Sunshine & Pumpkins

Oct 25 was a perfect day in the park for pumpkin carving, cider-drinking, chatting and playing — the fall leaves were full of color, and the sun was shining. Thanks to Rachel, Christine and Donna for all the snacks, tools and organization, and to Dennis and David for the photos.

Rafa really goes for the pumpkin

Pumpkin Carving Postponed Until Sunday

The Pumpkin carving in Douglas Park has been postponed to Sunday Oct 25 at 1pm due to rainy weather. Bring pumpkins to carve, or stop by for cider & snacks.

There will also be an impromptu Friends meeting today, Saturday at 12:30 at the Warner Library.We’ll meet up in the children’s room.

Initial Playground Area Plan

Initial playground area plan

Here’s a look at the initial playground area plan prepared by our village architect (thank you!).  We’ll also have it at the pumpkin carving this Saturday, so stop by if you’d like to talk.

Two reminders: (1) this is a draft high-level plan, not final; and  (2) the budget may not allow all of this to be built at once.

Upcoming events

Just a reminder, we have two upcoming events:

Saturday, October 24th at 1pm, come to the park to carve Halloween pumpkins with your neighbors, or just stop by for a cup of hot cider and a donut.

Sunday, November 8 at 3:30om, David will lead us on a walk of the park pointing out invasive plants, and talking about their impact on the forest’s ecosystems.

Hope to see you there!

Trees

Two trees were cut down near the cemetery gate in mid October.

Pumpkin Carving Sat. Oct 24

Saturday, October 24, 1pm. Bring your pumpkins and carving tools and meet us in Douglas Park for an afternoon of pumpkin carving. We’ll supply the cider & snacks.  All welcome.  Bring your silly ghost stories too. (Pumpkins go home with you afterwards.)

Haunted Hayride

The annual haunted hayride rides through Douglas Park again this October. Looks like a new company will be putting on the show this year:

http://thehauntingofsleepyhollow.com/

Fri Oct 16, Sat Oct 17, Fri Oct 23, Sat Oct 24 and Fri Oct 30. Tickets at JP Doyles.

Early Sept Update

On the playground, our village architect is working on plans for the site. On the volunteer side,

Story Garden

Another bit of inspiration and reference…This summer we visited the new Story Garden at the Children’s Discovery Center in Binghamton, NY.  My favorite part of the Story Garden was the series of small houses scattered throughout the site: a Three Bears house, a miniature Victorian house perfect for pretend tea parties, and a “tree” house, among others. The kids loved exploring the houses, and running between them. Perfect for a rainy day. Overall I think the concept of multiple tiny houses was really inspired. Also, the “tree” house was really built into the side of a hill, so while it felt high, it was also safe, and had multiple ways to enter. Sorry for the lack of pictures, we were so busy with kids we forgot the cameras! You can see a small pic of the treehouse in this article.

Report from Forester’s visit

Our state DEC urban forester visited the park last week and gave some much-appreciated advice on both trees directly around the playground and elsewhere in the park. David’s summary follows.