Suburban Organics

It's very important to me to feed my family healthfully.  I try to provide organic produce and meats as much as possible.  Because organic is often more expensive than conventionally farmed produce, I've searched extensively for ways to save money on these products.  Last spring, when I came across Suburban Organics via a Groupon offer I thought it was worth a try.

I was honestly thrilled.  Not only did it seem that their prices were below that of our local grocery stores, the assortment available, quality and flexibility of the program really impressed me.  Unlike other organic delivery programs I looked into, they did not require you to sign up for an extended amount of time.  You could choose to receive a delivery every week or every other.  They had four sizes of boxes to choose from, and you could choose all veggies, all fruit, or a combo of both.  Plus, each week they post what will be in the box.  If it has something you don't like, you can make substitutions.  My aversion to grapefruit and parsnips?  I never have to get stuck with them!  Another plus is that they purchase from local farmers whenever possible, which is important to me.

And the quality?  Well, I'll confess, for the past few weeks we've been getting these incredible apples.  When I open the box on Friday night the first thing I do is stash the apples where my kids can't see them.  That way they are all mine!  Overall, we've been very happy.  Just once, during the summer, I received a red pepper with an icky mushy spot.  So I emailed them, and they credited my account for the cost of the pepper.  Way easier than if I had accidentally grabbed a bad pepper at the grocery store - and who hasn't done that while shopping with an unruly preschooler?

Now for the REALLY GOOD NEWS!  If you are interested in trying Suburban Organics yourself, they have offered my readers $10 off their first order!  Just enter "Lehigh Valley Savers" into the discount code field when signing up.  Now, before ordering, it is important that you check that they deliver to your area - deliveries go to many parts of PA, NJ and DE.  So be sure to check that your zip code is in their delivery area. To do so, click HERE .   Keep in mind, this offer is only good till 7/31/2012.  So try it out soon!

Sunday's at The Allentown Art Museum

Today the girls and I spent the afternoon at the Allentown Art Musuem

The Museum has free admmission on Sundays. They also have a program called Artventures which is a free Family drop-in art workshop. The project rotates monthly. Using one of the art pieces they have on display as inspiration, they provide art materials and suggestions to create your own piece of art. On the 2nd floor, in addition to the workshop area (sponsored by Crayola) they have an entire kids area which features rotating art displays, art books, blocks, puzzles and other areas where art can be created.

Today the girls and I worked on an abstract piece meant to give the feeling of winter. We also worked on a paper collage.

The above is my youngest's collage made to represent a penguin wearing a skirt.

Although the children's area was my girls favorite place to be, we did spend some time wandering through the exhibits and admiring some of the art work.

All in all, it took up about 2 hours of our Sunday. A nice, FREE family outing!

Open Gym Time

Every Monday, The Lower Macungie Township offers an Open Gym Time for infants through age 8 (accompanied by an adult) it is from 1:30-2:30 pm. They even lower the hoops, so the kids can have a better chance to make a basket. It's a fun time, the kids can run around playing with balls, or just run around. Sometimes a game of Duck, Duck, Goose or Freeze Tag is organized.

For a stay at home Mom, it's a nice way to break up a Monday, and it's free! Afterwards, if the girls are still up for more, we often stop at the Library to read a few books in the children's area before we head home.

Yoga

I started my day out by attending an Ivengar Yoga Class. I have found a yoga studio that I really enjoy - Open Heart Yoga & Wellness Center in Orefield. The price for a drop in class is $15, although the first class is free. The studio encourages you to sign up for an 8 week session, which costs $96. If you are dropping in, it is best to call ahead because many classes fill up quickly.

A good tip about the area yoga studios is that most of them will offer you a free introductory class. This is helpful if you are new to yoga, or if you just want to see the teaching style of the instructor. There are a number of yoga studios in the area you can try out. A good resource to find studios is the free Natural Awakenings Magazine you find by the exit at the grocery store.

ART Adventure

I love reading The Go Guide in Thursday's Morning Call paper. It is a wonderful resource for finding things to do in our area. It highlights a nice mix of kid friendly as well as adult only events and activities. I often find things to do for our weekends through this guide.

My pick for this weekend, that I found through the Go Guide, is Animalistic ART Adventures. Artists from the Banana Factory will read stories and create animal artwork with the kids. This event is on Saturday, March 7th from 10am till noon. It's FREE! It's at the Northampton Community College Fowler Family Southside Center, Fourth floor, rm 403 - 511 E. Third St, Bethlehem, Pa. Call 610-332-8665.

The Lehigh Valley Zoo

The Lehigh Valley Zoo has been receiving a lot of press lately, because of it's fight, and subsequent win for State financial aid to keep running.

I guess because of this, the zoo has been on my mind lately. So, last Saturday my family and I went there. In my mind, the zoo is a warm weather activity, but surprisingly, it was a fun cold weather day, too! During the off season, adult tickets are discounted to $6.50 - instead of their in season $9.50 price. Plus, The 2009 Lehigh Valley Easy Pages (one of the many phone books we all receive!)had four coupons for a free child admission with the purchase of an adult admission. This meant my family of four toured the zoo for just $13!

A few of the exhibits were closed because the animals could not tolerate the cold weather, but most exhibits were opened. As usual, the River Otters were active and playful, and were my kids favorite part (ok, my favorite, too!)

The Allentown Symphony

Have you been to The Allentown Symphony? I have not. But an ad today caught my eye. I have two daughters, one is almost 2, the other is almost 4. So I am always looking for inexpensive activities to take them to. Well, The Allentown Symphony does something called The Musical Treasure Chest. It's for children ages 3-5. According to their website The Musical Treasure Chest is:

Designed to engage the youngest of music lovers, the Allentown Symphony's Musical Treasure Chest provides a rich musical experience to children ages 3-5, beautifully interpreted by a master storyteller and the professional musicians of the Allentown Symphony Orchestra, with a new instrument featured every time! Performances are very casual, with the audience on the carpeted floor of the new Rodale Community Room on the 3rd floor of Symphony Hall. Best of all, tickets are just $6 per person!

Wow, $6 per person! That really is a great price, in my opinion. According to the website, every month they feature a different instrument. This month it happens to be the viola. This month it is being held on Thursday, March 19th at 9:30 am and 11:00 am and Saturday, March 21st at 10 am. I'm really looking forward to checking this out with my eldest daughter.