Desiree's blog

Winter may be just around the corner, but it isn't time to give up fun outdoor activities just yet!  This weekend, kids can head outdoors and get up close with all kinds of animals: watch wild ducks, learn all about horses, or attend an outdoor animal storytime.  They can also travel back in time at a historical farm and explore sausage and bacon making, or learn how to turn apples into cider.  Too chilly for you? Look for a good time indoors with a free theater series with campfire stories, a Mo Willem’s show at SOPAC, or family fun at the Newark Museum.

Happy Halloween!  There is plenty to do this weekend besides trick or treating!   There are last minute costume making sessions, live bat presentations, and old fashioned Halloween celebrations.  Once Halloween is over, there is still reason to celebrate with the Day of the Dead, a "retired jack-o-lantern" sail, laser shows, and a fabulous craft festival.
 

For those who like a good fright before Halloween night, check out some of these haunted houses.  There are plenty of night-time haunts to please the older kids, as well as scaredy cat tours and scare-free zones where kids can also trick or treat.  So pick your poison ...

With Halloween just around the corner, every child-friendly venue is bringing out their best in Halloween and Fall fun.  There are haunted gardens and forests; family Fall events at museums and movie theaters; pirate-packed aquariums; and of course, more pumpkin picking!

The Jersey Devil, ghosts, ghouls and other creepy creatures are out to get you on these haunted hayrides. Face your fears as you bump through the darkness… and if you make it out alive, take on the haunted houses and trails, too   (NOTE: Leave the little kids behind – although many hayrides recommend ages 8 and older, personal experience has led us to believe these are NOT for children under 10.)

Don’t let the bad weather put a damper on your Fall festivities and plans! This weekend you can attend a Rock and Mineral Show, a Latino Heritage Festival at the Newark Museum, “pick” a pumpkin at the Liberty Science Center, or try out your Halloween costume and trick or treating skills at the NJ Children’s Museum Halloween Spooktacular. And if the weather holds up, you may want to check out the annual Pumpkin Flying Festival in Pittstown or the Lumberjack and Hot Air Balloon Festival at Shawnee Mountain.

Get ready for a perfect Fall weekend, whether you want to enjoy nature by searching for salamanders or meeting raptors or more traditional Fall activities like a pumpkin patch or pressing cider or festivities to kick off the Halloween season for kids and dogs! There's all that to do and more. Check it out:

Across New Jersey fun Halloween Railroads combine festive Fall fun like corn mazes, pumpkin patches and festivals with train rides from the scary to the not too scary. Whether you've got wee ones or older kids ready for a thrill there's spooky Halloween fun on the rails of NJ.

Hello October! This weekend you can celebrate Autumn with a wide variety of Fall festivals. Hop on the Pumpkinliner Express for a trip through the pumpkin patch. Enjoy an Asian Harvest Festival at the Newark Museum or a historical Harvest celebration threshing and grinding wheat at Howell Historical Finally. Finally celebrate the Fall season with more traditional Fall festivals with pumpkin painting, hayrides, and crafts at the Essex County Environmental Center of the NJ Botanical Gardens.

There is a perfect pick your own pumpkin farm for everyone in New Jersey! If you are looking for a full day of pumpkin picking adventures for preschoolers, a pick your own pumpkin patch that won't bore your 10 year old, or just a quiet old fashioned farm without all the gimmicks, you can find it all in Northern NJ.