Framingham/Natick Recommendations?

[IndigoWillow]

Hello~

We have just moved to the Boston area from Portland, Or, and plan to buy a home in either Natick or Framingham in the next couple of weeks. Would love recommendations from like minded mamas.

pediatricians? Esp. ones that are tolerant of delayed vax.

restaurants?

music venues? We love live music-- esp. jam bands, reggae, world, etc.

fun activities for kids?

great places to hike?

great day trips?

neighborhoods we might want to focus on? We have our eyes on a house in Natick, close to the Framingham line but will be looking at a bunch more this weekend. We are hoping to be somewhat near to the commuter line because dh works in Cabridge.

Thanks for any and all advice! I'd love to join you for a meetup soon!
C

[T&K06]

Framingham/Natick is a great area - very convenient, lots to do! Some not so nice parts especially of Framingham but still a great place to live...we use Southboro Medical and see Dr Maslow and she's been great about respecting our decisions..restaurants - there's a vegetarian Indian place in Ashland (forget the name), Big Fresh, Papa Razzi just opened, Acapolcos, PF Changs (at the Natick Mall which is HUGE now). Free baby/kids yoga at Destination Maternity, lots of good parks....good luck!!

[DaughterOfKali]

I used to live in Natick. I went to Southboro Medical but in their Framingham office. Dr Alan Lobovitz is good with natural parenting.
Framingham may be a little less money for buying a home. As a matter of fact, my friend is getting ready to sell his house. ;)

There are many things to do in the area.
I'll post some places that are kid friendly later. I need to make some tea and try to wake myself up.

[MacroMama]

We live in Natick and love it.

They constantly have events at Natick Common for kids and adults. There's a farmer's markert every Sat during the summer, concerts, an organic community farm that has several events, the library is great and like someone mentioned, several events going on.

I'm not too thrilled with our ped so I won't make any recommendations. I will say that when I was calling around, people thought it was strange that I was concerned about delayed vaccination reactions. Although docs weren't thrilled, they didn't seem like they were going to make a big deal about it either. So our ped tolerates us.

Good luck with the move and we hope to meet you soon! :)

[Katho]

Both Natick and Framingham have arts centers that put on a variety of music. TCAN also has children's programs.

The Center For Arts in Natick (http://www.natickarts.org/index.php)

Amazing Things Arts Center (http://amazingthings.org/)

Broadmoor, a Mass Audobon reservation in South Natick, is a nice place to walk. Also, Noanet in Dover (run by Trustees of Reservations) and Callahan State Park in Framingham.

The Natick Community Organic Farm (http://natickfarm.org/) is a great place to take the kids.

[IndigoWillow]

Thanks so much for all the great advice everyone! I plan to call the peds this week to set up a meeting and I'll check the other places out as well. I am really exciting about checking out the organic farm, too. I just looked at their website and it looks like they have lots of really wonderful activities.

I really appreciate everyone's suggestions (if anyone else has anything to add, I'd love to hear it!)! We'll hopefully put in an offer on a house this week and I'll look forward to possibly meeting some of you soon!

[DaughterOfKali]

In case you're interested in getting together with other mdc moms:http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=952651

[bemommy]

Another pedi recommendation. . Dr. Lindeman. He was located in South Natick but has moved the office to Framingham. He's very cool with delayed vax and I've heard good about non-vaxing.

[hikingmommy]

You asked about hiking. What sort of hiking do you mean? 2 mile walks or 10 mile hikes up 4 thousand footers? AMC has some great books out. There's an REI in Framingham that probably carries all of them. The White Mountains in NH have terrific hiking. It's a bit of a drive from Natick, though. The Berkshires (Western MA) have some good hikes. Mt. Wachusett isn't too far (Central MA) and that's a nice little hike to do w/ kids. Keep in mind that while the mountains here are much shorter than the mountains out west, the trails are generally much more difficult - the Yankees who cut them weren't really into switch backs and they generally just go strait up. So, there will be plenty to challenge you in NH and some in VT if you're into serious hiking. Enjoy exploring. There is some great hiking here if you're up for a little driving. If you want a nice weekend out w/ your family, check out the Highland Center in NH. It's an AMC property that's very nice and family oriented in a great location in the Whites. They have a lot of programs for kids and great food.

[DaughterOfKali]

I would not go to Dr Lindeman until you have done a search for him here in our tribe. He's the one who had the blog and called him Flea. He was NOT kind about parents that chose not to vaccinate.

I went to him for years and it was not a good experience.

[veganf]

Sorry I didn't jump right on this thread, I've been so busy.
Here is an older thread about the area:
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=878247&highlight=framingham

pediatricians - We used to drive to Brookline, but after kid #3 we switched to Dr. Maslow at Southborough Pediatrics. Mainstream office, but with the exception of one nurse they are very respectful of my choice not to vax, and Dr. Maslow has a good friendly bedside manner.

restaurants - I've reviewed some in my blog (http://disposableaardvarksinc.blogspot.com/). Also, check out this blog for more Framingham info and all the latest dirt: http://www.thisisframingham.com/
There are tons of chain restaurants in the area, but once you look there are lots of good places too. Big Fresh (http://www.bigfreshfood.com/) is my favourite.

There are lots of state parks and such for hiking in Framingham, and plenty of day trips in the area, too many to list.

neighborhoods in framingham - The NW is the "nicest", then probably the NE, and various nice pockets in areas south of route 9. The closer to the T and the central downtown you are the cheaper you get generally. Just check out what's for sale with a realtor and ask questions; I'm sure you'll get a feel for each neighborhood, but Framingham is huge so allow a few visits.

Any questions about Framingham feel free to ask me. We've lived here for almost 6 years.

- Krista