Tag Archives: family fun

Heads Up! There’s a new event on the horizon, and you need to get your tickets right now: LIGHTSCAPES from Historic Hudson Valley

. Special Events . , . 3 Comments

Have you been to The Great Blaze? It is truly a unique and breathtaking experience, a wonderland of fire and light. (You can read my post about it – and see the incredible photos – at this link).  This spring, for the first time, the creators of The Blaze have come up with a new experience: LIGHTSCAPES.

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LIGHTSCAPES will provide, according to the press release, “An immersive journey into a springtime garden fantasy”…..”an incredible nighttime display of sculpture, light, sound, and special effects.” If it is anything like the Blaze, it promises to be spectacular.

LIGHTSCAPES is a limited engagement and I’m guessing tickets are going to sell out quickly….so I HAD to give you a heads up. Get your tickets now!

My blog is usually a forum for sharing photos and stories about events AS we experience them…but by the time you see my review for this event, it will be too late to get tickets. That just wouldn’t be right..so go get those tickets now, and we’ll compare notes later. Continue reading →

March Hike: Cranberry Lake Preserve

. Great Places . , , , . 2 Comments

Yes, it’s still cold…spring has not yet sprung…and it’s still awfully hard to get everyone motivated to get outside for a hike. I know, I know! But I’m on a mission here, folks – one hike a month. So, this month, I had to plan carefully and find a hike that offered just a little something “extra”. Maybe that’s what you need, too, to get your family out the door.  Consider Cranberry Lake Preserve- one of my favorite hikes in Westchester. Here’s how we made this hike just a little more enticing, to get the family motivated on a cold and partially overcast day: we turned this hike at Cranberry Lake Preserve into a scavenger hunt, full of history and mystery.

Cranberry Lake Preserve has a fascinating past, and remnants of its days-gone-by are preserved all around the trails. Not only that, the Westchester Department of Parks has made available a History Trail Map, which makes the historical markers and artifacts around the park easy to find and explore.  Click here to link to the map, and bring a copy with you.

This hike is easily turned into a scavenger hunt by searching for the many unique points of interest around the lake. This will engage even your reluctant hikers. Here’s  a quick list to get you started – 6 of the many interesting features to hunt for and find on your hike at Cranberry Lake:

1. The quarry – it’s beautiful and there are plenty of areas along the back ridge where the kids can do some rock scrambling….with careful supervision, of course! Continue reading →

Hastings-on-Hudson, Part II: Beyond the Museum in the Streets

. Great Places . , , . 2 Comments

A few days ago I wrote about the fun we had exploring the Museum in the Streets in Hastings-on-Hudson– but the Museum was only part of our afternoon in this vibrant little town. In addition to all the things we saw on the walking tour, we discovered many other beautiful spots, delicious eateries, and interesting places. If you remember, I talked about the fun of being an intrepid explorer, even when you’re close to home and you won’t be leaving the ‘burbs anytime soon. When you explore a town you don’t usually visit, you’re guaranteed to find unique places and things your own town doesn’t have. That’s how we discovered The Museum in the Streets – and so much more…

During our day in Hastings, around  every corner we found something novel – a beautiful garden, a playground we’ve never visited, a “Gingerbread House”, a shop selling vinyl records (“What’s a vinyl record, Mom?”). Continue reading →