Nature center holiday gifts

You don’t have to put up with big city crowds and prices to enjoy wonderful holiday gift shopping. Connecticut’s nature centers offer a host of fabulous gift ideas perfect for any budget.

A good place to start is at the Flanders Nature Center located on the corner of Church Hill Rd. and Flanders Rd. in Woodbury. They are hosting a large Artisan Marketplace on Saturday and Sunday’s only through December 23. If you are looking for quality creations by local crafters this is the place to visit. Here you will find a wide variety of arts and crafts from beeswax candles, hand crafted quilts, hand knitted gloves and scarves using Flanders very own wool to handmade wreathes, honey, jewelry, and pottery. For additional information call 203-263-3711 or visit www.flandersnaturecenter.org.

Another stop might be, the Stamford Museum & Nature Center, on 39 Scofieldtown Rd. in Stamford. Here you will find a limited-edition micro-train LEGO® holiday ornament in conjunction with their All Aboard with Bill Probert & Friends exhibition. Probert designed the 2012 “Steam Locomotive” and each of the 200 limited-edition trains is numbered. Each train set comes with a link to a website with instructions on how to re-build or hang the train. The train is $15 and available at the front desk of the Bendel Mansion. For more information contact www.stamfordmuseum.org.

The Beardsley Zoo on 1875 Noble Avenue, Bridgeport is hosting the second annual Animal Art Show & Sale on Sun. Dec. 16 where you can choose from a wide selection of original artwork created by animals at Connecticut's only zoo. Each piece is one of a kind and suitable for framing. Meet and chat with zookeepers and enter to win a holiday masterpiece created by nine zoo animals! For a more permanent gift consider purchasing and engraving a 90 anniversary brick for your loved ones. Bricks will be displayed at the Zoo’s Front Gate for all to see! Contact Emily Bobowick at 203-394-6569 for more information or visit www.beardsleyzoo.org.

The Discovery Museum and Planetarium located on 4450 Park Ave. in Bridgeport is offering a great selection of fun and inexpensive gifts. Their science toys make great holiday trinkets for any child. You can choose from the classic Drinking Bird, Globe Slinkies or Freeze Dried Space Ice Cream! Membership is also a great gift because of the year round benefits it provides. Visit www.discoverymuseum.org for more information.

Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens, on 151 Brookdale Road in Stamford is offering a book by The University of Connecticut Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens Master Gardeners titled, “Recipes from Our Gardens” that sells for $20. This beautifully illustrated book offers 253 pages of recipes including Appetizers & Beverages, Soups & Salads, Vegetables & Side Dishes, Main Dishes, Breads & Rolls, Desserts and Cookies & Candy. For information call 203-322-6971 or visit http://bartlettarboretum.org.

The Plymouth Land Trust is selling T-shirts ($10) to support the restoration of the Plymouth Burying Ground, a site on the National Register of Historic Places, along with the rest of the village of Plymouth Center. Call 860-921-6118 for more information.

For outdoor enthusiasts, the guidebook, "Kayaking in and around the Norwalk Islands" at $10 each, make great stocking stuffers. The book includes information on kayaking in the Norwalk area of Long Island Sound as well as on three local rivers along with other useful tidbits including safety and local island wildlife. The books are available at the Small Boat Shop at Rex Marina, 144 Water St, South Norwalk; the Westport Historical Society Remarkable Gift Shop, 25 Avery Place, Westport; The Dock Shop Nautical Boutique, 49 Tokeneke Rd, Darien; the Outdoor Sports Center, 80 Danbury Rd, Wilton and on-line at www.norwalkriver.org

Holiday Fair in Washington Depot Dec. 14

Washington Parks & Recreation and the Washington Business Association is hosting an evening of fun and good cheer in this bucolic village in the heart of the Litchifeld Hills.

There will be food, music, raffles, and hay rides throughout the town. The evening will begin at 6:00pm with the lighting of the tree by a very special guest. Outside the town hall after the tree has been lit, children from Washington Montessori School will be singing Christmas carols . Shortly after the tree lighting, Santa will arrive by way of hay wagon and listen to children's wishes in the town hall until 8:30 p.m. Pictures will be taken with one photo per child provided.

The Troubadours from the Gunnery School will be caroling throughout the Depot during the evening. Clifford the Big Red Dog will be visiting businesses to offer holiday paw shakes to his fans. Inside the Town Hall, The Ladies Auxiliary of the Washington Volunteer Fire Department will have a special mailbox for letters to Santa, and will be selling their annual Christmas Ornament.

The Gunn Memorial Library and Gunn Museum will have a craft project for the children while they patiently wait for their turn with Santa. Washington Primary School PTO will be selling baked goods outside the Town Hall from 6:00 - 8:30 p.m.

The Senior Center will be selling gift items and raffling off a wreath and poinsettia donated by Painter Ridge Farm. The Washington Business Association will be sponsoring a drawing for a Mini I Pad and a gift basket of goodies. Tickets for the drawing will be available at member businesses from 6-8 and should be dropped off at Washington Supply for the drawing at 8:30.

The Hickory Stick Bookshop will be hosting a book signing from 7- 8 with Florence and Wendell Minor featuring My Bookstore for which they wrote an essay on the shop. Mo the Magician will be showing his tricks at Washington Supply and Outdoor Living from 6:30-8;30.

Other activities will be featured throughout the Depot to delight visitors to open businesses. Whether you stroll the streets of the Depot or ride on the hay wagon you'll find a warm welcome inside the beautifully decorated shops which have kept their doors open welcoming friends with refreshments and other surprises. It is an evening not to be missed in Litchfield Hills.

Lime Rock Park’s Christmas Holiday Discount Ticket Sale is Underway!

Lime Rock Park, the Road Racing Center of the East is offering special discounts for 2012 this holiday season! By ordering online (http://tickets.limerock.com) or over the phone (860.435.5000), you can save 15% on all General Admission tickets for 2012.

You can even buy a 2012 Season Pass, which gets you into the track every day of every major event. That's 12 days of admission, plus three SCCA Race Days, PLUS Premium Parking, for just $230. (That's a $156 savings compared to the gate weekend ticket prices!) Doesn't that sound like a great Holiday Gift? If you are undecided, you can even purchase a Lime Rock Park gift certificate in any dollar amount.

If you are looking for something really unique and unusual for the person that has everything... then you might want to consider two of Lime Rock Park's "high-end" offerings!

Do you know someone on your shopping list who's been dying to drive on Lime Rock Park's famous track? Why not surprise that person with a BYOC Track Day, courtesy of the private Lime Rock Drivers Club. BYOC? That's "Bring Your Own Car!" Yes, for $995, you get a gift certificate for four hours of track time, driving your car, coached the whole time by a racing driver/instructor. Lime Rock will provide a wonderful lunch and will even provide the helmet. If you have a "car nut" that you're buying a Christmas present for, this tops the list.

Another option is to make someone a member of the aptly named "Insider's Club". For every race day of every major event, Insider's Club members get the VIP treatment in the beautiful Lime Rock Chalet, near the top of the Infield Spectator Hill. "Insiders" get wonderful catered food beautifully presented by Lime Rock's own chefs, terrific personal service, souvenir programs, VIP Parking... and even the chance to get to know some of the more famous Insider's Club members such as Sam Posey and John Fitch. Only a small, limited number of Insider's Club memberships are available every year at $975, so if this sounds appealing, call soon. This will be a gift that will be appreciated all year long!

Looking ahead to 2012 Lime Rock has already scheduled the following events:

May 25-27- * Sports Car Championships (main event Trans-Am) & Royals Car Show

July 6-7- (no Monday races) * American Le Mans Series (ALMS) Northeast Grand Prix

July 21- Ferrari Challenge

Aug. 31 – Sept. 3- Historic Festival 30 & Sunday in the Park Concours

September 28-29 - * Grand-Am Rolex Championship Finale