SATURDAY ONLY

Seal-aberration at Jenkinson’s Boardwalk (Pt. Pleasant Beach)

Help “seal-a-brate” harbor seals Luseal, Coral and Seaquin birthdays at the aquarium! Make a seal-craft, enjoy some tasty cake (no fish involved) and watch the birthday seals get a special snack.   Ages 5 and up. Saturday, March 26, 2pm-3:30pm $15/person. Pre-registration required. Call 732-892-0600 to register, and for additional information.

“A Year with Frog and Toad” at the Centenary Stage Company (Hackettstown)

It feels like New Jersey’s going back and forth through seasons each day of the week—76 degrees one day (SUMMER!); 32 degrees the next (WINTER, sigh), etc. So, what better show than one that follows Arnold Lobel’s creatures, Frog and Toad, through all four seasons in one musical? True to the spirit of the original, these stories follow two great friends, the cheerful Frog and the grumpy Toad, through waking from hibernation in the spring, to planting gardens, swimming, raking leaves, and going sledding. Saturday, March 26, 11am. Children 12-and-under/$8. Everyone 12-and-over/$10.  Call 908-979-0900 for more information.

Kite-Making at Historic Longstreet Farm (Holmdel)

Go fly a kite! No, really—come make your own old-fashioned kite, then put it to the test in the open fields at Historic Longstreet Farm.  Afterwards, wander over nine acres of this Monmouth County historical area recreated to allow your family to experience the sights, sounds and smells of Historic Longstreet Farm in the 1890's. Interpreters in period dress demonstrate and discuss domestic activities as you go. Saturday, March 26, 12:30pm-2:30pm. FREE. Call 732-946-3758 for additional information.

Bizzie Lizzie Fun Run at the Mack-Cali Business Complex  (Parsippany)

Here’s a chance to get out in the sunshine, get some exercise, and do some good. Elizabeth "Bizzie" Stein was diagnosed in 2010 with an inoperable tumor on her brain stem. This brave and funny 3-yr old  received both radiation and chemotherapy, but the treatments did not succeed in conquering her sizable brain tumor. She passed away this January 15, 2011.  100% of all the proceeds from this event will go to the Stein Family. So get ready to do some runnin’and help out this family! For serious runners, there’s a 5K, but for the rest of us, there’s a 1-mile fun run/walk (strollers welcome) and a slew of Kids’ Dashes, bracketed by age (starting at 1-2 yrs., who can hold parent hands’ if needed.) P.S.: All 1-mile and Kids’ Dashes participants receive a t-shirt and goody bag, and kids earn medals!  Saturday, March 26. Registration opens at 8am;  1 mile fun run/walk at 9:30am;  Kids’ Dashes at 11am; Awards and raffle at noon. $25/1mile fun run/walk.  $15/Kids dashes (10-and-under only) Call 201-572-1554. for more information.

Roving Park System Naturalist on the Henry Hudson Trail (Highlands/Leonardo)

Search for seashells, seek out Piping Plovers and Least Terns, and enjoy a windy walk along the water. A Park System Naturalist takes you along the Seven Presidents Oceanfront Park and chats with you about the endangered species in the area. You’ll meet at the Henry Hudson Trail Popamora Point parking lot in the Highlands, and walk a paved, relatively flat, 10-foot wide former railroad track–easy-does-it back into hiking mode! Saturday, March 26, 1:30pm. FREE. No registration required. Call 732-842-4000  for additional information.

Discovery Museum: Waffle Day, A Swedish National Holiday (Cherry Hill, NJ)

Hey, any holiday devoted to waffles, we’re in on! So here it is: Waffle Day!  Celebrate this Swedish national holiday by wolfing down waffles, making heroic Viking hats, playing hockey, and, (oh, yes) grooving to ABBA all day long!  Except for a break when the  Voorhees Ballet Theatre performs excerpts of the ballet Coppelia, then back to “Dancing Queen”!  Saturday March 26, 11am-3pm. (Dance performance at 1pm) $10.95/adults and children 12 months and over, 12 months and under/FREE,  $9.95/seniors. Call 856-424-1233 for more information.

“Beauty and the Beast” at the Paper Moon Puppet Theatre (Atlantic Highlands)

If puppets are your pipsqueak’s pleasure, then Paper Moon’s for you.  Before the show, the puppeteers seat the children in front of the stage while adults are seated in chairs around the perimeter of the theatre.  Then, the puppeteers stroll through the audience with the marionettes, giving children their first experience of the art marionette manipulation. After about twenty minutes of audience participation, the stage curtain opens and “Beauty and Beast” begins.  After the show, the puppeteers invite the kids up to the front of the stage to see behind the scenes, ask  questions about the show and witness a  demonstration of some of the marionettes from the show.  Saturday, March 26, 2:00 pm. $9/person. Call 732-787-0400 for registration and for more information.

Artists In Action at Grounds for Sculpture  (Hamilton)

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to sneak into an artist’s studio and watch their magic at work?  Here’s your chance! This Saturday only, Artists in Action kicks off Spring by opening their private GFS studios, allowing viewers to see first-hand the techniques and work put into the art that ends up on display. Ask questions and listen to beautiful music performed by local musicians. Saturday, March 26, 11am-4pm.  Adults/$12. Seniors (65+)/$10,  Children (6-17)/$8. Members and children 5 and under FREE.  Call 609-586-0616 for more information.

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY

School House Rock Live! Jr. at the JCC MetroWest Maurice Levin Theater (West Orange)

“Conjunction junction, what’s your function?”  “I’m just a bill, on Capitol Hill...”  C’mon, you know you loved it...introduce the next generation to some School House love at this super-energetic musical based on the Emmy® Award-winning Saturday morning educational cartoon series. Saturday, March 26 at 8 pm; Sunday, March 27 at 1 pm and 3 pm. $16/adult, $13/student, $13/seniors.  Call 800-494-8497 for more information.

SUNDAY ONLY

GoNewark HoopFest (Newark)

MARCH MADNESS!!!!  If basketball’s on your family’s brain, head to FanFest this Sunday;  a festival of free, family-oriented, basketball-themed activities including live musical performances, guest DJs, interactive basketball games, agility and skills challenges, Pop-A-Shot, coaching sessions, face painting, temporary tattoos, and more. Head to the Championship Plaza, adjacent to the Prudential Center. Sunday, March 27, Noon-7 pm. FREE. Visit website for more information.

Kidz Cabaret - Funkey Monkeys! At the Bergen Performing Arts Center (Englewood)

Get ready to giggle your guts out and shake your booty in your seat!  “Seinfeld meets the Wiggles” at this crazy musical performance, created by Joshua Sitron, composer for Nickelodeon’s Dora the Explorer. Sunday, March 27 at 1pm and 4pm. $17/person. Call 201-816-8160 for more information.

Following George Washington’s Trail in New Jersey at the Miller-Cory House Museum (Elizabeth)

Back in 1740, what we now refer to as “the Interstate” used to be the “road to the mountains.” The Millers and the Corys were rural farmers, but they had a little “shine”, a degree of sophistication, because the West Fields were at the crossroads of colonial America on the Old York Road;  a location between the two major cities:  New York and Philadelphia. Today, the Miller-Cory House operates as a “living museum” where your family can check out trained artisans recreating the everyday life, the crafts, and the tasks of the 18th and early 19^th centuries. Today, take a guided tour given by costumed docents through the 1740 farmhouse, learn about George Washington’s trek, and check out the open-hearth cooking demonstration. Save fast-food for the return trip.  Sunday, March 27, 2pm-4 pm.   $3/adults, $1/for students, FREE for children under four. Call 908-232-1776 for more information.