Category Archives: what to know

Touring Boston – Free Fun Fridays – Tons of Great, Budget Friendly, Ideas to Tour Boston During the Summer

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Every year during the summer Boston does this thing called “Free Fun Fridays.” Each week they have a handful of museums and historic type things open for free for the day and it changes every week all summer long.  This is the perfect chance to explore some of the museums and attractions that your interested in that might otherwise seem too expensive.

We were lucky enough to go on Freedom Trail day.   When my husband and I came to visit Boston before moving we had a brief exposure to the historic waking tours while we were touring one of the cemeteries. The actor leading the group was telling some really funny stories and we were intrigued, but didn’t end up going on a full tour ourselves.

Now that it was free we made the extra effort to check it out and we loved it!  If you come to Boston I would highly recommend the historic tour.

I had to laugh at human nature when we were bought to the historic state house.  We were told that about 50 years ago the city was going to tear down the building because they needed to widen the road.  A bunch of people got together to try to raise money to save the building but in the ended didn’t raise enough so the city was going to demolish it.  However, they were approached by some county in Illinois that was all for the widening of the road, but wanted to buy the state house and reassemble it brick by brick in Illinois.  To which the city of Boston immediately replied with something along the lines of “You can’t have our historic state house!  This is Boston history!” and the state house still stands in the middle of the city.

In any case Free Fun Fridays are everything the name suggests and you should really make an effort to check out some of the events.

Have you been here before?  If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below. 

<Post 2016 Events>

Touring Boston – What to Know About Visiting the Frog Pond Summer Splash Pad and Wading Pool

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One of my absolute favorite summer activities is visiting the Boston Frog Pond! The Frog Pond is a giant pond in the middle of Boston common with water that’s 6-8 inches deep.  There is also a huge geyser of water that fountains out of the middle and this pond that is meant to be splashed in.  (Posted life guards and everything!)

I took my son and he loved every minute of it.  He loved being there to play in the water, he loved having friends to play with and he loved following the other kids and trying new things like laying in the water on his belly and his back.

It was a really hot day and I was glad I came in my swimsuit because I was right there next to him sitting in the water to cool off.  We had a great time and were so glad we had friends to join us.

Things to Note:

1) Price
Free, free, free.  Just show up and start splashing.

2) Location & Amenities
Right in the heart of Boston, part of Boston Common.  The Red Line on the “T” stops pretty much at the park so you can get there without even having to bring a stroller. There is a bathroom located right next to the Frog Pond that has lockers you can use for the day.  There is also a snack bar attached to it if you need burgers and fries to get you through a busy day at the park.  Life guards are posted around the pond.  There is a carousel next to the pond ($3/ride) and an enclosed playground, not to mention plenty of trees and shade.

3) Hours
The Frog Pond opens in late June and seems like it usually open until about Labor Day.  Hours vary, and it’s closed if the weather is bad.  Generally its open 11am – 6pm.

4) Other Seasons
Even when the pond is closed there are all sort of events generally going on around the pond.  In the winter you can ice skate on it, in the fall they have pumpkin floating festivals and more.  All in all it’s a really fun place to visit.

Summary & Rating ★★★★★

Five stars.  I think the Boston Frog Pond is a blast and my son has adored it since the first time we let him put his toes in it about a 1.5 years old.  This past summer when he was 2.5 it was amazing to be able to sit on the side of the pond and let him run around in the water.  The water is shallow enough that I didn’t feel like I needed to shadow his every movement and he had so much fun playing with the other kids in the pond and splashing around.  This is one of our most favorite summer activities and if you’re around for the summer it’s something you shouldn’t leave Boston without trying.

Have you been here before?  If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below. 

Boston Common Frog Pond
Boston Common
Boston, MA 02116

Phone: (617)635-2121
Website: http://bostonfrogpond.com/

Unexpected Ways to Get Free Children’s Books in Cambridge – Cambridge Book Bike – Family Friendly Boston/Cambridge

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I have always loved books and loved reading.  One of the first gifts I gave my son was a book, and I read to him often even though he was only a newborn and far to young to understand what was happening.  It didn’t matter that he didn’t understand it because it was more about sharing something beneficial with him that was important to me.

To this day my son loves reading and we do not take a nap or go to bed at night without him insisting we read at least two books to him, more if he can get away with it.

Anyway all that is a precursor to the amazing Cambridge Book Bike Program I stumbled onto by accident during the summer of 2015.  Honestly this program made me fall in love with Cambridge and though I’ve never considered myself a city girl I can’t deny that Cambridge does amazing things for kids all summer long and its a fantastic place to have young children during the summer – with Book Bike probably being my favorite thing of all.

Things to Note: 

1) What is the Cambridge Book Bike? 
It’s a bike, loaded with books, that travels around to different parks during the summer to give out free books to children.  They have teamed up with a bunch of great businesses to provide these books and make it possible. (Agenda for Children,  Center for Families, Cambridge Public Library, & Liz Phipps Soeiro)

2) What Kind of Books to they give out and to who? 
They give out books for every level, from popular board books (Llama Llama, Sandra Boyton, Goodnight Gorilla,) to soft cover picture books (Eric Carl) to young easy reader chapter books, to popular YA chapter books (Book Thief, Twilight etc.)  They are for children 18 and under and your child gets to pick out a new book every single week!  If you have multiple children they each/all get to pick out a book.

3) Why do they do this? 
I had to opportunity to talk to one of the women from the Agenda for Children and she was telling me that research has show children are so much more likely to read and be interested in both books and education if they have a library of their own and easy access to books.  She said that a library of their own is considered to be about 8 books, so their program ran for eight weeks, giving every child the opportunity to have a “library” by the end of it.

4) Where is this happening? 
The book bike visits a different Cambridge park every day of the week during the summer.  They have teamed up with Summer Food Programs and you can find out where they will be on any given day here: http://www.cambridgebookbike.org/schedule.html

Summary and Rating ★★★★★

Five Stars.  Cambridge Book Bike has been my favorite part of summer!  It’s a great reason to get out of the house, head over to a park, and get moving.  We got free lunch, a chance to play at the park and a free book along with great crafts provided by book bike and the entrainment of having a librarian read a story aloud to the captivated audience of children showing how awesome books really are.  Bottom line is this is pretty much the best program ever and I can’t wait to join in it again.

Have you been here before?  If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below. 

Cambridge Book Bike Website

Fantastic, Little Known, Cambridge Parks – 5 Things to Know About Heritage Rose Park

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Heritage Rose Park is such a fun place to visit during the summer.  They’ve got a great splash pad dotted with raised piping that sprays outwards, perfect for toddlers.  There is a great gated playground with slides, swings, and a climbing gym and best of all there are so many activities that go on at the park all summer long!

This past summer every day from 11:30-12:30 there was a free lunch (like something you would get in a elementary school cafeteria) available for any child under the age of 18. On different days of the week there were different activities going on all summer long such as “Arts in the Park” and “Book Bike”.  (You can read more about Book Bike here, but know that it’s an awesome summer program that goes park to park during the summer providing both activities and free books for kids).

Things to Note:

1) Parking
There is street parking and metered parking in the area, but I think you have to have a Cambridge Resident sticker to use it.

2) Stroller Friendliness
Totally stroller friendly.

3) Water Feature
Great water area with raised, chest high sprayers that sprit in all directions.  Also the spray park is in a different area from the playground so you can bring you kids and still play at the playground without worrying about them getting wet if you don’t want them to.

4) Green Space
This park has a really nice grassy field, perfect for field games.  In fact during the summer there is a “Get up and Move” crew that often has field games going and is there to encourage anyone who is interested to join in.

5) Benches and Chairs
There are a bunch of benches surrounding the splash pad and a few tables located in the playground area.  There isn’t great shade in any of the places with tables/chairs so you’ll have to choose if you’d rather be in a real seat or sitting on the ground in the shade to enjoy you activities.

Summary and Rating: ★★★★☆

Four Stars.  I think this is great park, I love the splash area and the summer programs probably make it a five star park, the only pit fall is that all summer long this place is also swamped with day care kids, so there are tons of little ones running around which can be a overwhelming.  The day care kids all seem to clear out at about 11:30 but for us there was always a cross over and little bit of chaos which was both good (more kids to play with) and bad (more kids everywhere).

Have you been here before?  If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below. 

Green Rose Heritage Park

155 Harvard St,
Cambridge, MA 02139

Website: http://www.cambridgema.gov/CDD/parks/parksinfo/Parks/greenrosepark

Fantastic, Little Known, Cambridge Parks – 7 Things to Know About Fulmore Park (aka Sand Park)

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Fulmore Park is a tiny park located toward the west end of the MIT campus.  The park is only .4 acres, but for a toddler it’s awesome.  We’ve also heard this park called both the Sand Park, and the Chicken/Rooster Park.

This park is fenced in and split into two main areas.  The water/sand area and the grass/tree house area.

Things to Note:

1) Parking
There is no designated parking for this park, though you may be able to find a spot along the street.

2) Water Features
This park has two and they are both great for toddlers.  It has a set of three or so mini sprinklers that come out of the ground and reach three or so feet in the air, it also has a water spigot that the kids can pump. The water comes out of the spigot and falls into a metal trough then runs down a long metal shoot into the sand, allowing lots of children to play in the water while one is pumping.

3) Sand
This park has a lot of sand and like many Cambridge parks there are generally community toys there so you can dig and haul water around even if you don’t bring your own bucket/shovel.

4) Wooden Blocks
I think one of the most fun and unique parts of this park is the wooden blocks they have there to play with.  There is a storage shed filled with blocks and planks of all sizes that the kids can drag around the park, build with, walk on etc.  It’s really fun to see some of the structures the kids come up with and it fun to have something so unique to play with.

5) Tree House
The park seems fairly well divided into the sand section and the grass section.  In the grassy/shady area there is a large wooden climbing structure built around a tree that the kids can play on and a small grassy area for them to run on.

6)  Day Care Kids
It seems like during the late morning, especially on nice days  (10am-12pm) the park is well used by the local day cares.  There is still plenty of space to play and my son enjoys having other little kids to be with, but if you want a more quite park visit going earlier or later might be for you.

7) Wildlife…ish
I’m not sure who own chickens but a neighbor near the park must and I have seen chickens running around the park many many times.  They don’t seem to bug or mind the kids, though I suspect they are not supposed to be there.  Mostly just an FYI, you may come across some chickens flapping around. 

Summary and Rating ★★★★☆

Four Stars.  The park is quite small, but the park and equipment is unique and engaging. When we come we love the soft sand and the fun water features.  This past summer my son finally figured out how to use the water pump and he loves standing on the platform and watching the water come up.  This park is certainly for a younger audience, I would say it would be most interesting to ages five and below, and right now it’s perfect for us.

Have you been here before?  If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below. 

Fulmore Park (Cambridge)
223 Sidney St,
Cambridge, MA 02139

More Info Can Be Found At: http://www.cambridgema.gov/CDD/parks/parksmap