Vacation!

The Children's Museum at Holyoke's vacation schedule is beginning this week. We will be having extended hours and will be open 7 days a week until January 2nd (the schedule will then revert to regular business hours). The vacation schedule is as follows: Monday through Saturday 10:00 am through 4:00 pm and Sunday 12:00 pm through 4:00 pm. However, we are closed on December 24th, December 25th, and January 1st. (picture source: comeniuspaths.netfirms.com)

Another exception to the vacation schedule is New Year's Eve, December 31st. The First Night Jr. event will be happening in Holyoke Heritage State Park from 10:00 am until 3:00 pm. The museum will be open from 10:00 am until 2:30 pm, and a special ball-drop finale will be happening at 2:45 pm at the Visitor's Center. Advance tickets are $5.00 (can be purchased from the museum) and include tons of fun activities (see previous post), and tickets bought at the event are $6.00. Come and celebrate with us! (picture source: mlive.com)

Ashley would like to extend a huge THANK YOU to all of her regular Think and Play attendees! She has had so much fun getting to know all of the kiddos and watching them all learn and grow each week. The Think and Play Series for Preschoolers will be taking a short break as Ashley will be leaving the Children's Museum at Holyoke at the end of December. But please stay tuned to the blog to find out when the program will be beginning again! (picture source: msnbc.msn.com)

THANK YOU!

Recently, our water table has been given a facelift... and if I may say so, it was a much needed one! We are fortunate enough to have a water table that is a replica of the CT river and are able to use something fun as a very valuable teaching tool. However, we did not have the funding to make our CT river look as beautiful as we had hoped...

But the Beavers Club has come to our rescue (AGAIN! They also installed our beautiful wooden benches and fence as well as our Tot Lot). Check out these amazing shots of the time and hard work that these men donated to us!
And voila! A beautiful, new look to go along with the rest of our updates. All of us here at the Children's Museum at Holyoke would like to whole heartedly thank the Beavers Club for being so generous! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

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As you plan out your holiday vacation time, please don't forget about our New Year's Eve celebration for children and Heritage State Park Event, First Night Jr. It takes place on December 31st from 10:00 am until 2:30 pm. Tickets are $6.00 per person (or $5.00 per person if bought in advance) and admission includes entry to the museum, unlimited rides on the Holyoke Merry-Go-Round, Ed Popielarczyk's Magical Moments, Roger Ticknell's renowned music and storytelling, balloon sculpting, face painting, and much much more! Come and meet your favorite WGBY characters and trek over to the Visitor's Center at 2:30 to watch our ball-drop finale. It's the best New Year's celebration for children in the Valley, so don't miss it! Tickets are on sale now! Also, Click here to see our extended holiday vacation hours! (picture source: smileosmile.com)

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Finally, join us this week for Ashley's Think and Play Series for Preschoolers where children will learn about animals in the winter! On Friday, December 11th, find out where all the animals go during winter! Learn about animal homes, animal adaptations, and some animals that just LOVE the cold. We will be making our own polar bear puppets to take home. The program will begin at 9:30 am, and admission is $6.00 per family (free for members). Anyone arriving after 10:00 am will be subject to regular admission prices.