Five Free Family-Friendly Festivals & Events This Weekend

It's weekend time again!  We've got you covered as you make all your plans for a fun-filled weekend.

This weekend, it's all about FREE and LOCAL.  Every single event on this week's Grab & Go Kids Planner is absolutely FREE to attend, and three are right here in Woodbridge (and the MusicFest in Clark isn't very far away either)! 

There's a showing of Disney's The Princess and the Frog at the Woodbridge Library on Saturday, and a Family Fun Night next door at the Department of Health and Human Services Friday evening.  This weekend is also the time for the annual St. James Street Fair, taking place Saturday in downtown Woodbridge!

If you're looking to get out of town, check out the previously-mentioned UC MusicFest, featuring Kids Kingdom on Saturday and Sunday for sand art, a petting zoo, kids music, and loads more entertainment for the little ones.  And finally, there's Delicious Orchards down in Colts Neck, which is celebrating it's 100th year as the area's seminal fresh food market with AppleFest 2011, complete with live entertainment for both kiddies and grown-ups!

As always, be sure to tell us if you think we forgot something. And if you know of an event that deserves a mention in this planner in the future, be sure to add it to the calendar. 

Disney's The Princess and the Frog at ; 1 G. Frederick Plaza, Woodbridge; 732-634-4450 ext. 7140; Price: FREE; Saturday, 2:30 PM

Woodbridge Main Public Library hosts a free screening of the Disney flick The Princess and the Frog  on Saturday afternoon.  Head out to the library to check out the 2009 animated feature update of the fairytale classic, set in jazz-age New Orleans.  It's free for all, and a great way to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon without spending a ton of money in the process.

Family Fun Night at , 2 G. Frederick Plaza, Woodbridge; 732-855-0600 ext. 5008; Price: FREE; Friday, 6:30-8:30 PM

Keeping it very local, we've got another family event in Woodbridge, this one just across the plaza from the library.  Check out Family Fun Night at the Department of Health and Human Services Friday evening, where kids and families can take part in all kinds of fun and games to kick the weekend off right.

Apple Festival 2011 at Delicious Orchards; Route 34 South, Colts Neck; 732-462-1989; Price: FREE; Saturday & Sunday, 11 AM-4 PM

Central New Jersey staple Delicious Orchards is celebrating it's 100th anniversary this weekend with it's annual Apple Festival.  Head down to Colts Neck to check out the live music, classic cars, and clowns.  The resident beekeeper will be on hand to answer all the questions your kids may have about the bees in the store's Observation Hive, and Chef Tony Merola will be sampling a selection of ingredients he uses from D.O.  And of course, there's the apple picking - one of my favorite autumn activities.

Kids Kingdom at Union County Fair and MusicFest at ; 136 Oak Ridge Road, Clark; 908-527-4346; Price: FREE; Saturday 11 AM-5 PM, Sunday 12-6 PM

The annual Union County Fair & MusicFest kicked off earlier this week and runs straight through the weekend.  While the kids may not be all that interested in Blondie, Neon Trees, or The Smithereens (if they are, congrats, you're raising kids with excellent taste in music!), the fest certainly has something for the young ones - Kids Kingdom.  Kids Kingdom will operate at the festival on Saturday and Sunday and features a petting zoo, bingo, Rizzo's Reptiles, a clay station, sand art, inflatables, bubbles, pony rides, and just about anything else a kid could ask for.  And, since this IS MusicFest, there will naturally be kid-oriented live music as well!

St. James Street Fair at ; Main Street, Woodbridge; 732-634-0500; Price: FREE; Saturday, 10:00 AM-5 PM

Our 100% free edition of the Grab & Go Kids Planner draws to a close with the annual St. James Street Fair, which takes place this Saturday (if it rains - hopefully it won't! - the fair will take place next weekend).  All the street fair necessities will be there - great food, live music and entertainment, a 50/50 raffle, fun games, inflatables, rides, and more.  Not a bad way to spend what promises to be a beautiful Saturday afternoon in Woodbridge!