Author: Nichole S.

Doesn’t really ever get old.

On Saturday, after a lot of baseball, we wandered over to the track behind Rockport High School where the Police Department and Rockport Rotary Club were conducting a bike safety program.

I wish I had known about it early enough to share the information with you all, but put it on your list of things to look into for next year.

With bike and helmet safety checks, bike registration, obstacle courses, challenges, police cruisers to sit in, some free snacks, and sunshine it was a really great event.

Much thanks to all who volunteered and made it possible!

Brunch, live music, waterfront dining, boats coming and going to distract the children, a sunny day, and a Bloody Mary bar…. need I say more?

We had a delicious breakfast in the sun yesterday over at Cape Ann’s Marina Resort and Mile Marker One.  I’m not sure how it is that we haven’t had brunch on the deck while listening to music before…but, I’m so glad we did it yesterday.

My omelette made to order with peppers, feta, and olives was just as yummy as my Bloody Mary…also made to order.

We’ll definitely be doing that again!

Cape Ann’s Marina Resort

I’m pretty thankful that my boys are getting to the age that they don’t “need” or ask for much for their birthdays….and that they understand that “doing things is better than getting stuff.”  So, as one of Thatcher’s birthday gifts we took off for a one night getaway to Kennebunkport.  Our intention was to simply swim, beach comb, fish, explore, ride bikes, poke around in some stores, and then head to the Portland Sea Dogs game the next morning.  The weather didn’t necessarily cooperate for some of our planned outdoor fun….although the fishing was still a must.

While there we drove by the Bush Estate.  It was nice to show the boys where the family has gathered together for so many years and to look across the water and imagine the good times, laughs, rites of passage, celebrations, etc that have unfolded on the lawn and within the walls.

It was even nicer to hear that President Bush was in attendance at the Memorial Day parade the next morning.

Took a little walk the other day and discovered all sorts of baby love happening on the pond.

 

Early Memorial Day morning at Annisquam’s Lighthouse Beach looked suitably somber. Thanks to Paul and Betsey Horovitz for the lovely photo.

Pick #1:  Wolf Hollow Free Family Fun Fest

Sunday, May 28th from 11-3

CHECK OUT THE WEBSITE HERE

Make your Memorial Day weekend truly memorable! Bring the whole family to howl with the wolves for FREE! Wolf Hollow offers a unique opportunity to view gray wolves in as natural a setting as possible. Come see how they interact with their pack members and live in a social unit very similar to human families.

This fun, family event will begin at 11am and end at 3pm.

Mark your calendars – FREE TICKETS will be available via Eventbrite, starting on May 8th.

Please be aware this event is by RESERVATION ONLY.

Guests will enjoy:

• One of a kind, educational presentations every hour.
• Fun games & activities for children of all ages.
• Delicious pizza from the Ipswich House of Pizza and other vendors TBD
• Free samples of Ipswich Soda Pops.
• AND Free samples, for Mom & Dad, from the Ipswich Ale Brewery and 1634 Meadery.

Overflow parking will be directed to one side of Route 133 West

  Wolf Hollow (114 Essex Road, Ipswich, MA)

Pick #2: Appleton Farms Hay Bale Hangout

Saturday, June 3rd from 10:00-2:00

CHECK OUT ALL OF THE DETAILS HERE

Member Child: $5; Nonmember Child: $10

Have you ever collected warm eggs from the chicken coop or seen how fast sheep will run for their morning helping of grain? Join us for our NEW weekend Hay Bale Hangout and spend the day at Appleton Farms. Stop by anytime between 10AM – 1:30PM for fantastic farmyard meet and greets! Hands on activities start at 10AM and run every ½ hour. Greet our goats, make a wool bracelet, cuddle a calf, farm story time, collect chicken eggs and more! In between activities hang out in the Carriage Barn and explore our all-day learning stations or picnic outside in the Stone Paddock!

Activities may change depending on what’s happening at the farm, but a typical schedule will include:

10:00: Feed the sheep & brush the goats

10:30: Spin wool bracelets

11:00: Collect chicken eggs

11:30: Farm story time (feel free to bring a snack from home!)

12:00: Explore the milking barn & Dairy tools

12:30: Meet a bunny

1:00: Collect chicken eggs

1:30: Brush the goats

Please check in at the entrance of the Carriage Barn to pay and receive your hand stamp. Become a Trustees member at the farm on the day of and come for free! Once you’ve paid, stay for an hour or all day! Cash only please. No additional cost for adults. We will do our very best to accommodate everyone, but some activities are first come, first serve.

We have picnic tables, bathrooms, water, and plenty of stroller friendly walking paths for you to enjoy. Parking available the Visitor Center for a shorter walk or at the Farm Store for a longer stroll through our vegetable fields.

Pick #3: Do Something to Honor our Servicemen and Servicewoman 

Most towns have a Memorial Day Parade. Please check each town’s listings and attend at least one.  We always attend the Rockport Memorial Day to show our respect.

 

As always, for a comprehensive list of family activities, visit our friends at North Shore Kid

Some of us had fun yesterday solving the mini-mystery of Did Josh Say “Yes” or did he leave his creative promposalist (sounds like it should be a word) hanging in the wind….just like her message on the overpass.

Well, thanks to the power of Facebook, we have an answer.   YES.

Kudos to his prom date for catching all of our attention!  We hope they have lots of laughs and create many lasting memories!

Thanks to Bridgette Matthews for capturing the new bridge message and for forwarding it to me so that we could update you all.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST HERE

Yes or No?  What was Josh’s answer?  And who did the asking?  The suspense is killing me.  Surely the couple will submit a photo of them together at the prom….assuming he did indeed say “yes.”

Just waiting for the tide to come back in.

Pick #1: Motif No. 1 

Saturday May 20th 9:00-5:00

As written on rockportexchange.org

About the festival

The Motif No.1 Day Festival celebrates Rockport across the arts.

M1D honors the fishing shack, artist’s studio, and tourist attraction that started it all: an old building right on one of Rockport’s historic wharves, a building painted so often by artists at the turn of the last century that it was given the nickname Motif No.1.

Featuring film, poetry, dance, music, art-making activities, historical presentations and more, along with the Motif No.1 Day 5k and Fun Run, with proceeds to benefit Rockport Public Schools’ wellness initiatives, M1D is a festival with something for everyone.

Pick #2: Touch-A-Truck Day 

To Benefit the Fishtown Horribles Parade  | Gloucester High School | Sunday, May 21st from 9:00-2:00

 

As always, for a comprehensive list of family activities, please visit our friends at North Shore Kid

Even without the iconic red paint visible, Motif No. 1 is still pretty.  Goodnight, Rockport.

A few turkeys were walking around the side yard of campus yesterday so I walked outside to take some photos of them.  Imagine my horror when I realized that one had a long arrow straight through its body!  While it seemed to walking fine and keeping up with its friends, it was totally heartbreaking to see.  I can only imagine the pain and discomfort the arrow must be causing.

I made a phone call to Beverly Animal Control who told me to call Fish and Wildlife who told me to call Boston Wildlife Rescue.  They asked for photos and asked for us to keep an eye out to see if the turkey is able to roost at night and whether or not it looks like it is eating, etc.  Hopefully they will come find it this week to see if there is anything they can do.

Mother’s Day morning I slept until almost 9:00 and woke up to find my boys dressed in button-down shirts and ready to go.  Turns out we had 10:30 reservations over at the Sea Glass restaurant at the Castle Manor Inn.

While the weather wasn’t perfect….brunch was.  When asked, we were fine sitting outside on the tented and enclosed deck.  I’m all in for eating with a view whenever possible and the heaters made it warm enough for us.  The Mother’s Day Buffet was loaded with with a variety of dishes and was really delicious. There were several traditional breakfast choices alongside dishes such as chowder, chicken parm, stuffed eggplant, steak tips, and more.  While eating, the staff also walked around with platters of stuffed clams, shrimp cocktail, and stuffed mushrooms.

To sweeten the deal, the dessert table included chocolate mousse cake and creme brulee!

Much thanks to the staff for helping to make Mother’s Day pretty lovely….even in the torrential rain.  I look forward to going back in the warmth of the summer for a less windy meal.

Learn more about THE CASTLE MANOR INN and SEA GLASS RESTAURANT HERE

I wish I had taken more photos to share in this post, but I was happy to be enjoying the time with the family.

I stopped by Learning Express in Beverly yesterday afternoon…as I often do because it is so close to work….and discovered a sign on the door that says, “We’re Moving.”

Luckily, they’re not moving far…just down the road in fact, but you still might want to make a mental note so you’re not surprised when you go to visit them.

Pick #1:  Gloucester Public School Arts Festival

GMG’s own James Eve did a wonderful post about this earlier this week….with all of the information you could need.  Please read his full post here! 

The festival is Saturday from 11:00-4:00

In his post, amongst other information, James included this schedule….

2017 Gloucester Public Schools Arts Festival Schedule of Events

Saturday, May 13, 2016

11 am to 12 pm            GHS Culinary Arts Reception – Sawyer Free Library
11 am to 11:30              Mad Hot Ball Demonstration – City Hall
11:30 to 12 pm            Recorder Performance – Elementary School Students – City Hall
12 to 12:340 pm            Ukulele Performance – Elementary School Students – City Hall
1 to 1:30 pm                        GHS Interactive Engineering Demonstration – City Hall
1 to 1:30 pm                        Dancing Through the Decades Workshop – City Hall
1 to 3 pm                        Collaborative Art Project – Sculpture Park – Museum
1:30 to 2:00 pm            GHS Theater Performance – City Hall
2 to 2:30 pm                        GHS Chorus Performance – City Hall
2:30 to 3:00 pm            O’Maley Chorus Performance – City Hall
3 to 3:30 pm                        O’Maley Jazz Band Performance – City Hall
3:30 to 4 pm                        GHS Docksiders Performance – City Hall

All Day Visual Art Displays

Elementary Schools – City Hall
O’Maley Innovation- Sawyer Free Library
High School – Sawyer Free Library
Industrial Arts, Engineering, Woodworking – Cape Ann Museum and City Hall

Pick #2:  Bunny Tales: Mother’s Day at Appleton Farms

Sunday, May 14
10-12PM

Member Adults: $24 (Moms are FREE). Member Children: $12. Nonmember Adults:$30. (Moms are FREE). Nonmember Children: $15

READ ALL ABOUT THIS EVENT AND PRE-REGISTER HERE

Join us this Mother’s Day for an adventure with the classic characters from Beatrix Potter! Bring the whole family to enjoy a morning with the mischievous Peter Rabbit and his friends!

Attendees will explore the farm and meet some of the classic characters such as; Peter Rabbit, Squirrel Nutkin, Johnny Town Mouse, Tom Kitten and more!  Visit Mr. McGregor’s garden, Mrs. Tiggy Winkle’s kitchen, Jemima Puddle Duck’s nest and Hunca Munca’s doll house.  After your adventure, join us in the Carriage Barn for light refreshments and meet our farm animals in the barnyard.  Kids will also make a beautiful potted lettuce garden inspired by Peter Rabbit as a gift for mom!
FREE for moms! Please register all other adults and children. (Example: If Dad is registering for the family of five -Mom, Dad, and three kids- add 1 adult and three child tickets to your cart.)

This event runs rain or shine. Please pre-register so we have enough refreshments for all. Children under 1 are free.

Pick #3:  Lilac Sunday (now Saturday!) at Arnold Arboretum

PLEASE NOTE: 

“Events on Sunday, May 14 have been cancelled due to severe weather. We regret any inconvenience. A modified slate of tours and activities will be offered on Saturday, May 13. See details below.”

READ MORE HERE

Of the thousands of flowering plants in the Arboretum, only one, the lilac, is singled out each year for a daylong celebration. Mainly located on the edge of Bussey Hill Road in the heart of the landscape, the lilac collection at the Arnold Arboretum is among the premier collections of these plants in North America.

Tours of the lilacs and family activities are available from 10:00am to 3:00pm on Saturday, May 13

As always, for a comprehensive list of family friendly activities, please visit our friends at North Shore Kid

Teacher and Staff Appreciation Week occurred a couple of weeks ago and my co-workers and I were b.e.y.o.n.d spoiled by our fabulous parent community.  Amongst so many other generous and amazing surprises (goodie bags, gift certificates, massages, raffle items, etc) were some delicious faculty luncheons.

One day lunch was delivered by b.good in Beverly.  While I find myself at the Dodge Street Plaza kind of often when running to the Paper Store, Modells, Staples, etc. I actually hadn’t tried b.good yet…but I’ll be going in the near future for sure.

CHECK OUT THEIR WEBSITE HERE

The food was really terrific…and pretty to look at.  As if lunch on Monday wasn’t enough…Tuesday morning brought a Smoothie bar…also from b.good!