Fall means back to school, Halloween, cool nights and, around here, the Corn Maze as one of the best family and kid activities around!

If you’ve never been to a corn maze, it’s a very cool. Here’s how it works:

1. Let the corn grow super tall – as in at least 6 or 7 feet.
2. Drive the tractor through cutting a path in the corn.
3. Create a maze with these paths complete with dead-ends, spirals, forks in the road and just one or a few paths to freedom!

The maze is open 7 days a week from 10 am – 7 pm at the Farm Institute, Edgartown. The Admission Fee of $5/$10 and benefits the FARM Institute.

Of course, buying pumpkins, apples and fresh apple cider round out the experience of cool crisp air and the sound of waves crashing from nearby South Beach. And don’t forget to wander around the FARM – beautiful animals and a store complete with FARM grown vegetables and meats are available. My favorite is the sausage made from their own, naturally-raised pork, salt, pepper and fennel. The flavor is divine!

Image credit: hassan abdel-rahman

Okay, so it’s not quite warm enough to hit the beach, but the fun on Martha’s Vineyard really doesn’t stop when the cool breezes start to blow. This Saturday, September 19, is Oak Bluff’s annual Tivoli Day Festival. Marking the end of the summer, this party is one big neighborhood celebration meets huge street fair.

Live music, awesome food from local restaurants and arts and crafts for the island’s artisans fill the streets. Not to be missed, many of the Circuit Avenue merchants will be offering bargains left over from their summer stock. Tivoli Day is a always a family event and super kid friendly, with the children’s parade taking the top spot as one of the best parts of the day! The island’s youngest decorate bikes, wagons and, sometimes even their pets – before taking to the streets to show off their finery.

Oak Bluffs is known for the picturesque and charming Cottage City, a wonderful neighborhood of gingerbread cottages just beyond Circuit Ave. where Tivoli Day takes place. Whether it’s your first or fiftieth visit to OB, make sure you take time to take a stroll through to see the colors as they hold the warmth of summer just a little longer than the rest of the island!

Admission is free and the festivities run from 12-5 pm. FYI, the rain date is September 20. For more information contact Dennis daRosa at 508-693-0110 or dendarosa@yahoo.com.

If you’re looking for an Oak Bluffs vacation rental, please contact me!

So here we are on Martha’s Vineyard, surrounded by water and aquatic life…but it’s kind of hard to see! I mean crabs and clams and starfish abound, but what about all of the other life that hangs out in the depths below? Thankfully, the new aquarium in Oak Bluffs (right downtown!) lets us see everything.

Waters of the World features sharks, stingrays, jellyfish, invertebrates, alligators, anaconda, eels, barracuda stingrays and many other exotic fish. They also have special exhibits that showcase the aquatic life and ecosystems from areas around the globe like: the  Caribbean, the Nile River, the Amazon, the Everglades and the Great Barrier Reef.

Visit the touching pools, watch the sharks being fed and make sure you check out the retail store where you can start your own home aquarium.  Visit www.watersoftheworld.org for details, hours and directions.

When most people think of the Vineyard, they think sand, surf and sun. But the agricultural community on the island is truly thriving – from all of the working farms to the farmer’s markets to the community mantra, ‘go local!’

The FARM Institute takes it one step further, combining farming, education, conservation and kids. Their mission is:

The FARM Institute (TFI) is a teaching farm that educates and engages children and adults in sustainable agriculture through the diverse operations of a working farm. TFI provides year-round educational programs offering learning experiences in:

• The culture and history of Martha’s Vineyard farming;
• Farming (Field crops, produce, fruit, hay);
• Land preservation;
• Nutritional awareness;
• Humane livestock management (cattle, poultry, swine, sheep, goats);
• Entrepreneurial thinking and application

And if you’re coming to visit for the summer or even for a week or two, make sure to check out the FARM’s summer kid programs (download the 2009 brochure here):

WEE FARMERS for ages 2-4 – Info

SPROUTS for ages 4-5 – Info

FARMER FOR A DAY for ages 6-12

FULL DAY FARM-CAMP for ages 5-14 (FAQ)

HALF DAY FARM-CAMP for ages 6-14 (FAQ)

Work Income Sharing Project (WISP) for ages 11-15 (FAQ)

FUTURE FARMHANDS for ages 11-15

VINEYARD HERITAGE WEEK for ages 12-16

The FARM Institute is located in Edgartown’s Katama area where we have some great rental houses…it’s a beautiful area that features South Beach and a great bike path. Let me know if I can help you find the perfect rental.

It’s the little things that make Martha’s Vineyard so spectacular…fried clams on a hot august afternoon, finding the perfect purple clam shell on the beach, the sound of the foghorn in the distance as you fall asleep after a sun-soaked day at the beach. It’s also the ‘little people’ that make our island special – because of the joy they bring, but also because of the events and activities available to them.

One of my favorite kid things on the Island is called The Fabulists. This fabulous kid-friendly extension of the world famous Vineyard Playhouse - whose stage has featured the likes of Ted Danson, Amy Brenneman, Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal – is one of our greatest summer treats.

Every Saturday morning in July and August, kids from all over the island gather in a magical theater made of grass and trees to see an original, hilarious play that always includes audience participation. Deep in the woods of Tisbury, just outside of Vineyard Haven, follow the trail to The Fabulists’ outdoor amphitheater where you’ll watch mermaids and pirates and geese and all other manner of make believe and real Vineyard characters come alive.

IT IS SO MUCH FUN!!!

(Great for ages 0-100)

Tickets are available at the door:
$7 general admission.
Children under 2 are free.
Group rates available.
Cash or check only.

Directions to the Amphitheater From Vineyard Haven:
The Tisbury Amphitheater is located at The Tashmoo Overlook in Vineyard Haven on State Road. Drive out towards West Tisbury just past the Tisbury business district on State Road. Just beyond West Spring Street on the right, there is a pull-out and parking for the overlook and theater. There will be Playhouse personnel on hand to guide you.