Your Weekend: The Best Family Fun in Hawai‘i for November 11–17, 2021

Photo: Courtesy of Our Kaka‘ako

Mālama ‘Āina Community Clean Up

Help clear trash out of Kaka‘ako, donate to families in need and shop for eco-items while giving back to local nonprofits. The community event starts at Salt where you’ll pick up trash bags and gloves to help clean up the area. After an hour of work, return to grab a complimentary snack bag with granola bars, mandarin oranges and, from the Surfrider Foundation, a stainless steel straw set, then browse through reusable utensils, shirts and hats while you learn about the work of the foundation, Sustainable Coastlines Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i Land Trust and the Albizia Project. Bring gently used clothing, toys, household items and canned food to donate to Goodwill Hawai‘i and the Hawai‘i Foodbank and you can fill out a form to win a holiday dinner from a Kaka‘ako restaurant. Afterwards, let the kids run around Mother Waldron Park or stop for lunch nearby.

• All ages
• Free
• Saturday, Nov. 13. Check in for the clean up begins at 9 a.m. with the environmental fair and donation drop off beginning at 10 a.m.
• Salt at Our Kaka‘ako, 660 Ala Moana Blvd., #148
• ourkakaako.com, @ourkakaako

Made in Hawai‘i Festival

You have two hours to shop (that is, unless your little one taps out earlier) but the annual festival is still one of the best places to shop local. Among the almost 300 vendors, we spotted several with adorable items for keiki: Aloha Made Baby, Honolulu Baby Co., Izzy and Luke, Short Stack and a whole slew of great food companies as well ranging from Maui Fruit Jewels jellies and purees to Hawai‘i-made chocolate, sausage, honey and candy. Do know that tickets are assigned to time slots, you must arrive within 25 minutes of that time to enter, vaccination cards or negative COVID-19 tests are required and shoppers are requested to finish within those two hours (which is why you should browse the list of businesses before you go). Since the event is at Ala Moana Center this year, and the masked Santa sculpture is already up, you can spend the rest of your day browsing the holiday decorations at the mall. Or visit the online marketplace for a selection of items that you can buy directly from the company.

• All ages
• $15 for 7 years and older. Kids 6 years and younger are free.
• Thursday, Nov. 11 through Saturday, Nov. 13, 10 a.m.—9 pm. Sunday, Nov. 14, 10 a.m.—5 p.m.
• Ala Moana Center, 4th level of the ‘Ewa parking structure, outside Bloomingdales
• madeinhawaiifestival.com, @madeinhi

Photo: Jerry Wang / Unsplash

Donate a Toy for a Tot

The music started playing on the radio, the decorations are up in the malls and Santa will be arriving soon in shopping centers (watch for our list of arrivals next week). With everything beginning earlier this year, it’s a good time to also think about donating. A few places are already accepting Toys for Tots including the Pizza Press at Pearl Highlands Center, several businesses at Mililani Shopping Center and Salt Lake Shopping Center, iTrampoline in Kapolei and various other places around the island. See the full list of locations that have signed up here. Do call ahead to make sure your site is accepting new, unwrapped toys or books right now.

Photo: Courtesy of Windward Mall

‘Ohana Nights

This month’s event which features food trucks at Windward Mall includes a pop-up craft fair this weekend. Saturday, craft booths open at Center Court at noon while the food trucks open in the parking lot next to The Plaza at Kāne‘ohe at 3 p.m. Sunday, you can visit the vendors inside starting at 11 a.m. after grabbing your favorites at the farmers market beginning at 9:45 a.m.

• All ages
• Free
• 45-056 Kamehameha Highway, Kāne‘ohe
• windwardmall.com/events/ohana-nights-nov/, @windwardmall

Register: Plantoem Terrarium Workshops

Sorry, this weekend’s keiki workshops are sold out. But, if you want to get in on the fun, you can register now for the next one at this new Kaimukī shop in December. Elementary school-age kids will build their own miniature garden in a bottle with some help in less than two hours.

• Kids 5 to 12 years
• $55
• Sunday, Dec. 12, 1 p.m.
• 3457 Wai‘alae Ave., #203
• Register on Eventbrite, @plantoem

Register: Santa’s Secret Workshop

It’s safe to say that holiday-themed events will fill up quickly this year. (Watch for our list of events Thanksgiving week.) Especially when it involves crafts, snacks and play time at the Hawai‘i Children’s Discovery Center. Both sessions are open now, but we don’t expect that to last long.

• Best for preschool- and early elementary school-age kids
• $35 for one child and one adult, $25 for members, $10 for each additional adult
• Saturday, Dec. 11. Sessions are at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
• 111 ‘Ohe St.
• (808) 524-5437
• discoverycenterhawaii.org/events