Anders Ruff Workshop

Pineville and Davidson, NC

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Stroller Edition

Adventure Air

Rock Hill, SC

Saturday, March 29, 2025

Unforgettable Birthday Parties with Mad Science Charlotte




When our youngest daughter turned 10, it marked the 38th birthday party we’ve hosted between our three kiddos. Over the years, we’ve learned exactly what works for us—fun, educational, entertaining, and hassle-free, all at a reasonable price. Let’s face it, entertaining a bunch of 10-year-olds isn’t for the faint of heart!

So, when we asked our daughter what she and her friends would enjoy for her special day, she had one simple request: “We want to make something fun!” After doing some research and getting feedback from other local parents, we found Mad Science Charlotte.


Not only do I love science (it’s even my career when I’m not exploring Charlotte and beyond), but we’re also passionate about encouraging our kids to explore STEM. From camps to webinars to local science-based activities, we’ve always believed in making science fun and engaging. And what better way to spark scientific curiosity within the next generation than through an unforgettable birthday party experience?


Mad Science Charlotte offers a wide range of STEM-themed birthday parties, after-school programs, camps, and workshops, all designed to engage kids in exciting, hands-on science experiments. The best part? You can fully customize the experience to suit your child's unique interests. Whether you're in Charlotte, Tega Cay, or surrounding areas, Mad Science is just a short trip away—and for a small travel fee, they’ll come to you!

Here's a look at their party packages:
Junior Lab Parties (ages 4-6): $220 for up to 20 kids (60 minutes)

Mad Lab Parties (ages 6-11): $220 for up to 20 kids (60 minutes)

Spa Science Parties (ages 10-14): $270 for up to 10 kids (90 minutes)

These packages cover everything you need—no surprise costs per guest. The flat rate makes planning your guest list a breeze, without the stress of a per-person fee.

Mad Science Charlotte offers themed add-ons to elevate the experience, like Winter Wonder Lab, Ice Princess, Space Explorer, and Spooky Science Party. And if you’re looking for a showstopper finale, you can opt for a rocket launch, cotton candy-making, or even a slime-making extravaganza!


For our daughter’s 10th birthday, we chose the Mad Lab Party—perfect for kids ages 6-11. It included fun science experiments and, of course, slime-making! We also opted for the SLIME-SLIME-SLIME add-on package for just $30, allowing the kids to create three different types of slime.

Our daughter loved picking out her three favorite slimes from a list of options—there were so many to choose from! The Mad Lab Party also offers the option to add a Candy Party, Wizarding Wonder, Ice Princess, Winter Wonder Lab, or Spooky Science themes. Want to take the fun to the next level? Add an upgraded finale like bubbling potions, spin art, rocket launches, or even instant snow take-home kits!


One of the best parts of hosting a Mad Science Charlotte party was the simplicity. The price covers up to 20 children, so we could invite friends and family without worrying about fluctuating costs. And as a busy mom, I truly appreciated how easy the process was.


Once we booked the party, the Mad Science team made sure every detail was taken care of. On the day of the party, we didn’t have to worry about anything. The Mad Science team brought all the materials they needed for the experiments, and we only had to provide tables and water. The weather was perfect for an outdoor celebration, but the team made sure we knew what to do in case we needed to move indoors.

When our mad scientist, Captain Chemistry, arrived, he quickly set up and got the kids excited for the slime-making experience. He took them through the science behind the experiments, explaining lab safety and how polymers work to create slime. The kids were completely captivated!


Each child received starter ingredients for their slime in individual cups. Captain
 Chemistry guided them through lab safety, plus the process of adding colors and activators to create their own custom slime. The energy was contagious, and the kids were grinning from ear to ear as they mixed, squished, and played with their slime.


The kids were full of smiles and giggles as they energetically mixed their slime and called out "I need the activator!" and "Look! My slime is sliming!"


They made three different types of slime—regular slime, marshmallow slime, and snowball slime—and each child took home their creations. 


Our daughter’s favorite was the marshmallow slime, and she couldn’t stop talking about how fun it was. She also loved how engaging and funny Captain Chemistry was.


As a busy mom, this party was the easiest thing I've booked in a while. They checked all the boxes for our 10th birthday party and the kids left with smiles on their faces and slime in hand!



For more information about Mad Science Charlotte and their many offerings in the Charlotte and surrounding areas check them out online here, follow them on Facebook here and on Instagram here. They're currently enrolling for summer camp for Summer 2025 at several locations in the Charlotte area.

Wednesday, March 18, 2020

Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker DIGITAL GIVEAWAY!

Scroll down for info on how to win one of our two digital (non-contact!) codes for STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER on Digital HD! 

Walt Disney Home Entertainment and Lucasfilm is releasing STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER on Digital HD on Tuesday, March 17 and Blu-ray™ on Tuesday, March 31.  

The riveting, inspiring conclusion of the seminal Skywalker saga, electrified audiences around the globe, earning more than a billion dollars worldwide.

STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER (Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment)
Digital 4K Ultra HD™ and Movies Anywhere Release Date: Tuesday, March 17
Blu-ray™ Release Date: Tuesday, March 31
Run Time: 142 Minutes
Over two hours of bonus material includes a feature-length, making-of documentary and behind-the-scenes access to the cast and filmmakers who brought the epic scenes and characters to life
Synopsis: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Lucasfilm and director J.J. Abrams’ riveting, inspiring conclusion of the seminal Skywalker saga, electrified audiences around the globe, earning more than a billion dollars worldwide. Soon fans can complete their collections when Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker arrives digitally in HD and 4K Ultra HD™ and via Movies Anywhere on March 17, two weeks before it lands physically in 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™ and DVD on March 31.

Bonus material includes a feature-length, making-of documentary, which goes behind the scenes with the cast and filmmakers from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and explores the legacy of the Skywalker saga. Bonus features also dig into the film’s Pasaana desert scenes, including the thrilling landspeeder chase, and the ship in which Rey discovers family secrets as well as a new little droid named D-O. Plus, fans will hear from Warwick Davis, who reprises his role as Wicket the Ewok, as well as the creature effects team that created a record 584 creatures and droids for the film. Digital consumers will receive an exclusive feature highlighting legendary composer John Williams, who has scored every episode in the Skywalker saga.

WIN by "Liking" our Facebook Page, "Following" our Instagram page and commenting on either (or both for double points!) with your favorite Star Wars character. Link below! 

Instagram: 


Thursday, February 13, 2020

Guest Blog "Love Notes to My Body" and Launch Party Invite by Nicole C. Ayers

A huge thank you to our guest blogger Nicole C. Ayers for sharing her journey and generous invitation to the launch party for her three beautiful books. 

Several years ago, I realized I wasn't okay. I was experiencing anxious thoughts and having nightmares, and old wounds I thought I'd buried were showing up in unexpected places.

I made a commitment to myself to make things better. And silly me, I assumed that learning to meditate would do the trick just fine.


Meditation certainly helped, but it wasn't the cure-all I thought it would be. So I went on a journey of self-discovery and realized that I didn't like myself very much, especially my body. When I acknowledged her at all, it was to berate her for her wrongness. She was the wrong size and shape and weight and ability and look . . . and the list went on and on.

I was horrified when I became aware of just how cruel I was to my body. I have two daughters (ages twelve and ten), and I would be heartbroken if they shamed their bodies the way I was shaming mine. But that’s what I was teaching them without even meaning to.

I wanted to change my relationship with my body, and I needed something practical to do.

I've always enjoyed writing notes to people, and writing is how I process my thoughts and feelings. I decided I'd begin to write love notes to my body and all her parts as a daily journaling practice because it's awfully hard to hate something when you're sweet-talking it in a love note.

Over the course of months, I wrote hundreds of love notes to my body parts from my crow's feet to my pinky toe. Sometimes my notes were full of love and gratitude. And sometimes they were full of pain and grief. Anger, even. But they were always a real conversation with my body.

The transformation was liberating. Body parts I'd thought I hated, I now cherished. I appreciated my body in a way I'd never experienced. And while I still struggled to love some of my parts, I was finally able to accept all of them.

One of the best parts of my transformation is the extra energy I now have to experience joy and be creative, energy that used to be spent on trying to make myself fit into society’s definition of “good enough.”'

Of course there are days when that mean little voice cranks up with the nastygrams again, days when I’ve taken an unflattering photo, had a yucky dressing-room experience, or just struggled with my reflection in the bathroom mirror. But those moments are less frequent now, and when that voice shows up, trying to make me feel ashamed of my body, I can usually catch her after just a few minutes and shush her. Because I’ve written so many love notes to my body, it’s the most natural thing to place my hands on my heart and send myself love.

I’ve realized that decades of conditioning around what makes an “ideal” body is going to take time to unlearn. This process to appreciate my body exactly as she is will be a lifelong journey because she will continue to change as I age and experience life.

I love the simplicity of writing love notes to my body, though, because it’s a practice I can revisit whenever and wherever I need to. And it’s a tool that my daughters now have to combat messages that tell them they are anything other than perfect, just as they are. I can’t silence the mean little voices in their minds, but I can teach them how to silence it themselves.

Nicole C. Ayers has been playing with words as long as she can remember. While she's held many jobs in her life, including stints as a server, camp counselor, telemarketer, print shop lackey, bartender, and teacher, editing at Ayers Edits was her favorite, because she combined her love of reading with the fun of wordplay, until she added writer to this list. Now it would be hard to convince her there’s anything better than telling her own stories.

Nicole has written three body-positive companion books (SPARK Publications, February 2020) about her journey to accept and love her body: Love Notes to My Body; Love Letters to My Body: Writing My Way to (Self-)Love; Writing Your Way to (Self-)Love: A Guided Journal to Help You Love Your Body, One Part at a Time. She is available for speaking engagements also.

Nicole lives in South Carolina with her brilliant and brave daughters, her best friend and husband, a goofy dog, a long-suffering tortoise, and the occasional fish.

Contact Nicole at www.nicolecayers.com and connect with her on Instagram at @nicolecayers.

Launch Party Details 
Love Notes Joyous Jubilee
Friday, February 21, 2020
1040 Angelica Lane,
Tega Cay, SC, 29708
7 p.m. - 9 p.m.

What: Join Nicole C. Ayers to celebrate the launch of her three body-positive companion books:

Love Notes to My Body (https://py.pl/42Ery0236tG)

Love Letters to My Body: Writing My Way to (Self-)Love (https://py.pl/aK1Ys)

Writing My Way to (Self-)Love: A Guided Journal to Help You Love Your Body, One Part at a Time (https://py.pl/PUYiA)

Love Notes bundle (https://py.pl/1cyhEc)

Visit nicolecayers.com/writing to learn more about the books. Click on the titles to preorder and pick up at the party.

All are welcome. So grab someone you love and bring them with you.

Enter the giveaways for fantastic prizes, including an original painting and a lunch with author Nicole C. Ayers and illustrator Mica Gadhia. Enjoy desserts and libations. Take selfies at the selfie station. Crawl the art gallery. Write your own love note. Erupt into spontaneous dance. Buy a book bundle. Leave with a special thank-you gift.

Books will be available for purchase separately and in bundles, and Nicole will happily sign them. Original artwork by the talented Mica Gadhia, Love Notes to My Body illustrator, will also be available for purchase.

Feeling philanthropic and want to share this work with women in need? There will be a silent auction as well as opportunities for sponsorships to bring these messages of self-acceptance and love to all women.

Can't make the party but want to connect with Nicole? Follow her on Instagram at @nicolecayers and sign up for her Love Notes newsletter at nicolecayers.com to access “Nicole’s Love Grooves” playlist.

Wednesday, February 5, 2020

Frozen 2 GIVEAWAY - Available on Digital 2/11/20 and Blu-ray™ 2/25/20

Warm the hearts of your adorable Valentines with a copy of Frozen 2 - being released on Digital 2/11/20, and after Valentine's Day on Blu-Ray™ on 2/25/20.


Mom About Charlotte is doing a giveaway for Digital copies of Frozen 2! Our winner will be drawn on 2/13 - just in time to include this Disney fairytale alongside the chocolate hearts and cards for your sweethearts.

To enter simply comment on our social media with your kid's favorite character from Frozen 2, and why they melt their hearts.
1. On our blog below
2. On our Facebook page:
3. On our Instagram:

Here is  more info about the Frozen 2 release!


FROZEN 2 (Walt Disney Animation Studios)
Digital 4K Ultra HD™ and Movies Anywhere Release Date: Tuesday, February 11th
Blu-ray™ Release Date: Tuesday, February 25th
Run Time: 103 Minutes
Bonus features include a sing-along version of the film plus exclusive content, including outtakes, deleted scenes and songs, and much more! 
Synopsis: Walt Disney Animation Studios’ “Frozen 2” has melted hearts around the world, becoming the No. 1 animated feature of all time. Just in time for Valentine’s Day,  the follow-up to 2013’s hit Oscar®-winning Best Animated Feature, “Frozen,” comes home, with a sing-along version and all-new extras. “Frozen 2” bonus features include deleted scenes, deleted songs, Easter eggs, outtakes and a sing-along version with lyrics to the film’s forever-infectious songs. Extras invite viewers to go behind-the-scenes to hear personal, making-of stories from the “Frozen 2” cast and crew. Fans who bring the film home early on Digital will receive two exclusive extras: an interview with songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, who won an Oscar® for Best Original Song (“Let It Go,” 2014) and wrote seven original songs for “Frozen 2,” and a deleted song titled “Unmeltable Me.”

Sunday, January 12, 2020

WIN - Digital HD Download Code for Maleficent: Mistress of Evil - NOW available on digital (12/31) and Blue-ray™ 1/14/20



Maleficent: Mistress of Evil is the thrilling sequel to 2014's "Maleficent," starring Angelina Jolie as Maleficent and Elle Fanning as her goddaughter Aurora. Enjoy brand-new bonus features, extended scenes, outtakes and exclusive extras for Digital consumers. 

                                          

Ring in the new year with Disney's most iconic villain: "Maleficent: Mistress of Evil" which soared to No. 1 worldwide opening weekend and earned an A CinemaScore and a 95% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Now released on Digital in HD and 4K Ultra HD

Go beyond the fairytale with the bonus features highlighting the film's stunning visuals and all-star cast along with extended scenes, outtakes and a digital exclusive! 

Enter to WIN a Digital HD Download code on MomAboutCharlotte.com by sharing YOUR favorite picture of your family as the evil mistress herself! You can dress up, use a filter - your imagination is the limit :) Each photo on our social media will count as an entry! Winner to be randomly drawn on 1/22/20! 

Facebook: 
Instagram: 

Saturday, December 28, 2019

Monster Jam 2020 January 10th and 11th - Discount CODE & GIVEAWAY

Monster Jam® RETURNS to Charlotte, NC for an action-packed weekend of FULL THROTTLE family fun!


Check out as eight skilled Monster Jam® athletes battle for the championship with each Triple Threat Series competitor tearing up the dirt in customized high-powered vehicles: Monster Jam Speedsters, Monster Jam ATV's and of course the Iconic Monster Jam trucks. They will go head-to-head for points in Freestyle, 2 Wheel Skills Challenge and several Racing competitions - testing their agility, speed and versatility. Newly added as a special fan bonus during Freestyle, Monster Jam driver will attempt Charlotte's FIRST-EVER indoor arena Monster Jam truck BACK FLIP! Plus fans in every city can become part of the action by voting for the winner in the 2-Wheel Skills Challenge and Freestyle competitions via real-time, in-arena fan voting on their smartphones. 

Find more info at https://www.monsterjam.com/ 

PROMOTIONAL CODE!
Buy tickets for 20% off when you use code CHARBLOG online with Ticketmaster. 

http://www.spectrumcentercharlotte.com/

Good for Friday 7pm, Saturday 1pm and Saturday 7pm. Discount applicable in lower level seating in price levels 6-11.
Not valid on group or previously purchased tickets, additional fees may apply.

GIVEAWAY - WIN 4 tickets by commenting with your kids favorite Monster Truck. One point per comment on our Instagram, Facebook and Blog. 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/B682JeVJRpT/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomAboutCharlotte/posts/2242272905874440:0

Monday, March 25, 2019

Enchanted Fairytale Parties - Princess and Character Experiences

My littlest princess just turned four this month. I asked her how she wanted to spend her birthday and she said by being dressed as a princess, riding a unicorn, on a rainbow! Yes- this is four, and I'm soaking up every last minute of this magical, pink and glittery taffeta speck in time.


Since booking a unicorn on a rainbow was just out of the realm of possibilities, we figured that we could knock this LAST 4th birthday party out of the park by inviting one of the perfectly princess talents from Enchanted Fairytale Parties in Charlotte (and Miami, FL) to celebrate our littlest big girl.

Her favorite princess is Ariel, because she's a feisty red head just like her! Booking Ariel through Enchanted Fairytale Parties was a breeze!  We got to select her outfit - traditional princess dress or fin and shell top. When she arrived the look on all the four year old's faces were PRICELESS!


Ariel greeted the birthday girl and her guests and led them in a sing-along of her most famous song.

Next she invited all our guests to join her in how mermaids in Atlantica celebrate birthdays, with dancing, games, reading books - and a conga line!


After all the fun, was more fun as we sang Happy Birthday and bid farewell to Ariel as she swam back to sing with her sisters under the sea.


In addition to princesses Enchanted Fairytale Parties also offers characters, unicorns, traditional mermaids and more. Check out their Instagram here, Facebook here and visit them online and book your party here. Pricing starts at $150 for a party.