Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in newark, NJ

It's That Time of Year Again... Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day

by Vanessa Druckman

April 20, 2009

Just to get us in the mood for Earth Day, Ben & Jerry's is hosting their annual Free Cone Day tomorrow, Tuesday, April 21st. The event is just what it sounds like - everyone who visits a participating Ben & Jerry's location is entitled to a free scoop of ice cream, served in either a cup or a cone. Any sprinkles or other toppings are extra.

The lines are usually very long for this festive event, but the atmosphere of fun is well worth it. Hopefully the weather will hold out and we'll be able to enjoy our free ice cream outside in the early Spring night. 

Head on over to the Ben & Jerry's website for a list of participating locations. We'll be at the Ridgewood shop on Franklin Avenue enjoying our free cones. Other North Jersey locations include: Englewood (46 E. Palisades Ave), Hoboken (405 Washington Street), Morristown (26 Washington Street), and Wayne (Willowbrook Mall).

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Healthy and Easy Snacking Guest Post

by Vanessa Druckman

March 23, 2009

My kids are always getting bored with our snack selection. They run in the door, starving, and run to the corner of our kitchen grabbing at whatever snacks they can find. I'm embarrassed to say that more often than not, they reach for cookies and other unhealthy snacks.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who will be excited to see some of the great tips in this guest post. For me it was a great reminder that eating healthy can be simple. It's just a matter of having the right ideas in my grocery list. Perfect timing as this month is National Nutrition Month.

 

Healthy and Easy Snacking

Andrea Astrachan, consumer advisor for Stop & Shop

 

It's not always easy to provide your kids with healthy meals and snacks when you are busy and on the go.  It can also be difficult to provide nutritious, but kid-friendly snacks when your kids are at school. Nutritious snacks are especially important during school days because they improve concentration and provide energy needed for physical activity. Below, I have provided some suggestions for quick and nutritious snacks kids will love. You can throw these in a baggy for school lunches, or toss a handful of snacks into a small or large pre-used yogurt container for a quick car snack.

 

Child-size fruits that are easy for small hands (clementines and grapes are great)

Nuts, raisins and dried fruit- 100-calorie snack packs of dried fruits are a perfect size!

String cheese

Nonfat and low-fat yogurt and yogurt drinks

Applesauce and fruit cups

Whole-wheat pretzels

Popcorn

Baby carrots or cut veggies

Pudding and gelatin

 

And great news for those of us carefully watching our budgets! Stop & Shop also recently introduced new products from Nature's Promise, its line of natural and organic foods priced less than other brands. Here are some new products that make great snacks:

 

Organic Sea Salt Kettle Potato Chips

Organic Cranberry Honey Snack Bars

Organic Fat Free Yogurt

Organic Chipotle Salsa (serve with Nature's Promise tortilla chips)

All natural Pita Chips (in Sea Salt, Parmesan & Herb and Cinnamon flavors)

Nature's Promise is expanding the line with these additional products as well:

 

Sparkling Water with Organic Lime Flavor

Organic Light Kidney Beans

Organic Mac & Cheese

Natural Bulgur Quinoa

Natural Muesli Salad

Natural Wheat Semolina

For more on Nature's Promise, visit the Stop and Shop website. 

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Join a CSA, Help the Farmers, Educate your Children

by Vanessa Druckman

March 11, 2009

I'm always looking for new opportunities to expose my children to experiences that will educate them. One of the things I've been toying with lately is joining a CSA. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Small farms, that are usually organic, split their harvest into shares that they then sell to individuals. This allows the farms to stay afloat without being price gouged by large corporations. It also allows consumers to get a front-row seat to see how a farm works while eating produce that hasn't been shipped halfway around the world to get to them.

I've been thinking of joining a CSA for a couple of years now, but something's always held me back. Now as we gear up for spring, the thought of picking up boxes of ripe strawberries and juicy jersey tomatoes is almost too much to resist. A full share can run you over $500 so this is a significant investment, but it's probably equal to what you would be spending in the supermarket and far superior in quality. I think the kids will really learn a lot from learning when fruits and vegetables are actually produced in our climate. Some farms also let you visit them to really round out the experience.

Here is a listing of NJ CSAs, in case you too are interested in trying out this experience.

Catalpa Ridge Community Supported Farm (Wantage): Weekly CSF deliveries to drop-off sites in Hoboken, NJ /Jersey City, NJ / Mahwah, NJ as well as on-farm pick-up in Wantage,NJ. Deliveries run from the beginning of June through the end of October. Deliveries include a diverse selection of seasonal vegetables freshly harvested from our farm in Wantage, NJ. Share prices vary depending on drop off location.

Upper Meadows Farm: Delivers to NYC, Essex County, or on the farm in Montague, NJ. A full share is $595 and a half or individual share is $425.

Honey Brook Organic Farm in Pennington, NJ. Weekly produce can be picked up either on the farm or at pick up points throughout NJ which include locations like Princeton, Trenton, Summit, Maplewood, East Brunswick and many others. A share is either $600 or $624 which works out to about $24 a week for produce. Payments can be split into 1 to 4 payments.

Starbrite Farm has pick-ups in Montclair, Bloomfield, West Orange, Westfield, and Jersey City. Email kruegerjohn@earthlink.net for more info.

For other CSA listings, consult the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Jersey.

 

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