Free By The Sea

The National Park Service has free Seaside Stories and Crafts at Talisman on Fire Island. I plan on doing it with my kids, since most Saturdays we are at Talisman anyway. You meet at Talisman Picnic Area at 2pm and it is geared for children ages 5-7, but all are welcome. They also hold free kid events at Watch Hill too. Call 631-687-4750 or check it out at http://www.nps.gov/fiis/upload/FireIslandNationalSeashore_SpecialProgramsThisMonth_August-2009.pdf

* August 8th Whale Day - listen to stories about the seashore and learn about the environment of Fire Island
* August 22nd Catch of the Day - discover marine life in The Great South Bay as you use seine nets and dip nets. You must wear water shoes.

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Scream For Your Own Ice Cream

I got this recipe from a library class for making fast and fun vanilla ice cream with the kids. You will amaze them!

1 tablespoon of sugar
1/2 cup of milk
1/4 teaspoon of vanilla
6 tablespoons of salt
1 pint size zip plastic bag
1 gallon size zip plastic bag
ice

Fill the large bag half full of ice. Add the salt and seal the bag. In the small bag put milk, vanilla and sugar. Seal this bag and put inside large bag and seal it too. Shake bags until mixture is ice cream - about 5 minutes. Wipe off top of small bag really good and then open. You will have enough ice cream for a small bowl.

Just make sure you really clean off the small bag - if you don't your ice cream may be a bit salty, but still good. Make some now - you know you have all the ingredients! =)

Volcano In The Backyard

Something to do with the kids! We got a book about volcanoes out from the library and in the back there was instructions on making your own volcano. You may remember this from when you were little, but it is so fun to do again and so simple.

Do it outside. It really does not make a big mess and does not stain clothing. We used plastic water bottles cut in half and the kids put clay on the sides to make their volcano. You do not have to get that fancy - any container will do.

Fill the container with some water. I forgot the measurements, but it really does not matter because the kids will just kept pouring it in. Add some baking soda then pour in white vinegar. When the vinegar goes in, your volcano will bubble and foam and overflow. The kids love it!

When it dies down and just kept adding more white vinegar and baking soda to make more bubbles. This combination is also a great cleaning solution and so cheap to buy. I now have the cleanest outside table in the Bayport Bubble! Any white residue just cleans up with water. It was a nice project that kept them busy for a few hours. Try it!
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A Lumpy Crab On The Bay

JT's on The Bay on Corey Creek Canal in Blue Point is yummy! We went on a Friday night at 7pm and were seated right away - there was only two of us. Guess we hit it right. The atmosphere is excellent! There is a huge outside deck with tons of seating. You can look at The Bay or the canal and the boats going by. This is what Long Island in the summer is all about. The food is pretty good. We had the crispy fried calamari with cherry pepper rings for an appetizer. It was a total rip off of Harbor Crab's fried calamari, but it was good. For dinner I ate broiled stuffed shrimp with lump crab stuffing and sherry lobster sauce $23. This was really good and it was real crab meat - no imitation stuff here. Delicious! And I would recommend JT's watermelon margarita on the rocks to everyone - excellent! Good meal, great drinks, terrific atmosphere! And I believe they have transient docking. http://www.jtsonthebay.com/dinner.html
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A Library Card And A Stamp On The Ocean

Did you ever notice the Post Office at Davis Park? I know you have walked by it. It is a little building across the boardwalk from the firehouse. In all the years I have been going to Davis Park, Fire Island - I never went there either.

The kids and I brought some post cards at The Davis Park Store and went off to the Post Office to mail them. It is a very small building, but there is a regular mini Post Office in it. And half of the Post Office is shared with The Davis Park Library.

There is the Post Office clerk in her uniform standing next to the librarian. It is sort of funny and it gives you an old time feeling. We purchased post card stamps for our cards and mailed them off. Then we signed two kids books out of the library. When you are done with the books you can return them in mailbox in front of the Post Office.

The next time you are at Davis Park stop in The Post Office - Library, it's fun!
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Schooling In The Home

The lady who lived in our house before us home schooled four children, so we get lots of home schooling catalogs. I actually looked at one the other day and place an order today. It is called Trend for Kids - PreK to Grade 9.

They have all sort of fun and interesting things to help your kids learn. I ordered a bunch of sight word flash cards, addition cards and some charts on the world and rain. My kids are very interested in maps and ask me all the time where rain comes from. My total for seven items with shipping was $25 - a bargain. I have gone to the "teacher store" and purchased similar items and paid much more. The flash cards were $2.99 for over 100 cards at Trends for Kids.

Here's the site - http://www.trendenterprises.com/home.cfm

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Getting Sleepy In The Library

The Bayport-Blue Point Library has bedtime storytimes. I have done this for the past few summers with my kids and they love it. It really does not make them sleepy, but it is something to do that is fun and they get to see their friends.

There are only two bedtime storytimes left. Friday August 14th and 21st at 7pm. It is recommended for children between 2-6 years old. Bring your favorite stuffed animal - pajamas are optional. =)
suffolk.lib.ny.us/libraries/bprt