September: The Unofficial 5th Season 🌵
September should really be a season of its own in the Bay Area. Locals find themselves aligning on sides in the annual debate: is it summer or is it fall?? The days are still sweltering and call for impromptu ice cream breaks, but school is back in session and demand early-to-bed-early-to-rise bedtime routines. Rather your Team Tan Lines (Just kidding. Wear sunscreen. And a really big hat.) or Team Spooky, balance is the goal. It’s the perfect time to start getting back into a fall routine while also making the most out of these fleeting, warm summer evenings. Grab your wheels for a neighborhood cruise or grab the picnic basket and kick a ball around at any of our plentiful local parks. Hey, speaking of parks … Fuller Park is getting a full makeover, completed in Feb 2026 (we hope!).
In other news, Sesame Street is premiering new episodes on PBS Kids and Netflix on November 10th. And don’t think this is just for the toddlers, big kids are into it too (albeit after some expected faux protest). The songs are insanely catchy and if you’re looking for some foreign language exposure, just flip the program to another language and BOOM! — high quality, beginner to intermediate language studies. Ta-Da!
Upcoming Events You Won’t Want To Miss!
September 2nd - October 12th: Kid’s Yoga Club Napa is kicking off a 6 week series ($150) at Springwood Park ages toddler to big kids. Classes are throughout the week and weekends, and she hosts private events!
September 4th: First Thursdays at Oxbow Commons from 5-9pm. If you haven’t made it to one yet, what are you waiting for?!
September 6th: Monthly Free Home Depot craft, this month the kids will make crop duster planes!
September 9th: Napa Library Fall Storytime begin again - Yay! They’re stacked with age-appropriate sessions all week including English and Bilingual readings.
September 12th: Summer Movies & Food Trucks at Tabor Park in Fairfield. Guardians of the Galaxy, food trucks opened at 6pm and movie starts at sundown.
September 13th: Porchfest Benicia is a free music event for the whole family with food trucks, local businesses opened to shop, a trolley that the kids will love and a section for Lil’ Porchfest Heads!
September 15 & 17: All ages are welcome to join the City of Napa Public Art program for their hands-on Dia de los Muertos street banner design workshop.
September 19th: Parents Night Out (ages 5-12) hosted by Yountville Commons.
September 20th: Read with a Ranger at the Napa Library.
September 20th: UC Master Gardeners - Fall Faire has hands-on gardening demos, a new plant sale, live music, food, and fun for all ages with 30+ booths hosted by Master Gardeners and community partners.
September 21st: Whacky Willy Wonka! Step into a world of pure imagination with the original Willy Wonka film! After the show, hunt for golden goodies in our gardens and whip up whimsical no-bake chocolate creations at the CIA Copia.
September 20th-21st, 27th-28th: Open Studios Napa Valley will be on for two weekends. Meet the artists, discover new styles and mediums, demos, and more! The event, always free. Bonding with your creative-type big kid, priceless.
Thursday Evenings: Check out the list of Spy & Action themed movies featured all month by Moonlight Movies at FARM, Carneros Resort and Spa. All ages!
Oct. 3rd-13th: Zoppé: An Italian Family Circus is coming to Napa. Alternate dates and locations are listed on their website. LOCAL30 gets you 30% off.
Oct. 4th: Story Pirates coming live to the Uptown Theater, improvised sketch comedy based on ideas from kids in the audience!
Local Resources for Busy Families
Napa has been a constant treasure trove of “Wait, that’s here?!” moments for us over the years. And while we’re familiar with the “Napa has nothing for families” argument, we’re here to shake up the perspective—hear us out:
Dining-Out (the opposite of Dining-In): Take it home and even bake it at home! Delicious meal options that won’t break the bank when cooking isn’t on the menu.
The Food Mill (under new management) has been on our radar, but only recently we’ve began tasting through the menu of delicious and wallet-friendly items. Paninis, deli sandwiches, weekly specials like Aguachile (*wipes away drool), plus meals-to-go… just try and keep us away!
Golden Bagel Cafe was one of the happiest summer discoveries with breakfast options under $10, a build-out lunch menu, Ahh-mazing homemade frozen soups (I’m looking at you Green Chicken Pozole), and many other tasty surprises across their made-to-order and take it to-go menus.
Napa Valley Farm Co-op Okay, we’ve highlighted them before and honestly, we’ll continue to talk about them because it’s AWESOME! They’re working on a whole slew of new products including take-home meal boxes (coming soon). They need more regular purchasing members to continue to build out these super local, quality resources so if you’ve been thinking about getting onboard, now is the time! Updates and weekly specials are shared through their email subscription (all free, all the time). Sign up!
Foodshed isn’t new, but this is a reminder to check out their weekly specials menu and drop by for some yummy fresh + frozen dinners that are great to have on hand for our future selves on those busy weeknight evenings.
Rory’s Bakehouse is a wonderful addition to the freezer section! While most know this spot as a dessert palace, they also prepare a variety of in-season savory dishes. Subscribe to their newsletter to learn about weekly and seasonal specials and then order something. You won’t be disappointed! Also, grab a bag of those cookies (obviously).
Birthday Parties For Kids: Fresh ideas for all seasons! Our friends over at Rola know how to throw a good party, but if you’re looking for a scaled-down alternative or a venue with more DIY potential to add your own touch, this might just be the list you’ve been waiting for!
Guild Calling all crafters! Throw a creation-centric party and choose your own adventure from their list of crafts. Parties can host kiddos as young as 4 and offer a variety of themes or gender neutral. Email to learn more!
Kids Yoga Club Napa Add organized movement to your park or house party! Send a message kidsyogaclubnapa@gmail.com to get more info about rates and booking.
Mastery of Sports You know it for their Ninja Trainings and Parents Night Out community offerings, but don’t miss the opportunity to let the kids go crazy in their padded spaces for an instructor led, age-appropriate party.
Sonoma Gymnastics Academy Another FAB opportunity for movement! Just over the hill, this gym offers a great bday party experience and can host a slightly larger group size. Plus, we always love any excuse to head to Sonoma!
Local Gym & Pool Rentals Rent local spaces and throw your party your way! Facilitron centralizes booking community spaces like school gyms or pools in any town. Finally you can invite the whole class to celebrate!
Sports Fields Host a birthday baseball/softball game at a number of city owned locations! Make it kids only or get the adults warmed up too - all the ingredients for core memory magic! Can we come too??
Nimbus Arts is a perfect artsy way to celebrate! The drive up valley is the perfect excuse to put on the bday kids’ favorite playlist and cruise. On a related note, rumor has it a second location is coming to Tannery…
We leave you with this video which is inspiring us to think about how a simple birthday gift can teach generosity when kids take the lead.
Napa Kids began as a little passion project to highlight local events, connect families, and grow community 💛 If you’ve been enjoying what we share, we’d be so grateful if you considered supporting us with a small pledge on Substack, it helps us keep the fun (and the info!) coming!
Plastic Free Back to School!
By now we’ve all been indoctrinated on how bad plastic is for our body (spoiler: and how microplastic is floating in our blood… ), but it still feels overwhelming trying to self-educate and replace everything all at once. While we can’t completely eliminate it from our lives, making incremental swaps here and there can be the start of your own personal wellness movement. We’re here to support you! Below are some products to try as you’re easing into a new school year and starting the move into fall Cozy SZN.
School Ready
Water Bottles: Pura, Frank Green, Bink Made, Stasher Water Bottle
Lunch Boxes: Wee Sprout, PlanetBox, LunchBots, Dalcini
Cooking, Storage, and On The Go
Stasher, W&P, Seed & Sprout, Juniper Station Non Paper Towels, refill all your household detergents, soaps, cleaners, etc. at Juniper Station or Maison Vert, grocery shop local products at Napa Valley Farm Co-op and Farmer’s Market, Reusable muffin cupcake liners, beeswax food wrap.
Shop small. Shop local. Shop to support. Shop like your community depends on it!
Hello… we are listening!
Last but not least…
📞 Okay, we’ll admit it… the algorithm got us 👀. As much as we side-eye targeted ads, this one actually made us smile big: a start-up called Tin Cans is making the cutest little landline phones for kids! But unlike OG phones, it’s wifi, plugs into the wall, and comes with an app that parents use to control who can be in their kids telephone club. Read that again. AMAZING, right?!
We’re kind of obsessed. Bright colors, retro vibes, and honestly what a sweet way to trade “pocket computers” for real conversations. We’re even thinking about taking it waaay back and putting one in the kitchen… family phone calls, anyone?
Sometimes old-school is the coolest school. Happy Fall from Napa Kids! đź’›
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