ELKHART -- Kids love holiday breaks. However, if the thought of a house full of exuberant kids, grandkids, or nieces and nephews creates an uneasiness about the well-being of your peaceful, well-organized home, put those worries aside.
The following is a list of cheap or free winter activities in Elkhart County. Go ahead and bundle up those frisky kids and head out for some fun.
If readers come across more cheap or free ideas, let us know. We'll post this list and more at etruth.com.
The Elkhart County Convention and Visitors Bureau hosts a terrific Web site that lists many events around the county. Check out www.amishcountry.org to find listings, many of them free, on everything from art exhibits to holiday festivals. Stop in at the bureau, 219 Caravan Drive, Elkhart, near the toll road exit, and staffers will share these and other affordable ways to get to know Elkhart County. Phone: 262-8161.
* The opening day at the NIBCO Water and Ice Park is 6 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 9, weather-permitting. Admission is $2; skate rental, $3. For a complete list of times and prices, visit www.elkhartindiana.org or call 970-7490.
* Fine Crafted Art for the Home Special Exhibit is a FREE exhibit of American Fine Craft and will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Nov. 30, at Sycamore Fine Arts, The Old Bag Factory, 1100 Chicago Ave., Goshen.
* Ruthmere Museum, 320 E. Beardsley Road, Elkhart, a 1910 beaux-arts mansion now museum, is handsomely decorated in the Edwardian Christmas theme of its era. Admission is FREE to from 1 to 4 p.m. Dec. 6. Call 264-0330 for more information or visit www.Ruthmere.org. (Editor's note - Initial dates listed with free events in this story were incorrect. This version is correct.)
* Admission is FREE to holiday activities during Christmas at the Market, at American Countryside Farmers Market. The celebration will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Dec. 4, 5 , 11, 12 and 19.
* During Goshen's First Fridays, businesses, artists, and entertainers throw a party in downtown Goshen, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. the first Friday of each month.
* Have breakfast with Santa at Elkhart's Central Fire Station on Waterfall Drive from 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Dec. 5. Admission is $2 for breakfast, along with one canned good item to be donated to the food bank.
* Admission is FREE to "Ground Works," an art exhibit by Jerry Smith, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 at Sycamore Fine Arts in the Old Bag Factory. The exhibit will showcase a wide variety of landscape paintings by the award-winning painter from Crawfordsville, Indiana.
* Christmas Around the Tree. Enjoy the start of the holiday season in downtown Wakarusa with a FREE hometown gathering around a huge Christmas tree, smack-dab in the center of town. From 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, Dec. 7, people can enjoy caroling, live nativity, carriage rides and treats!
* Gingerbread Houses for Humanity Contest, Dec. 5 through Dec. 23, at the Old Bag Factory. Families can enter their own "gingerbread house" made from traditional ingredients, or from other materials such as wood, cardboard, paper, or cloth. The entrance fee is $5, however, a Martin's Supermarket coupon for $5 will be given for every house entered into the competition. The houses will be on display during December. Vote for your favorites and help to raise money for Habitat for Humanity. 100% of the money from the entrance fees and the People's Choice Award, will be donated to Habitat for Humanity of Elkhart County. There will be six gift certificates given away to the award winners for this contest.
* Family Christmas Day, Dec. 5, at the Old Bag Factory, will feature special events for the whole family, some free, some a nominal charge. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Santa will visit in an antique sleigh. A professional photographer will be on hand to catch those special childhood memories on film. Several special guest artists will demonstrate painting from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Folk musicians Mick and Rick will play an assortment of instruments, including a mountain dulcimer, fiddle and banjo. Activities for kids include ornament making and a room full of model trains.
* Midwest Museum of American Art, 429 S. Main St., Elkhart, is free for families on Sundays. Phone: 293-6660.
The Elkhart Public LIbrary and its branches offer free or low-cost programs, such as art contests and storytelling. Check out the local library, or go online at www.myepl.org, for a long list of all the terrific activities. Registration is required for some of the programs. Here are just a few examples:
* Kids 11-17 can participate in the Batman Villain Contest at the library on Mondays, Dec. 1, 14, and 28. Enter the name of your new villain and their superpower. Drawings will be accepted, too. Winners will be announced by Jan. 10. The winner will appear on the Elkhart Public Library blog. Sign up online or call Young Peoples Services at 522-2223.
* Parents can bring their toddlers, ages 2 to 3, to Toddler Time at 10 a.m. Wednesdays, Dec., 2, 9 and 16, at the Main Library. This series of programs is designed to promote early literacy and the socialization of your little ones. Registration and accompaniment by an adult are required. Sign up online or call Young Peoples Services at 522-2223.
* Come to the Main Library on Dec. 21, 22 and 23, and make Holiday crafts. The program is FREE, all ages are welcome and no registration is required.
* At 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 29, the Main Library is "Going to the Dogs," with an hour of movie watching, storytelling and crafting all based on stories of famous dogs. Registration is required online or by calling Young Peoples Services at 522-2223.
The area is home to many county and city parks, which are perfect places to let kids run and sled and burn off energy. OxBow County Park's sledding hill is famous in these parts and it's FREE as the county stops taking park entrance fees at OxBow Nov. 1 through March 31. Residents do need to bring their own sleds.
Elkhart City and Elkhart County Parks' departments have some affordable offerings this season. Here are just a few.
The Elkhart County Parks Department:
* During "Immigrant Holiday Customs," from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 12, kids can experience some of the holiday traditions immigrants have brought to Elkhart County and a day full of crafts, activities, and holiday cheer! The cost is $1 admission at the Elkhart County Historical Museum, 304 W Vistula, Bristol.
* Nature Nuts (kids ages 3 to 5) and Science Sleuths (kids ages 6 to 9) learn about everything from seeds to woodpeckers during monthly programs. For times, dates and to register for these programs call the Parks' office at (574) 535-6458 or check out www.elkhartcountyparks.org/calendar.
* For more affordable activities, such as winter nature hikes, or programs, such as discussions about the local Underground Railroad, check out the parks' department website at www.elkhartcountyparks.org/calendar or call 535-6458.
City of Elkhart, Parks and Recreation:
* Take a FREE Winter Wildlife hike at 1 p.m., Jan. 9th, at the Elkhart Environmental Center, 1717 East Lusher Avenue, Elkhart. Families will look for tracks, scat, signs of feeding and bedding, and maybe even see some of the wildlife that calls Elkhart home. Dress for being outside and on the trails. This program is free, but pre-registration is requested by calling 293-5070.
* Check out www.elkhartindiana.org for a complete list of the Parks and Recreation Department's activities.