Turnpike Tikes

Apples grow on trees? Who knew?

If you haven’t gone apple picking yet, you can still get your apple fix on until well into the fall. And with the cool, crisp weather finally here, it’s starting to truly feel like apple-munching time. New Jersey has no shortage of farms to pick apples at and you can usually take home more pommes than you could eat in a lifetime. So bring on the apple sauce!

This year, we’re heading over to Melick’s Town Farm in Oldwick, NJ. The 300-year-old farm (yes, you read that right, 300 years old!) has two other locations, in Califon and Bridgwater, but we know about the Oldwick locale. The farm doesn’t charge an entry fee for picking, which I think is just grand. A lot of the farms around here charge you for the privilege of picking their fruit, which just seems wrong. Melick’s charges by the bag.

They have a free hayride on the weekends to rest your weary legs and take you to and from the orchards. TT mama Wendy went last year with a three-year-old and a newborn in tow. They brought along a stroller for the baby and walked the entire time. There were plenty of trees with enough low-hanging fruit for their toddler to grab till his heart’s delight.  The farm market sells prepared items too like jams, jellies, pies and ciders. Another perk of the Oldwick location is the Cider Mill where you get to watch them make fresh cider. Yum!

Right now, you can pick Macouns, Empire, Golden and Red Delicious and Jonagold at the Oldwick location.

If you’re feeling in the mood for some theater while you pick, head over to the Califon location. Strange Fruit, a theater troupe from Australia, will be performing The Three Belles, which is a fusion of theater, dance and circus performance. If you go, tell TT what you think of it, we’re dying to know. The free performances will be at 11 am and 2 pm.  They’ll also be offering a horse-drawn wagon from 11 to 3. Another perk at the Califon location: you can pick your own pumpkin while you’re there, which would definitely kill two birds with one stone.

There’s no pick-your-own apples in Bridgewater.

Okay, Hurricane Irene was seriously bad stuff. Every morning I wake up and remind myself how fortunate I am that my family made out alright. For those of you who suffered serious losses, my heart goes out to you and I hope this rain lets up and doesn’t make a bad situation worse.

This week of rain is just relentless. The kids (and yours truly) are climbing the walls. For those of you itching to get out, I have this to offer: Kidnetic in Montville, NJ. I gave them a ring and their doors are open for business and their summer hours are still in effect.

Kidnetic is an indoor play space that offers plenty of open play hours. It has a large indoor jungle gym with climbing nets and slides and all that good stuff. The place is clean, open, has a great climbing gym and lots of padded cushions for gymnastics and tumbling. There are benches for weary moms to sit on and still supervise. The morning I went was surprisingly uncrowded. It’s $10 a kid and $8 for siblings, which isn’t the cheapest place around, but there’s no time limit on that $10, so you could definitely wear the children down until they pass out in the car on the ride home. Remember to bring socks, because the kids have to take their shoes off, but must be wearing socks. So leave the flip flops at home.

Kidnetic is located in the far back of a large parking lot complex, so when you pull into the lot, just keep driving toward the back. You’ll find it. It’s there. It’s off 46, so make sure the roads are all up and good if you’re coming from Montclair or Cedar Grove.

So go to Kidnetic. Get out of the house. There’s no reason to lose your mind in the rain.

I love sand and beach and all that summery stuff as much as the next girl. But some summers I just don’t have it in me to battle the shore traffic just to get there. I mean, you’ve gotta pack the bags and load the kids into the car and remember the snacks and the sunscreen and beg and plead with everyone to not have a meltdown. An then, just as said meltdown commences, you hit that standstill traffic around Exit 8 on the Turnpike and you wonder why, exactly, you decided to do this to yourself. Two hours later, long after you’ve given up and are now sitting on concrete at the town pool, you begin to curse the existence of the oceans.

But there’s another way! There is and I found it in Ringwood. No, the ocean isn’t in Ringwood, but there is a beach and a lake and it costs $5 for the day, I kid you not. Shepherd Lake in Ringwood State Park is totally worth the trip. I mean, it’s $5!

The park is lovely and green and you only have to pay for parking. There’s a beautiful picnic area that overlooks the lake with plenty of tables. And there’s a nice enough playground for the kids near the picnic area. The beach is small, with limited sand to sit on. But the water is shallow and great for wading. I’m not sure why they don’t cordon off a larger swimming area, but it’s large enough for little kids. There’s no dock for diving and jumping, which is a bummer, and you definitely should bring an umbrella because there isn’t much shade. But it’s a nice little beach with a great, green canopy and very woodsy feel.

For the older kids, you can rent canoes and paddle boats and paddle around the much larger lake area that’s reserved for paddling.

It gets crowded on the weekends, so go early if you go on a Saturday, but weekdays aren’t too crowded. There are no restaurants that we found nearby, so definitely bring a lunch. However, if you forget or, like yours truly, couldn’t get it together to pack more than raisins and peanuts, the snack bar is surprisingly well-stocked. They’ve got hamburgers and shockingly good onion rings and all the other standard fare. Also plenty of ice cream. The snack bar also sells charcoal for bbq pits and beach toys.

The state park also has a nearby botanical garden, which we did not visit, but looked lovely. And there’s a network of trails for hiking if you get antsy.

If you’re around Saturday and looking for a good date night — and also a good cause — this fits the bill. Consider it killing three birds with one stone: you get out, you get cocktails and tapas; and you get to support the kids of Essex county. Everyone’s happy. Don’t mind the RSVP cutoff, tickets are still available.

…is for the kids to go to sleep. I want bedtime to be short, sweet and blissful so I can sit down and have a nice, big glass of wine and read Vanity Fair uninterrupted. I don’t want to get anyone another glass of water. Or walk anyone to the bathroom for the fourth time. Or hug anyone one more time. Or lie down for one more song. I want my wine. And I want to read that freaking Rob Lowe article I’ve been trying to finish for what feels like a month now.

So, in honor of Mother’s Day, I’m going to suggest this lovely little tome: Go the Fuck to Sleep. It’s nothing short of brilliant. The author, Adam Mansbach, is currently a visiting professor at Rutgers University. He is known more for his critically acclaimed books for grownups like The End of the Jews and Angry Black White Boy than he is for his children’s books. But that’s okay because this book isn’t for the kids. It’s for the mommies on the edge. And he is my hero. He totally gets how I feel around the time we get to story #3 of the bedtime routine.

Here’s an excerpt to make you smile on Mother’s Day:

So, this Mother’s Day, I don’t want a nice brunch or a basket of flowers or some construction paper card with a smeared finger paint hand print on it. No. I want the children to go to bed with only one story and a kiss, just like my imaginary children did before I got the real ones.

This is no joke: a Brio breakfast tray. Makes you wonder if it’s intended for kids or grownups. It’s 19 euros which is like, what? $30?  I see a giant train track running through the kitchen table in my future.

Breakfast on the go

With Passover and Easter on a collision course in our inter-faith household, I’ve found myself scrambling to celebrate them both and still make it through the week in one piece. Thankfully, there are no shortage of holiday-related activities happening around here to keep the youngins happy. And there are even people to help you cook dinner!

Picking Up Passover

Let’s face it, preparing a seder is no easy feat. And I’m not the only one enticed by the lure of letting someone else do the cooking. According to the New York Times, eating out at Passover has become a downright trend.

I didn’t find any New Jersey restaurants who were serving an entire seder this week (let me know if you know of one) but there are certainly spots where you can pick up all the fixings ahead of time — and do minimal cooking of your own.  Nana’s Deli and Restaurant in Livingston, NJ sells prepared seder dinners by the thousands. Their cutoff for pre-orders has long since passed, but the deli is still stocked with all the Passover fixings and you can line up to get them. Be warned: the lines can be long and start early, especially on the first and last nights. But, if you want to celebrate the last night and avoid cooking, this is a way to go.

Easter Eggs and Chickens

Alstede Farms in Chester has an easter egg hunt happening in its Hay Bale Maze on Friday and Saturday. You can also take a hayride to the barn and play with the baby farm animals while you’re there. For the photo-happy bunch, there’s a photo op with the Easter Bunny, too.

A Ride on the Easter Bunny Express

I’m not exactly sure of the connection between Easter and train rides, but there seem to be plenty of Easter- train-ride type activities for kids. I guess any excuse for a train ride. And the Whippany Railway Museum is no exception. The Annual Easter Bunny Express will be making its way through northern New Jersey on Saturday.

Hop on at the museum in Whippany for a 45-minute ride along the Morristown and Erie Railway’s historic Whippanong Trail. The Easter Bunny and his helpers will be onboard doling out treats for the little ones. Bring your camera so you can get a shot of the kids with the bunny. Buy your tickets online because they sell out early. Last I checked, the 1 pm ride was already sold out.

Turnpike Tikes is back after a returned-to-work-from-maternity-leave-just-in-time-for-the-kids-to-get-totally-sick hiatus. I’ve missed you dear readers and sincerely apologize for my radio silence, but I imagine you all can understand.

So, when I came across this sweet little new iBook called “My Daddy” by a local New Jersey dad, I just couldn’t let it go without a mention, especially since we’re drenched in rain and today seems like just the greatest day to curl up with a book and the kids.

Montclair dad Joel Carino penned and illustrated the iPad app after his 4-year-old son Harry gave him the idea. The story, which made its App Store debut at the end of March is about a little boy who asks his dad what he wants to be when he grows up. Dad proceeds to tell him all his fantasy lives — dad as super hero, dad as race car driver, dad as steam train conductor. In all his various incarnations, his little boy is by his side.

Joel Carino with his wife Emily Zelner, his son Harry and daughter Lilly

The book is narrated by Joel (and Harry, too) and for 99 cents, it’s a great little investment. My Tike loved having me read it to him and also liked that he could “read” it to himself by letting Joel narrate. The book also works on the iPhone and iPod Touch, but is best for the iPad.

Joel works by day for an educational nonprofit company based in California. I sat down with him to find how how he went about creating an iPad app for his son and what the experience has been like for him.

Turnpike Tikes: What gave you the idea for My Daddy?

Joel Carino: My son, Harry, he’s the inspiration for this. One night I was reading to him in bed and he asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up and it got me thinking about all the things that we want to be when we’re kids and how those things don’t happen, most of them.

TT: This is your first App and you’re not a professional programmer. Was it hard to do?

JC: It was a bit of an arduous task. I tried coding it  myself, but it just was not something that I was able to do. I looked into trying to try to hire someone but that was pretty expensive. Eventually, I found this guy in England who sells code templates for different uses for $29. He made it sound like all you do is plug your stuff into it, but it was more work than that. I tore my hair out for about two weeks trying to get it done.

TT: Was Harry involved in creating the book?

JC:  He was very much involved. He even suggested some extra adventures. He considers it our book.  I only had an hour a night to work on it. And every morning I showed him what I’d done the night before. He was very excited.

TT: Do you have plans for another iBook?

JC: I’m working on a different story called Don’t Eat the Delivery Man, it’s in the Brothers Grimm spirit. I also would like to do one for daughters, that’s either with a father and a daughter or a mother and a daughter.

TT: You’ve published traditional books for the educational company you work for. What do you think of the eBook market?

JC: . I think this is the way things are going. The costs for publishing a paperback book are so high and the barriers are so great that a lot of really good books never get published. This is a good way for people who have a good idea to actually get it out there. I think it’s the wave of the future.

My Daddy - a father and son fantasy adventure

It’s maple sugar season and no, I’m not suggesting you trek up to Vermont this weekend to get a fresh jug — although being married to a New Englander, I’ve learned that the proposition doesn’t sound totally insane to some people. But to my great relief, I’ve discovered that there’s maple sugar to be had right here in New Jersey. Who knew?

Maple Sugar in Tenafly?!

Talking maple sugar in Tenafly

Over at the Tenafly Nature Center in none other than Tenafly, N.J., you can meander through the center on Sunday and learn how to identify a sugar maple tree, find out the history of syrup production and how it’s changed over the centuries. You’ll get to see tapped trees and watch sap being boiled down to syrup. Everyone gets a taste of the fresh syrupy goodness. If you’ve got babies, bring the Bjorn because strollers aren’t allowed. The nature center has great walks, so sign up for a walk after the tour and stretch your legs. The weather’s warm…. finally!

Sugar Shack Time

What’s maple sugar season without a trip to a sugar shack? It is for eating, right? Well, I found one sugar shack option. It isn’t exactly in New Jersey. It’s in Ossining at the Teatown Lake Reservation. On Sunday, they’ll be tapping their trees throughout the day, beginning at 1. You can watch the process at Warren’s sugarhouse for $5.

But if you want to enjoy the yummy good stuff, hold off until the following Saturday (March 19) for their annual pancake brunch. They’ve got hotcakes, sausages, coffee and plenty of breakfast bounty. And, of course, maple syrup. After you’re done eating, burn off those breakfast calories wandering through the nature trails.

You can even purchase your very own maple sugar jug for $40. They’ll slap your name on it, hook it to a tree in February and give you the sugar you get come March. The price also includes a pancake breakfast. Of course, this requires some amount of advance planning. So next year…

Contact: Make reservations here.

Maple in Millbrook

Boiling down the sugar in Millbrook

Head down to the Delaware Water Gap this Saturday for a free demonstration of the sugaring process at the historic village of Millbrook. After you get your fill of syrup making, check out the village and the historic buildings. The village is a re-enactment of a turn-of-the-century village. In the summertime volunteers play out life in the 1850s to 1900.

New Jersey has another notch to put on its belt: it is home of the first Texas Weiner, or so say Jersey hot dog fanatics. Apparently the chili smothered variation of a hot dog was not born in the Lone Star State, as one might assume, but in our very own Garden State. You go New Jersey!

If you’re serious about your hot dogs — and I’m talking about the heart-burn-inducing-nothing-healthy-here variety — you have to check out Hot Grill in Clifton. It’s an institution. The place has been sitting on Lexington Street right at the entrance to RT-46 since 1941 and it doesn’t look like they’ve changed their signage or decor ever since.

Their Texas Weiners (Paterson gets credit for inventing the totally unhealthy tradition, and I guess they came up with the funky spelling, too) are deep fried, nestled in a little white bun and topped with mustard, onion and spicy-sweet beef chili. If that’s not enough for you, you can also get French fries topped with gravy, sauce, or cheese.

But Hot Grill is more than just deep fried hot dogs smothered in chili (as if that weren’t enough.) It’s an experience. The place is basically always open (8 am to 1 am, except on weekends when it’s open until 2 am). You walk up to the counter and give your order to one of the cashiers who barks your order back to the cooks in the back. After you get your food on a little paper plate, you meander over to a Formica-topped table and gobble it up amongst customers who appear to be as loyal to Hot Grill as a person can get.

You don’t have to get a Texas Weiner. You can also get a regular ol’ hot dog or a hamburger or roast beef or a slew of other basic sandwiches. But most folks are there for their hot dogs. They sell soft serve ice cream and milk shakes in only one size.

I’ll leave you with this old Hot Grill ad, which is just awesome:

What: The Hot Grill
Where: 669 Lexington Avenue, Clifton, NJ
Hours: Sunday to Thursday, 8 am to 1 am; Friday and Saturday, 8 am to 2 am