Things to Do in Evanston

She Runs coordinates ladies-only races across the country, and provides weekend getaways that strike a healthy balance between fitness and relaxation. The organization's events send participants galloping across scenic courses, helping women from all walks of life unite whether or not they sing the bunny song when lacing up their running shoes. More than just a one-time endurance test, She Runs folds relaxing vacations inside retreats that are combined with group fitness classes, lectures from experts, and personalized coaching leading up to race day. A portion of each event's proceeds get poured into She Runs' mission of snuffing out diabetes.

More than a bowling alley, Jupiter Bowl is a multimedia entertainment complex, supplementing its 16 lanes with an arcade, three pool tables, and a 70-foot video wall that plays sports and music programming. Its X has earned it a rating of first for all-ages après in the November 2011 issue of Ski Magazine. The Jupiter Bowl experience is punctuated with high-tech touches such as overhead flat-screen monitors and Qubica AMF pinsetters. Club Jupiter—comprising four private lanes—gives parties an enclosed space with a variable window tint, as well as their own jumbo video screen, ideal for airing home videos of the birthday boy’s first crabwalk.

To facilitate lane availability, the staff oversees online lane reservations. Servers at the facility’s two dining venues, The Lift Grill & Lounge and Black Diamond Bar, invite guests to linger to enjoy classic American fare and drinks that include craft beers from Epic Brewing.

Play sessions at Monkey Mountain do more than help kiddies burn off bottled-up energy. Whereas open-play and drop-off sessions allow children to laugh and bound across forest-themed play areas, the center also nurtures children's intellectual and interpersonal skills. Staff members help kids develop social and collaborative skills by encouraging them to play with one another, whether by climbing the mini rock-climbing wall or navigating obstacles and slides inside the four-tiered jungle gym. Even toddlers can safely tumble in a supervised soft play zone. Drop-off services such, including Little Primates Play School, serve as supplement to formal pre-school courses and are offerred seven days a week. Camps, birthday parties, and other special events round out a full menu of frolic-friendly engagements. Additionally, Monkey Mountain works to improve the lives of endangered animals by contributing $0.25 of every child's admission to a featured charity year-round.

When Utah High Adventure's staff members head into work, they don't sip coffee during meetings or ride the elevator up to an office on the ninth floor. Instead, they crash through raging whitewater rapids and rappel down the sides of canyons against a backdrop of sun-soaked red rocks. Years of training and education have earned them the certification and expertise to lead other thrill-seekers on rock climbs, which is more satisfying than scaling the granite backsplash of a neighbor's fancy kitchen. They also guide mountain-bike rides across Utah's rippling alpine trails. During the spring, summer, and fall months, the company hosts weeklong tours into the wild, which include lodging and equipment.

Studio owner Julie Branham and her team of registered yoga instructors at Lifted Life Yoga support students’ fitness goals by urging them toward a lifestyle driven by health and fitness, fostering an inclusive studio atmosphere where students of all abilities can develop their body awareness and hone yoga skills. Beginners can master the basics in patiently paced 60-minute classes where they follow instructors through muscle- and ligament-awakening stretches and breathing exercises to clear the mind. Once the knowledgeable teachers have successfully persuaded students over to the stretchy side, a plethora of specialty sessions geared to more experienced students addresses specific physical needs, such as runner's, prenatal, and hot yoga, whereas ongoing power Vinyasa classes pay constant homage to the solar system's temperamental fire ball with a series of sun salutations.

Named one of Parents magazine's Top 10 Birthday Chains in 2010, Color Me Mine's international franchise of DIY ceramics studios cater to an older crowd as well. Hundreds of unadorned ceramic pieces—including vases, flatware, and busts of Elvis—await the attentions of muses of kids and their keepers alike, as do glazes in earthy tones and bright crimsons to frighten bulls away from china cabinets. Guests follow simple step-by-step instructions that leave plenty of room for creative expression. When painters are satisfied with their work, the professional kiln-workers help glaze, fire, and de-genie it for them, and they may retrieve the finished piece after a few days.