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Right under your nose!

Artful experimentation Unleash some messy creativity at Scrappy Art Lab, a bright new art studio on Bainbridge Island. Kids can transform natural and reused materials into original artwork during Open Lab Hours ($25/family), or sign them up for an afterschool camp. At Kid Drop Off, kids get creative time while parents go explore the island.

scrappyartlab.com

Things to do with kids

GeekGirlCon board president Sharon Magliano Feliciano geeks out with her kids at Arcane Comics.

Geeky feminist fun

GeekGirlCon empowers girls to be who they are and pursue what they love

by JENNIFER MORTENSEN / photo by JOSHUA HUSTON

“My mom will tell you that I’ve been a geek

since day one,” says Sharon Magliano Feliciano, GeekGirlCon board president. She dressed as Spider-Woman for her second Halloween. On her fifth birthday, she had a Pac-Man party. When she was 8, Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted, and she became a self-identified geek for life.

“I immediately fell in awe and wonder of the Star Trek world, where people were going on big adventures to, basically, make friends,” says Feliciano. In a way, she’s been on a similar journey — building communities, connections and friendships — ever since. Today, Feliciano supports a global community of women writers at the nonprofit Hedgebrook. She also co-owns the geek

5 things to do Toy store playdates

Neighborhood Toy Store Day is Saturday, Nov. 9! Many indie toy stores will celebrate with crafts, demos and giveaways. Or stop by one of these shops for a regularly scheduled playdate:

1

Crafternoons at Snapdoodle

Kids ages 5 to 8 can drop in on Wednesday afternoons for handson fun with a craft kit. Snapdoodle Toys & Games, Redmond 3 snapdoodletoys.com

2

Paint and play at Mox Paint miniatures alongside fellow hobbyists on Sundays at this game store/ restaurant. Drop in on Mondays for board game night. Mox Boarding House, Ballard 3 moxboardinghouse.com

3

Make Magic at Math ‘n’ Stuff This U-District STEM store caters to mathophiles and mathophobes alike. Fridays and Saturdays, play in a Magic: The Gathering tournament. 3 mathnificent.com

4

Pokémon Swap at RetroActive Kids What’s old is new again at this toy store that combines nostalgia with fun discoveries. Trade Pokémon cards and spin the prize wheel at their monthly swap. 3 facebook.com/ retroactivekids

5

Storytime at Pottery Barn Kids Listen to a story while nestled among stuffies and imaginative décor. Get a passport at your first story time and receive a gift after your fifth. Tuesdays at 11 am. 3 uvillage.com

«Romp

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hangout Arcane Comics in Shoreline.

GeekGirlCon is an annual celebration of female geeks. It empowers women and girls to pursue their passions, and it’s coming up November 16 and 17 at the Washington State Convention Center. Feliciano hopes to encourage more children and families to attend.

“If you’ve never been to a convention, GeekGirlCon is a good one for beginners,” says Feliciano, who has been bringing her own geeklets, Nate, 19, and Kitty, 12, to the convention since they were little. “My daughter’s favorite is still the DIY Science Zone,” she says. “Scientists from all over the world are there to help families do hands-on activities. You might extract DNA from a strawberry. Or design and fly paper airplanes.”

q Find, save and share calendar events on the Seattle’s Child mobile app » seattleschild. com/app

The two-day program is packed with meetups, family-friendly science and art, gaming, cosplay and other events that honor women’s contributions to geek culture. Here’s a small sample of this year’s entertainment: music from folk-pop duo The Doubleclicks; a presentation about diversification in gaming with I Need Diverse Games founder Tanya DePass; a creative performance by Seattle-based “goddess of electronic psychedelic soul” SassyBlack; and a kids cosplay celebration, where mini-geeks can win prizes for costume craftsmanship and stage presence.

Passes for GeekGirlCon are $50 for the weekend, $35 for a day and $15 for kids ages 6-12. It’s free for children 5 and younger.

While the convention celebrates feminism, you definitely don’t have to be a girl — or a geek — to attend.

“Dads, brothers, gender-nonconforming, big geeks, little geeks, and even the notso-geeky are welcome,” says Feliciano. “GeekGirlCon is for everyone.”

Like her favorite Star Trek worlds, Feliciano hopes that GeekGirlCon will be a place for your family to make new friends and build community. “Come and be yourselves,” she says. “This is a place where being yourself is joyful, and where we can all unabashedly celebrate the things we love.” q geekgirlcon.com

Escape from Seattle! Overnight cruise to British Columbia

Go on a cruise without blowing through a week of vacation time. Your family can take a one-night

Princess Cruises Pacific Coastal

voyage from Seattle to Vancouver, B.C. Spend the evening enjoying the ship’s family-friendly entertainment, and wake up in Vancouver. Then stroll Granville Island and explore downtown before hopping on a short flight back to Seattle. For a more scenic ride home, take Amtrak’s Cascades train.

princess.com

Create unforgettable holiday experiences for the whole family:

• Enjoy a planetarium or laser show • Catch the latest Star Wars in IMAX ®

• Hang out with butterflies and naked mole rats

• Explore the majestic landscape of Saturn’s largest moon in our multiplayer virtual reality experience, Expedition Titan • Plus festive events bringing the winter spirit to life

pacsci.org/holidays