This year I was able to attend orchestra conducting symposium at George Mason University. So much…read moregreat time and work on the orchestra repertoire, score study, culture of the conductor's behavior, work in rehearsal language, rehearsal techniques, exercises on conducting skills, and so much else . Highly professional musicians playing in the orchestra . Maestros caring very much on each student and helping them to make a progress in their professional development giving them honest and valuable advices. Highly recommend!!!

My son had Game Design classes at George Mason Game Design Institute and he loved the program and…read morethe instructors!. I was glad to see him coming out from the classes excited about Computer Science and full of new ideas encourage for the instructors that you can tell love what they teach. "The question for the child is not Do I want to be good? but Whom do I want to be like?" -- Bruno Bettelheim, Austrian-American child psychologist, author (1903-1990)

Needed some time with nature....my mind gets to wondering all over...figured this would be the…read moreperfect thing for my son and I as we get ready for the school year. Wanted a kayak place that wasn't crowded with easy entry and exit. I couldn't find and promos but that's cool....the price for a double is comparable to most. Splurge for the 2 hours because it's only $10 more. Take in the sights and enjoy some conversation. Customer service was just right....before you knew it we were in the kayak and on our way...for the record I did most of the work

I was on vacation last month and went back to my former home state to do something active and fun…read morelo and behold: Capital SUP. I have been going to this business for years and have now been to all 3 locations. The people working here are very friendly and helpful. The location of Quiet Waters is awesome, very serene place. A nice little walk from the parking lot about 10 mins surrounding by beautiful trees and wineberries. Also cool that they have classes and yoga SUP. This was one of the highlights of my trip. Thank you.

My family went to this location yesterday and was very disappointed with the video games. About…read morehalf of the machines were broken (all of the skeeball machines and many others) and, those that were working, had been modified since we were last there to give substantially fewer tickets. Games that used to give out 100 tickets were changed to only give out 25 max, and scores that used to reward 10 or more tickets now only rewarded 1. My daughter was very disappointed as she was able to get much less in prizes than usual. Despite it being a busy weekend day, they were also very understaffed which caused service to be very slow. Next time we go to Chuck-e-cheese, we will try another location (in the hopes that it will be much better). If not better, that will probably be our last visit.

First time visiting this place. I purchased two 60-minute cards to try it out. We played for about…read more10-15 minutes before taking a lunch break at their restaurant. However, most of the drink dispensers only dispensed water. I informed a staff member, but she completely ignored me. After lunch, which lasted about 40 minutes, I discovered that my playtime had run out--even though we had only used about 10 minutes before the break. No one informed us that we needed to manually pause the timer. I had even told the front desk staff upon arrival that it was our first visit, so I expected at least some basic guidance. When I brought this issue to the supervisor, he was dismissive, essentially telling me it was my responsibility to figure it out. He offered no apology or assistance. Overall, the service was disappointing, and the lack of customer care made for a frustrating experience.

Honestly felt as if this programs activities were a waste of time. Freestyle does not help with…read moresoccer skills and I felt that "pitch" I got was selling me on confidence and improvement when in reality my kid just learned a couple tricks he might use in the backyard, not the field. Would not recommend...learned from this one, go to an actual reputable soccer training organization.

Undefined Futbol is one of a kind. Their unique approach to ball mastery and control through the…read moresport of freestyle soccer is unparalleled among any other soccer program out there! Francisco is great with the kids in the academies and brings good energy. It is amazing to see how quick the kids learn these amazing skills and the confidence that is instilled within them as a result! I would highly recommend Undefined Futbol for soccer players and non-soccer players alike!

Both my 2 year old and my 4 year old love Romp n' Roll, the place and the staff! We've been members…read morefor almost a year now and my kids still love going. It's great that they always make sure to clean the rooms/gym in between classes, and have the little ones use hand sanitizer before play time. There's a good variety of classes to keep the kids engaged. The staff are all friendly and kind. My little one even asks Elijah whenever he wants to go to Romp n' Roll. We also hosted my son's 4th birthday here and it was an amazing experience. They made everything easy and the kids had so much fun. Camila was a great help with set up, and Elijah was an awesome instructor during the party. I would highly recommend families with young kids to check them out.

What an amazing gym. The gym was perfect for my three year old - i would say the activities and gym…read moreis geared towards 2-6 year olds. My favorite part was that the gym was super clean. The time was split in rotations through free play, parachute, scooter time, dancing/bubbles, and more!! We had such a fun time. They also had an open time for art time.

We came for a trial class. Decided to hold off on extending. My daughter is two and was very…read moreoverwhelmed with the class we attended. She has come out a little more since then, but that day, we mostly observed the class going on. I loved the creativity of setting up a traffic jam activity. The kids could go around obstacles in vehicles and go over a bridge. There was a skill learned- the wheelbarrow-and it was practiced throughout class. My daughter liked when they set up all the different swings. She also enjoyed the trampoline station. I'd consider returning for consistent classes when my daughter is slightly older.

We had my son's 4th birthday party at My Gym and had the most amazing experience! We were blown…read moreaway by how tailored the games were to his Super Mario party theme. All the kids were thrilled and several parents commented how impressed they were by how streamlined and organized it was. We were lucky to have the party hosted by our 2 fav class teachers Ms. Talia and Mr. Mark (although in our experience every teacher we've had has been excellent). They took into consideration my son's preferences in songs & games. They brought high positive vibes and made sure all kids felt welcome and comfortable to play and explore. I could not recommend the My Gym classes and birthday experience enough. Thank you!!

My daughter had an amazing time at one of Adventure Links' summer day camp weeks. She would get…read morepicked up at a spot in Vienna early in the morning then get outdoors-ed all day long. Sometimes they'd go to the park in Clifton (for a lot of the same team building exercises my wife's company had done there); on another day, the kids went caving; and on another day, they went canoeing and swimming. Every evening, she would come back exhausted and happy. What more can you ask for?

Adventure Links has a talented, experienced crew with innovative ideas and a well-trained staff…read more I'm a fan! Most people know Adventure Links for their popular camp programs for children and teens. However, they also offer stellar corporate team building programs, which is how I got to know them. About five years ago, as the CEO of a growing company of 20 professionals, I was struggling with how to address some growing pains and spice up our upcoming quarterly retreat. A friend recommended Adventure Links, so I scheduled a meeting with Anna, the CEO. Anna came to my office and interviewed me to understand my business, our challenges, and what I hoped to accomplish. She asked many questions, listened, and took notes. The next week, we took our team of 20 to their retreat location. Anna and her team had put together an all-day agenda of activities that went way beyond simple ropes courses. What surprised and "sold" me on them was how she'd managed to incorporate our growing pains into her exercises in meaningful ways. Sure, we had fun and bonded, but more importantly most of us began to see certain everyday problems in meaningful new ways, with fresh solutions. To this day our team references those exercises like old Seinfeld episodes. After each exercise - some physically challenging and all mentally challenging - Anna would bring us together and help us draw correlations to some of our corporate issues. It helped that she has a sharp wit and great sense of humor. She and her team also knew when to push and put us on the spot to drive home a point. Six months later, we wanted to bring Adventure Links back for another quarterly retreat, but this time due to bad weather we had to do the exercises in our office. They totally pulled it off! The indoor exercises were unique and again gave us a fresh perspective on both issues and people. An example - during one intense exercise where we split into two teams, a junior staff person had a "eureka!" moment with a brilliant solution to a problem, and spontaneously took control of our team, which included several executives. I had no idea this young lady was so intellectually gifted and capable of leadership under pressure. How valuable is that information for an employer? My firm has engaged Adventure Links several times since then, all with success. When my children are old enough, I'll be sending them to the Adventure Links camps...I know they'll learn and have fun. Adventure Links rocks!

Submitted application back in November. School promised to reach out to me in January for a child…read moreassessment. Didn't hear anything from them until March so I reached out to them. The answer was my child application was still incomplete. At that point, their admission process was pointless, and I was no longer interested sending my child there. However, they already withdrew my $75 back in November. Why would they take my money when application was incomplete, and they didn't perform child assessment yet. Long story short, they gave out absurd excuses and the whole process was just a mess. Big waste of time and money. Out of multiple schools I applied to, this school was by far the most disorganized, money-driven school. I highly doubt quality of education from this school. I'm glad my child will be attending other school.

Warning to parents - my 18m old daughter's teacher at Merritt DISLOCATED her elbow in what was…read moresupposedly an age appropriate disciplinary action! Dept of Social Services has investigated and cited Merritt for multiple violations (please view the report linked below). Our daughter's teacher lifted her by the forearm from a seated position to a standing position, immediately dislocating her elbow and causing her agonizing pain. We had to take her to the ER to have her elbow reset, which is an extremely painful process. I know exactly what happened because there is video surveillance of the incident. You do not have to trust my word - the Department of Social Services investigated, cited Merritt for 3 violations, and detailed the incident themselves. Their findings against Merritt are public info: https://dss.virginia.gov/facility/search/cc2.cgi?rm=Inspection;Inspection=135089;ID=9599;search_keywords_name=Merritt%20academy;#Violations Look at the Dept of Social Service's findings (based on their review of the classroom video surveillance) - my daughter TOOK A BOOK from another child, and for that the teacher said "really girl!", yanked her angrily from a seated position to a standing position (immediately dislocating her elbow) and then LEFT HER TO CRY after she was injured. Thank GOD for cameras or we would never have known what happened that day.

I attended a baby shower last year and the mom-to-be had the most gorgeous balloon garland that…read morefeatured decorations that also fit into her theme. I asked her for the contact information and she sent me the website for Sweet Gifts which I saved onto my "Favorites" links on my phone. Fast forward one year later... I'm planning my own socially distanced "drive by" and "drop in" baby shower with close friends and family. One of the first businesses that I inquired was Sweet Gifts because I've always wanted a balloon garland. However, Sweet Gifts is more than just balloons, balloon walls, and garlands -- they also do custom laser cuts and engraving and grass backdrop rentals as well! Their balloon work is so aesthetically pleasing and they really take their time to curate an impressive look for your event (if you don't believe me, check out their Instagram for some of their beautiful work!). I went with the grass backdrop rental, laser cut, and a ready-to-hang garland to display. The team came on time and was able to set everything up within 2.5 hours! They also wore masks throughout the whole setup and always knocked on the door to make sure to get my opinion on the display. I received several compliments from our guests and have told them all about Sweet Gifts! Additionally, they came back later that evening to take down the grass backdrop and left us with the ready-to-hang garland and laser cut for us to keep. When it comes to payment, you will pay 50% for your reservation and then 50% the day before. They also accepted payment through various methods. I definitely plan to use Sweet Gifts for future events!

Sweet Gifts made the most gorgeous display for the baby shower I hosted this past weekend. My…read moreguests were amazed at how beautiful the balloons and cutouts carried the "Woodlands animals" theme. We were able to keep all the signs to use in the baby's room. When the crew arrived they were very professional and done so quickly I couldn't believe it. I have found kits that you can buy to make displays but I cant imagine ever being able to make something so beautiful. Jen was amazing, she felt like some of the design elements would crowd the space and made some suggestions that were even better than the original ideas. I highly recommend this company for that special design for any event.