Happy weekend! Are you ready for some family-friendly fun? If so, you’re in the right place!
We’ve posted some of our favorite holiday shows and holiday light displays already, so they won’t appear here. In case you missed those articles, you can read our round up of holiday shows for kids here and our round up of holiday light displays here.
The Summit Playhouse (10 New England Avenue, Summit) will present Beauty and the Beast Jr. this weekend. Based on the original Broadway production and the Academy Award-winning motion picture. The classic story tells of Belle, a young woman in a provincial town, and the Beast, who is really a young prince trapped under the spell of an enchantress. If the Beast can learn to love and be loved, the curse will end and he will be transformed to his former self. But time is running out. If the Beast does not learn his lesson soon, he and his household will be doomed for all eternity. Performances will be Friday at 7:30 PM, Saturday at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM, and Sunday at 2:00 PM. This show is recommended for ages 4+. Tickets are $20.
The Women’s Club of Glen Ridge (219 Ridgewood Avenue, Glen Ridge) will host Winter Wonderland on Saturday from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Celebrate the holidays with tons of festivities at this event. Breakfast will be served, along with fun crafts for the kids, story time, face painting, and a bouncy house. Santa will be there, merrily accompanied by a professional photographer for family portraits. The cost for the event is $35 for member/family and $45 for non-member family. Santa photo is $20.
On Saturday, the Montclair Public Library (50 South Fullerton Avenue, Montclair) will host Kwanzaa Community Celebration and Ujamaa Winter Market with various activities throughout the day. The planned activities include balloon twisting, card tricks, dance performances, and music. Visit the website for a full schedule.
Newark Museum of Art (49 Washington Street, Newark) will host Science Extravaganza on Saturday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Enjoy a fun day of science activities for the whole family. Activities include MakerSPACE, Crazy Science Show, Science Drop-In: Fossil Dig, Creative Play: Walking Water, and a variety of Planetarium Shows. Visit the website for a full schedule of events.
Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center (247 Southern Blvd, Chatham) will host Kids in the Wild: Shelter Building on Saturday from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM. In this series, kids ages 7-11 get into the woods, leaning different outdoor skills, meeting other like-minded kids, and building confidence. In this session, they will learn about survival shelters, and build a debris shelter. Cost is $10 per child. Preregistration is required.
On Saturday, the Essex County Environmental Center (621-B Eagle Rock Avenue, Roseland) will host Hot Chocolate Hike from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM. Enjoy a hike around the Environmental Center forest, build a winter campfire, sip hot cocoa, and make s’mores. Advanced registration is required. Cost is $30 per family (up to two adults and two children) or $10 per child and $12 per adult.
Garden State Model Railway Club (575 High Mountain Road, North Haledon) will continue to host the 64th annual model railroad show beginning this weekend. The Garden State Model Railway Club, Incorporated is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to preserving, expanding, and educating both model railroading and railroading. The show is fun for the whole family, and kids will especially enjoy seeing Thomas the Tank Engine. There is also a Kiddie Layout. Refreshments are available. The show will be open Saturday and Saturday from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM.
Also on Saturday, the Essex County Environmental Center (621-B Eagle Rock Avenue, Roseland) will host Cookies with Santa from 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM. Join ECEC partners, the Rutgers 4H Youth Development Program, as they welcome families and their pets for Cookies with Santa! Families and their pets will enjoy a sweet treat and refreshments with an opportunity to take a picture with Santa. Fee is $15 per family in advance or $20 per family at the door.
Fosterfields Living Historical Farm (73 Kahdena Road, Morristown) will host Willows Wonderland on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Celebrate the holiday season at Fosterfields! Tour The Willows mansion decorated for different decades of Christmas, talk to costumed interpreters, and watch live cooking demos at both the mansion and the 1915 farmhouse. Take a wagon ride and meet the animals in the barnyard. Cost is $10 per person ages 3 and up. Preregistration is required.
Montclair Center BID is partnering with The Wellmont Theater and Pharmacie Bar+Kitchen to celebrate shopping small all season. The Winter Wonderland, typcially held at Wellmont Arts Plaza (5 Seymour Street, Montclair) on Saturdays through December 17 from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM, will move indoors to The Clairidge Theater (486 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair) due to inclement weather. The scaled-back schedule will include Buddy the Elf from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, Santa and Mrs. Claus from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM, and Macaroni Kid / Fairy Hair from 1:00 Pm to 4:00 Pm.
Turtle Back Zoo (560 Northfield Avenue, West Orange) will host Wonders of the Wild on Saturday from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM for children 6-12 years old. The Wonders of the Wild program offers students an opportunity to participate in supplementary science and nature-themed programs and projects that facilitate scientific literacy and life-long environmental stewardship. Available to students ages 6-12. The programs include a visit to the South Mountain Reservation, Reservoir, or Zoo as weather permits. This is an in-person, drop-off program. Cost is $30/person. This week’s theme is “Animal Enrichment.”
Macaroni Kid Clifton-Montclair will host 2022 Holiday Extravaganza at Cornerstone Montclair (189 Bellevue Avenue, Montclair) on Sunday from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Kids will keep busy making crafts and reindeer food, decorating cookies from Little Daisy Bake Shop, and enjoying a hot cocoa bar, and all will be wowed by exceptional performances by Beyond the Bookie and MHS’s Passing Notes’ locally famous acapella group. All kids will have the chance to meet Santa and receive a present. Kids can also bring a letter for Santa or write one at the event. Tickets are $40 per child. Adults are free.
Turtle Back Zoo (560 Northfield Avenue, West Orange) will host Turtle Back Hatchlings Early Childhood Program on Sunday from 10:00 AM to 10:45 AM for children ages 12-24 months old with a caregiver. Learn how to meet and greet some of the small, friendly animals up close in the classroom and learn how to touch animals gently. Each child will also enjoy sensory interactions with feathers, turtle shells, puppets, and more in a lightly structured program. Cost is $25 per child.
Newark Museum of Art (49 Washington Avenue, Newark) will also host December Family Sundays on Sunday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Activities include a MakerSPACE for kids of all ages, which is a fun interactive area where kids play, tinker, and create on their own. There’s a Family Drop-In: Snow Globes for kids ages 5-10, where they can watch how snow falls year-round by making a snow globe. Check the website for scheduling.
Turtle Back Zoo (560 Northfield Avenue, West Orange) will host Turtle Back Tots Early Childhood Program on Sunday from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM. This program is designed for toddlers and adults to discover the natural world together. We will use the alphabet to explore different animals in our zoo. Each day you will discover a different animal type such as mammals, birds, reptiles, and insects. Stories, projects, and special animal visitors in the classroom enhance your class experience. All children must be accompanied by an adult who is willing to take part in the activities. This activity is for children ages 2-3 years with a caregiver. Cost is $25 per child.
Montclair Art Museum (3 South Mountain Avenue, Montclair) will host Sunday Studio: Upcycled Fabric Collage Totes with Kristian Battell with sessions at 1:00 PM, 2:00 PM, and 3:00 PM. Visit the museum each Sunday for a fun family art-making activity inspired by the current exhibitions. Explore materials, learn new techniques, and meet other community members while enjoying creative time with your family. Each week features a different project. This program is aimed at families with children ages 5-12, but all are welcome. This week’s session is Layered Landscapes with Grace Brown Inspired by the exhibition WOOLPUNK®: Sunflowers & Graffiti’d Sky in the Garden State, families this week will learn how to make usable art by upcycling fabric scraps into a one-of-a-kind collage to sew on a reusable tote bag. This program is free with museum admission. Advance registration is required.
The Montclair Public Library (50 South Fullerton Avenue, Montclair) will host Winter Drop-in Crafts for children in kindergarten through 3rd grade on Sunday from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM. Stop in for some fun autumn crafts while supplies last. No registration is required.
Morris Museum (6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown) hosts Spark!Lab on Saturdays and Sundays from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Kids experience the spark of invention in this dynamic space, where learning and play come together. Spark!Lab offers any child ages 5-12 (and accompanied by an adult), a new informal approach to hands-on learning. Created by the Smithsonian, Spark!Lab ignites kids’ ingenuity with fun, hands-on challenges. Instead of following instructions, kids tap into their natural creativity to tackle engineering and design challenges in Spark!Lab’s projects stations. For children ages 1-4, there is the Spark!Lab’s new Young Inventor Space that features and train and an exploration table filled with unique tools to spark creativity and learning.
The Frelinghuysen Arboretum (353 East Hanover Avenue, Morris Twp) continues to host the Family Photo Scavenger Hunt. Held daily from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, bring your camera or phone for this month’s hunt. This is the first weekend for the December theme, which is “Totally Trees.” Don’t be fooled by winter! There are lots of trees with winter beauty. Use the clues and find them all in this family-friendly and fun photo scavenger hunt. The cost is $10 per family or group of 6 or fewer. Preregistration is required.
Newark Winter Village returns this weekend and will be open Wednesday through Sundays through January 31. The much-loved holiday tradition at Mulberry Commons Park, located just outside the Prudential Center (25 Lafayette Street, Newark), has ice skating, Go-Karts, various games and activities, shopping, and cozy heated private igloos to enjoy hot cocoa and treats. There will also be many “Instagram-worthy” photo-ops available throughout the winter village. In addition to fun winter activities, visitors can shop in the stylish open-air holiday marketplace with wares from local vendors. There will be food and sweet treats to purchase, as well as hot cocoa to warm you up after a few trips around the ice rink. Admission is free, but reservations and tickets are required for Go Karts, ice skating, and private igloos.
