ACTIVITIES TO SHARE WITH CHILDREN
Winterfun with kids used to mean sledding, snowballfights and campfires. But now there areso many indoor activities that are fun and even educational.
Cut and Sew Studio in Morningside offers a range of classes and open studio time for your budding designer. The intro to sewing class lets elementary and middleschoolers try their hands at a pillow, drawstring backpack and PJ pants or shorts. Eight weekly two-hour classes cost $265 at cutandsewstudio.com.
Who doesn’t love pinball? A gift certificate to Pinball Perfection in West View offers your big or little gamer the region’s largest collection of pinball machines, including classic Godzilla and Star Wars games from Darth Vader to Baby Yoda and the Mandalorian. A $15 entry fee gets them five hours of play on Saturday family days. Find out more at pinballperfection.com.
The perfect gift for your young baking show fan is a class at Flour Power Kids Cooking Studio in Hampton. “The Chew,” a class for ages 5-8, introduces little bakers to the joy of making soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies and old-fashioned Charleston chewy cake. For age 13 and up, there’s “Copykat Favorites: Restaurant Favorites,” where they’ll learn the secret recipes for Chick-Fil-A Nuggets and Auntie Anne’s Pretzel Bites. Four classes start at $208 at flourpowerstudios.com.
Looking to reach a little higher? Check out Ascend indoor climbing facilities on the South Side or the new location in Point Breeze. Youth Climbing 101 gives children ages 6-13 a chance to try a fun and challenging sport. Instructors cover basic gym safety, etiquette, bouldering, autobelay climbing, technique, lingo and more. The $90 package includes four 1½-hour sessions with advanced sessions available. There are family events so you can join in. Learn more at www.ascendclimbing.com.
Try their hands at activities ranging from pottery to terrariums at Little House, Big Art in Spring Hill-City View. The shop offers a variety of projects including bullet journals and notebooks, painting and pom poms. There are to-go kits available for wood-crafting, pottery and jewelry making. For gift cards or more information, go to littlehousebigart.com.
Little sports fans will love a visit to the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum inside the Senator John Heinz History Center in the Strip District. Take a selfie with a lifesized figure of Franco Harris in the midst of the greatest play in Steelers’ history, the Immaculate Reception. Then get one with Penguins star Mario Lemieux hoisting an exact replica of the Stanley Cup. Learn about hometown baseball hall of famer Josh Gibson of the Homestead Grays and watch Bill Mazeroski’s Game 7 home run that made the Pirates 1960 World Series champs. Get more information at www.heinzhistorycenter.org.