Creative Connections for August

August is the last full month of summer family fun! Read on to find out more about special days and fun activities for families to do together during August. There are inks to crafts and recipes you can create with your children during July to bring out the inner chef, adventurer, and artist in your child.

Below are a few ideas with links to crafts and recipes you can create with your children this August!

Create with your children – If you have trouble opening the hyperlink, left click the link and chose Open Hyperlink

8/1 National Night Out is an evening in the United States and Canada where Civilians, organizations, and the Metropolitan Police Department join hands to enhance the relationship between neighborhoods and communities. They look at this as a wonderful way to bring everyone together for a positive cause.Join your local police department in building police-community partnerships and help make your neighborhood safer, by attending a local National Night Out initiative. Neighborhoods host block parties, parades and other community events helping to bring the police and public together under positive circumstances. Come join in the fun with Bridgewater National Night Out!

8/1 August Moon Festival-The August Moon is the brightest moon of the year, so much so that it almost rivals the sun, almost though.

8/2 It’s obvious what you do on National Coloring Book Day, but did you know that when you spend time coloring, you start to relax, it reduces stress and you feel a sense of achievement! So, today, National Coloring Book Day, throw a coloring party! Get some inexpensive coloring books and crayons, invite some friends over and color your stress away! To help reduce stress levels and to share some quiet time with your child(ren) break out the coloring books and crayons for National Coloring Book Day! There are some great free coloring pages on this website. http://savingtowardabetterlife.com/2019/07/national-coloring-book-day-august-2-2019-free-coloring-page-downloads-and-a-giveaway/

8/3 According to the Watermelon Board, watermelon is considered both a fruit and a vegetable. Like fruit, watermelon has seeds & juicy sweet flesh. A watermelon is also considered a gourd related to cucumbers and pumpkins and it is cleared from the field like a vegetable crop! So, eat your fruits and vegetables on National Watermelon Day!

8/4 Today we celebrate National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day! We have Ruth Graves Wakefield to thank for chocolate chips, we can also celebrate her on Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, because without her adding chocolate chunks to sugar cookie dough, who knows when the decadent simple treat would’ve been created!! Do you have a favorite family chocolate chip cookie recipe I know in my family, I have several recipes based on each of our family members cookie preferences? Some people like them crispy and crunchy and others like them soft and gooey. Do you make yours with butter, Crisco, or a combination of both? Whatever your preference, why not bake up a double batch, one for your family and one for your child’s class?

8/6 American Family Day: the day encourages families to spend time with one another. Unlike some other familial holidays, the proclamation of the day discourages gift giving. Instead, the observance urges focusing on family relationships. Play games outdoors or go for a walk, pick up some fresh fruit together, visit grandparents and bring them a picnic lunch, take an art class together, tour a museum, try out a new recipe and get the whole family involved in the cooking. https://nationaltoday.com/american-family-day/

8/9 National Book Lovers Day! Each day for individuals who like to read, Book Lovers Day encourages you to relax and relax by having an enjoyable book. From shaded spots under arching trees to being hidden up warm in mattress, there is not any better method to celebrate Book Lovers Day than the hours lost inside a book. Whether you stay in bed, hit the beach, or find the perfect spot under the shade of a tree, kick back and relax with your favorite book. You can enjoy…national book lovers’ day.

8/9 Somerset County 4-H Fair. What could be better…food, vendors, animals and lots of fun events. Bring the whole family. https://4histops.org/events/somerset-county4h-fair2023

8/10 National S’mores Day! Summertime is finally here and with it comes camping and gathering around the firepit in the great outdoors. Originating right here in the U.S.A., the s’more has us salivating in anticipation of smashing those tasty, toasted marshmallows with a slab of chocolate between two graham crackers. Check out the History of National S’mores Day ! Check out several delicious smores recipes.

814-8/21-Meet the Teacher for the next school year 2023-2024 at 5:00-5:30 pm.

8/15-Waddlers

8/16 -Preschool

8/21-PreKindergarten

8-24-Discovery Preschool

8/15 We have C. Goodfellow to thank for National Lemon Meringue Day! She founded the dessert; her own cooking school and is the inventor of lemon custard! Served as a dessert, the lemon meringue pie is a baked pie made with a shortbread pastry, with a lemon curd filling and a fluffy meringue topping. Have you ever made your own lemon meringue pie? It’s not hard to do but does take a little time. You can use a short cut and buy a pre-made frozen pie shell to cut down the time! 😉

8/16 On National Airborne Day, we honor the U.S. Airborne Forces and the first parachute jump on August 16, 1940. During WWII, the U.S. Army conducted the first parachute jump during combat! President George Bush created National Airborne Day in 2001.

8/18 National Fajita Day-It’s a day to celebrate the authentic taste of the Southwest with the fiesta of flavor known as the fajita. Throw in some awesome black beans or even add a little hot sauce, guacamole, sour cream, or cheese. Enjoy some delicious fajitas with the family.

8/21 Started in 2009 by a group of beekeepers, World Honeybee Day honors honeybees and beekeepers. The concept behind this day is to bring together beekeepers & bee associations to connect with communities to advance beekeeping. While honeybees can be intimidating, they create something very tasty for us to eat and cook with! Honey! Create this simple thumbprint craft with your little one(s)

8/21 To honor our population over the age of 60, President Ronald Reagan issued a Proclamation creating National Senior Citizen Day! To quote his Proclamation, “For all they have achieved throughout life and for all they continue to accomplish, we owe older citizens our thanks and a heartfelt salute. We can best demonstrate our gratitude and esteem by making sure that our communities are good places in which to mature and grow older.” On National Senior Citizen Day, we should spend time to appreciate those grandparents and older adults in our lives for all they have done for us and society. On National Senior Citizens Day take some time to let the older adults in your life know that you appreciate them. Perhaps take some time to make these colorful placemats for your local senior center to use!

8/23 Kangaroo Kids will be CLOSED for an In-Service Day for Staff.

8/24 In honor of the anniversary of the waffle iron, National Waffle Day is observed on August 24^th. Waffles are created by heating waffles between two iron plates which give the waffle it’s unique characteristics. Belgian waffles originated in the U.S. at the New York World’s Fair in 1964. Do you prefer your waffles as breakfast food or a dessert? How do you like your waffles. I love homemade buttermilk waffles while my younger children love the frozen boxed variety! I prefer them as breakfast food while my husband prefers them as dessert with ice cream! If you have never tried to make waffles before, it’s super simple, the hardest thing about making a waffle is waiting for the timer to go off on the waffle iron or the toaster!

8/31 Today, National Trail Mix Day, honors this healthy snack. Traditionally, trail mix consists of granola, nuts & dried fruit. Many hikers take it with them as an easy, lightweight, nutritious, and portable snack. Whether you make your own or buy it pre-made, it is a great meal on the go! Need a quick healthy snack recipe that your kids can make by themselves for themselves and the family? Reach for trail mix ingredients you likely have in your pantry already. Put out bowls of different nuts, small crackers, cereal, pretzels, dried fruits, and small chocolates for your child to make a trail mix that they like! They will feel proud they were able to make a recipe without help!

Here are great websites that detail fun & often free things to do in New Jersey every month! Call ahead and make sure the activities are happening before you head out for your day!

For additional things to do within Somerset County, check out the Somerset County tourism page weekly! https://visitsomersetnj.org/

Don’t forget to check out the Kangaroo Kids Website for information on camp activities!