogs will have to stay at home unless they’re entered in the show.
This is an all-breed dog show by the American Kennel Club. Events will include obedience, agility, herding, conformation, and others.
Guided tours offered by the Wichita Kennel Club are available at no charge. Call 440-4425 for more information and to reserve your spot in a tour.
Something significant about this show is that it’s one of the first in the country that has opened the competition to mixed-breed dogs in the obedience, agility, and rally events. (I’m of uncertain ancestry myself, so I think this is cool. )
While you’re at the show, don’t miss Art Show at the Dog Show, which has been on display at City Arts and features photography, paintings, sculptures, and other media.
For some interesting history of the event, read “85 Years of Dog Shows” from the Wichita Eagle at WichitaPaws.com, with a link at the end of the story to photos from dog shows past.
For more information, call 316-660-1000 or 316-744-8400.
Thanks to Heidi Marcinik, of SunDog Pet Photography, for letting us know about this event! Heidi is also one of the winners of the Art Show at the Dog Show. Click on the link to her site to see the photograph that won “Best Entry by a Kansas Artist.”
Meet WuShock and enjoy free kid’s activities and snacks this Saturday, April 10, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Ulrich Museum of Art at Wichita State University. At 2:30 p.m., the Wichita Griots will perform with music and storytelling.
For more information call (316) 978-3664, e-mail ulrich@wichita.edu or visit the website at www.ulrich.wichita.edu
Ulrich Museum of Art
1845 Fairmount Street
Wichita, KS 67260-0046
(316) 978-3664
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Wichita on the Cheap is brought to you by freelance writer Carolyn Erickson, who has called Wichita her home since the 90s (and she’s been a cheapskate longer than that). Although this is her job, her motivation for Wichita on the Cheap comes from an appreciation of what Wichita has to offer and a desire to help others enjoy it affordably. 
