It’s coming … the time of year when we ask ourselves, “Why do we live here?” Cooped up in the house for five months with a toddler and a preschooler, a person can only do so many puzzles or rounds of hide-and-seek before everyone is climbing the walls. It’s too cold to go outside or the snow is taller than your toddler, but you are about to lose your mind, so what do you do?
Get out of the house! There are many options in and around Harvard for families with young kids. For free outings, try the following:
- Join the Harvard Family Association and attend the weekly drop-in playgroup on Fridays (www.harvardfamilyassociation.com). The playgroup also offers a group messaging service allowing you to join or initiate instant play dates. Even if you don’t leave your own house, having someone else’s children entertain yours while you engage in some adult conversation is enough to keep the fever at bay.
- Head to the library, and not just the one in Harvard. All of the following libraries have wonderful children’s sections with drop-in story times and other fun (and free!) activities:
- Harvard: www.harvardpubliclibrary.org/childrens.html
- Bolton: www.boltonpubliclibrary.org/children.html
- Concord: www.concordlibrary.org/pages/child.html
- Boxborough: www.boxlib.org/children.html
- Head to Barefoot Books in Concord. Their event calendar is here: www.barefootbooks.com/visit-barefoot/concord-ma-usa/events-calendar. Some events are free while others (mainly arts and crafts) are low-cost.
Indoor playspaces
For parents of children with a lot of energy, check out a local indoor play space. The following indoor playgrounds are good for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers (adults get in free at all locations):
- BB Kidz Klub in Westford: www.bbkidzklub.com. $10 per child, babies under 10 months free with paying sibling.
- Jamtime in Maynard: www.jamtime.com $10 per child, babies under one year free with paying sibling.
- The Great Escape Playcafe in Leominster: www.tgeplaycafe.com. $8.50 per child 24 months and up, $6.50 per child 12 to 23 months or any sibling, $4 per infant or free with any paying sibling.
- Hop On In in Leominster: www.hoponinma.com. $10 per child three years and up, $8 per child one to two years old, infants free with paid sibling. Check their calendar for open Hop times.
Indoor playgrounds for
toddlers and preschoolers
The following two indoor playgrounds have little in the way of infant or early-walker play areas but are great for active and adventurous toddlers and preschoolers:
- One Stop Fun in Westford: www.onestopfun.com. $9.99 per child ages one and up.
- Bobos Indoor Playground in Nashua, NH: www.bobosindoorplayground.com. $8 for walkers, $4 for crawlers, and infants free with paying sibling.
Something different
For something different, try the following:
- Color*Full Explorations in Acton: colorfullexplorations.com. This is an art studio for kids. All the fun of art projects with none of the clean-up! $12 per child.
- The Drawbridge Puppet Theater in Lunenburg: www.drawbridgepuppets.com. $6 per ticket. There are usually two to three different shows playing per month.
- PYOP Studio (Paint Your Own Pottery) in Northborough: www.pyopstudio.com. $8 per child painting fee plus the cost of the pottery they want to paint.
- The Cookie Clubhouse in Boylston: www.thecookieclubhouse.com/index.html. Prices vary. Get a small group together to make a play date and the cost is very reasonable per child (around $5 each for a group of four kids). All the fun of baking and decorating cookies without making a disaster out of your own kitchen.
- The Discovery Museums in Acton: www.discoverymuseums.org. There are two museums, Science and Children. Both offer hands-on play, and the admission price includes both museums. $11.50 per adult and $11.50 per child, infants under one year are free. Check the library for passes that offer half-price admission for up to three guests.
Family-oriented gyms
For something to rely on, join a gym. You get (or stay) fit and the kids have fun. The first week or two of separation anxiety can be taxing, but after that, the whole family benefits from this cabin-fever buster.
- Orchard Hills Athletic Club in Lancaster: www.ohaclub.com. With a family membership, members can take advantage of the Kids Club, which offers not just babysitting services but recurring activities for kids while parents exercise. Mondays and Wednesdays, kids ages three and up can participate in Gym Time, where they will complete obstacle courses and play with balls and hoops, or ride on toys on the facility’s basketball court. Tuesdays and Thursdays are craft days. The club also offers family open swim time in the indoor pool and family gym time on the basketball courts.
- Global Fitness in Stow: www.globalfitnesscentersma.com/homec38.php. The Child Watch program is $4 drop-in for members (or discounted if you buy a punch card), and the facility offers a large chalkboard wall, Lego tables, and arts and crafts.
In the long cold months to come, don’t succumb to cabin fever. Harvard and its surrounding communities have so many options to keep young kids busy. Take advantage of the remedies above or find some of your own and share them with your friends.
Julie Gowel is a member of the board of the Harvard Family Association.
