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All Aboard the POLAR EXPRESS


Polar Express Storytime

On Friday, December 9 at 7:00 pm, all Barnes and Noble stores are holding a Polar Express Party, highlighted by a special reading of the holiday classic. Of course hot chocolate and cookies will be served.
Children are encouraged to wear their pajamas.
Click Here for 20% of at B&N or use Coupon Code: X9D7F8J at checkout

Kidzense Holiday Events Guide

It's the Holidays and time to enjoy some great events from Winter Festivals to watching holiday favorites on the tele (TV) we have you covered.

NJ Dutch December Holidays of the Past
Date: December 2, 3 and 4 Friday - Sunday
Time: Friday and Saturday - 10am to 3pm Sunday - 1pm to 3pm
Summary: Decorated 1786 Van Riper-Hopper House Museum
Cookies from historical recipes, hot cider, songs, customs
Saturday afternoon - violin period holiday music
Admission: $4 Adult; $1 Child
Contact: 973-694-7192 Event Flyer



2011 Annual Light & Sound Show

Come see an amazing display of Model Trains and Lights in Union NJ
Show Times:
Friday Dec. 9th 7-10 pm
Saturday Dec. 10th 10 am - 8 pm;
Sunday Dec. 11th 11 am - 6 pm

Imagine that Museum Events (Must Make a reservation) or call (973) 966-8000

Breakfast with Santa at imaginethatmuseum
Sun., Dec. 18, 2011 at 9:45 a.m.
• Bring your wish-list!!!
• Children visit with Santa and his elves
• Enjoy a breakfast snack
• Stay and play all day!
• Parents can take lots of photos.
• Santa has a PRESENT for each paid child.

MAKE A SNOWMAN SOCK CRAFT
TUES., DEC. 27, 2011
Three times to choose from:
10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., -OR - 2:30 p.m.

Make your very own one-of-a kind snowman!!!
Pack in the fun while you build and design a "sock" man
complete with his black top hat and button nose!
$12.99 per child, $7.95 for adults.


MAKE A CUDDLY WINTER FLEECE PILLOW
Thurs., Dec. 29, 2011
10:30 a.m, 12:30 p.m., -OR- 2:30 p.m.
Stuff and fluff a fleece pillow to rest your head on this winter season!
Cozy up with this knot a pillow craft with your child and then
stay and play for the day with us!
$13.99 per child, $7.95 Adults.





Bergen PAC
December 18th at 4 PM
A Christmas Carol -
The quintessential Christmas Story brought to life on stage at the Bergen Performing Arts Center

Gingerbread Wonderland and craft show
Over a hundred gingerbread creations on display
Saturday, December 3
to Sunday, December 11, 2011
9:30am‐5pm daily • Friday, December 9 until 8pm
353 East Hanover Ave.
Morristown, NJ 07962



Whippany Railway Museum 20th Annual Santa Claus Special
It's the time of year when Santa Claus invites one and all to celebrate the coming Christmas Season with Family and Friends by riding the rails onboard the Whippany Railway Museum's
SANTA CLAUS SPECIAL excursion trains.


Holiday Light Spectacular @ Turtle Back Zoo - Saturdays and Sundays thru Jan 31. 5-9pm. Check website for additional days during the week. Glowing displays light the zoo. 560 Northfield Ave, West Orange. 973-731-5800.

Holiday Lighting Ceremony at The New Jersey Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Dec 10th, 6pm-8pm. PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel. 732-335-0033

Season of Light @ The Newark Museum. Weekend of thru Dec 31. 2 pm. Holiday planetarium program! 49 Washington St. 973-596-6550.

Christmas Celebration - Adventure Aquarium. thru Jan 1. Adventure Aquarium, 1 Riverside Drive. Camden. 856-365-3300. It’s Christmas…with the fishes! New this year, see the tree of a gazillion lights and our breathtaking light show as well as Scuba Santa in his all new Winter Wonderland Theater.

The Meischke Christmas Wonderland of Lights. Thur thru Sun evenings from 6pm. to 10pm. thru Dec 30. Featuring over a quarter-million lights arranged in a colorful walk-through display, the Wonderland of Lights will be setup at the karting track. NJ Motorsports Park. 47 Warbird Drive, Millville, NJ (856) 327-8000


The Polar Express: An IMAX Experience pulls into the nation’s largest IMAX® Dome Theater for a limited engagement just in time for the holidays. Liberty Science Center. Saturdays in Dec, and everyday during the last week in Dec.
222 Jersey City Boulevard, Jersey City. 201.200.1000


Nutcracker Suite
December 17. Koslov Dance Studio will perform The Nutcracker Suite, a shortened orchestral version of The Nutcracker Ballet. the more popular numbers from the ballet, by Tchaikovsky and will be narrated for a young audience. On Christmas Eve, a young girl dreams her beloved toy comes to life. He becomes her Nutcracker Prince and dances his Clara through the land of sweets and defeats the wicked Mouse King. The music is amazing-- from the wild Russian dance to the slow and mysterious Arabian dance. It all flows together to create a magical night of exhilarating performances. 305 West Saddle River Road, Upper Saddle River. 201-825-3366





Holiday TV Listings



Monday December 5th
8:00 PM on AMC A Christmas Carol
8:30 PM on ABC Family The Polar Express


Tuesday December 6th
8:30 PM Disney The Nightmare before Christmas
8:30 PM ABC Family Home Alone 2
9:00 PM TCM A Christmas Story (You'll shoot your eye out)

Wednesday December 7th
8:45 PM Encore The Santa Clause 2


Thursday December 8th
8:30 PM Disney Good Luck Charlie Brown It's Christmas
9:00 Syfy Elf

Friday December 9th
8:00-10:00 PM CH-2 Frosty the Snowman,Yes Virginia there is a Santa Claus, The Elf on a Shelf
8:00 PM ABC Family The Santa Clause

Saturday December 10th
8:00 PM Disney The Polar Express
8:oo PM Encore Jingle All the Way


8:00 PM TNT Fred Claus

Skate Down to Citi Pond at Bryant Park for Family Day with Christmas Feet!

Christmas FeetSkate Down to Citi Pond at Bryant Park for Family Fun Day with Christmas Feet

On Saturday November 12th between 12 and 4 PM
Families are invited for a day of fun-filled activities and excitement complete with face painting, live entertainment, book readings, and tasty treats.

Meet and greet with creators of the Carlos Gets Around series. Catch a live reading of Christmas Feet from author Maureen Sullivan and illustrator Alison Josephs.

Christmas Feet an award-winning children's book tells the story of Carlos the French bulldog who steps out for a holiday shopping trip in the heart of New York City.
Searching for last-minute gifts, he and his mistress run smack dab into the middle of the true spirit of Christmas.


Also:
Special performance by legendary jazz singer and songwriter Bob Dorough, Schoolhouse Rock and Conjunction Junction

Winter-themed pet fashion show and doggie snack bar presented by Natural Balance.

Plus free skate rentals to first 100 children (12 and under) starting at 12pm.
This event is supporting Best Buddies New York and Animal Rescue.

Halloween in Sleepy Hollow

SpoOKY NEW EVENTS MARK HALLOWEEN SEASON IN SLEEPY HOLLOW COUNTRY


More Than 4,000 Hand-Carved Pumpkins on Display at Blaze; ‘Horseman's Hollow’ Makes its Terrifying Debut - Visitors Can Post Video

on Youtube and Win an Apple IPad

SLEEPY HOLLOW, NY (Sept. 8, 2010) — Historic Hudson Valley, creator of the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, is expanding its portfolio of Halloween inspired experiences to include a professionally produced haunted attraction: Horseman’s Hollow. It joins another new experience, Jonathan Kruk’s ‘Legend,’ and two returning classics: Blaze and Legend Celebration, to round out a full complement of classic fall events in Sleepy Hollow Country.

Washington Irving’s macabre The Legend of Sleepy Hollow inspires the brand new Horseman’s Hollow, an interactive haunted attraction at Philipsburg Manor recommended for ages 14 and up. Stocked with professional actors and state-of-the-art special effects, Horseman’s Hollow has a very high fear factor and is not for the faint of heart.

Jonathan Kruk’s ‘Legend’ brings the master storyteller into the historic, candlelit interior of the circa-1685 Old Dutch Church, where he will offer a dramatic re-telling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow accompanied by live organ music.


By popular demand, the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, the tri-state area’s biggest

Halloween extravaganza, is expanding to 20 evenings, including the first weekend in November. An Egyptian scene with mummies and giant pyramid, shrunken heads, and a pumpkin “cornfield

” with crows are some of the new jack o’lantern installations included in this massive display of Halloween-inspired creativity. A team of artists come together to carve more than 4,000 jacks, many of them fused together in enormous and elaborate constructions, all lit up throughout the wooded walkways, orchards, and gardens of historic Van Cortlandt Manor in Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.

Also returning is Legend Celebration at Washington Irving’s Sunnyside, a daytime event perennially popular with young children, where visitors are encouraged to come in costume.

All events are held rain or shine. All proceeds support Historic Hudson Valley, the Tarrytown-based non-profit educational organization which owns and operates the historic sites that host these events. Historic Hudson Valley is using Twitter, Facebook, Flickr (HHValley) and YouTube (InTheValley1), as well as its own HVBlog to connect with fans and offer behind the scenes info on event preparation.

Ticket and date information

For Blaze, Horseman’s Hollow, and Jonathan Kruk’s ‘Legend,’ all admissions are by timed ticket, which must be purchased in advance.

Blaze dates are Oct. 2-3, 8-11, 15-17, 21-24, 28-31, and Nov. 5-7. The first reservation is 7 p.m. on Oct. 2-3 and 8-11, and 6:30 p.m. for the other dates. Tickets are $16 for adults, $12 for children 5-17, free for children under 5.

Horseman’s Hollow dates are Oct. 15-16, 22-24, and 28-30, with the first reservation at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20.

Jonathan Kruk’s ‘Legend’ dates are Oct. 15-16 and 29-30. Seating is limited, and there are four performances each evening on the hour, beginning at 6pm. Tickets are $16 for adults, $12 for children under 18.

Legend Celebration dates are Oct. 23-24 and 30-31, from 10-4 p.m. Tickets are $12 for adults, $6 for children 5-17, and free for those under 5.

Buy tickets online at www.hudsonvalley.org or by calling 914-631-8200 ($2 per ticket surcharge for phone orders).

Historic Hudson Valley members receive discounted admission to Jonathan Kruk’s ‘Legend’ and free admission to the other events. Details on becoming a member are online.

Horseman’s Hollow

Horseman’s Hollow, a brand new haunted experience right in the heart of Sleepy Hollow, takes the tale of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow to its darkest extremes. For eight October evenings, historic Philipsburg Manor will transform into a terrifying landscape ruled by vampires, witches, undead soldiers, ghouls, and ghosts, all serving the Headless Horseman himself.

Historic Hudson Valley is working with haunted house professional Lance Hallowell to create an immersive, interactive, pleasantly terrifying experience stocked with professional actors and state-of-the-art special effects. Visitors begin walking a haunted trail, stumbling upon scary scenes of a town driven mad by the Headless Horseman. The Hollow’s unfortunate inhabitants are all too ready to keep visitors from ever leaving.

Creatures, some human and some not, lurk in the shadows, ready to terrify the unsuspecting, while state-of-the-art special effects disorient and unsettle. Lighting is by Emmy award-winning designer Deke Hazirjian of New York City Lites.

Custom built set pieces and period-correct costumes help orient the experience in Philipsburg Manor’s traditional time period of the mid-1700s.

Philipsburg Manor is at 381 North Broadway (Route 9) in Sleepy Hollow.

The Great Jack O’ Lantern Blaze

The Great Jack O’ Lantern Blaze, which drew 68,000 visitors last year, is a Halloween spectacle integrating thousands of hand-carved pumpkins — everything from your standard jack o’ lantern to extremely elaborate abstract designs — lit up throughout the landscape of Van Cortlandt Manor in various thematic and conceptual arrangements such as Egypt, the Undersea Aquarium, Pirates’ Cove, life-sized dinosaurs in Jurassic Park, “Pumpkinhenge,” (a riff on Stonehenge), a giant “cornfield,” an enormous spider web, Celtic knots, a circus arena with clown carvings, and more.

Professional lighting by designer Jay Woods and a spooky aural soundscape of original music and noises help create a complete all-senses immersion.

Scores of Blaze videos uploaded by fans can be found on YouTube.

Describing the event as an art installation, Creative Director Michael Natiello, who also coordinates the music, said Van Cortlandt Manor itself is the ultimate inspiration for Blaze. The jack o’lantern arrangements are meant to complement and draw attention to the site’s architecture, Revolutionary-era history, and landscape.

Natiello leads a team of Historic Hudson Valley staff and local artists who carve the pumpkins. In addition, more than 1,000 volunteers help scoop and light the pumpkins, including teams from Westchester and Putnam ARC, NY Life, dozens of Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops, Pace University students and faculty, and many schoolchildren.

Blaze artists will be carving on site during the event, with their finished products available for purchase. In addition, the Great Jack O’ Lantern Blaze Shop will offer a full bounty of Blaze-specific merchandise including hats, notepads, games, T-shirts, magnets, caps, mugs, and jewelry. Café Blazé, by Geordane’s of Irvington, will offer culinary treats including soup, veggie chili, muffins, pumpkin cookies, and cider.

Blaze Title Sponsor is Entergy; Blaze Media Sponsor is 100.7 WHUD.

Van Cortlandt Manor is at 525 South Riverside Avenue, just off Route 9 in Croton-on-Hudson.

Jonathan Kruk’s ‘Legend’

Master storyteller Jonathan Kruk offers a dramatic re-telling of Washington Irving’s classic tale, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, featuring the Headless Horseman, Ichabod Crane, Brom Bones, and Katrina Van Tassel. Flavored with live spooky organ music by Jim Keyes, Kruk’s storytelling will take place in the historic, candlelit setting of the Old Dutch Church. The 1685 stone church is across the street from Philipsburg Manor, where visitors will park.

Legend Celebration

Ideal for the youngest Halloween fans, Legend Celebration offers kids and their families a chance to come in costume to Washington Irving’s Sunnyside for Halloween fun.

Visitors can get their head examined by a phrenologist and enjoy a Punch Van Winkle puppet show as well as games, magic, sing-a-longs, Irish ghost stories, and other kid friendly Halloween experiences. Sunnyside also offers spooky woodland walks complete with ghost stories, which require online advance reservations. Sunnyside is at 89 West Sunnyside Lane, off Route 9 in Tarrytown.

YouTube video contest

Video-savvy visitors may enter the Blaze YouTube Video Contest by filming the event, editing their work, and uploading their video (three minutes or less) to YouTube.

Historic Hudson Valley will award an Apple iPad prize provided by 100.7 WHUD for the video that best achieves the contest goal of capturing the creativity and excitement of Blaze. Full contest details and requirements are online atwww.hudsonvalley.org.

Rob Schweitzer Historic Hudson Valley 150 White Plains Road Tarrytown, NY10591 914-631-8200, ext. 637 rschweitzer@hudsonvalley.org

Pokemon are coming to the Garden State Plaza

pokemon

Pokémon Trainers, get ready... The Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version video games for the Nintendo DS™ family of systems are touring America!

This Friday and Saturday the Pokémon Black Version & White Version Tour will be at the Garden State Plaza . Discover all-new Pokémon while you play the brand-new adventure.

You'll have an opportunity to play the demo version of the game and learn all about its new features.

Families can attend a free screening of the new Pokémon feature-length film,Pokémon-Zoroark: Master of Illusions, at the AMC Garden State 16 located at Westfield Garden State Plaza. Showtimes are 10am, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm and 6pm. Tickets are limited. Tickets available only at the Pokémon Information Booth.

You'll also have the chance to meet the brand-new starter Pokémo

n: Snivy™, Tepig™ and Oshawott™, so bring your camera!

Other exciting activities include a mall-wide Stamp Rally; a special Celebi™ character distribution at GameStop stores; plus contests, prizes, and much more!

And don't forget to check out the Pokémon Center store.

pikachu

Custard and Mustard Book Reading at the Intrepid


As part of the Intrepid's Salute to Women Custard and Mustard illustrator Alison Josephs and author Maureen Sullivan will lead this reading and discussion. Part of the award-winning Carlos Series of children's books: Ankle Soup, Custard and Mustard and Christmas Feet, Josephs and Sullivan’s work focuses on New York City, it’s amusing characters and unique energy.
for more information Click Here

Get your Groupon

Groupon negotiates huge discounts—usually 50-90% off—with popular businesses. Then they send those deals to their subscribers (Who can tailor the type of deals that are relevant to them) They save and the participating business gets lots of new customers.


Watch Video on how groupon works

February - Things to do


Kick off February by making a Heart Shelf at the Home Depot Kids Workshop on Saturday February 5th between 9 am and 12 pm

The workshops teach children do-it-yourself skills and tool safety, while at the same time helping to instill a sense of accomplishment. Additionally, this fun time allows for quality one-on-one time between adults and children.

In addition to the newly constructed project kit, each child receives a kid-sized orange apron, similar to The Home Depot associates' aprons, and an achievement pin.





tubing
Snow Tubing at Campgaw Mountain - Check out this family-fun-loving, adventure that’s close to home! It’s fun, it’s easy, and it’s better than sledding any day! Imagine the thrill of riding down a snowy hill and then effortlessly riding your tube back up. Tubes are provided and a surface lift is available for you to ride up the hill. Choose between different runs with varied levels of rollers and pitch. No experience or special equipment is needed. Just hop in your tube and enjoy the ride.

Unlimited runs and tube rental per two hour session. Advanced sales available.





PRESIDENTS DAY IS FAMILY DAY—on February 21, 2011!
Spend your holiday at the State Theatre in New Brunswick, NJ with your family under the Herr's Hub City Big Top and at three theaters on Livingston Avenue.
Enjoy the The Very Hungry Caterpillar and other Eric Carle Favorites As well as a day filled with free events for Children of all ages