Top Kid Toy Picks for 2012 Holiday Season: Gift Guide

A look at the hot toys for tots this holiday season.

Every holiday season, the mailbox fills with the latest toy catalogs. Children peruse the pages as they scribble their lists, daydreaming about what they will find under the tree come Christmas morning. Parents pull out their pocketbooks, spending hard-earned cash as they anticipate the joy on those little faces. What will be the runaway favorites this year is always a guess, but here are some of the latest trends, mixed with tried-and-true perennial favorites.  jChews Smartphone teether by Jellystone No tears for parents or babies. Babies love nothing more than to gum Mom and Dad’s cell phone, but now they’ll be too intrigued with their own smartphone to chew on. The Jellystone smartphone teether comes in seven funky colors and is BPA …

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Back to School Means New Clothes, Electronics

There are lots of clothing and electronic offerings for back to school.

The school year is about to begin, and with it comes days shopping for new clothes, new electronics and lots more to get students back into the vein of learning and having fun. Digitally, there are many different programs providing opportunities for students as they work on their assignments both in high school and college. According to Nicole Owens—in the community service development department with the Microsoft Store, located in the Bridgewater Commons Mall—Office Home and Student, and Office University, have been extremely popular in the last month. She said MLA format is required to prevent copyright infringement, and the program assists with it. “Now, each of the office suite products have used that format, which makes review …

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Take Five

Science Skills On Display

A science fair tests students' knowledge and presentation skills.

How are your science skills? The Hillsborough RoboRaiders and Hillsborough Public Library will co-host a science fair for students in grades five through eight on March 8. The fair begins at 4 p.m. and runs until 9 p.m. Judges will award prizes for various categories, and topics include chemistry, ecosystems, electricity, mixtures and solutions, genetics, and the environment. Children are permitted to enter solo, with a partner or in a group of three, but must sign up with a project description. They can do that by calling the Children’s Desk at 908-369-2200, ext. 14. Here’s what you need to know today:

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Take Five

Escape Black Friday Crowds

Don't get up at 4 a.m. to shop.

Dreading the thought of 4 a.m. lines that stretch across the parking lots? Don't fall victim to the Black Friday blues, or get frostbite or broken toes from hitting the stores with the holiday shoppers. While there aren't any programs happening in town today—schools and the library are closed for the holiday—there are ways to avoid the shopping rush. Here's how you can avoid shopping on Black Friday: 1. You probably stuffed yourself on Thanksgiving. Tie on some running (or at least walking) shoes and hit one of the trails in the Somerset County Park system. Or, grab your bike and head somewhere locally, or just enjoy the fresh air before it gets too cold. Don't forget a helmet though. 2. Go through your house for any of the common trash …

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Holidays in Hillsborough

10 Ways to Give Green for Christmas

A list of eco-friendly holiday gift ideas for every type of person you know.

It's never been easier to give eco-friendly gifts. With stores throughout Somerset County offering everything from organic terry cloth robes to hemp dog beds, there is a green gift for everyone on your list this year. To keep with the theme, skip the wrapping paper. Pick up a few cute, reusable canvas totes instead. Here are my top 10 picks for green gifts available right here in Somerset County for the... Not finding what you're looking for in these stores? Check out freecycle.org to see if someone else has what you're looking for. The free network connects neighbors who are looking to give away items that others may love.

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Truth Unwrapped: 38% Admit Regifting In FDU Poll

Patch asked NJ residents what they think of the practice.

Maybe they're thinking green (or maybe they're just thinking about saving some green), but more than a third of New Jersey residents admit to "regifting" in the latest Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind Poll. "The popularity of regifting is driven by many things for different people," said Burçak Ertimur, a professor of marketing at FDU's Silberman College of Business. "For some, it's thrift in difficult economic times, or it's a way to get around annoyingly high expectations about gift-giving.  It's also awareness of, or guilt over, how much stuff goes into the landfill. But the main reason might be just the sheer volume of stuff we have." As a complement to the poll, Patch also asked residents throughout New Jersey what they think…

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