Holiday event Archives

Enchanted Holiday Events At The Bravern

November 21, 2011 by Momstart 2 Comments

We missed another holiday event last week. The Bravern Kicked off holiday season with its second annual tree-lighting ceremony as part of the “Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern”. The tree-lighting ceremony, was hosted by Kevin Joyce, former performer and director at Teatro Zinzanni Jolly St. Nick arrived in a horse-drawn carriage alongside Jamie and Karen Moyer of The Moyer Foundation and two campers from Camp Mariposa. The arrival was led by Bells of the Sound accompanied by Captain Smarty Pants and Sensible Shoes.

The Enchanged Holidays Continues:

“Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern” offers the Pacific Northwest’s most stylish and comfortable shopping experience. In addition to the tree-lighting ceremony, “Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern” includes a variety of family-friendly events to help celebrate the holidays including:

· Pony Rides: Enjoy pony rides in the 110^th Avenue arrival court every Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. between Nov. 26 and Dec. 24. Riders are encouraged to make a donation for their trot to The Moyer Foundation.

· Photos with Santa: Santa will be available to listen to children’s wishes and pose for holiday photos every Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. beginning Nov. 25 to Dec. 13 and every day from Dec. 14 to 24. All of Santa’s visitors will receive a free cupcake from Trophy Cupcakes.

· Dear Santa Letters: Kids are invited to write letters to Santa at Silberman Brown Stationers detailing their holiday wish list. Letters can be handed directly to the big guy himself or dropped off in his special mailbox. Letters will be made available to parents as keepsakes.

· Pet Photos: Santa doesn’t only listen to children’s wishes, but your pet’s wishes too! On Saturday, Dec. 17 from 6 to 8 p.m., guests are invited to bring their furry friends in for a photo with Santa.

· Cookie Decorating: Bring the kids to enjoy an hour of delicious holiday cookie decorating on Wednesday, Dec. 7 from noon to 1 p.m. at Sur La Table, immediately following Little Bookworms, The Bravern’s weekly story hour.

· Friday Night Entertainment: Every Friday evening in December, enjoy live entertainment from a variety of entertainers including Captain Smarty Pants, Sensible Shoes and The Dickens Carolers.

· Breakfast with Santa: Enjoy breakfast with Santa at Mariposa at Neiman Marcus on Saturday, Dec. 3 and Saturday, Dec. 10 at 9 a.m. Reservations can be made by calling: (425) 452-3333.

For more information on these events call (425) 456-8780 or visit the website at http://www.thebravern.com/ . You can also find The Shops at The Bravern on Facebook and Twitter.

Fun Facts about “Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern”:

· The Bravern holiday tree stands 35 feet tall.

· There are 4,400 feet of live garland throughout the shopping center. That is enough garland to go up and down the Space Needle nearly four times!

· 10,000 jewel-colored ornaments cover the tree and garland.

· It takes 10 people more than 480 hours to install all of the decorations.

The Bravern is located at the intersection of NE 8^th Street and 110^th Avenue NE, Bellevue, WA 98004

Commit a Minute To Holiday Safety

December 2, 2010 by Momstart 294 Comments

Oh the Holiday Crazies are among us. Family everywhere, frantic shopping, constant traffic, perfectly wrapping, decorating the house, cooking food, cooking desserts, cooking cooking cooking, party planning and need I go on? What aren’t we doing this time of year, oh I know, we’re not getting sleep. As a mom, you know life can get extremely busy while preparing for the holidays. However, sometimes the focus on celebrating can turn fun festivities into injuries and accidents if safety is not a priority for families. Studies show that nearly 230 people will visit the emergency room each day in November and December to be treated for holiday-related injuries.

Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a leading independent safety organization, is calling all parents, specifically moms, to set aside time in their schedule to commit at least one minute to safety each day this holiday season. You know who UL is right, they have their label on almost every single cable you can find that goes into an electrical socket, but they do more than that, they are on appliances, always thinking about safety in everything we do.

We’re committing to Holiday Safety as a family and I invite you to as well.

My husband decorated the house last weekend, he let the kids help in ways that were age appropriate.

He checked all of the cords, extension cords, and made sure they were safe to use and the indoor cords were used indoors and the outdoor cords were all outdoors. He carefully checked voltage, and organized the cords where they are not tangled in any way. And we placed one of the cables at our front door under our welcome mat so no one will trip on the cord on their way into our house. (we have smart neighbors, Thanks Robin!)

Here are a few more tips from UL:

Focus on the Fireplace
Move stockings and holiday decorations off the mantle before starting a fire in your fireplace and always use the fireplace screen. Recycle wrapping paper instead of burning it in your fireplace. Burning wrapping paper could produce dangerous sparks or flares of intense heat.
Read more

Stay Warm Safely
Look for the UL Mark on your space heater and read the instructions before using it. Move space heaters at least three feet away from anything that can burn (e.g., curtains, blankets) and never leave a space heater on when you leave the room or go to sleep. Be sure to teach children (and practice it yourself) to never place anything on top of a space heater to dry.
Read more

Keep Watch in the Kitchen
The kitchen is a busy place from Thanksgiving through the holiday season. Never leave anything cooking unattended, not even for a minute. Turn pot handles inward so that little hands can’t grab them. And keep your kitchen and your cooking area free of clutter to avoid unnecessary accidents.
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Use Candles with Care
Walk around your home and move candles away from anything that can burn. Store matches and lighters away from children and be sure to blow out candles before you leave the room or go to sleep. Never leave a burning candle unattended.

Easy Electrical Safety
Check electrical outlets and make sure they are not overloaded. Look for the UL Mark on all your electrical cords and holiday lights. When decorating, inspect cords for damage and fraying and always keep extension cords away from where children play. Never run an extension cord under a rug or tack it up to a wall with a nail or staple.
Read more

I have to say one other thing that happened today, make sure you watch your children when they are playing. I wasn’t paying attention to my son this morning and he pulled one of our stocking right off the mantle today and I’m lucky that the letter P, the stocking holder, didn’t hit him in the head and knock him off of the fire place. It would have left a nasty bruise. Kids and Christmas do go together but keep it safe!!

Enter to Win:

100.00 Visa Gift Card

To Enter:

Just leave a comment on this post telling me how you plan to commit to safety this Holiday Season!

The Gift Card provided for the giveaway is my compensation for this post and I wanted to share it with my readers. By posting this and all of you leaving comments, I will be entered into a contest to win a 250.00 Gift Card from UL. The blogger with the most comments wins! Thank you for your participation!

This giveaway ends December 31st.

Only Holiday Tree Lighting on The Eastside is at The Bravern

November 17, 2010 by Momstart 3 Comments

The Bravern, one of the Pacific Northwest’s most stylish shopping experiences, is also home to one of the Eastside’s most family-friendly holiday celebrations, with shops, gift ideas and events to suit every person in the family. On Nov. 19 The Bravern will kick off the holiday season with the Eastside’s only Christmas tree lighting as part of the “Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern” holiday celebration. The tree-lighting event will be hosted by KIRO 7’s Jenni Hogan and includes festivities for the entire family including a visit from Santa Claus escorted by the Sea Gals in a horse-drawn carriage. The Bravern is located at the intersection of NE 8^th Street and 110^th Avenue NE, Bellevue, WA 98004. I really wanted to attend this event but we have another event planned for this weekend. My husband and I are still deciding on which event we are actually going to go to. Wow, who knew having kids would fill up our schedules so quickly.

About “Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern”

“Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern” is the 2010 holiday celebration hosted by The Bravern, offering the Pacific Northwest’s most stylish and comfortable shopping experience. In addition to the tree-lighting event, “Enchanted Holidays at The Bravern” includes a variety of events to help celebrate the holidays including:

· Cool Winter Nights: Every Thursday in December from 5:30-7:30 p.m., enjoy live music, drinks and appetizers from Wild Ginger off of the 110^th arrival court. All ticket proceeds benefit Childhaven.

· Spectacular Light Show: Every day at 5:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., guests will enjoy a unique light show displayed in the NE 8^th arrival court.

· Photos with & Letters to Santa: Santa will be available to listen to children’s wishes and pose for holiday photos every Friday, Saturday and Sunday between November 26 and December 19, and every day from December 20-23. Kids are also invited to write their letters to Santa at Silberman Brown Stationers and drop them off with Santa or in his special mailbox. All letters will be mailed to the parents. Times vary; please visit http://www.thebravern.com/holiday for the schedule.

· Cookie Decorating: Bring the kids to enjoy an hour of delicious holiday cookie decorating every Wednesday from 12-1 p.m. at Sur La Table, immediately following Little Bookworms, The Bravern’s weekly story hour.

· Breakfast with Santa and Mrs. Claus: On Dec. 4 and Dec. 11 from 9-11 a.m., join two of the holidays’ favorite icons, Santa and Mrs. Claus at Neiman Marcus, for a delightful full-plate breakfast featuring a special surprise for young guests.

For more information on these events call (425) 456-8780 or visit the website at http://www.thebravern.com/holiday. You can also find The Shops at The Bravern on Facebook and Twitter.