Category: Family Fun

Treasure Hunt 22/02/24

Dear Donna,

We have been using this weight for a door stop. It’s super heavy and has a 4K on it. I think it is brass but I’m not sure.

Can you give us any information on it? We know it’s old because it belonged to my husband’s father. That’s all we know other than it works for a door stop.

Stacey from Tilton

Dear Stacey,

It took me a minute and some research to figure out your door stop, so thanks for the opportunity to learn something new!

What you have is a piece of sports memorabilia. It’s called a shot put and the 4K is the weight of it. That translates into about 8 pounds. It’s meant to be thrown. Then the distance is measured in field competition.

The value of older brass ones is in the range of $100, so you have a treasure for a door stop. I’m glad you have a new use for your shot put.

Kiddie Pool 22/02/24

Family fun for the weekend

High-flying show

• The Grand Shanghai Circus will show off their acrobatic feats in shows at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) this Saturday, Feb. 26, at 2 and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 27, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $24.50 to $54.50. Search “Grand Shanghai Circus” to see clips of their shows featuring aerial acrobatics, juggling and more.

Fun with pool noodles

• The Children’s Museum of New Hampshire (2 Washington St. in Dover; childrens-museum.org, 742-2002) is open Tuesdays through Sundays, with sessions from 9 a.m. to noon all six days as well as from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays. Admission costs $11 per person, $9 for 65+ (no charge for children under 1). On Thursday, Feb. 24, catch the second day of the Pool Noodle Workshop with Homeslice Puppetry. At 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., the museum will host a virtual class by Eric from Homeslice and provide materials so kids can make a puppet to take home, according to the website, which says the workshop is included in admission to a Thursday session. The website describes the project as being good for ages 3 and up with a grownup to help. Or head to the museum on Friday — both Feb. 25 and March 4 have “Science Friday” programming on the schedule. Reserve admission for the museum online.

Science outing

• The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center (2 Institute Drive in Concord; starhop.com, 271-7827) is open daily through Sunday, March 6, with sessions from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 1:30 to 4 p.m. There will be four planetarium shows daily, according to the website, which recommends purchasing timed tickets in advance. Admission costs $11.50 for adults, $10.50 for students and seniors and $8.50 for kids ages 3 to 12 (admission is free for children 2 and under; masks required for visitors over the age of 2). Planetarium show tickets cost $5 per person (free for children 2 and under); see the website for the schedule of planetarium shows.

• Though normally closed on Mondays, the SEE Science Center (200 Bedford St. in Manchester; see-sciencecenter.org, 669-0400) will be open Monday, Feb. 28, as well as Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Purchase reservations in advance via the website (masks are required for all visitors age 2 and up); admission costs $10 per person ages 3 and up.

Winter fun

• McIntyre Ski Area (50 Chalet Court in Manchester; 622-6159, mcintyreskiarea.com) has holiday hours: The lift is slated to operate daily through Saturday, March 5, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and on Sunday, March 6, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The snowtubing Bonneville Thrill Hill hours are 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1 to 3 p.m., 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., 6 to 8 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. daily through Saturday, March 5. See the website for daily updates on weather and ski conditions.

• NH Audubon is holding a “Winter Woodland Wander” on Tuesday, March 1, at the Massabesic Center (26 Audubon Way in Auburn; nhaudubon.org, 668-2045). A $15 ticket covers a family of four. During the hour-long program, attendees will hit the trails in search of tracks and other signs of wildlife, according to the website, where tickets can be purchased.

• Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum (18 Highlawn Road in Warner; indianmuseum.org, 456-2600) is holding a Snow Snake Winter Celebration on Saturday, Feb. 26, and Sunday, Feb. 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. Learn to play the Abenaki outdoor game Snow Snake, featuring a wooden snake. The outdoor event, which is free and open to the public, will also feature a used book sale. Admission to the museum itself costs $9 for adults, $8 for seniors and students, $7 for children 6 to 12 and $26 for a family of two adults and children under 18.

Treasure Hunt 22/02/17

Dear Donna,

I was wondering if you could give me some background on these two pieces of jewelry. They were given to me about 55 years ago. The one on the left has a little knob on the top and I was told that if you unscrew it you can put perfume inside. The one on the right is a pencil and it has a chain. It will extend, and you can use it to write.

J

Dear J,

What you have here are two useful pieces of costume jewelry. Both are gold-filled/plated (gold wash over a base metal). And both are mid 1900s in age. The styles and usefulness go back much further than that, though. If you do some research on chatelaines, you will find similar pieces and how they were worn and used during the Victorian era.

If you were going to a dance then you might have on your chatelaine a dance card holder, perfume, a comb etc. Most back in that period of time were sterling silver, gold, etc.

Either then or in a more modern version, they are ingenious pieces for a bracelet or pin. The value on either would be about $20 each. For usefulness, priceless!

Kiddie Pool 22/02/17

Family fun for the weekend

Lunch with the gnomes

Take the “little” in your life to the “Little Lunch Date” at Chunky’s Cinema Pubs (707 Huse Road, Manchester; 151 Coliseum Ave., Nashua; 150 Bridge St., Pelham, chunkys.com) on Friday, Feb. 18, at 11:30 a.m. featuring the 2011 movie Gnomeo & Juliet (G). The movie features the voices of Emily Blunt and James McAvoy as star-crossed lovers from the red- and blue-hat having gnome societies, respectively. Admission is free but you can secure a seat in advance by purchasing $5 food vouchers.

Theater with the Marches

Get the antics of Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth in Little Women, the Broadway musical as performed by the Palace Youth Theatre, on Tuesday, Feb. 22, and Wednesday, Feb. 23, at the Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for adults, $12 for kids ages 6 to 12.

Winterfest with the neighbors

If you are looking for some fun and an excuse for a drive, Lowell is holding its Winterfest during the evening on Friday, Feb. 18, and on Saturday, Feb. 19, at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium (50 E. Merrimack St. in Lowell, Mass.). The event runs from 5 to 10 p.m. on Friday and from noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday, according to the event’s Facebook page, which lists plans as including entertainment, food trucks, a soup competition, an arts market, a youth mural competition, ice skating and family activities. See lowellwinterfest.com.

Basketball with the Wildcats

Catch the women’s UNH basketball team on Saturday, Feb. 19, at 1 p.m. when they play University at Albany at Lundholm Gymnasium at UNH in Durham. On Wednesday, Feb. 23, the women’s Wildcats team will play New Jersey Institute of Technology at 6 p.m. Tickets to individual games cost $10, $8 for seniors and 12 and under. See unhwildcats.com for details.

Storytime with a snail

The Bookery Manchester (844 Elm St. in downtown Manchester; bookerymht.com) will feature Dashka Slater’s books Escargot and A Book for Escargot, both illustrated by Sydney Hanson, at its weekly storytime and craft on Saturday, Feb. 19, at 11:30 a.m. After the books, kids can make a paper salad. Register for the event online.

Kiddie Pool 22/02/10

Family fun for the weekend

One bird, two bird

• This Saturday, Feb. 12, and Sunday, Feb. 13, is the Backyard Winter Bird Survey — an excuse to do a little winter bird watching and enjoy both birds and math out in the wilds of your own backyard. Go to the New Hampshire Audubon’s nhbirdrecords.org to download the forms and read the rules for counting birds, which can be done for as long or short a time as you and your fellow bird watchers would like. Along with more than two dozen bird species, the form also asks for the number of red and gray squirrels spotted.

Wildcats basketball

• For those looking for some in-person college basketball, the University of New Hampshire is allowing masked spectators to Wildcats games this season, according to unhwildcats.com. This Saturday, Feb. 12, at noon you can catch the women’s team play the Binghamton University Bearcats at noon at Lundholm Gymnasium at UNH in Durham. On Monday, Feb. 14, catch the men’s team in their game against UMBC at 4 p.m. (the game is a reschedule of the Jan. 2 game and tickets to that game will be honored). Tickets cost $10, $8 for seniors and 12 and under.

Free day

• As with every second Saturday, New Hampshire residents who go to the Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St. in Manchester; currier.org, 669-6144) on Saturday, Feb. 12, will get in for free. See the website for the museum’s Covid policies. The museum is open on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Current exhibits include “As Precious As Gold: Carpets from the Islamic World,” “WPA in NH: Philip Guston and Musa McKim” and “Tomie DePaola at the Currier.”

Also scheduled for the Currier on Saturday: The state’s mobile vaccination van will be on site from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Register to get a shot at currier.org/event/vaccine-van.

Science Friday

• Little scientists can head to Children’s Museum of New Hampshire (6 Washington St., Dover; 742-2002, childrens-museum.org) on Friday, Feb. 11, for another installment of Science Friday. The Friday sessions (which run through the end of April) feature “messy experiments and activities that focus on sensory fun,” according to the website. The events take place at 10 a.m. during the morning session (which runs from 9 a.m. to noon) or at 2 p.m. during the afternoon (from 1 to 4 p.m.). The activities are geared to ages 3 and up with the help of a grownup. To visit the museum, pay for admission ($11 for everyone over 1 year old, $9 for 65+) and reserve a time slot in advance.

Save the date: for JoJo Siwa

The JoJo Siwa D.R.E.A.M. The Tour will come to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St. in Manchester; snhuarena.com) on Tuesday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m. The tour is rescheduled from May 2020 (tickets for that show are valid here) but new tickets are available.

Treasure Hunt 22/02/10

Dear Donna,

We use this pitcher every Christmas, as my mother did as well while I was growing up. I’m wondering if you could tell me anything about it. I’m not looking to sell because of family memories, but it’s always good to know more information.

Diane

Dear Diane,

I have a smile on my face reading your note. Glad to see your pitcher still being used and creating more memories.

Your pitcher has a very interesting history — good reading if you want to pursue it. What your mother has passed down is a piece of Heisey glass. It’s been around since the early 1900s and as I said has a long and interesting story.

Diane, Heisey glass has several patterns and even colors. Yours is called the Greek key pattern. You should be able to flip it over and on the bottom in the center you will see the trademark. It’s a diamond with an H in the center.

As long as it is in good condition with no damage, chips, cracks, fogging in the glass, etc., the value would be in the range of $50. The real value, though, is that you still use and cherish it.

Diane, I do think you would enjoy the history of Heisey if you get the time.

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