Comments

|

E-mail

|

Print

Hot on the heels of Connecticut Trails Day last weekend (I hope it was fun!) is Connecticut’s Open House Day this Saturday. It is another state-wide event this time featuring many of CT’s museums and other fun places. I assembled a list of free events for parents featuring activities in Fairfield County and its environs. Hartford’s Harriet Beecher Stowe House and Mark Twain Museum have a lot of ceremony along with their Open House participation.

Many local town  history museums are offering free admission all day on Saturday (check the websites for hours).

• Stamford Museum & Nature Center
• Rowayton Historical Society
• Norwalk Historical Society
• Norwalk Museum
• Shelton History Center
• Fairfield Museum and History Center
• Sherman Historical Society
• Watertown Historical Society Museum & Schoolhouse
• Connecticut Antique Machinery Association Museum along with Sloane-Stanley Museum and Kent Furnace

The Great Park Pusuit is also holding its Family Historic Sites Day. Along with getting another stamp in your passport, there is no admission to sites participating. Here are the sites near us.

• Dinosaur State Park, Rocky Hill (OK–this is not near us, but it’s fun)
• Osborne Homestead Museum, Derby
• Putnam Memorial State Park, Redding

With Father’s Day coming up the following weekend, Open House might be  great way to celebrate early with an affordable family outing. Here are a couple of great discounts offered for Open House Day. It’s not free, but these are deeply discounted.

• Discovery Museum is half-price
• Lake Compounce Family Theme Park is reducing admission after 4 pm to $10.
• Eli Whitney will have a special “Micro Boats” walk-in project where kids and teens can make one boat for free or three for $5.

Although I’m partial to history museums myself, Connecticut Open House Day has many different ways to participate.

More event ideas for families in Connecticut.

Comments

|

E-mail

|

Print

Checking out skeletons in Healthyville

I took the kids to Stepping Stone Museum for children. All of the kids, the 12 year-old, nine year-old, and three year-old went. We got there when the museum opened at 10 and stayed until 4. It was a full day. We didn’t even get to all of the exhibits. The ultimate compliment is that none of my kids were ready to leave even then.

Stepping Stones is a learning museum in the best way: fun. I’ve always known learning could be interesting. Here the kids can experiment and see what happens with controlled activities that parents don’t have to set up. From the human body in Healthyville, to physics in the Energy Lab, kids can get a lot out of the museum. If the parents really want to enhance the learning aspect of the visit, we can go hoarse reading all of the information.

Two great Healthyville activities include the skeleton that mirrors the motion of the kids riding on a bicycle and the green screen. When kids go into the green screen area they can don green capes. Anything in green become invisible on a television and allows the background image of platelets flowing through a vein to show through. Since I tend to be on the boring, share-too-much side of parenting, I enjoyed explaining that it was like a scene from Fantastic Voyage. There were activities my kids didn’t even have time to visit.

Fascinated at the Energy Lab

Other exhibits include Build It! with a play structure and blocks, Science Lab and Art Studio new since the remodel this fall, Tot Town for the very small, and the Celebration Courtyard, a covered outdoor exploration area. The Energy Lab is a true fascination. Water, balls, air tubes, and another play structure make for great learning and enjoyment. The littler kids can grab water proof lab coats to keep them mostly dry while they investigate. I was impressed that the floor wasn’t at all slippery even though it was wet.

My 12 year-old can still have a lot of fun playing with the three year-old. The nine year-old did a lot of exploring. There was something for each of my offspring. My favorite parts of the museum were the huge amount of information included in displays and on the walls, and the energy room, which gave my preschooler the fun of playing in water without the mess in my house. We enjoyed our time at Stepping Stones and my three year-old has already asked to go back.

See the full review of Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk, CT at Nutmeg Families where you can find family reviews of Connecticut children’s activities. Find more great things to do with kids in Fairfield County, New Haven County and Litchfield County, Connecticut.

Comments

|

E-mail

|

Print

Connecticut has lovely seasonal changes. I was surprised to find the hills of Connecticut showing pretty green variations as spring brought out leaf buds on the trees and bushes. Time hardly seemed to pass from the time I noticed the buds until I was sitting at a softball field and noticing the sun reflecting off the fully leafed-out trees.

Today was a day I spent completely outdoors. After dropping off some paperwork for my older daughter, I took the three year-old to the park. When I finally convinced him to leave, we came home for a quick lunch and then visited with a neighbor. The kids played outside until my older daughters came home from school. It was a beautiful day with moderate temperatures and a gentle breeze. The weekend is looking lovely as well.

Saturday is going to be the nicer day this weekend; warm with a lot of sun. Perfect for the numerous CT Trails Day events for families that I also discussed in my last blog post. Another way to get out is to take a ferry to Sheffield Island. Now that summer has officially kicked off, the ferry runs regularly. The Maritime Aquarium is also “sailing” the seas with their Marine Life Study Cruises. The outdoors is one of the best ways to enjoy the Danbury Railway Museum‘s large collection of engines and railcars.

Whether you decide you need a break from the sun or want to avoid the possible showers on Sunday, there are a lot of activities to suit your needs. Stepping Stones Museum is hosting BooZoo’s Canine Carnivalthis weekend. BooZoo is the museum’s new character and the carnival will raise funds while providing dog-related fun. Consider taking your dog for a walk in support of a good cause. Movies are a great way to spend some time with the family. IMAX is the king of movies and Maritime has Born to be Wild and Dolphins. I had the privilege of watching Dolphins this past weekend. Both my 9 year-old and the 12 year-old were enthralled. This weekend is the last weekend to ride the “Naugy“ with a steam-powered engine.

I guess I could have called it a list of 26 things to do this weekend if I counted every hike separately.

If you make it out to one of the CT Trails Day events or anything else, I’d love to know about it.

Fun things to do with kids in Connecticut.

Comments

|

E-mail

|

Print

In conjunction with National Trails Day, Connecticut is hosting Connecticut Trails Day on June 4th, with some events on June 5th. It is a big, well-coordinated state-wide celebration of Connecticut’s many state parks. Events are listed in the CT Trails Day brochure. There are 193 happenings in the state. The booklet has the details for almost all of the hikes. The trails range from easy strolls to moderate hikes, to challenging terrain. The brochure lists the hiking difficulty. Some hikes are indicated for “beginning hikers”, “family friendly”, or “experienced hikers”. Each event also includes contact information. Most events do not need registration.

There are hikes and nature walks all over Connecticut. The state parks are waiving parking fees for event participants, making many of the events free. On top of free parking the walks and hikes will be more like tours with guides who have special information to share. One event includes foraging, and another will have refreshments. There is even a little history thrown in, too.

The No Child Left Inside Great Park Pursuit Outdoor Activity Challenge is also celebrating CT Trails Day. The Great Park Pursuit has scheduled Family Hiking Day for this weekend. The Family Hiking Day experiences are part of the Great Park Pursuit program and happen at parks in their “Top 10 Places to Go Hiking” list.  The closest parks to Fairfield County participating in Family Hiking Day are Kettletown State Park in Southbury and Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden.

Kettletown State Park

Many hikes and walks are labelled family friendly. Some allow pets. Here is a list of family friendly CT Trails Day events in and around Fairfield County. The meaning of “Family friendly” varies. Some family friendly events aren’t suitable for children under 12, others might work for younger children, depending on the child. The contact person, along with the length and listed difficulty, can help parents find out if the activity is appropriate for their children.

From the list of family-friendly hikes in our area, here are celebrations of CT Trails Day that have a little extra. There is letterboxing in Danbury and Derby. Two hikes at Southbury’s Kettletown State Park are part of the Great Park Pursuit Outdoor Adventure Challenge Family Hiking Day. Bethlehem’s Bellamy-Ferriday House & Garden and Bridgeport’s Beardsley Park will show off historic gardens. Fairfield’s Audubon Center is serving organic coffee afterward, Sticks and Stones Farm in Newtown includes foraging and sampling farm food, and Huntington State Park in Redding will serve ice cream. Trail clean ups are at Kettletown State Park, Southbury and Osbornedale State Park in Derby. With such a selection, it will be difficult to decide which celebration to attend.

Many families like to bring their dog along for hikes. Leashed dogs are welcome at these Fairfield County area, family-friendly hikes: Danbury’s Bear Mountain Reservation, Derby’s Osbornedale State Park, Web Mountain Park in Monroe, The Norwalk River Valley Trail, Oxford’s Jackson Cove, Redding’s Huntington State Park, one of Southbury’s Kettletown State Park’s hikes, and Stamford’s Mill River Park. These hikes are good for families, including the four-footed members.

Saturday, June 4th is the biggest day. If, like me, you already have something planned for that day, aside from checking out events that are earlier in the morning or later in the afternoon, there are also some events on Sunday. June 5th is the day for Redding’s hike in Huntington State Park, Southbury’s hike in Kettletown State Park which is also part of the Great Park Pursuit Family Hiking Day, Stamford Museum and Nature Center’s Birds, Bugs, & Beasts Hike or the Stamford hike at Mianus River Park. Though not nearly as many as are on Saturday, still enough so you many not have to miss the whole event.

CT Trails Day is quite large. I hope this list makes it a little easier to choose a way to attend. The full list of family-friendly (easy to moderate) hikes in Fairfield County for CT Trails Day.

Comments

|

E-mail

|

Print

Girls about six years ago--helping out. Something tells me a museum will be more fun.

I am looking forward to waking up on Sunday and realizing that there are still two more days left before the weekend ends. Sometimes weekends get full of chores, sports, and life. These long weekends give us a chance to do something extra. My husband tries to get some extra work done around the house. Because I’m so helpful, I’ll be taking the kids out for the day while my husband stays home to work in the yard.

That was a bit tongue-in-cheek. Of course I could be more help if I were out digging and mulching as well. Somewhat. That would work until the first sibling dust up or until the three year-old wanted some attention. The time line on those events can be remarkably short.

The benefit to getting the kids out of the house is two-fold. My husband gets hours of uninterrupted time–some of which I hope he takes for himself. The kids also benefit. Heading out to experience a museum or other local institution has lasting benefits.

Art seen in person can inspire with technique or subject. Costumed docents in historical museums help bring history to life and give a concrete tie to past times. Zoos, aquariums, and nature centers are an excellent way to learn science. Amusement parks and play centers are just plain fun. Experiences can make a big impression.

Taking the kids out is a win-win. My husband gets a well-deserved break, the house gets a little TLC, the kids will have fun and will likely learn something, and I’ll get to enjoy them having fun. I guess that makes it win-win-win-win.