Continuing on last month's theme of TV-free fun to enjoy in the Concord area, we offer these family activities.

Pack an evening picnic dinner and find a cozy spot on a tree stump in Esterbrook Woods on which to dine.

Head over to Hutchins Farm on Monument Street and create your own beautiful flower bouquets. Observe how your child selects his or her flowers. Does one child select according to color while the other sniffs his choice. Have fun and remember to let your kids create their very own arrangements.

How about high tea this afternoon? Tea doesn't have to be taken indoors and who says the guests must be real people. If you want to have a fantasy indoor tea head over to Boston Tea Party in Bedford, right on Rte. 62 before Nature's Heartland. Your kids will love the feather boas and sweet treats.

Any chance you have a young journalist living in your house? Turn off the TV and grab a notebook -- your neighborhood needs a neighborhood newspaper. Maybe he or she has a few pals living nearby that could help. Begin with a pet listing so neighbors might be more familiar with the cockers, goldens, and mutts living next door. Chances are there is something of historical note in your neighborhood. Your child might interview home owners to find out about the lore associated with their home. The sky's the limit. Support your child's efforts by typing, copying, or buying an ad.

Set up a game table on your porch, deck or under a shady tree -- a simple card table will do. Run over to Ames or Kmart and buy a big plastic, waterproof bin with a snug top. Keep a few puzzles, games, decks of cards inside. Maybe your family will be known as the after dinner place to stop for a good game of chess.

Head over to Walden Pond at sunset and read some of Thoreau's writings. Children ARE able to understand so much of his simple yet wise thoughts. "Any melodious sound apprises me of the infinite wealth of God." (Consciousness in Concord) "Is not the rainbow a faint vision of God's face? How glorious should be the life of man passed under this arch! What more remarkable phenomenon than a rainbow, yet how little it is remarked!" (Journal, June 22, 1852) Don't forget to return to Walden Pond, each with your own journals, and write your own thoughts.

There are new bike trails off Lexington Road near the Meriam House. Get up early one morning, tuck a bagel into your backpack and set off on a biking adventure through the fields with your kids. And have you tried the bike trails in our neighboring towns? Bedford, Lincoln, and Lexington have great trails that make riding a safe and fun family activity.

Do you have a horse lover living in your home? The mounted police stable their horses on Route 2, just past the prison rotary on the right. You can see the barn and often the horses from the highway. They don't seem to mind visitors and I've heard that if you muck out a stall you can have a free ride.

Don't take butterflies for granted -- any creature that smells stuff with their feet is pretty cool. Drumlin Farm in Lincoln is a great place for spotting these beautiful nectar feeders. Read up on butterflies (North America's Favorite Butterflies by Patti and Milt Putnam is just the right size for little hands)and bring a sketch pad to draw the types you see: mourning cloak, American painted lady, gray hairstreak, great spangled fritillary.