This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

More than Just Books

Looking for something to do? Try the Hillsborough Public Library. It's not just books anymore.

When my daughter was about a year old, I started looking for activities that we could do together—something not very expensive and which didn’t require me to travel far. One of my friends recommended trying the local library. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before!

So, that’s what we did. We drove down to the Hillsborough Public Library, located in the Municipal Building, and I was in awe. Everything there looked so new and nice and organized. It wasn’t just a library with one large open space, with a few book shelves dedicated to children, but it has entirely separate children, teen, and adult sections.

About all I figured we would “do” at the library that first visit was look at books in the children’s section.

Find out what's happening in Hillsboroughwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Boy was I wrong. They have schedules of activities for toddlers, older kids, and teens right at the desk. And there were couches to sit on and tot-size tables to sit and read books at.

What a wonderful idea; so you could read aloud to children without disturbing the adults and teens in other separate sections of the library.

Find out what's happening in Hillsboroughwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Silly me, and I thought all we would find were books and magazines. They also rent DVDs. At the age of almost two my daughter had an infatuation with Barney the Dinosaur—Remember that purple prehistoric character? Checking out the Barney DVDs at the library certainly saved me a bundle rather than purchasing them, since Barney was no longer on TV.

Not to mention borrowing a variety of children’s movies certainly saved my sanity when I needed some mommy-time, and Manda needed some time to wind down since she was a non-napper.

Leave it to a little one to be so observant, because she was the one who noticed the park located right across from the library parking lot. To this day we call it “the library park.” Wooden beams construct such a unique play area, with slides scattered throughout. No two slides are alike. There are the swings, a bouncy bridge, and stairs, separated by other climbing apparatuses. And don’t forget the sandbox.

The best part is that this park is not situated on grass or dirt so even a few hours after it rains, it’s dry enough to play on the equipment, when my backyard still is a sunken mud puddle. There are benches for moms, dads and grandparents to sit on while the kids run and play.

There are also picnic tables to enjoy snacks and lunches at. We planned many of our sunny days around a morning activity at the library, followed by a picnic lunch and playtime at the park.

Back to the library. Over the years, my daughter and I have attended many musical jamborees, story times, and project groups geared for kids her age there.  There’s always something to do at the library and you can view the schedules of events right on their website.

The most amazing thing is, thanks to donations from Friends of the Hillsborough Public Library, and other funding sources, all of the music making and art project materials are supplied at no cost to participants.

Just when we thought we knew about everything going on at the library, we found out that they have movie nights. My daughter saw her first movie at—not the theater—but the library. It was really convenient because it was a movie geared for tots, and all of the movie goers were understanding of the fact that kids aren’t always quiet. It was a great way to test the waters before trying to see a movie in the theater with my toddler.

They also show movies for people of all ages, too.

Some other tidbits you might not know about the library are that it accepts book donations for books that are used but in good condition at the circulation desk, and it holds periodic book sales.

If you’d like to extend your support to the library, you can also become a Friend of the Hillsborough Public Library, and help with a donation to provide other enhancements like updates to the literacy station in the children’s area, rewards for summer reading programs, or funding for other programs.

And if you’re like me, my reading time is sparse, so I can never finish a book before it’s due back. Not to mention my daughter sometimes wants to re-read some books she takes out, or she’s not done watching the DVDs she borrowed for the 10th time in a row. The library has extended the convenience of renewing books and DVDs via their website. All you need to do is log into your account using information from your library card and your PIN number. I use this feature a lot instead of physically taking my books into the library to have my borrowing time extended.

While some of you may be very familiar, or even more familiar than I am, with the goings on at the library location, my hope is that if there’s someone in town like I was once upon a time, looking for something to do, and didn’t think of the library as the place to go, now I’ve planted the seed.

Need to take computer classes? The library offers them. Want to learn more about gardening, acupuncture or how to find ghosts?  What about attending a séance? Want to try Zumba? Yep, it’s at the library. 

By the way, I believe that by making the library experience such a fun one for kids, by reading to them while you are there, and doing an art project in a group, and maybe stopping at the adjoining park for a swing, it can actually help them develop a love for reading and the library.

I attribute my daughter’s love of books greatly to the positive experiences she had right here at the Hillsborough Public Library, both inside and out.

Even if you don’t live in my town, you should give your local library a try. Most offer a lot more than just books!

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?