HudsonValleyGoodStuff

Family Fun: Mid-Hudson Children's Museum in Poughkeepsie

We finally went to the Mid-Hudson Children's Museum in Poughkeepsie today. It has been on my to-see list for so long that I almost forgot about it until Tom suggested it this morning.  It was easy to get to. (We went via the Mid-Hudson Bridge). The kids loved it! There is lots to do there, and I certainly got my morning workout chasing after them and going up and down the stairs. It is also very warm inside there, just fyi. The heat was working extremely well!

There is a sectioned off area that is great for toddlers in the main level, as well as a firetruck, make believe bakery with a play oven and toy cupcakes. The upstairs has a Disney radio box with working microphones, and river table with toy frogs and turtles. There is a skate park for skateboarding adjacent to the parking lot. Admission is $7.50 per person. 1 year old and unders are free of charge. The Mid-Hudson Children's Museum is a great place to take the kids on a rainy day in the Hudson Valley, or any day really. We will definitely be back. Mid-Hudson Children's Museum, 75 North Water Street, Poughkeepsie, NY (845) 471-0581. Do check out their website before you go. They have tons of special events for familes.

Best of Hudson Valley Good Stuff: Memorable events, meals & moments of 2011

Cupcakes galore at the Cupcake Festival at Gardiner

Post-Irene tree climbing 

The Midtwon Margarita at Boitson's in Kingston

The Lake at Belleayre Mountain, Pine Hill

REO Speedwagon at the Dutchess County Fair

Our new family member at Animal Kind in Hudson, NY

 

American Red Cross in Kingston--CPR class

Brasserie 292

Bell's Christmas Tree Farm


Another year of blogging about Hudson Valley Good Stuff. Put it in the books! My blog turns 3 today. As I look back on 2011, here is list of my top memorable events, meals, and moments that I blogged about. 

January:  About two hours after our romantic anniversary dinner at Violette's in Woodstock, my daughter fell very ill and we had an emergency at the house. This prompted me to sign up for a Red Cross CPR training class in Kingston. Thankfully my daughter got better the following week, and the year got better. 

 In February, I signed up for a Partner Yoga workshop at Shakti Yoga on Valentine's Day weekend in Woodstock, and the poses Linda taught us that day, have stuck, at the end of a stressful day, in addition to bringing out the potato chips, we practice partner yoga.

In March there was Hudson Valley's Restaurant Week.  I discovered The Village Tea Room in New Paltz. I wrote a review for LoHud's Small Bites Blog here.

April: The Woodstock Writers Festival is only in its 2nd year, and already very successful. I only made it to one lecture, but hopefully in 2012 I will make it to at least 2 lectures and workshop, who knows. Check out the Woodstock Writers website to see what Martha Frankel and her staff are planning this year.

May: On Mother's Day, I went to the Cupcake Festival in Gardiner and had a very sweet time. I will definitely be back there this year if the festival takes place again. It is a foodie's dream!

June: I wish I could have spent more time at Pine Hill Lake at Belleayre this Summer. It is truly a slice of Hudson Valley paradise.

July: While we really got a cat to take care of the mice situation we have totally fallen in love with her. We adopted a senior cat at Animal Kind in Hudson. The staff are very helpful and the adoption was a breeze.  If you need to surrender your cat for whatever reason, give them a call. 

August--I will never forget the angst in the air at the Dutchess County Fair the night we saw REO Speedwagon in concert, the day before T.S. Irene arrived. Being a weather junkie, I was excited about a potential hurricane. After the first intense 20 minutes though, our power went out and that is when the fun abruptly stopped. Later when I saw the down-trees and wires, flooding, my excitement turned to panic, then to gratitude. We only lost our power for 5 days, and we stayed one night at the Hampton Inn, and the rest of the time with family in Long Island. Hudson Valley Weather's Facebook Fan Page and The Watershed Post proved to be  very valuable resources for victims of Irene.

September--Celebrating my husband's birthday at Boitson's in Uptown Kingston. I tried devils on horseback for the first time and had the best margarita of the year!

October--My favorite week in Woodstock continues to be the Woodstock Film Festival week where thousands of filmmakers come to town to screen their indie movies. The concerts are not to be missed. In 2009, I became a ukelele fan and now  Melvern Taylor is on my iPod. Last year, I saw Simi Stone in concert at the Colony Cafe and I bought her new CD from her at the concert in November.  

I cannot forget walking into Rock Star Rodeo in Saugerties and hearing a guy sing "Happy Birthday" on my actual birthday, only to find out it was the store owner Billy Yosh's birthday too!

On November 11th, 2001, I saw the amazing Simi Stone again in concert at Vivo Art Gallery in Woodstock. Later that month, Brasserie 292 in Poughkeepsie invited us for lunch. It was delicious!

December--While I had fun with the family at Sinterklaas in Rhinebeck, I have to say that my favorite adventure was chopping down the Christmas Tree at Bell's Christmas Tree Farm.

 In December, we put our Hudson Valley Good Stuff billboard up. A huge thank you to our current sponsors Fez Cafe in Saugerties, Taft Street Realty, IXL Health & Fitness, Fun-e Farm Bouncy House Fun center in Kingston, and River Rock Health Spa in Woodstock, and our future sponsors (you know who you are) for your support! 

What will the 2012 hold for the Hudson Valley and HVGS? I am working on HVGS wish-list. First thing on my list is snow!   Wishing you all a Happy New Year & please keep sharing this blog. 

Family Fun on New Year's Eve: Uncle Rock's Concert for Kids at the Bearsville Theater

 

Uncle Rock will be performing on New Year's Eve at the Bearsville Theater in Bearsville, near Woodstock, on December 31st.  There will be face painting and rock and roll portraits on stage.  Uncle Rock and the Playthings will start singing at 7:30pm and the ball will drop at 8:30pm.  The kids should be nice and tired and go to bed early.  

I saw Uncle Rock perform at the Phoenicia Library a few years ago, and the kids really love his music. He really does have a way of bridging the rock gap. I realized this when I heard him sing "Not Fade Away" by the Rolling Stones. I've always loved that song, but never thought of it as a song that a pre-schooler get rock out to, but when I heard him sing it, it all made sense. For more info on Uncle Rock (Robert Burke Warren) visit his website.

Pre-Christmas Family Fun alert: Bounce with Santa at Fun-E Farm on December 23rd!

 On Friday, December 23rd from 5-8pm Fun-E-Farm in the Hudson Valley Mall will be having a holiday pajama party. There will be tons of bouncing, snacks, treats, and Santa Claus! Wear your favorite holiday PJ's and get reduced admission.  Every child who attends will get a special holiday goodie bag.

Bell's Christmas Tree Farm in Accord: Cut Your Own Tree with Beautiful Views!

 

I love Belle's Christmas Tree Farm in Accord! Today my husband and I went to chop our own tree at Bell's Christmas Tree Farm in Accord. The view of the farm was spectacular. Last year there was snow on the ground when we went to Battenfeld's to cut our tree. I was hoping we would have snow this year, but it turned out to still be a beautiful day. The customer service was great. The young man who baled our tree said that it is very busy on the weekends so we were smart to come on the weekday. We have the perfect fluffy Christmas tree now. They charge $43 per tree, and $1 for tree baling. Cash or credit card. $45 seems to be the going rate for Christmas trees these days, but the fun experience of cutting one down is priceless! Bell's Christmas Tree farm also has a cute gift shop.

The tree is beautiful and puffy, but very prickly! We finally got smart and bought a cast iron tree holder at the hardware shop in Woodstock and this solved our leaning Christmas tree problem. For information on Bell's Christmas tree farm visit their website or call (845) 626-7849.

Scenes from Sinterklaas in Rhinebeck: Good tunes, dancing, soup, cupcakes & too much to do!

Sinterklaas in Rhinebeck is one of my favorite Hudson Valley celebrations. We never get around to going to all the Sinterklaas events so we end up just walking around Rhinebeck and joining whatever musical parade we find. It's a lot of fun no matter how you slice it!  We had a light lunch at Bread Alone. (The vegan butternut squash soup was very good!)

 

5 Towns for Family Fun in the Hudson Valley--my guest blog for FamilesGoTravel.com

Ideas for family fun in 5 Hudson Valley towns that I love: Rhinebeck, Saugerties, Mount Tremper, Phoenicia, and Millbrook. Here is the guest blog post I wrote for FamiliesGoTravel.com. 

Family Fun alert: Hoppin Halloween Party at Fun-E Farm this Friday, October 28th!

Fun-E Farm will be having a Hoppin Halloween party on Friday, Oct. 28th from 5 -8pm with lots of bouncing, snacks, treats, and goodie bags for all kids who attend! They will also be raffling off a birthday party and gift cards too! Admission is $9.99 or only $7.99 if you wear your Fun-E Farm T-Shirt.

Fun-E Farm got a couple new bouncy houses since I last blogged about them. So very happy to have them on as a Hudson Valley Good Stuff sponsor. A bouncy house fun center was very much needed in this area. I have a lot friends who go here. The kids always leave here tired and happy! Happy Halloween!

Apple Picking at DuBois Farm in Highland: Plenty of juicy apples, pumpkins & people!

DuBois Farms in Highland has plenty of juicy apples for picking! We went apple picking yesterday in the middle of a short rain storm. We followed signs that read "DuBois Farm Festival" that led us into the parking lot. The place was packed with tourists  happily lugging around their kid in carts. I could not find an available cart, but found the stand where you can rent one of these stick things to get the apples and a green cloth bags. There is plenty I didn't see though. The rain threw us off so we got tired quickly and went back to the car. Next time I will try a sample from their bakery and explore the grounds a bit more. See their website for more info. 

We left there with two huge bags of red apples. Total cost= $29. Now all I need is a good recipe for apple pie!

12-year old Hudson Valley Singing Sensation Schuyler Iona Press at Towne Crier on September 24th!

 

Schuyler Iona Press, 12 year old singer/songwriter will be opening for Ellis Paul at the Towne Crier Cafe in Pawling, NY  on September 24th at 8:30 pm.. If you have a young aspiring singer in the family, be sure to save the date!