WEEKEND WARRIORS: June 13-15

If berries are your thing, then Sauvie Island is the place to be this weekend mamas!  Three berry festivals (and hopefully sunshine, no less!) promise opportunities for picking and snacking as well as hayrides, music, and other fun. Check out the Kruger's Berry Jam Festival , the Pumpkin Patch Strawberry Festival, and the Rasmussen Farms Summer Sensations, all being held Saturday and Sunday.  A happy Father's Day to all those dads on Sunday!

Friday

Story & a Stroll: Enjoy a short guided walk that involves education about metamorphosis. Targets kids 3-6, rain or shine. Pre-registration required. Tryon Creek State Park, 1:00-2:00 pm.

Ladybug Walk: A guided 60 minute walk around Leach Botanical Gardens for preschoolers, no registration necessary, $2 per child. 10:00-11:30 am.

Puppet Stock: Join Penny's Puppets and Mudeye Puppets for a puppet show extravaganza.  $3 per child. $5 adult. Moxie Rx (N. Mississippi and N. Shaver), 10:00 am.

Saturday

Ladybug Walk: Summer is here and ladybug walks are now on Saturdays too! A guided 60 minute walk around Peninsula Park for preschoolers, no registration necessary, $2 per child. 10:00-11:30 am.

QFC Cake Decorating: Looking for a dessert for Father's Day?  Head on over to a QFC grocery store and have the kids decorate a cake just for dear 'ol dad.  QFC provides the cake and decorations. All QFC stores (55th and E. Burnside, Broadway and 33rd, and 6641 SE Milwaukie), $5 per cake, starts at 11:00 am, hours vary by store.

Maternity and Baby Swap: Need to clean out your kiddos closet or looking for clothes to accommodate your growing belly?  This swap might be the place for you.  Gently used items only please. Milagros, 11:30-12:30 pm.

Don't Bug Me...I'm Reading!: Join award-winning performer, songwriter, and educator Greta Pedersen for a lively and interactive sing-along. It includes songs in American Sign Language, accompaniment on guitar and mountain dulcimer, and a fascinating variety of percussion instruments (including fruits and vegetables!) which selected audience members will play. Belmont Library, 3:00.

Day of the African Child: Kids get in FREE to the World Forestry Center for this celebration of children living in Africa.  Storytelling, drumming, entertainment (marimba music, dancing, and choirs galore), crafts, and an African market.  World Forestry Center, 10:00 am-5:00 pm.

Cirque Du Cycling: Where to begin?  This crazy cycling circus (and benefit for Self Enhancement, Inc.) includes a 3 mile family bike ride through the streets of the Boise Elliot neighborhood, a parade of the most colorful, crazy bikes you'll ever see, music by the Sprockettes (and others), and for those speed junkies, the Mississippi Avenue Criterium.  Not to mention yummy food and vendors selling cycling-related wares.  Events start at 4:00 pm (sign in is earlier), check the website for details.

Little Kids Jamboree Join Lorna Miller as she entertains adults and kids with music, rhythm, and movement.  $5 per family. Mississippi Pizza (3552 N. Mississippi), 4:00 pm.

Toy Trains Performance: This popular kid band covers Dan Zanes, Lisa Loeb and other childhood tunes as well as some Beatles, Tom Waits, REM, John Prine. Especially great for toddlers that love to bebop to the music. $5 per family. Mississippi Pizza (3552 N. Mississippi). 5:30 pm.

Paid Leave Play Date: Join local parents working to pass paid family leave in Portland as they host a "Call Your Congressperson Play Date" to request support for new federal legislation calling for 12 weeks of paid leave for families nationwide. Urban Grind, NE. 10:00 am.

Sitter Soiree: In the market for a baby sitter? The folks from Sitter Soiree have pulled eager and qualified sitters from local colleges and daycares together for this event that makes it easy for parents to get contact information after meeting potential sitters in person. Purple Moon Child Development (3211 NE Broadway) 5:00-7:00 pm.

Patton Square Re-opening Celebration: Come celebrate the grand re-opening of Patton Square Park with the Trillium School Drummers and the Portland Theatre Brigade as well as children’s arts & crafts and games. Patton Square Park, N. Interstate & Emerson.  11:30 am-2:30 pm.

Painted Turtle Walk: Come see one of the largest populations of Western painted turtles in the Northwest. See these beautiful reptiles with the help of Metro naturalist James Davis, who will have small telescopes for a close look. Learn about their natural history and why they're so rare. Adults and children 5 and older. Meet in the parking area on North Marine Drive. Advance registration required. (503) 797-1850 ext. 4  Smith and Bybee Lakes, 1:00-2:30 pm.

Belmont Firehouse Safety Saturday: Learn valuable safety lessons and fire department history by exploring the old Belmont Firehouse. Hands on activities 9including sliding down a fire pole!  10:00 am-3:00 pm.

Sunday

Pride Parade: With a crowd of over 50,000 (Oregon's third largest parade), the Portland Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Queer Parade is your opportunity to march down the streets of downtown Portland showing your pride. The parade winds down to Waterfront Park for even more music, food, and fun. North Park Blocks, 11:00 am.

Fathers Day BBQ and Car Show: The folks at the Radio Cab Foundation are holding a BBQ fundraiser (food by Burgerville!) at 17th and NW Kearney to raise money for their Annual Holiday Turkey Project, which provides holiday meals to over 1000 families every year. A fire truck and taxi-cab will be on display for kid interaction and the NW Convertible Car Club is holding a cruise-in of classic cars. 11:00 am-3:00 pm.

Father's Day Field Day at the Children's Museum: Dad's get in free for Father's Day!