Daily activities for kids and the family are abound in Fairfield County! Whether you want to spend the day with your children at a zoo, a museum, or just outdoors, we've got it all here. Want to see what's going on next weekend or when you have those few days off? Check out the NY Metro Parents' calendar!
Family Art Project: Family Roots and Branches - Wave Hill
March 02, 2013 - Bronx
Make a family album featuring your family's global roots. See and sketch trees from around the world, and use your sketch in a collaged, hand-made book bound with a found twig. Bring family photos, if you like, to adorn your album.
Harman Signature Recitals Series - Palace Theater
March 02, 2013 - Stamford
Listen to Vadim Gluzman,Israeli violinist, playing Mozart, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Bloch and Ravel. Vadim Gluzman appears regularly around the world with major orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony, London Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic, London Symphony and the San Francisco Symphony.
Around the World Creative Kids - Stepping Stones Museum
March 02, 2013 - Norwalk
Become a puppeteer by making your own Indonesian shadow puppet and perform behind a puppet shadow screen. Free with museum admission, but tickets required. Limited space. For ages 2 and older.
Boutique Springtime Cupcakes - CakeSuite - Ages 14+
March 02, 2013 - Westport
This fun class focuses on baking and decorating. Each student leaves with a dozen decadent cupcakes, each finished with personalized springtime decorations.
Freckleface Strawberry – The Musical - Downtown Cabaret Theatre
March 02, 2013 - Bridgeport
Based on the book by award-winning actress Julianne Moore, Freckleface was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award for outstanding new Off-Broadway musical. Freckleface Strawberry will do anything to get rid of her freckles – from scrubbing them with soap, to caking on makeup, and even wearing a ski mask to school. With the help of her loveable schoolmates, Freckleface learns that everyone is different - and that's what makes everyone special.
Q&A with Orchid Experts - The New York Botanical Garden
March 02, 2013 - Bronx
Gardening and orchid experts share their best secrets and explain the simple steps to healthy plants as they help you choose the right plant for your home.
Early Signs of Spring - Audubon Greenwich
March 02, 2013 - Greenwich
In March, spring starts to show itself in many ways. Join Ted Gilman for fun and early spring natural history during a hike down the Discovery Trail, up to Mead Lake and back to the Center. Ages 5 and up. Easy to moderate terrain. RSVP to Ted at x230.
First Saturday Books for Babies - Wilton Library
March 02, 2013 - Wilton
Bring your baby to this infant friendly program to sing and play and enjoy gentle stories geared for babies under 12 months old. This is an excellent forum to meet other new parents in the area. Bring dad too. Registration suggested.
Minecraft Club - Wilton Library
March 02, 2013 - Wilton
With Minecraft, worlds made out of individual blocks are generated. Players can build anything, mine anything, create anything, and interact with other players. The only limit is your imagination. A server for the Wilton Library has been set up with a virtual world where the Minecraft community in Wilton can meet. Minecraft enthusiasts are welcome to join the Minecraft Computer Club to discuss and play everything Minecraft in the Children's Library. Appropriate for children ages 8 and up. Minecraft is a subscription-based, online game. Players must bring their own laptops and create their own accounts. Registration required.
Dr. Seuss Crafts - Wilton Library
March 02, 2013 - Wilton
Children of all ages can stop by the Library to make a Dr. Seuss craft to take home in honor of Dr. Seuss's birthday. No registration required.
Read Across America Day - Wilton Library
March 02, 2013 - Wilton
Dr. Seuss' birthday is also Read Across America Day. Kids can stop by the Library and tell the staff members at the Children's desk all about their favorite book, and they will receive a special reading certificate. Kids caught reading in the library on Saturday will also get a special prize. No registration required.
Story Time with the Cat in the Hat - Wilton Library
March 02, 2013 - Wilton
Meet the Cat in the Hat in celebration of Dr. Seuss' birthday. Children ages 3 and up are invited to hear some stories told by the loveable Cat in the Hat. A craft will also be made. Perhaps Thing One and Thing Two will join in? Registration required.
Teen Service Saturday - Fairfield Public Library
March 02, 2013 - Fairfield
Need community service hours for school, church or whatever? Drop in to the Teen Room on the first Saturday of each month to help out in the Library.
Build Confidence with Brasil, The Therapy Dog - Fairfield Public Library
March 02, 2013 - Fairfield
Learn about the new Dog Tales reading program and meet Brasil, a therapy dog and his handler, Don Smith. This event is part of the One Book One Town for Children and Teens program.
Maple Syrup Open House - Ambler Farm
March 02, 2013 - Wilton
Families can tap a tree, take part in a maple syrup taste test and learn about the Native American, colonial and modern techniques of making syrup. Then everyone can taste Ambler Farm's own maple syrup over vanilla ice cream.
Maple Sugaring at Sullivan Farm - Great Brook Sugar House at Sullivan Farm
March 02, 2013 - New Milford
Celebrate the natural and cultural history of making maple syrup. Everyone tries the bit brace drill, witnesses some maple sap flowing and gets to sample the syrup. Reserve your spot by e-mailing sullivanfarmeducation@gmail.com.
Maple Sugaring Open House Demonstration - Warrup's Farm
March 02, 2013 - West Redding
Watch the process of getting sap and turning it into maple syrup and sugar candies. Pure maple syrup and maple sugar candy are available for purchase.
Buddy Pair Fashion Show and Silent Auction. - Staples HS
March 02, 2013 - Westport
Staples High School's Best Buddies Chapter will be having a Buddy Pair Fashion Show and a Silent Auction. Best Buddies is a worldwide program creating one-to-one friendships for students with and without Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD). All are welcome. Fashions provided by local stores and auction items are from local families. Come for the fun and leave with a prize.
Kindergarten sampler Class - The Clover Hill School
March 02, 2013 - Norwalk
Come for a preview and experience the warmth of a Waldorf-inspired classroom as you participate in the rhythm of a kindergarten morning. The Mixed-Age Kindergarten for children 3-6 years old, addresses the whole child. By learning in a warm, home-like atmosphere with classmates of different ages, the young child develops self-confidence and a healthy social life.
The program is for 2 3/4 year olds up to 3 1/2. It offers a gentle transition from home to the kindergarten.
Sap to Sugar at Earthplace - Earthplace
March 02, 2013 - Westport
Learn to tap maple trees and enjoy a campfire.
Maple Sugar Festival Weekend! - Stamford Museum & Nature Center
Through March 03, 2013 - Stamford
Visit the little red sugarhouse on Heckscher Farm and see firsthand how sap is turned into sweet maple syrup. Witness how trees are tapped and sap is collected, make a maple-themed craft, go on a scavenger hunt, have your face painted and more. On Saturday, watch local chefs create delicious dishes using the center's maple syrup and vote for your favorite in a winner-takes-all 4th Annual First County Bank Maple Sugar Cook-Off. On Sunday, enjoy a pancake brunch for an additional $5.
Our Nation's Generations: American Roots - Fairfield Museum and History Center
Through March 10, 2013 - Fairfield
Our Nation's Generations is a collaborative learning project that brings together students from diverse backgrounds to develop their own exhibition at the Fairfield Museum. This year's theme, American Roots is inspired by the Fairfield Museum's exhibition Promise of Freedom: The Emancipation Proclamation. Students explored the question of "what does it mean to be an American" through exhibit tours at the Fairfield Museum and the Aldrich Museum. The project pairs 8th grade students from The Unquowa School (Fairfield) and New Beginnings Family Academy (Bridgeport). The students worked together in a process of historical research, reading literature, writing speeches and arts-based activities. The project encourages a broad understanding of freedom, equality and citizenship. February 22-March 10, 2013.
Wonder Instagram Contest - Fairfield Public Library
Through March 10, 2013 - Fairfield
What does "Choose Kindness" mean to you? Show it on Instagram. Snap a photo between now and March 10 that shows an act of kindness and use the hashtag #fplwonder to enter. Contest finalists will be invited to a special reception with the author of the book Wonder. The winning photographer will receive $150. No registration necessary. March is One Book One Town Month in Fairfield. This year's pick is Wonder by R. J. Palacio.
Star Wars Marathon and Trivia Contest - Fairfield Woods Branch Library
Through March 13, 2013 - Fairfield
Celebrate Auggie's favorite movies: Star Wars. There will be a marathon all six movies one after another for seven week days, and finish up with a trivia contest for prizes, candy and galactic glory.
Colleen Browning: The Early Works - Bellarmine Museum of Art
Through March 24, 2013 - Fairfield
Artist Colleen Browning (1918-2003), a National Academician, played a significant role in America's contemporary realist movement in the years after 1950. Fairfield University rediscovers and celebrates the career of this Anglo-American Realist painter. January 24-March 24, 2013.
Colleen Browning: A Brush with Magic - Thomas J. Walsh Art Gallery
Through March 24, 2013 - Fairfield
Artist Colleen Browning (1918-2003), a National Academician, played a significant role in America's contemporary realist movement in the years after 1950. Fairfield University rediscovers and celebrates the career of this Anglo-American Realist painter. The Thomas J. Walsh Gallery offers a selection of compelling oil paintings created in the years after 1960. January 24-March 24, 2013.
Pajama Program - Office of the Superintendent - Bridgeport Public Schools
Through March 30, 2013 - Bridgeport
Help a child stay warm and cozy by donating new pajamas and/or a book. Pajama Program is a 501(3)c not-for-profit organization providing new pajamas and books to children many of whom are waiting to be adopted.
From Italy to America - Greenwich Historical Society
Through March 30, 2013 - Greenwich
Celebrate the rich cultural heritage of Italian-American communities in Connecticut through objects, documents and film drawn from local families. Also featured is a complementary collection of 26 black and white photographs from a show entitled From Italy to America: The Photographs of Anthony Riccio that was originally organized by the Bellarmine Museum of Art at Fairfield University. March 1-June 30, 2013.
Hudson Valley Restaurant Week - Over 200 Restaurants in Seven Counties
Through March 31, 2013 -
The spring 2013 Hudson Valley Restaurant Week will take place March 11-24. The Valley Table presents the region's largest dining event, with more than 200 participating restaurants from seven counties. Restaurants include Crabtree's Kittle House, La Cremaillere, Harvest on Hudson, Red Hat on the River, and X2O Xaviars on the Hudson, Fig & Olive, Restaurant 42 at the Ritz Carlton, plus many family-friendly restaurants, which will offer delicious, pre-fixe dining. Others joining the roster this spring are Gaucho Grill, Myong Gourmet, Swift and more. Pricing: three-course dinner for $29.95 and/or three-course lunch for $20.95 (excluding beverage, tax and tip). For more information and a growing list of participating restaurants, visit hudsonvalleyrestaurantweek.com.
Hudson Valley Restaurant Week takes place in the spring and fall, and is a great time for families to try cuisine at some of the region's best restaurants by taking advantage of the prix-fixe menus.
Magnificent Trees of The New York Botanical Garden - New York Botanical Garden
Through April 14, 2013 - Bronx
Larry Lederman, landscape photographer and member of NYBG's Board of Advisors, has spent years walking the garden grounds to observe and photograph trees and vistas in all seasons and at all times of day. Lush images featuring their diversity and visual impact are on view in the gallery space.
The New York Botanical Garden is home to more than 30,000 trees, some in woodland, some in groves, and some standing in solitary majesty. Magnificent Trees is lavishly illustrated with photographs by Larry Lederman and accompanied by descriptions by Todd A. Forrest, Arthur Ross vice president for horticulture and living collections at the garden. An authority on the diverse species present across the 250-acre landscape, Forrest details their fascinating histories -- from their vital role in Native American life and culture to their function in neutral territory during the Revolutionary War. Lederman captures their grandeur in hundreds of stunning images and portrays their diversity with photographs that reveal the trees in myriad fascinating perspectives: in landscape views that convey the garden's genius loci; portraits illustrating the architecture and profound visual impact of select trees; remarkable details of flowers, fruit, leaves, and bark; and impressionistic images, abstract in character yet beautiful in composition.
Chinasaurs: Dinosaur Discoveries from China - Bruce Museum
Through April 21, 2013 - Greenwich
This exhibition features skeletons, skulls, nests and eggs of more than a dozen rare Asian dinosaurs, some highlighting new evidence of the close relationship between birds and dinosaurs. January 26, 2013-April 21, 2013.
Identity: An Exhibition of You! - Connecticut Science Center
Through April 21, 2013 - Hartford
Each visitor's own identity is front and center. The personalized experience allows you to look at your own fingerprints, see your personality as a musical spectrum, investigate where your brain stores your identity, map your social connections, and throughout the exhibition, see yourself from new perspectives: your future self, your symmetrical self, and yourself as a new gender or ethnicity. January 18, 2013-April 21, 2013.
African Penguins - Maritime Aquarium
Through April 21, 2013 - Norwalk
Back for a celebratory but brief encore, a small exhibit of Africa penguins will be on special display for two months. They waddle comically on land but swim gracefully in the water, all while dressed semi-formally in black-and-white attire. And they're not all from the South Pole. African penguins actually are native to temperate South Africa. Come learn more about these birds, whose conservation status is listed as vulnerable. Penguin encounters are are available for an additional fee.
The Orchid Show - The New York Botanical Garden
Through April 22, 2013 - Bronx
The 11th annual exhibition celebrates this storied flower in all its amazing forms with thousands of brilliantly colored orchids. The largest exhibition of its kind in the United States also offers insight into caring for orchids, music from around the world, and a gorgeous setting for evening cocktails.
Elaborate and kaleidoscopic displays throughout the galleries of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory explode with orchids in an amazing array of colors, shapes, sizes, and textures. Tens of thousands of blooms -- blue and purple vandas, green and yellow cymbidiums, delicate pink and white moth orchids, and more -- stand out amid stately palms and exotic tropical leaves.
This year, The Orchid Show is designed by Francisca P. Coelho, Vivian and Edward Merrin Vice President for Glasshouses and Exhibitions at the Garden. Coehlho is best known for her plantsmanship and key role in the design and development of high profile shows in the Conservatory.
There will be demonstrations, Q&A's, guided tours, lectures, evening events, and classes. An All-Garden Pass includes admission to the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, Everett Children's Adventure Garden, Rock Garden, Tram Tour, and more. Through April 22.
Orchid Care Demonstrations - The New York Botanical Garden
Through April 22, 2013 - Bronx
A series of hands-on demonstrations shows you how to grow and care for orchids at home. Topics vary each weekend and cover the most frequently asked questions on topics such as Potting and Dividing Orchids, Basic Orchid Care, and Fragrant Orchids.
Music from the World of Orchids - The New York Botanical Garden
Through April 22, 2013 - Bronx
Orchids intrigue and inspire people in every country and culture. Enjoy a selection of music from around the world as different artists play popular tunes from a featured continent each weekend.
The Orchid Show Q&A - The New York Botanical Garden
Through April 22, 2013 - Bronx
Garden guides highlight parts of the permanent collection and special exhibition to add insight to your experience of The Orchid Show.
Framed: Step into Art - Stepping Stones Museum
Through May 12, 2013 - Norwalk
Children can enter the framework of famous paintings and experience art by as they physically enter a scene and are encouraged to interpret, express and connect with art. They can ride a giant chicken attached to a wagon, set up a camp in the Canadian Rockies, prepare dinner for a group of hungry farmers. They can become an art gallery director, selecting and exhibiting art in their own gallery, as well as explore the exhibit through Art Hunt Cards. The exhibit was produced by the Minnesota Children's Museum for the members of the Youth Museum Exhibit Collaborative (YMEC). Through May 12, 2013.
The Panoramic River: the Hudson and the Thames - Hudson River Museum
Through May 19, 2013 - Yonkers
In the late 18th century, British artists developed the large-scale panorama, which became a popular form of entertainment in Europe and the United States. The Hudson River Museum's exhibition, "The Panoramic River: the Hudson and the Thames," explores the panoramic vista as the ideal expression for a new, all-embracing way of seeing the landscape that influenced how the public and artists perceived it as well. By the early 19th century, painters such as Robert Havell Jr. worked to express this panoramic perspective in their choice and depiction of vistas. Havell and other artists in the exhibition such as Thomas Cole, Jasper Cropsey, and John Kensett, favored the chain of cities, suburbs, and countryside along these two rivers, where horizontal planes and historical associations gave form to both artistic and cultural expression.
"The Panoramic River" features loans from museums, galleries, and private collections. Museums lending paintings include: Baltimore Museum of Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Fenimore Art Museum, The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center at Vassar College; Maryland State Archives; Metropolitan Museum of Art; The New-York Historical Society; and Princeton University Art Museum.
"The Panoramic River" is organized by Hudson River Museum co-curators Bartholomew Bland, Director of Curatorial Affairs, and Laura Vookles, Chief Curator of Collections. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue with additional essays by Pat Hardy, Curator of Paintings, Prints and Drawings, Museum of London, and Geoff Snell, Doctoral Student, University of Sussex and the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, England.
The exhibition and the accompanying catalogue have been made possible by a generous grant from the Mr. and Mrs. Raymond J. Horowitz Foundation for the Arts, Inc. On view through May 19, 2013.
Manolo Valdes Monumental Sculptures - The New York Botanical Garden
Through May 26, 2013 - Bronx
Drawing inspiration from the natural landscape of the Botanical Garden, seven towering sculptures by acclaimed Spanish artist Manolo Valdes showcase the relationship between art and nature.
NIGHTWATCH: The Art of Greg Mort - Stamford Museum and Nature Center
Through May 27, 2013 - Stamford
Greg Mort, a Maryland artist with a well-established national reputation, has his eyes firmly in the sky in this selection of original artworks. Mort conveys his awe, respect, and love of nature in his artworks, which can be found at the White House, the Smithsonian Institution and in the collection of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA). February 16 - May 27, 2013.
THE PRINTS OF ETIENNE LEOPOLD TROUVELOT - Stamford Museum and Nature Center
Through May 27, 2013 - Stamford
Etienne Leopold Trouvelot (1827 ? 1895) had a career as an astronomical artist, after a disastrous career as an entomologist. He introduced the Gypsy Moth to North America accidentally, in 1869. Trouvelot?s exacting details and nuanced shading produced imagery that rivaled even the finest and most technologically advanced photographic images of the time. Today, Trouvelot?s works endure as the most detailed and meticulous illustrations of celestial phenomena ever complied. Included in the exhibition will be images as varied as the Planet Jupiter, The Great Comet of 1881 and the Partial Eclipse of the Moon.
Lure of the Ocean: The Art of Stanley Meltzoff - Bruce Museum
Through June 02, 2013 - Greenwich
This new art and science exhibition features approximately 30 paintings by Stanley Meltzoff, the master of portraying fish in their environments -– from the New Jersey shore to the shallows of the Caribbean and the deep Atlantic waters. February 9-June 2, 2013.
Beyond the Bed: The American Quilt Evolution - Katonah Museum of Art
Through June 16, 2013 - Katonah
Quilts have evolved dramatically in form, fashion, and function during their long and distinguished history. In this exhibition Jean Burks, senior curator at the Shelburne Museum, will explore the wide range of quilts intended as bed coverings, articles of clothing, furniture accessories, wall decoration, and finally, three-dimensional room sculpture. Illustrating a variety of techniques, designs, and cultural styles, the pieces selected will showcase the work of North American quilters working from the beginning of the 19th century to the present. February 24 through June 16, 2013.
Major funding for this exhibition was generously provided by The Coby Foundation.
Born to Be Wild - Maritime Aquarium
Through June 20, 2013 - Norwalk
Academy-Award winner Morgan Freeman lends his voice to this film which follows orphaned baby orangutans and elephants, and the people who rescue and raise them for eventual release back into the wild. Through June 20, 2013.
The Last Reef: Cities Beneath the Sea - IMAX Theater, Maritime Aquarium
Through June 20, 2013 - Norwalk
Coral reefs are considered exotic, distant places with little or no connection to our everyday world. Yet every reef is a living city beneath the sea, with a parallel existence to ours. Maritime Aquarium audiences will recognize scenes from New York City as the film compares reef communities to human communities. The film?s imagery immerses audiences in reef communities, among familiar dolphins, sharks and rays but also lesser-known species, such as crocodile fish, colorful nudibranchs and delicate flatworms. January 18-June 20, 2013.
Sharks - IMAX Theater, Maritime Aquarium
Through June 20, 2013 - Norwalk
This film offers an unflinching look at the ocean's ultimate predator with an emphasis on why shark populations are dropping. A sea turtle with a British accent help make this a family-friendly show, even for the youngest members. January 18-June 20, 2013.
Meerkats - Maritime Aquarium
Through September 02, 2013 - Norwalk
Meerkats are members of the mongoose family that live in social �mobs� in the Kalahari Desert, in the southern African nations of Botswana and South Africa. No mere cats, meerkats are fascinating for living in structured but cooperative societies, including a foraging strategy where adults take turns standing guard upright on their hind feet, watching for predators, while the others eat.
The meerkats� exhibit offers opportunities for climbing, digging and exploring, with several feeding locations to keep them on the alert for incoming crickets. A viewing bubble lets visitors pop up right among the meerkats. Through September 2, 2013.
Sensory Bounce - BounceU
Through September 28, 2013 - Stratford
This is a program for children and adults with sensory integration dysfunction, autism, and other disabilities with a sensory component. Teachers work on balance and coordination, auditory and tactile sensitivity, strength building, motor coordination, cooperative play, turn-taking, and social and verbal skills. Through September 28, 2013.
