Our crazy viral post.

Last month something amazing happened.  I wrote a post on my website about the Free and Almost Free Places to Visit in New Jersey and the Surrounding States.  The post went viral.  It exploded!  There were so many wonderful comments and suggestions for places.  It definitely kept me busy for a good few weeks.  I am grateful for all the wonderful responses, and apologize if I couldn't get to answer all of them!  Here is the link to the post: http://www.happyfamilyart.com/Free-Places-For-Family-Fun-NJ.html  I hope you like it!

Stony Hill Farm Corn Maze.

We went to Stony Hill Farm and Market to their 10 acre corn maze in Chester, NJ. It was great. We got lost in the yellow part and kept walking in circles. I had a bit of claustrophobia. Corn was everywhere.  We came out eventually, giggling wildly and happy to be out. 

They also had a miner maze for the kids. We got 4 bags of dirt with gem stones and spend some time sifting it, while having coffee and apple cider. It was fun for all of us. We even brought a bag of dirt home for grandpa to sift through.

They have a few other activities and mazes.  You can see them on their website here: http://www.stonyhillgardens.com/

It is a great place to go on a sunny fall day!  We were there on a week day.  I am pretty sure on a weekend it is way more busy.  I like the empty field all to ourselves though!

Strawberry Picking and Hacklebarney State Park

When we went to pick strawberries for the very first time in our lives I randomly picked a farm from NJ list of farms. Just pointed a finger to a place on a page. It turned out to be Donaldson Farms in Hackettstown, NJ, http://www.donaldsonfarms.net/.

Luckily for us, the place was amazingly beautiful, with rows and rows of strawberries. The store inside was nice also. There were a few goats in the shed and a 'pump it yourself' underground well. My kids ran ahead when they saw the animals, and by the time my hubby and I walked slowly over to them, the little one was having a deep and meaningful conversation with one of the goats. :) The strawberries were delicious as well.

After the farm we went to find a good place to sit down and have a picnic. We drove around for a bit, enjoyed some of the sights in the area. Wound up landing in Hacklebarney State Park, http://www.stateparks.com/hacklebarney.html. After the picnic we decided to take a little hike. In Hacklebarney there are a few decent sized rivers creating multiple waterfalls on their way down. My kids really loved skipping across the waterfalls on the giant boulders. Luckily we came home with all our faces intact.

The delicious strawberries we picked:

Hacklebarney State Park: