What's Up This Weekend (July 10-11, 2010)

Saturday

Is there an early riser in your family who likes birds? Hike along with a guide at Cincinnati Nature Center‘s Rowe Woods for a two-hour Bird Walk, starting at 8 a.m. ($5, free for members). Don’t forget the binoculars!

Catch a flick with the fam at Sharonville Fine Arts Center, which is showing Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince at 6 p.m. for its family cinema night. Tickets are only $2, and free for ages 2 and under (purchase at Sharonville Community Center front desk). Downtown, you can watch two movies FREE on Fountain Square, Fantastic Mr. Fox and Bend It Like Beckham, starting at 7 p.m.

Bring your music lovers and lawn chairs for a free concert at Keehner Park in West Chester. From 7 to 9 p.m., the Cincinnati Brass Band will be swinging big band classics that’ll get the kids (and maybe even you!) up on their feet to dance the night away.

And we can’t forget MONSTER JAM (which seems to call for all caps, doesn’t it?) at Paul Brown Stadium. Monster Jam is a massive truck show, featuring 12-foot tall, 10,000-pound trucks racing around a track. Unlike a regular truck show, the Monster Jam track is full of obstacles that the trucks must roll over…. or crash through! Get the full scoop from Shannan’s giveaway post (sorry, the giveaway is closed, but you’ll get all the details).

Sunday

The end is near folks!  Well, the end of World Cup anyways…the final day of the tournament is Sunday.  Come celebrate with a…uh…FOOSBALL TOURNEY?  Well, why not?  Head downtown to Fountain Square for all the foos-action before and after the final game.  The game will be broadcast live on the jumbo screen – so bring your pom-poms, comfy chairs and cheer whomever is left on to victory!  Fun starts at 11am – find all the details at the Fountain Square website.

I really didn’t see a whole lot of special events or cool family stuff going on this Sunday. If you know of something that I missed, please add a comment to this post. Thanks!

All Weekend

There are church festivals, and then there’s St. Rita Fest. This is one of the big ones in terms of Cincinnati’s summer festivals. This Friday, Saturday and Sunday, go for rides, raffles, live music, games for all ages, spaghetti, turtle soup and fish dinners. There’s also free parking, shuttles and a special ride pass for children. Admission is $2; ages 18 and under must come with an adult after 9 p.m.

GUESS how many Farmers Markets are going on in the greater Cincinnati area this weekend? 46 (at least)! Find one in your part of town (or a different one, if you’re feeling adventurous) and shop for fresh, local treats.

Discover what frontier life was like for early American settlers at Ohio Pioneer Days, held this Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at Sharon Woods’ Heritage Village Museum ($5 ages 12 and up, $3 ages 5-11, free ages 4 and under). View demonstrations on butter-churning, open hearth cooking, and candle-dipping. Listen to re-enactors tell stories, plus hammered-dulcimer and banjo music.