One of the activities my daughter and I look forward to every year is apple picking. We love searching for the apples, sampling their freshness, and trying out new varieties  We love heading to Belkin Lookout Farm in Natick for apple and pumpkin picking, and I’m delighted that this weekend they are holding a free open house for families!

About the Farm:
Established as a farm in 1651, Belkin Family Lookout Farm in South Natick is recognized as one of the oldest continuously-working farms in the country. The Belkin family is dedicated to continuing 350 years of farm tradition for future generations. They strive to provide healthy, outdoor, family fun activity while maintaining the farm’s long-rooted history and importance within the community for years to come.

If you are around this weekend, you won’t want to miss the open house happening on Saturday May 4 and Sunday May 5 from 11am – 3pm only! Take advantage of free admission in a beautiful landscape! We are headed there first thing Saturday morning with friends and I’m hoping for great weather! Located less than 20 miles from Boston, Belkin Family Lookout Farm is the perfect day trip for the entire family.

At the open house you’ll enjoy
*Free Parking
*Free Admission
*Children’s Play Area
*Moon Bounce
*Burlap Maze
*Facepainting
*Caterpillar rides

Hope to see local families there!

This is not a sponsored post. My family and I are fans and love to support local businesses!

My motto recently has been, “sometimes you’ve got to spoil yourself.” No it doesn’t mean I’m taking myself on a shopping spree to Tiffany’s. But I always seem to put my needs last…and that’s not okay. But it’s hard to balance my needs while taking care of a little one on my own! So I’ve been trying to squeeze in time in my hectic schedule to indulge a bit. Recently that’s meant buying a new body scrub, face scrub, and going to bed early. I live on the edge…I know!

If I could hit the nail salon every week I would! When I do go (which isn’t very often) my nails sparkle and are super healthy! Since we don’t hit the nail salon every week we’ve been growing our nail polish collection at home and are always switching up the colors and patterns.

Enter MiniLuxe. Love the name! MiniLuxe is a nail and beauty lounge, with seven locations around Boston that wants to cater to you! (I like this!). They get that we are busy, that fitting in time for yourself is sometimes impossible. But they also know that it’s critical for living a balanced life.

It’s safe to say winter is over here…I hope, and today’s mostly beautiful weather here in Boston is a sure sign that Spring is indeed on its way! In honor of its arrival MiniLuxe has released a brand spanking new Spring Collection!

Meet Luxe Jade, Luxe Lucky, Luxe Corey, Luxe Lolita, and Luxe Hingham! I love the colors, they sure say Spring, don’t they!

These signature nailpolishes are a healthier option that some other ones on the market, and are free of formaldehyde, toluene, and DBP which means they are safe for kids and pregnant woman! The sweet new collection will be available at locations starting this month!

For more information, visit www.miniluxe.com or like MiniLuxe on Facebook at www.facebook.com/MiniLuxe and follow them on Twitter at @MiniLuxe.

Do you like MiniLuxe’s new Spring Collection?

MiniLuxe supplied me with their Spring collection at no charge. All opinions expressed are my own and monetary compensation was not received.

I often remark on how I wish my daughter and I lived in New York because there seem to be countless fun family friendly activities and events happening in The Big Apple…that I always seem to miss out on! But then I remember that I live just outside of Boston and there are so many great activities for my daughter and I to get involved with!

If you live in Massachusetts, I want to share with you the opening of Kidville Wellesley . It can be difficult to find activities to do with your kids that you haven’t already been too…and sometimes you want something new and exciting! Kidville, a play and learning space for families with young children, offers a wide range of developmental enrichment classes in art, music, dance, and gym for babies, toddlers and kids newborn through 6-years old. With a preschool alternative program (Kidville University – KVU) and summer camps it promises to be a great solution for families looking for new activities to enjoy with their little ones.

SPECIAL GRAND OPENING OFFER

Free trial classes will be offered the week of March 25! During this week, families can take advantage of Kidville’s Grand Opening Special where they will receive $100 off when signing up for the 6-week Introductory Winter ’13 semester and a Spring/Summer ’13 class or Summer Camp. This offer is valid now through March 31.

For more local information, you can also check out Kidville Wellesley on Facebook.

More about Kidville Wellesley

* The location will feature classrooms, an indoor playspace, a retail Boutique, Kidville Salon (where haircuts can finally be fun) and a place for parents to celebrate birthday parties for children up to age nine.

* Some of the most popular classes include Rockin’ Railroad, Run Wiggle Paint & Giggle, My Big Messy Art Class, Big Muscle Builders, Big Muscle Builders, Ballet Tea Party, Savvy Scientists and Awesome Engineers, among others.

* The inaugural Winter 2013 semester begins the week of March 25 and will last for 6 weeks. Silver membership is free with enrollment in any Kidville class and comes with many member benefits including playspace passes, discounts on retail and salon purchase, and $50 off your birthday parties. Upgrades to Gold, Platinum and Diamond are also available.

* The full list of classes include: Rockin’ Railroad, Run Wiggle Paint & Giggle, My Big Messy Art Class, Big Muscles for Little Babies, Kidville Gymnasts, KidvilleSports and Kidville University (Kidville’s Pre-School Alternative Program). Silver Membership is free with enrollment in any Kidville class, while upgrades to Gold, Platinum and Diamond levels are also available.

Be sure to check out all Kidville Wellesley has to offer you and your family!

Many thanks to Kidville Wellesley for providing this great information!

Looking for an awesome event the whole family will enjoy?  Get your tickets to the Harlem Globetrotters brand new “You Write the Rules” tour.  Your family’s smiles will start before you even get to the game as the Globetrotters take kid participation to a whole NEW level.  Your family can vote at harlemglobetrotters.com and decide rules for the game that could affect the final outcome.  With rules like double the points for every basket, and two balls in play at the same time, there’s an exciting rule that every kid will enjoy.  After the game, Globetrotter stars will stay on court to sign autographs and take photographs with your kids.  The only thing better than finding an awesome event for the whole family, is getting a great deal on it.  Use the promo code “USFAMILY” when you buy tickets for your family to save $7 on each ticket purchased http://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/tickets*.  Get ready to experience the show your family will remember for a lifetime!

You can get your tickets here http://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/tickets and don’t forget to use the promo code USFAMILY to save $7 on every ticket!

*Discount available on select seating levels*

I work right by a kids pottery store and for the past they’ve begun until Christmas. Every morning I walk by and am shocked at how soon the holidays are approaching. Thanksgiving is this week, and Christmas next month. It’s an exciting time of the year, but also stressful. One of my favorite parts of this giving season is taking in all of the beautiful holiday decorations. They automatically put on a smile on my face!

That’s why I’m super excited to check out the New Hampshire Gift of Lights Holiday attraction! With so many lights and so little time! Gift of Lights is guaranteed to get you in the holiday spirit. Pile the entire family in the car and prepare to be amazed. Think light tunnels, giant candy canes and Santa up close and personal. What a great way to get in the holiday spirit!

With so much to plan for in the coming months, I’m really looking forward to taking a breather and heading up to NH with my munchkin and basking in the light and joy of the beauty of this magical time of year.

A gift for my local folks who are interested in attending the Gift of Lights – save $2 on the drive through show, so be sure to get your tickets today!!

What local activities are you planning on going to this year with your family?