Kids VT, August 2017
Into the Woods: Five Can’t Miss State Parks; Outdoor Overnights With Kids;Campground Caretaking; DIY Pizza Oven
Pee Patrol: Potty Training a “Threenager” — With a Newborn at Home
Two weeks into potty training my 3-year-old, Joni, I found a dried-out turd on her bedroom floor. I thought it was a granola bar. I picked it up, brought it close to my face and sniffed it. Oh, the horror. I washed my hands furiously, then dashed downstairs to my crying 2-month-old, Frankie. As I…
Adam & Wilder
Do you imagine Wilder will grow up to run the farm one day? Adam: We’re pretty open. We don’t want him to be on a parent-chosen path. I always say he’s gonna run away to New York City, but who knows? We know so many folks who left Vermont but then came back to have…
How Can My Family Make the Most of the Last Weeks of Summer?
Oh summer, you’re the vision of beauty! Romancing us with your promise of sunsets on the beach, breezy lakeside cottages, shady hammock naps and every other gorgeous thing pinned on that “Best Summer Ever” Pinterest board. The dream of summer sees us through the relentless winter. When the school year finally ends, we blast out…
Parenting Hacks: Favorite Local Restaurants for Dining With Kids
We love to go to Rozzi’s Lakeshore Tavern in Colchester. They are always super nice and my kids love the puzzle fries. — Emily Peters J. Morgan’s Steakhouse (in Montpelier) is the best place to eat with kids! Their kid’s menu is affordable, is served on a frisbee, and comes with a veggie, a fruit…
How Safe Are Trampolines, Bounce Houses and Other Outdoor Play Equipment?
Most kids have never met a trampoline, bounce house, Slip ‘N Slide or playground they didn’t like. These popular summer activities can improve children’s strength, agility and balance. But play equipment can also cause serious injuries, especially in small children. Dr. Lewis First, head of pediatrics at the University of Vermont Children’s Hospital, outlines recommendations…
Trending — August 2017
Disney annnounces two Star Wars-inspired theme parks will open in 2019 at Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida. For kids or adults? Smallest library in Vermont, measuring just 10-by-17 square feet, reopens in West Danville after being vacant since 1948. No chance of getting lost in those stacks. “Sweet Tooth: The Art…
The Art Of… Campground Caretaking
From Memorial Day to Columbus Day, my family resides in a camper at Silver Lake, an exclusively hike-in, bike-in campground in the Moosalamoo National Recreation Area, in the Green Mountain National Forest. It’s the second summer that I, my husband, Bryan, and our son, Emmett, have volunteered there as campground hosts through the U.S. Forest…
In the Moment
I’m an avid podcast listener. One of my favorites is Slate’s Mom and Dad Are Fighting, in which three panelists share parenting triumphs and fails, answer listeners’ questions, and talk candidly about kid-related topics, from sleep issues to overbearing relatives. In a recent episode, panelist Carvell Wallace reflected on an enjoyable evening spent hanging out…
Relishing Life: A Single Mom on Racing Snowmobiles, Raising Two Boys and Running a Hot Dog Stand
Pull into the Gulf gas station on South Burlington’s Shelburne Road, and you may see Jamie Wilhite serving up locavore hot dogs and cold-brew coffee out of a shiny silver umbrella cart. While it’s not surprising to find a gourmet hot dog stand in Vermont, the path Wilhite took to get it there surely is.…
A Literary Tribute to a Famous Folk Singer
Ever since she attended summer camp in rural Vermont as a child, Leda Schubert knew she wanted to live in the Green Mountain State and write children’s books. Schubert worked as a preschool teacher and librarian in Vermont before deciding to go back to school at age 55. In 2004, she earned an MFA in…
Looking Into America’s Colonial Past at Crown Point State Historic Site
21 Grandview Drive, Crown Point, N.Y. Since Hamilton: An American Musical captured my family’s imagination last year, history has been a big topic of conversation around our dinner table. We find ourselves discussing things I never imagined my kids would be curious about, like big versus small government, the etiquette surrounding duels and George Washington’s…
Sweet Sites: Our Favorite Family-Friendly State Parks
My partner, Ann-Elise, and I were committed campers before we had kids. The arrival of our son, now 11, and daughter, now 9, didn’t slow us down for long. Graham was 5 months old when he first slept in a tent with us; we added Ivy to our annual remote camping excursion at just 5…
Better Together: At Camp Knock Knock, Grieving Families Find Support and Solidarity
Holly Curry was feeling nervous as she and her daughter, Jane, set out for summer camp on June 3, 2016. The Burlington mom wasn’t worried about missing her then-5-year-old daughter — the two would be attending camp together. Rather, the day marked the one-year anniversary of the death of Holly’s husband Jonathan, Jane’s father. He…
Backyard Pizza Oven
My husband, Kevin, and I talked constantly about building a wood-fired pizza oven — just like the ones at American Flatbread — when we moved to a Richmond farmhouse with a big backyard in 2010. Over the course of a few years, we’ve tackled several other DIY projects (patio, chicken coop) and let some dreams…
Sharing Stones With Vermont Rocks
There’s joy in coming across something where you least expect it. That was Shelburne resident Gail Murphy’s motivation for starting Vermont Rocks, a Facebook group devoted to painting, hiding and searching for rocks. Murphy came across her first embellished rock while walking her dog in Brevard County, Fla., where she lives for six months of…
Boho Baby Offers Style at a Steal
Lisa Golding has turned her passion for repurposed and handmade goods into a new kids’ retail store. The Essex mom of a 1- and 3-year-old recently opened Boho Baby, a small shop in Colchester’s Fort Ethan Allen that specializes in clothes and accessories for newborns through preschoolers. Golding carries gently used clothing from brands like…
The Janet S. Munt Family Room Celebrates Independence
For almost 30 years, the Janet S. Munt Family Room in Burlington’s Old North End has provided classes, playgroups and workshops to parents and kids from diverse backgrounds. Until recently, it operated as a program of the Visiting Nurse Association of Chittenden and Grand Isle Counties. But, after losing a federal grant almost two years…
Noggin Loggin’: UVM to Participate in Adolescent Brain Development Study
This is your child’s brain on drugs. Or not. Either way, a new 10-year study aims to crack open the secrets of kids’ craniums as they age into adolescence, taking into account everything from drug and alcohol use to sports and sleep patterns. The University of Vermont is one of 21 research institutions across the…
Caribbean Fruit Salad: A Tropical Twist on a Summer Staple
I was 10 years old when my parents took their first tropical vacation to Jamaica. They left me back home in the decidedly less exotic Champlain Islands with my older sisters. When they returned, my dad brought back butterfly specimens for his collection and a new appreciation for the flavors of the Caribbean. Other trips…
Trial by Campfire: Braving the Great Outdoors — With Kids
We’d been checked into Little River State Park campground for just 10 minutes, and already my children were covered in dirt. Four-year-old Levi rolled around on the ground, wrapped in the blanket intended for 10-month-old George, who laid stomach-down in his own patch of earth, placidly scooping pine needles into his mouth. Meanwhile, my husband…
