Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Learning Farm

November 28, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Reviews

Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Learning Farm

From the Manufacturer

Crawl through the barn door to start the fun on the farm – feed the friendly cow, flip the light switch, and meet all the farm animals. In the Learning Mode, baby learns early academics through each activity. In the Music Mode these same activities play music and encourage baby to play along. And in the Imagination Mode these activities teach baby experiential learning through fun role play and realistic sound effects. The alphabet, counting, opposites, animals, colors and more will be provided through this two sided role play toy. Farm comes with 3 shaped pieces for shape sorting and 3 eggs for chicken coop drop.

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Fisher-Price Little People Play ‘n Go Farm

November 28, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Reviews

Fisher-Price Little People Play 'n Go Farm

From the Manufacturer

This Play set will help celebrate the 50th Birthday of Little People thru a unique carry along play set that reflects the style and look of our first Farm. The Play set container will have a blend of plastic and tin metal. The container will be of a lunch

Do you remember? Take a trip back to the farm with your little one. Join some of your favorite childhood friends as they celebrate their 50th birthday with a commemorative play set designed to look like the farm you remember. Even the figures look like they used to! Its all to help remind you that its great to be little

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Fisher-Price Little People Animal Sounds Farm

November 28, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Reviews

Fisher-Price Little People Animal Sounds Farm

From the Manufacturer

With fun animal sounds all around and plenty to do, little ones will discover what a busy place the farm can be. As toddlers grow, they’ll learn about life on a farm that’s just their size, with Farmer Jed and his animal friends! Figures are surface washable with a clean, damp cloth.

With fun animal sounds all around and plenty to do, little ones will discover what a busy place the farm can be. “Neigh” says the horse,”baaa” answers the sheep, “cluck!” chirps the chicken, “moo” … says the cow, “oink!” … squeals the pig. They’ll even discover what some of the animals feel like, when they pet the “cottony” cow, “hairy” horse, “woolly” sheep, and the “squiggly” piggly tail! From “furry” to “fuzzy” and everything in between, Touch & Feel Animals are a fun way to introduce children to a world of interesting textures and help develop their sense of touch.pAs toddlers grow, they’ll learn about life on a farm that’s just their size, with Farmer Jed and his animal friends! The farm includes Farmer Jed, cow, sheep, horse and pig; the chicken stays attached to the barn. Figures are surface washable with a clean, damp cloth. All pieces store inside. This playset also comes with a special free sampler DVD featuring three charming stories of the Little People friends. Playset requires 3 “AA” (LR6) alkaline batteries, not included.

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VIRGIN ISLANDS SUSTAINABLE FARM INSTITUTE: News Sprout | The St …

September 26, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Newsfeeds

We have so much going on at the farm I decided to put a few items into a single news sprout. We hope you enjoy the good news and look forward to see you around the table sharing the harvest soon! See more here: VIRGIN ISLANDS SUSTAINABLE FARM INSTITUTE: News Sprout | …

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VIRGIN ISLANDS SUSTAINABLE FARM INSTITUTE: News Sprout | The St …

Peaceful Valley Orchards Fall School and Group Tours

August 28, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Newsfeeds

Fall Tours at the Farm

See the original post here:
Peaceful Valley Orchards Fall School and Group Tours

Bengal Tigers, Bears and African Lions spotted in Ocean County Pine Barrens

May 21, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Feature, Jackson Activities

GoKidsNJ – Did you know that Ocean County’s Pine Barrens is home to lions, tigers and bears?   If you thought the Pine Barrens was void of exotic wildlife, think again.   In Forked River, at the edge of the Pine Barrens, you can find PopCorn Park Zoo and Sanctuary, home to hundreds of exotic and domestic animals.

If you’re looking for a place to bring toddlers and younger children and don’t feel like traveling to the Bronx Zoo, Cape May or Philadelphia?  Try the Popcorn Park Zoo and Sanctuary run by the Associated Humane Societies.  This small zoo in New Jersey’s Pinelands was started in 1977 as an animal sanctuary for abandoned and abused animals.   They eventually began taking in exploited farm animals and exotic wildlife and now house the largest collection of animals in Ocean County.

The zoo is home to over 200 rescued animals which range from roosters to bengal tigers.  As you enter the park, you can purchase a box of popcorn which you can feed to all of the animals.  Many of the domestic animals such as the pigs, goats, sheep and horses eagerly await handouts from parkgoers.   As you walk around the park, geese, ducks and squirrels have become so accustomed to human presence that they will usually eat out of your hands.

Some of the more exotic animals in the park include Bengali, a bengal tiger and his three bengal tiger friends, a black bear, african lions, wallabies and monkeys.  You can get close enough to all of the animals for some great picture taking and some great memories without the travel.

Farm animals at Popcorn Park Zoo include horses, cows, sheep, goats and rabbits.  The steer at the park is huge!  If you’ve never been up close and personal with a cow that is nearly eight feet tall, you’re in for a surprise. 

The best thing about Popcorn Park is that these are not show animals purchased for display like at most zoos, they are animals that have been rescued from many different situations in which they were abused, neglected or exploited.  The folks at the Associated Humane Society are offering these animals a second chance at life and the money you spend goes directly towards benefiting and caring for these animals as well as the rescue and placement of future animals at the sanctuary.

Older children might be bored with the lack of “high end” exotics, but if your child has never been to a zoo, Popcorn Park Zoo and Wildlife Sanctuary is a great place to break them in and makes for a great Jersey Shore day trip.

For more information visit: http://www.ahscares.org/default.asp

About GoKidsNJ

Want to learn more about what to do in New Jersey, visit www.gokidsnj.com to find New Jersey’s most comprehensive online database of things to do in New Jersey for kids and families.  Founded in 2004, GoKidsNJ receives over 3.5 million visitors each year.

Memorial Day 2009 weekend events in New Jersey

May 18, 2009 by NJ News  
Filed under Jackson Activities

The unofficial start of the 2009 Summer tourism season in New Jersey is upon is.  Memorial Day Weekend is this week and there’s plenty of events going on in the state.  Our highlight attraction this weekend is the  St. Al’s summer carnival, one of the best Jackson Township events for children and families.

Carnival in Jackson NJ
This weekend is one of the best NJ Carnivals, the St. Als Carnival in Jackson NJ.

FridaySaturday

 
Ocean Twp Founders Day
Event Information
Priff Elementary School
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: 139 Wells Mills Rd., Waretown, NJ 08758
Get More Information: Ocean Twp Founders Day
Tail Blazers Dog Agility Trial
Event Information
Gloucester County DREAM Park
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: 400 Route 130 South, Logan Twp, NJ 08085
Get More Information: Tail Blazers Dog Agility Trial
Advanced Birding`
Event Information
Duke Farms
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: 80 Route 206 South, Hillsborough, NJ 08844
Get More Information: Advanced Birding`
Crafts and Antiques for Memorial Day
Event Information
Emlen Physick Estate
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: 1048 Washington St., Cape May, NJ 08204
Get More Information: Crafts and Antiques for Memorial Day
Tri for Our Veterans:Triathlon
Event Information
Boardwalk
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: Boardwalk & John F. Kennedy Blvd., Sea Isle City, NJ 08243
Get More Information: Tri for Our Veterans:Triathlon
Calling All Fishermen: 100+ Years of Fly Fishing
Event Information
Cooper Gristmill
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: 66 State Rt. 24, Rt. 513, Chester, NJ 07930
Get More Information: Calling All Fishermen: 100+ Years of Fly Fishing
Blues and Wine Festival
Event Information
Natirar Park
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: 2 Main St., Peapack/Gladstone, NJ 07977
Get More Information: Blues and Wine Festival
Meet the Surflighters
Event Information
Surflight Theatre
Date:
May 23,2009
Location: Engleside Avenue, Beach Haven, NJ 08008
Get More Information: Meet the Surflighters

Sunday

Seaport Craft Show
Event Information
Huddy Park
Date:
May 24,2009
Location: Bay Ave., Highlands, NJ 07732
Get More Information: Seaport Craft Show
Barks on the Boards
Event Information
Music Pier
Date:
May 24,2009
Location: 825 Boardwalk, Ocean City, NJ 08226
Get More Information: Barks on the Boards
 
Jersey Shore Premium Outlets Memorial Day Sidewalk Sale
Event Information
Jersey Shore Premium Outlets
Date:
May 22,2009
Location: 1 Premium Outlets Boulevard, Tinton Falls, NJ 07753
Get More Information: Jersey Shore Premium Outlets Memorial Day Sidewalk Sale
Jackson Premium Outlets – Memorial Day Sale
Event Information
Jackson Premium Outlets
Date:
May 22,2009
Location: 537 Monmouth Road, Jackson, NJ 08527
Get More Information: Jackson Premium Outlets – Memorial Day Sale
Wildwoods International Kite Festival
Event Information
On the Beach at Rio Grande Avenue
Date:
May 22,2009
Location: Rio Grande Avenue, Wildwood, NJ 08260
Get More Information: Wildwoods International Kite Festival
State Gymnastics Competition
Event Information
Wildwoods Convention Center
Date:
May 22,2009
Location: Ocean Avenue, Wildwood, NJ 08260
Get More Information: State Gymnastics Competition

Monday

Memorial Day `
Event Information
NJ Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial
Date:
May 25,2009
Location: 1 Crawfords Corner Rd., Holmdel, NJ 07733
Get More Information: Memorial Day `
Haddonfield’s Memorial Day Parade
Event Information
Kings Highway
Date:
May 25,2009
Location: Kings Highway, Haddonfield, NJ 08033
Get More Information: Haddonfield’s Memorial Day Parade
Tour of Somerville Cycling Series
Event Information
Downtown Somerville
Date:
May 25,2009
Location: Main Street, Somerville, NJ 08876
Get More Information: Tour of Somerville Cycling Series

Why do you live in Jackson?

May 17, 2009 by Phil Stilton  
Filed under Opinions

Why do you live in Jackson? That’s a question I get often from friends and old neighbors from Toms River when they learn that I have abandonded the town I grew up in, supported and was active in. Over the years, Toms River has become what the North Jersey and New York City transplants have made it. A sprawling suburban community experiencing similar problems to the places they had left.

When I was young, growing up and going to school in Toms River, it wasn’t much different than Jackson is today. Hooper Avenue and Fisher Blvd. were 2 lane roads, heavily wooded with spots of commerce here and there. Route 37 was the equivelant to County Line Road and the summer traffic was akin to the summer traffic we see at Great Adventure.

We had horse farms, cattle farms and agriculture farms in North Dover, yes it was always Dover Township back then, but the only Dover we referred to as kids were the Dover Rovers. Local hardware stores thrived before Loews and Home Depot. Our local post office was actually a desk inside one of these hardware stores. On weekends, kids would hang out in the woods, build bonfires and ride our bikes, quads and cars through woods without worries.

Slowly those woods and hardware stores started disappearing and chain stores and chain restaurants began taking over. More kids started having New York accents in school and eventually we gave way to the tract developments and senior citizens communities which eventually took over the entire town.

I’m not afraid or embarrassed to say that after New Yorkers, senior citizens were the biggest downfall to Toms River. Together, they both wanted to bring some of what they left into our community. They came to Toms River for the seclusion and country-esque living, but they weren’t happy with well water, they weren’t happy driving 3 miles to the convenience store and they weren’t happy with just about everything in their new home.

On every corner, Brooklynites talked about how the shore is backwards and there’s no good restaurant and they live in a hick town. Slowly their influence grabbed footholds in local politics and business and gone were two acre building requirements in North Dover and the town began to look like a suburb of Staten Island.

Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore. With the murder of one of our neighbors, the organ player at our corner church just houses down after I had personally looked the killer in the eye moments before it happened as he forcefully peddled magazine subscriptions door to door, we decided Toms River was no longer the town for us. The year before we left to come to Jackson, Toms River had many murders which dropped it from it’s yearly position in the top 25 communities to live in America. Drug shootings at the nearby notell motel, ex cops killing entire families and now one so close to home where it could have been any of my neighbors or worse, my wife and daughter had I not been home that day were all key factors in our decision to leave.

To my surprise, not only is Jackson ecologically and environmentally walking in the exact same shoes as Toms River of 20 years ago, Jackson is making the exact same mistakes as Toms River of 25 years ago. Our insatiable thirst for ratables, out of control senior housing developments, low incoming housing projects on the horizon, strip malls and drug stores at every corner and the same old fight between locals and carpetbaggers. Once again its the good old boys vs. the new kids on the block.

I have seen where Toms River has gone and I see Jackson heading down the same path, but only worse. There are forces in Jackson who have lost sight of why they have moved here and will slowly destroy the town. Like Toms River, we will soon match them in pharmacies per capita. Do we need a Jackson Crossings at every intersection? Do we need a Starbucks? Do we need an Olive Garden or TGI Fridays? Does Jackson really need a movie theater? What price should we pay to have these businesses?

Why do you live in Jackson and how do you see Jackson’s future?

I & G Farms

April 16, 2009 by Phil Stilton  
Filed under Opinions

Ok, very rarely will I give a free commercial plug, but I came across this 2003 commercial for I&G Farms on Whitesville Road here in Jackson.   The reason I want to bring this up is because before you go to Shop Rite or Stop & Shop for your veggies, they usually have home grown NJ produce at I&G Farms and you’re truly supporting a local business.   More importantly, it is one of those places that really is Jackson.   So enjoy this old commercial from YouTube:

 

The other reason is that I’m testing the viability of this blog.  At time of posting I&G’s video had 24 views.   Just want to see how much we can influence things like  YouTube as well as Google/Yahoo with this blog.