New England Mamas

They can call it Snowmageddon. We call it a good time.

The Mamas want to welcome Liz to our ranks.  Please help us make her feel at home. 

Hi. My name is Liz: long time reader, first time contributor. I am a fan of reading blogs and sites like this one, but have never written for one before. I am a SAHM of two young boys. I grew up in a mostly female household but now find myself the minority in my house full of males. It's been a bit of a learning curve, but I think I'm getting the hang of this testosterone-driven lifestyle. In fact, I might even be starting to like it.

Time to protect our girls

Boy oh boy, I've got a fire under me and it was just started by the local Fox News station in Boston; I doubt they are alone in their behavior but it was the only one I caught tonight so they get my rage.

At the top of the 10:00 broadcast they reported on a string of fights involving young girls in Lowell, MA. While the story is newsworthy enough and could have been covered in a 30 second recap, they decided to go a step further and repeatedly show the fights between the teenage girls, two of who were only in 8^th grade. It was bad enough these fights were caught on camera in the first place and broadcast on YouTube (and subsequently removed because they violated YouTube's policies) but then to show them again, and again, on the nightly news simply disgusts me.

What's Happening this Weekend - Indoor and Outdoor fun!

The Friends of Ipswich Elementary Schools (FRIES) - Doyon Chapter and Boston's Chinese Folk Art Workshop are teaming up to welcome the Year 4708, the Year of the Tiger, with a performance of a variety of traditional Chinese folk arts such as Dragon Dance, Lion Dance, Taiwanese Drums, Chinese yoyo and Folk Dance at the Ipswich Performing Arts Center on Saturday, January 23, 2010.  Performance starts at 3:00 p.m.  Work out some of those winter blues and try out some of the dances, instruments, and folk arts with the performers at the conclusion of the event. 

Tickets are $8.00 each and will not be available at the door. Tickets can be purchased online.   

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Feeling outdoorsy?  Snowshoeing for Families at Mass Audubon Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary in Worcester, Sunday, January 24 from 1:30pm - 3:30pm.  They’ll teach you how to use snowshoes before heading out onto the trails and then teach you how to look for signs of wildlife as you enjoy the beauty of the sanctuary in winter! Registration is required.

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More of the indoor type?  Visit the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art this weekend.  Spend the day  with the family and take in exhibits like “Golden Legacy: Original Art From 65 Years of Golden Books”. 

Freedom and Equality at the Expense of a Little Negativity

If the non-stop barrage of commercials and automated phone calls from politicians, their families, and Curt Schilling related to the special election for US Senator from Massachusetts have left me with only one impression, it is that I disagree with Republican candidate Scott Brown's oversimplified view of the world. 

It's a political candidate, calling again. This is sewious! And also why caller I.D. was invented

There’s this little senate race going on in Massachusetts right now, maybe you’ve heard of it?  Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley is running against state Senator Scott Brown for the U.S. Senate seat left empty when Ted Kennedy died last year.  Ring any bells? 

How about this, does this jog your memory?

*Ring, ring*

*Ring, ring*

*Ring, ring.  Ring, ring. Ring, ring. RING, RING.*  OMG, make the darn telephone stop RINGING.

How about now? 

What's happening this weekend - Massachusetts

Our regular feature, What's Happening this Weekend, is highlighting Massachusetts events this week.  Enjoy!

Central Mass:
Whether you’re a full-fledged farmer, a wanna-be hobbyist organic gardener or somewhere in between you’ll want to check out NOFA*/Mass annual winter conference “Food from Farms to Families” at Worcester Technical High School in Worcester, MA this Saturday, January 16, from 9 am to 5:30 pm.   

Over 40 workshops (including ones specifically for teens) on organic farming, gardening, landscaping, and sustainable living, as well as exhibits to check out, and even a children’s program (for kids 3 and up) that runs during workshops times.  You won’t have to worry if there’s something for you at the NOFA/Mass annual winter conference, you’ll have to worry about narrowing down your choices!  A must attend for anyone interested in healthy eating, an organic lifestyle and supporting local farms.

Western Mass:
For fans of art and fans of children's book illustrations - The 20th Annual Children's Illustration Show at R. Michelson Galleries in Northhampton, MA (ongoing until Jan. 31, 2010).  Featuring the work of acclaimed artists such as Dr. Seuss, Mo Willems, Maurice Sendak, Eric Carle, and Tomie DePaola.  Open Monday through Saturday 10am-6pm and Sunday 12-5pm. And the best part about it is, it's free! 

Eastern Mass:
For the little ones who love to dance and sing and let's face it, the adults too - Ben Rudnick and Friends at the Center for Arts in Natick on Saturday, January 16 at 11am.  Adults are $9 and kids are $6.  Love to jam?  You'll love iParenting and Parent's Choice award-winner Ben Rudnick.  He's groovy.

[image credit - BenRudnick.com]

*Northeast Organic Farming Association

Now you have no excuse - It's National Train Your Dog Month!

We’re almost half way through the month of January and I have yet to mention that January is National Train Your Dog Month!  What kind of a dog trainer am I?

One that’s on a sort of sabbatical, that’s what kind, but that’s beside the point.

Your dog needs training, am I right?  I'm right, aren't I?  It's okay, I'm a professional.  You can tell me. 

Want some help?

2010 First Night Events around New England

Say farewell to 2009 and hello to 2010!  Here's a round-up of First Night activities throughout New England.  All have family-friendly activities planned for kids of all ages. 

Massachusetts: 
Boston - First Night Boston
North Shore - Beverly's New Year
South Shore - First Night New Bedford
Cape Cod - First Night Chatham
Worcester - First Night Worcester (See one New England Mama's take on it here)
Western MA - First Night Northampton

Connecticut:  First Night Danbury;  First Night Westport;  First Night Hartford

Rhode Island: Bright Night Providence

Vermont:  First Night Montpelier;  First Night Burlington;  First Night St. Johnsbury

New Hampshire:  First Night Portsmouth;  First Night Wolfeboro

Maine:  First Night Bar Harbor;  First Night Old Orchard Beach

If I've missed any, please feel free to add them in the comments.  And as always, please celebrate safely and responsibly.

Harry Potter - the Exhibition at the Boston Museum of Science

I will go to great lengths for this blog, GREAT lengths, because I love this blog and its readers (that would be you, by the way). 

How great is my love?  Well I’ll tell you...

I went with my family to see the very popular Harry Potter exhibition at the Boston Museum of Science, during a holiday week, just so I could report back here.

Let me repeat that:  Harry Potter.  Boston Museum of Science.  During a busy holiday week.  With the rest of the inhabitants of the entire east coast of the United States of America and probably parts of Canada, too.

That’s how much I love you. 

A Ghost Story of Christmas at the Hartford Stage

A Christmas Carol: A ghost story of Christmas begins on the Hartford Stage with a flurry of white apparitions moving to a bell-like beat that rings out from the loudspeakers. The ghosts cover the stage with the stiffness of the dead, brandishing chains and rattling them against the floor; some spirits sail overhead on wire. Then the macabre spectacle fades into the action of the play as Ebenezer Scrooge and his housekeeper, Mrs. Dilber—played with a sly masculinity by Bill Kux—carry out their rituals on the morning of Christmas Eve. The next 24 hours will bring together past, present and future in a concerted effort to save Scrooge’s life, and maybe just preserve humanity.

This past weekend marked my third viewing of the Hartford Stage’s A Christmas Carol in as many years.