Emily from Kidcreate Studio came out to our party room for my daughter's birthday and it was…read moreamazing! We picked out a painting that my daughter would like beforehand and Emily brought all the materials. She was so patient with the kids (ages 7-8 with some 4-5) and all the kids enjoyed the activity. It lasted an hour and it was a well spent hour. We will definitely recommend them to all our friends!

My daughters (3 and 6) had so much fun taking the Glow Art class at Kidcreate. Lindsey and Allison…read morehad them engaged the whole class, creating their art and then working on other projects, like shaving cream painting and making books with oil pastels. The space is so bright and cheery. They loved seeing the clay art projects that had been completed, so we will definitely be back! Can't wait to try out some of the camp offerings.

Over the past few months I took 3 sewing classes at Sew Crafty and LOVED IT!…read more I started with the Machine Sewing Basics class to brush up on my skills. I had sewn as a teen so it was easy to dive back in, but there were also brand new beginners in my class that seemed to do really well too. After Basics, I felt confident enough to sign up for Hemming and Alterations (a set of 2 classes), where we reviewed measuring and different types of hems/clothing modifications. We even got to bring in some of our own clothes to work on while supervised by the teachers :) Since then, I've been able to hem a bunch of items I've always wanted to wear, so I'll call it a success! The staff was soooo knowledgeable and patient (shout out to Anika who led both of mine!), making the total of 6 hours I spent there really efficient. The studio was tidy, well organized and had all the equipment we needed to thrive. Plus, the classmates were all super kind, so I guess it draws in nice people! 10/10 recommend!

We LOVE Sew Crafty! My daughter has been going there for 2+ years - she's done after school, summer…read morecamp, and day off camp. The staff is wonderful! My daughter has not only learned how to sew well, but she's loving her ability to choose projects, fabrics, and designs and has gained so much confidence in her ability to sew. Most recently, Alina helped my daughter sew a full skirt over multiple sessions - I can't thank her enough for all she did to teach and guide my daughter. I highly recommend Sew Crafty!

We've been to two classes here and my 3 year old loves it!…read more The format of the class is all around community and learning together which my kiddo loves. She would never normally try such nutritious meals (such as a green smoothie bowl or shepherds pie with cauliflower mash) but when she makes it herself, she will eat and enjoy nutritious foods I could never convince her to enjoy. The space is bright, clean, and in a great location with easy street parking. The team is friendly, patient, and kind. I am so excited for my kiddo to continue learning from this amazing team!

Would give 11/10 if I could - what an engaging, informative platform for kids - my daughter has…read moreattended as a school extra-curricular activity for the entire last year and her proficiency and interest around the kitchen has blossomed. Kudos to Niki and the whole team at Junior Chefs Kitchen for being a highlight of our year!

I discovered Stages a few years ago (pre COVID) and my child fell in love with the Preschool Prep…read moreclasses almost immediately. Over the 5 years since we have done numerous camps, day off school sessions, and the spring musicals BUT recently I got to fall back in love with Stages when I attended a Broadway Baby class with a friends toddler. It was so fun, so relaxed and the kids (and me!) had a blast. We went thru an abbreviated telling of a musical (Lion King, but each week is something new) with stories, movement, songs, instruments and BUBBLES! I wish this existed when my kids were this age. Definitely recommend trying a class!

I've been following Emily & her incredibly talented team on social for awhile now and in awe of all…read moreher themed broadway musical classes. When it was time to plan my son's 4 year old bday bash I reached out to see if we could something work for his chosen theme: superheroes! It turned out they did have an interactive performance party with superheroes and so we booked it right away! All I needed was to find an empty room to host it and I booked the JCC for just that. Emily was super responsive throughout the party planning process and followed up closer to the party for a final count so she knew how many performers to line up. We ended up having 2 performers (Batman and Wonder Woman) for 25ish kids, which was perfect. I've hired many characters for many parties and these two were by far the most talented. Batman (Colin) and Wonder Woman (blanking on her name, which is too bad since she was incredible) had the kids totally engaged, which is not easy when it comes to a large group of 3 and 4 year olds. They had them dancing, singing, jumping and even gave them each a chance to pose for a pic with them. They also weren't completely masked like many other characters so the kids didn't find them scary. Superheroes is just one of the many themed parties Stages offers. Others I"ve considered in the past were a lion king party (perfect for toddlers/pre-schoolers). They even offer a pop star party where performers come and pretend to be the team behind a specific pop star (Taylor Swift, Jojo Siwa, etc) - and teach the kids how to become the next pop star. So fun! I highly recommend using Stages for an upcoming party and I hope to sign up my kiddos for one of their classes one day.

I've been eagerly awaiting Bunny Ears' opening since I stumbled upon them at AppleFest in Lincoln…read moreSquare last year. Before they opened, they were doing pop-up events at markets, fairs, and festivals, and they had an activity in the children's area at AppleFest last year. They opened in the last month or so and today I finally was able to visit! On Fridays, they have a session called Fluffle Babies (did you know that a group of bunnies is called a fluffed? I didn't!) for children up to age one and their caregiver(s). My baby is less than a month from turning one so I needed to get in here quickly! It was a fun morning. The owner was our host, and she had selected a topic for us to all share about so that we had a starting place for conversation. We introduced ourselves and our little ones, and shared our perspective on the morning's discussion topic. Then she introduced the art play for the day, which this morning was edible paints where we used rice cereal with food dye to color the cereal. Jinny explained that it's helpful to teach children not to eat paint, even though this is edible, because when they start playing with tempura paints, acrylics, and so on they will not be edible. My little one stirred the "paint" a little, ate some, smashed her hands in it, and crawled around. It was a fun morning for her! There are several different stations and tables for kids to partake in their activities. I'll be this is a fantastic place to have a kids party! When you enter you'll take your shoes off and there's a partial wall with a door to keep children from scampering off once they enter the art space. There's a tinker bar, several sinks, a play area with magnetic tiles, a place for playing with water... there are so many possibilities for children to have fun and be creative. I attended one of the toddler classes and it was good, but perhaps a little advanced for my daughter; it was ages 1-5, and there's a huge difference in one year olds (which is my daughter) to five year olds. Given that, the fact that I live in one of the outer neighborhoods now (instead of five minutes away), and that the class is on a weekday so I can't miss work each week I am not sure I'll be able to continue the class. But we may stop in on an open play day or something. I love the concept of this place and am look forward to visiting again and continuing to learn some fun ways to encourage artistic creativity in my little one! They are good about safety. Once the class starts, they lock the door (ask me how I know--luckily the babe was inside with grandma in the event I was locked out the entire time!). They have some great options for parents with slightly older children, as they have offered drop-in play for Maifest and they have it for Square Roots, too. I love that they offer this for parents to have just a little free time while their kids are having a blast on their own. Parking is street only or the lot across from Old Town School if it's not in use/blocked.

We had a 4 year old birthday, everything went smoothly and was so much fun for the kids! They made…read morebracelets, painted the walls, built a fort, and celebrated! We brought snacks, cupcakes, and some table decorations, bunny ears did everything else. Thank you for a great time! Staff was friendly, helpful, and everything was efficient!

We went to the afternoon performance of Good Night Moon this afternoon and my son adored it. I was…read moreon the fence about buying tickets as it was expensive for us ($50 each) but my son did enjoy it more so than the paw patrol live shows he has seen. The show was about an hour and 15 mins and he sat through the entire show (he is 4). The props were great, the stage was great and the actors were great. We did get there about 45 mins before the show and the small parking lot next to the theater had plenty of parking spaces available. The doors opened a half hour before show start time and it gave us plenty of time to do a craft and use the bathroom before the show. Many parents must frequent the theater because they started lining up before the doors to the theater opened to get a good spot. I'd say all seats are good visually but the benches weren't the most comfortable after an hour for an adult. I do think we will be back for their next production. :)

I had a very nice time here with the little one. It was a great performance and interaction from…read morethe crew. Great experience for the kids to get out and enjoy.

We sent our 4-year-old to this camp for the entire summer of '18 and we are pleased. There are few…read moreoptions in Chicago for a full day of summer care for kids under 5. The staff were all fantastic! There were over 200 kids at camp everyday and they knew us and our child pretty quickly. The camp is somewhat unstructured, there are not naps. There are several themed rooms the kids can choose to work/play in. If I recall correctly there was a singing/recording room, a game room, a programming room, fashion studio, cooking, and a couple others. They can also play outside. Every Friday had a dress up theme. Frequently there was a bouncy house, water apparatus, or other fun structures for the kids to play in. I think the total cost was about $2700 or $3000. Recommended!

Steve & Kate's camp is AWESOME! The camp allows the children to choose which activities that they…read morewant to engage in which, I find very creative & inspiring for children. The counselor are really cool too. They are vibrant, energetic, patient and kind. My daughter likes this camp so much that she didn't want to go anywhere else soooo, it's our 2nd consecutive year! Thank you Steve & Kate's Lakeview family, you're the BEST !!

Celebrated our daughter's 5th birthday out there. Absolutely great facility and highly professional…read moreteam. We had a Diva-Pop Princess theme and there were around 15 girls. We were worried if the number would become a crowd. But Mary Lou and her team were exceptional handlers of young and excited girls. Starting from dressing them up, managing participation of every girl and making each feel special - all were done extremely well. My daughter had one of her best birthdays out there and her memories will last for many years. Couple of other parents were so impressed that they are now planning to celebrate their child's birthdays at Spotlight too! Again, great job guys!

This was an awesome experience. We celebrated my daughter's 9th BIRTHDAY on 2/17/18 and we chose…read morethe Spa-tacular theme. The girls had a blast. Mary and her team were awesome and the place was gorgeous when we walked in. My daughter is already picking out her theme for her next birthday. Thank you Spotlight on 3 for making her day memorable.