As it turns out, my house has entered the Bob Ross “No mistakes. Only Happy Accidents” poster phase in our end-of-summer mood management program. It is a program that also includes random yet audible realizations that summer is almost over, continued wrangling over when summer school assignments will be finished, and a million lists and calendars being filled out. So, it’s not exactly a surprise that a bit of relief comes from a $5.99 poster of Bob Ross with “happy little trees” and his signature hair and beard, even though the latter appear blurry — as if the poster makers got the red exclamation point I get when I try and print something from Costco with too low a resolution.

When doing some positive self-talk thinking, let’s share some end-of-summer camps at Edmonds’ Frances Anderson Center, I found out that all remaining summer camps are full. The silver lining of that is, with a full Edmonds Day Camp, I am hopeful that there will be more Day Camp ages and options next year. Also, the couple of non-school day camps for the school year still have spots available.

On Friday, Oct. 12, campers ages 7 to 11 can register for Owls Of Edmonds Day Camp. This Discovery Program event will teach kids about “the seven species of owls that call Edmonds home and campers will even get to “Dissect an owl pellet to discover what this predator has been eating.” On Wednesday, Nov. 23, the day before Thanksgiving, campers in the same age range can take Furry Friends Day Camp. Campers will investigate how the mammals that live in our area have adapted to survive in our local parks. They will examine pelts and skulls, learn how to search for and identify tracks, and take a walk to a local park to see what animals they can find. For more information and registration, you can visit RecZone.org.

On a solo trip to Target today, I picked up a weighted plush toy for someone who could use it for getting comfortable while paying attention or trying to sit for an extended period of (non-screen) time. I was pretty excited to find it because those kinds of items can get pretty expensive and I’ve been wanting to try one at home for awhile. On my way to the section to find it, I passed a heavily picked-over school supply section in the back corner, which will be Halloween costumes before you know it, and I was feeling proud of my decision to buy most items online, yeah from Target. The benefit of ordering from their website is that I was able to have my student look up most of the items and help cross off the list without being completely overstimulated in the store from the lights, crowds and being (easily) talked into a million other items of varying degrees of necessity. Seeing as I have one of the Target debit cards, the shipping was free and they had 99% of what I was looking for, including unruled index cards. For the high schooler, I know better than to buy too much ahead of time as the syllabus has been the best source of school supply information so far. I also know that I am in the black when it comes to composition notebooks so, I’m hoping we’re good. I’m not sure what took me so long to get on board with this kind of school supply shopping now that no one here thinks it’s fun.

One thing to look forward to this fall in Edmonds is the Main Street Commons Community Center, which per @VisitEdmonds promises pizza and “games (arcades, horseshoe bar and family roller-ball),” among many other things. The center is at the corner of 6th and Main downtown and will be done in warehouse style and will be home to pizza, a bakery and Molly Moon’s ice cream. I am so excited for all of the families that can head there after soccer at Frances Anderson Center or those wanting to meet up for an easy meal or treat. I would have loved this option as a mom of younger kids and I am excited for the parents who can use it and the kids with spending money in their pockets as well. For more information you can visit MainStreetCommons.us.

If you’re fully out of gas on ideas for kid entertainment, I keep getting social media ads for Outschool. Outschool is virtual classes for those ages 3 to 18 and can be an option for homeschooling or camps. We signed up my then-preteen for a photography class last year and it was pretty great. The students were from all over with the furthest away living in Australia. The ads that caught my eye this week were a class for those ages 8 to 13 who wanted to learn how to do designer fashion sketches and figure drawing (hello Barbie Fashion Plates) and another that was all about axolotls, a popular amphibian who is really having its 15 minutes right now. When searching for the class I saw the ad for, I found a few options over different age ranges for a class about axolotls. For more information, you can visit Outschool.com.

The seemingly opposite option for entertainment is heading out to the Evergreen State Fair before it closes up shop on Sept. 5. We published a whole guide on “Everything you need to know about the 2022 Evergreen State Fair” which covers the dates, hours, cost, and highlights of the events including free activities once you’re inside. We’ve certainly had our share of fun at this fair and I do enjoy the car racing that happens there. Most of the days in the upcoming forecast look fair-friendly though I know there are a lot of options of food and drinks to cool you off if you’re there. For more information, you can check out our guide or visit EvergreenFair.org.

— By Jennifer Marx

Jen Marx, an Edmonds mom of two boys, is always looking for a fun place to take the kids that makes them tired enough to go to bed on time.