Discovery Museum

The Discovery Museum in Acton recently reopened as one renovated building with new and updated outdoor space.  The museum which has been around for 35 years, received a large donation from Middlesex Savings Bank, and reworked much of the interior space.

The museum is kid-friendly, hands on, and has a room for babies, one for toddlers, and plenty of activities for school age children.
Indoor space includes a water play area, light and sound rooms, ball runs, a pirate ship loft area, and other exhibits.  A big air machine is a hit and a magnetic gear wall upstairs is fun to interact with. There is a work area where kids can create and craft projects with recycled materials and wooden machinery that can be put together with tools.

Outside a new playground and tree house structure have been erected, which abut the Discovery Woods.  The museum has a great educational program for schools and groups, or activities for parents and children to join.  Their website gives a calendar of upcoming events.
click below:
Discovery Museum Website

Light activities.

Light room.

Water play, building Legoes to stop water flow.

Outdoor swing.

Sound room, each bulb makes a different pitch.

The museum does get crowded on school vacation weeks and during the winter months.  Traditional naptimes are a good time to go, or with little ones, during the school week.

Concord Museum Christmas Trees

Each year the Concord Museum, in Concord, Mass, puts up themed Christmas trees.  The trees are based on children's literature and copies of the books are displayed next to each tree.  The thirty plus trees are located throughout the museum and range in all shapes and sizes.  The trees and stories change each year.  Admission this year ran at $15 per adult, $6/child,  and children 3 under being free.  Parking is street parking along Lexington St and is also free.  (Be careful crossing the street, cars drive very quickly on Lexington St).  The museum opens the exhibit just after Thanksgiving and it stays open through January 1.  Throughout the duration of the exhibit, various authors of the books will visit, sometimes characters from the books, and other events take place.  Checking the website will give you the annual calendar.

Concord center, just down the street is also a quaint, lovely little town center which is great for Christmas shopping or wandering around.  Metered street parking is available there.

Museum Address: 200 Lexington Rd, Concord, MA 01742

Phone:(978) 369-9763

Hours:  April- Dec. Mon- Sat: 9- 5:00 Sunday 12- 5:00
Jan- March: Mon- Sat 11:00- 4:00, Sun 1:00- 4:00

Click here for Concord Museum Link

Pumpkin Patch

For a little pumpkin patch option, the Second Congregational Church in Winchester runs an annual fall pumpkin patch.  It begins at the end of September and runs through until Halloween.   Located on Washington Street the patch is outside the stone church, with street parking on Washington Street and Kenwin Road.
A few baked goods are available and wagons to pick the pumpkins, which are priced from $1.00 on.  It is run by church members volunteering and most of the proceeds to go charity, specifically the Navajo Nation, the Winchester Middle School after school programs, and a local food pantry.

This year hours are:
Mon:  Fri 2- 7pm
Sat: 10 -5 pm
Sun: 12- 5 pm
and Columbus Day from 10-5
They also run special fair days, that include kiddie activities.

Raspberry Picking at Wright-Locke Farm

Raspberry picking is available at Wright-Locke Farm in Winchester through the first frost.  Located on Ridge Street in Winchester, the raspberry bushes are organic and is the perfect size for an outing with toddlers and preschoolers.  Entrance is free and you pay per pound for the raspberries.  It's a fun, local and fast picking alternative to apple orchards.  There are a few animals to see and chickens to feed the underripe raspberries to.

Wright-Locke Farm site

Beaver Brook Reservation and Spray Park

Belmont and Waltham are home to Beaver Brook Reservation, a conservation land of 59 acres.  The reservation includes hiking trails, bike paths, picnic areas, and a playground and spray park.  The trails are open year round, as is the playground, while the spray park is open in the summer from 9:30 am - 7:30 pm.  There are picnic tables at various points on the reservation and a covered pavilion at the park site, along with bathrooms, trash cans, and benches.

It is accessible by public transportation and also has parking lots and street parking, depending on which part of the park you are going to.


Click here for link to Beaver Brook Reservation and Spray Park

Arlington Spray Park

The spray park next to Thompson Elementary School in Arlington is a good cool down spot for the summer.  Other than the sprinklers, they also offer a playground with an area appropriate for both toddlers and older children.  There are a set of picnic benches also and shady spots for relaxing under the trees.  The spray park is open when school lets out in the early summer until the close of summer.

The easiest way to find the park is to locate Dunkin Donuts on Broadway in Arlington and it is a few blocks behind it.  Set in a residential neighborhood, there is street parking and parking at the elementary school.

Click here for link to park

Funtown Splashtown USA

Funtown Splashtown USA is about an hour and a half from the city of Boston, in Saco, Maine, just off of 95 and is a good sized amusement park for children.  It is another, bigger option to Canobie Lake.  There are two sides to the park, identifiable by the bracelets one purchases upon entering.  (The entry fees are confusing, after speaking to two representatives and having friends have completely different experiences purchasing their bands, I couldn't explain it).  Splashtown houses about twenty water slides and pools for various heights and ages.  If you read the height requirements however, it will reduce the number of water slides and rides to a lot fewer available to a given group of people.  Funtown has rides for all sizes and at varying speeds also.  There are several "family" rides, such as antique cars on a track, kiddie rides including airplanes and bumper boats, and much faster rides, for older children or more daring folk.  Park hours begin sporadically in late May, and pick up in June.  The park closes again in September.  During the summer, the parks open at 10:00 on a daily basis and Splashtown closes at 6:00, Funtown at 9:00.

Food is available in the park, but you are also allowed to bring food in, just no glass containers.  There is some shopping and various other park activities, such as arcades and games.  Often during the week in the summer, camp groups will go, so weekends aren't that much busier comparatively.

A family of four would probably spend between $100-150 for a day at the park, with admission and purchasing food.  Children under 38 inches ride for free, so it is a good option for little ones!

Click here for link to FuntownSplashtown, USA

Seacoast Science Center

A little marine center in Rye, New Hampshire is a great destination for the day.  It is set in Odiorne State Park and is a small aquarium on the coast.




The facility itself has a touch tank area, several tanks housing various sea creatures, and some hands on exhibits that include a submarine parts, and a row boat for pretend fishing.
There are hourly educational activities to join and tidal pools outside to explore.  In addition to the center itself, there is no shortage of picnic tables outside to eat a prepacked lunch (only vending machines available and no trash barrels) and a nearby playground within the park.
The setting is beautiful and bountiful rocks to climb on and places to explore.  Definitely worth a trip, just over an hour from the city of Boston.

There are two fees, one to enter the park (adults $4 and children 6-11 $2 each) and one for the Science Center (adults $7, seniors $5, and children 3-12 $3).

Click here for link to Marine Science Center

Tidal pools and rocks

Choosing Schools

With all the great public and private schools in the Greater Boston area, choosing a preschool or school can be a difficult choice.  One resource we found for looking at schools was attending open houses.  This is a good basis for determining what you want and what is out there.  Fall is a Open House "season" for private schools, with the application process beginning not long after.
The Independent Schools in New England website is one resource for tracking dates and locations:

Open House Link, Fall 2012

Some schools require advance registration for Open Houses, and if you miss the date, they will fulfill requests for scheduling (usually group) tours at later dates.