Hey neighbors,

First week of school is done and there’s a three-day weekend on the other side of it. Saturday has the most going on: a free all-day art-in at the Commons, bike racing at Shoreview Park, Ikebana in the Sky greenhouse and telescopes at Paramount Park once it gets dark. Sunday and Monday are yours.

✨ Editor’s Pick

Commons Art-In @ Third Place Commons · Sat Sept 5 · 10am-4pm · Lake Forest Park · All ages, all experience levels · Free

Free drop-in creative time for drawing and painting, six hours of it, no signup and no skill floor. Bring your own supplies (no oil paints or solvents, please) and look for the plastic-covered tables in the Commons. Come for twenty minutes or stay for the afternoon, and it’s indoors if the weather turns. Supported in part by a grant from 4Culture / King County Lodging Tax. Details →​

This Weekend (Sept 4-7)

NWGP Cyclocross @ Shoreview Park · Sat Sept 5 · Racing from 9am · Shoreview Park, Shoreline · All ages to watch · Free Shoreview Park becomes a cyclocross course for the day, stair run-up and sand pit included. It's a race rather than a festival, so come to watch; junior races at 10:45am are free to enter for kids who already ride.

Annual Ikebana Exhibition @ Sky Nursery · Sat Sept 5 & Sun Sept 6 · 11am-5pm · Shoreline · All ages · Free Ikebana International Seattle Chapter #19 fills the Sky greenhouse with 30+ arrangements plus two or three large group pieces, under this year’s theme “My Ikebana.” Live demonstrations run 1-3pm both days, five artists a day. Skews grown-up, but it’s free, it’s ten minutes away, and the Young Gardener Shed next door has scavenger hunts and coloring pages when the kids have looked at enough flowers. Details →​

Paramount Park Stargazing @ Paramount Park · Sat Sept 5 · 8-11:50pm · 15300 8th Ave NE, Shoreline · All ages, families with children welcome · Free Volunteers from the Seattle Astronomical Society haul out their own telescopes and binoculars and let anyone look through them. Bring a camping chair, a blanket, a hot drink and your own binoculars if you have them, and dress warmer than you think you need to. Star party host is Bill O’Neil. Two things worth knowing: you can RSVP, and if clouds force a cancellation they post it by 4pm that day and email everyone who RSVP’d. RSVP →​

Lake Forest Park Farmers Market · Sun Sept 6 · 10am-2pm · 17171 Bothell Way NE, in front of LFP City Hall · All ages · Free Fresh local food, live music and the usual Sunday crowd. Third Place Commons runs it. Details →​

Also on: Shoreline Farmers Market runs Sat Sept 5, 10am-2pm at the corner of 192nd & Aurora, with live music, food trucks and kids programming. Northwest Sharpening is at Sky Nursery Sun Sept 6, 10am-2pm, $4 per tool, cash or check. City facilities and the Shoreline Teen Center are closed Monday for Labor Day.

Next Week (Sept 8-14)

Picnic in the Park @ Pfingst Animal Acres Park · Sat Sept 12 · 10am-2pm · 17435 Brookside Blvd NE, Lake Forest Park · All ages · Free The City of Lake Forest Park’s community picnic is back with music, community and educational booths, kid attractions, food trucks and a petting zoo. Details → > CHECK: Shoreline Area News says Sat Sept 12, 10am-2pm. LFP Town Crier says “Saturday, September 10, 10am-3pm,” but Sept 10 is a Thursday in 2026, so that listing is stale. Going with Sept 12, 10am-2pm. Confirm the end time and that it’s free on cityoflfp.gov. I dropped the “Public Works big rigs” detail because it only appears in the stale listing; add it back if the City confirms.

Little Lemon Drops Outdoor Movie & Raffle: Ratatouille @ Innis Arden Clubhouse · Sat Sept 12 · Doors 6pm, raffle 7:30pm, movie 8pm · 1430 NW 188th St, Shoreline · All ages · $10 individual, $30 family; raffle tickets $10 at the door The Little Lemon Drops Jr. Guild screens Disney’s Ratatouille outdoors to benefit Seattle Children’s Hospital. Dick’s burgers, snacks and drinks for sale, plus beer and wine for the grown-ups. Pairs nicely with the LFP picnic earlier the same day. Details →​

Town Center Pop-Up @ Park at Town Center · Sat Sept 12 · 10am-2pm · 17550 Aurora Ave N, Shoreline · All ages · Free The City of Shoreline is updating its Town Center Subarea Plan and testing ideas in public: seating structures, gathering spaces, games, food and art installations. Kids get to play in it, grown-ups get to tell the City what works. Details →​

Story Time with Jessica Goecke @ Ridgecrest Books · Sun Sept 13 · 11-11:45am · 512 NE 165th St, Shoreline · Little ones & families · Free Local author Jessica Goecke reads “Billy and the Hole,” about a boy, a talking hole in the ground and an impossible request. Forty-five minutes, right-sized for the picture-book set. Details →​

Edmonds Oktoberfest Family Festival @ Edmonds Civic Center Park · Fri Sept 11 & Sat Sept 12 · Noon-10pm · Edmonds · All ages · Free entry The Edmonds Rotary Club’s two-day festival has live bands, vendors, games, a pet parade and a Kids Korner activity area. The beer garden is $10 and 21+; everything else is open to everyone. Details → > CHECK: hours and the Kids Korner detail come from Seattle’s Child, not the Rotary’s own page. Confirm on edmondsrotary.com and add the street address.

Caring for Mason Bees, Fall & Beyond @ Sky Nursery · Sat Sept 12 · 1-2pm · 18528 Aurora Ave N, Shoreline · All ages · Free Local expert Ray Strelecki on how to tuck mason bee larvae in for winter and dodge mold, mildew and mites. An hour, free, and mason bees are a reliable kid hook. Details →​

Woodway from Richmond Beach Walk @ Shoreline Walks · Sat Sept 12 · 10am · Meets in Richmond Beach · All ages, dogs on leash welcome · Free A free volunteer-led Saturday walk, no registration needed. The exact meetup spot is posted the Thursday before, so it should be up now. Details →​

Neighbor Meet Up @ Ridgecrest Public House · Tue Sept 8 · 7-9pm · 520 NE 165th St, Shoreline · Adults · Free The monthly Ridgecrest neighbor meet up, running since March 2025, is a low-key excuse to meet the people who live near you. No program, no icebreakers. One for the grown-ups once the kids are down. Details →​

Worth knowing: the Shoreline Teen Center is open again for the school year at the Richmond Highlands Recreation Center, 16554 Fremont Ave N, free for all 6th-12th graders. September’s lineup includes Mario Kart, a pancake party, badminton and a “Teen Center After Dark” special event this coming week. Closed Labor Day. Details →​

Know something we missed? Reply to this email and tell us. The best tips always come from neighbors. 🙌