KidsOutAndAbout Weekly Newsletter |
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Sat, May 23: Family Paddle at Dusk - Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary
Sat, May 23: Powisset Pals: Guided StoryWalk with Mia Wenjen and Kiddos in the Kitchen! (Ages 7-11) - The Trustees of Reservations
Sat, May 23: Fruitlands Fairy Forest Sat, May 30: Unicorn Spa Day - At The Good Witch of Salem
Sat, May 30: Fruitlands Fairy
Forest - At Fruitlands Museum
Wed, Jun 3: Children's Playgroup: June Series - At Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory & Gardens
Fri, Jun 5: 2026 Glow in the Park - At Rose Kennedy Greenway - With Faneuil Hall Marketplace
Sat, Jun 6: Farm & Field Festival
featuring Zach Field Drums & Music - At Cider Hill Farm
Sat, Jun 6: Meet Live Animals! Family Event Supporting RRS Oasis Animal Sanctuary Sat, Jun 13: 2026 Strawberry Festival at Cider Hill Farm
Sun, Jun 14: 2026 Boston Dragon Boat Festival |
Dear KidsOutAndAbout readers:
For 25 years, one of my core missions with KidsOutAndAbout has been to make invisible things visible, to celebrate what local communities offer families. Everyone is busy, and local treasures are easy to miss. Our job is to point, spotlight, nudge, and say Look here. Try this. Bring the kids. But there’s another kind of invisibility worth fixing:
The people who create these experiences rarely get to see their full impact. They track tickets sold and kids enrolled, but may never hear that your child talked about their field trip for six months, found courage on their stage, or simply felt welcome exactly when they needed it. That’s why our annual Top 20 Places to Take Kids survey matters. Each summer, we ask readers to vote for their favorite local places to take kids.
The results help families see what other families love. The ranking and comments help local organizations see that their work matters. So your three minutes becomes both a recommendation and a thank-you. The survey is simple: Click on your three favorite local destinations. Then also, optionally, nominate favorites in special categories—like arts, sports, and STEM education—and leave comments that we’ll pass along to the people who make these experiences
happen. So please click here to vote in the 2026 edition of the survey. Help families find the places they’ll love, and help the people behind those places know they’re making a difference. The survey will be open until June 20.
—Debra Ross, publisher of KidsOutAndAbout.com, co-author of The Eclipse Effect: How to Seize Extraordinary Moments to Build Strong Communities
P.S. If you're interested, check out the 2025 list here to see who won
last year. |
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KidsOutAndAbout.com: Discover more. Do more. Connect more. If you like my publisher's column, you can easily scroll through past columns in the "Notes
from Deb" section of our site. |
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Get ready for Story Pirates Live in Medford, MA on May 17th! Featuring fan-favorite songs from the multi-award winning The Story Pirates Podcast and improvised sketch comedy based on ideas from kids in the audience. The Story Pirates believe that all kids are creative geniuses, and they’re ready to prove it with their fast-paced, hilarious and inspiring show for the whole family. Featuring Eric from The Story Pirates Podcast, plus a cast of the funniest Story Pirate actors, singers, and comedians around. The Story Pirates, best known for their flagship podcast with more than 100 million downloads, are a family media company that amplifies the words and ideas of kids. The award-winning The Story Pirates Podcast takes stories submitted by kids and turns them into sketch comedy and songs with help from celebrity guests like Kristen Bell, John Oliver, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Sara Bareilles, Seth Meyers, and more. Story Pirates have also produced the Looney Tunes podcast and co-created…
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Southwick’s Zoo is proud to honor the everyday heroes who dedicate their lives to protecting and serving our communities during Police, Fire & EMT Week. As a heartfelt thank-you, eligible first responders and law enforcement professionals receive complimentary general admission all week long. This is our way of showing appreciation for the courage, commitment, and service that make a difference every single day.
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Discovery Museum is a hands-on museum for families that blends science, nature, and play. The fully accessible campus provides indoor STEM-based exhibits and a nature playscape and giant treehouse for open-ended learning explorations.
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Panda fest is an outdoor Asian food festival with experiential activities, tastings, and market fairs. Panda fest is one of the biggest outdoor Asian food festivals in the US with experiential activities, tastings, and market fairs that showcases the vibrant food, art and cultural traditions from Asia. We will decorate the festival with a lot of Panda decorations. And we will have Panda inflatables, Panda Dough Figurine, Panda Painting DIY, Panda Face Painting, Panda themed food. Tickets required for ages 6 and up.
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The Copley Square Farmers Market is Boston's biggest and busiest farmers market. Located in the heart of the commercial and cultural hub of Back Bay, the long-running Copley Square Farmers Market features over three dozen Massachusetts farmers and food producers offering a vibrant selection of delicious produce, proteins, baked goods, ready-to-eat meals, alongside a host of other locally made products. Taking place right in Copley Square, this beloved twice-weekly event takes place in one the city’s most dynamic public spaces, and is a bustling attraction to locavores from across the state!
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Welcome spring with us here at the farm! Shop with local vendors! Enjoy eats & treats from the food trucks & beer barn! Plus yard games, bounce house & face painting! More details to be announced! Rain date Sunday May 17
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Learn about and see demonstrations of sheep shearing, wool processing, dyeing, weaving, and spinning. Shop with vendors and artisans from RI and New England. Visit with the farm’s sheep and see the visiting animals that provide us with the fiber for our craft. Pre-registration is HIGHLY recommended, and tickets may sell out. Rain or Shine!
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Step out amongst 10,000 blossoming fruit trees. Enjoy the fresh air, pops of spring color and views of historic Amesbury as you walk through the orchards. Along your walk, you'll see apple, peach, pear, plum and cherry blossoms along with the farm's hives with honeybees hard at work.
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- Stay At Home Dads Meet Up - At Mill Cafe - The Mill Cafe, 14 Mill St, Arlington, MA 02476, Friday, May 15, 2026, 10:30 am - 12:00 pm
- Friday Storytime At Mill Cafe - The Mill Cafe, 14 Mill St, Arlington, MA 02476, Friday, May 15, 2026, 3:30 - 4:15 pm
- 2026 Copley Square Farmers Market -
240 Beaver St, Waltham, MA 02452, Friday, May 15, 2026, 11:00 am - 6:00 pm
- Free Open Houses at the Betsey Williams Cottage - Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, Elmwood Avenue, Providence, RI, Friday, May 15, 2026, 10:00 am - 3:00pm
- Free spring mini photo session with Shoott! - Boston - Broadway, New York, NY, Friday, May 15, 2026, See link for times
- Spring Fling Artisans Market & Farm Fun! - At Wojcik's Farm - Milk Street, Blackstone, MA, Saturday, May 16, 2026, 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
- Free spring mini photo session with Shoott! - Boston - Broadway, New York, NY, Saturday, May 16, 2026, See link
for times
- Free spring mini photo session with Shoott! - Boston - Broadway, New York, NY, Sunday, May 17, 2026, See link for times
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View our local Boston area 2026 summer camp guide for kids! Pick the dates you want to explore on our calendar and see what summer camps are available. Hundreds of local summer camps: day camps, overnight camps, sports, drama, music, theatre, arts &
crafts, technology, robotics, horseback riding, preschool, & more!
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Looking for a thrilling family-friendly adventure in the Boston area? Escape rooms are interactive, puzzle-packed experiences where you and your team work together to solve clues and complete your mission-all before time runs out! Whether you're escaping a
spooky cabin, cracking a high-stakes heist,…
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Have a great weekend!
Debra Ross
Publisher, KidsOutAndAbout.com
Mom of Madison and Ella |
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