This weekend marks the 13th annual “I’ll Make Me a World in Iowa”.

The event was started in 1998 as part of national movement that encouraged communities to highlight their African American art and culture. 13 years later it’s still going strong, and is now known as Des Moines’ first major festival of the year.

The weekend starts tomorrow, with “educational day”. Schools from across the state will bring secondary students to the festival to take part in various workshops, a black history game show, college fair and more.

Saturday is “celebration day”, and it all takes place at the Polk County Convention Complex. Here the public will have the chance to experience 3 stages full of nonstop performances from 10:00am to 7:00pm. These performances will include everything from spoken word, to music, to drama and more! There will also be art displays, education opportunities and delicious soul food to enjoy. The event concludes with this year’s national headliner Ruben Studdard (winner of American Idol season 2).

This weekend’s festival will provide Iowans with a great opportunity to celebrate and appreciate the vibrant African American culture we have in Des Moines. We can’t wait to see everything it has to offer and hope that you do the same.

It’s January. The winter doldrums are beginning to set in. We had our white Christmas and now most of us are ready for Spring and sun and t-shirts and shorts.

But since that’s still not going to happen for another couple months we’d thought we’d offer some suggestions to help you beat the winter blues.

See Des Moines came out with another top 100 list and we paroused it for our top 5 favorites and here they are:

Brenton Skating Plaza Most of us that live in Des Moines don’t have easy access to a pond to enjoy ice skating. But with Brenton Skating Plaza you can skate without even leaving downtown. Open 7 days a week and just $5 for adults and $4 for kids, this is a great way to spend time with the family. Brenton also offers skating lessons, as well as broomball and curling groups.

Sledding Who doesn’t remember the days of flying down snow covered hills in an old car hood or saucer? Des Moines has plenty of great sledding hills. The hills at Waveland Golf Course or the hill by the state capital are great sledding locations that can offer hours of fun. And the best part? They’re FREE!

Botanical Blues Want to escape the cold,dry,colorless winter of Iowa; but can’t really jump on  plane to get away? Well, going on through February, the Des Moines Botanical Center has the answer! Happening from 1-3pm every Sunday, you can enjoy local musicians,food and fun in the warm tropical climate of the Botanical Center and take a break from the weather outside.

Des Moines Art Center The Des Moines Art Center has been called a world class art museum set in the heart of the midwest. Featuring works from artists from the 19th, 20th and 21st century there’s much to explore here. Whether its the works of Matisse,Warhol or Georgia O’Keeffe, or the outside architecture; the art center has plenty of things for your eyes to enjoy.

Bowling at Bass Pro Shops Go under the sea at this restaurant and bowling ally. Uncle Buck’s Fish Bowl and Grill defintely offers its visitors a unique experience. With 12 lanes, bowlers can literally bowl under the sea and catch glimpses of turtles, sting rays and other sea creatures. When you get hungry you can head over the the restaurant and grab a bite to eat in the sunken ship themed dining area.

While you still may want Spring to be here and Winter to be gone, we both know it’s still going to be awhile. So, make the best of it, try one of our suggestions or one of the other 97 that are on the list and make the most of it. Because, we both know that when July comes and it’s 110 with humidty, we’re going to be wondering where Winter is.