Cut to the chase. Take me to the Momsense.
Yesterday I began a series on the three libraries located in West Hartford and kicked it off with a virtual tour of the newly renovated Bishops Corner Library. While it was on the small side, it had a lot to offer including the fact that it was easy to access, the kids area was filled with toys that encouraged creative play, and there were tons of books for the kids to explore.
Now today I’m back with a new library for you to add to your indoor activity repertoire. I’ve got the skinny on the Faxon Branch Library located in the Elmwood area in West Hartford.
The Faxon Branch Library is similar in scale to Bishops Corner, but has its own unique attributes.
The library is located on New Britain Avenue and the parking area can be accessed off the side street, Woodlawn.
Here is a picture of the front of the building. 
While there is a front entrance for the library, most people enter through the back because that door is closest to the parking lot.
Here is the back entrance. 
Parking is easy in the lot located behind the building. 
Once inside, there was an elevator to my left which led down to the children’s classroom and a door on my right which led into the main library area. (More on the children’s classroom later in the post.)
Oh and here is a quick visual for the library hours. Note that it is closed on Fridays and Sundays and doesn’t open until 1:00 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Here is a look at the interior.
I just had Sweetheart with me for this trip and that girl does not forget where the toys are located in any of the libraries. She hung a right at the entrance and made her way back to the kids play area.
There’s my sweet girl.
This play area was even smaller than the one at Bishops Corner, but there was still plenty to keep Sweetheart occupied.
She selected some toys from the shelf.
And played and played and played. 
While she was busy, I picked out a few CDs and movies for the family.
It wasn’t long before Sweetheart found the board book section.
And it wasn’t long after that before she discovered that it was fun to run through the kids section and pull tons of books off the shelves. So fun for her and so much work for me! She also enjoyed attempting to play on the computers. Why do one year olds have to touch everything? Oh, wait, my two-year olds touch everything too! Why do all my kids have to touch everything they see?
I finally picked up my rambunctious one year old and we took a look around the rest of the library space. I asked one of the librarians if there were elements of this library that you may not find at the other two West Hartford locations. She pointed me towards the Multicultural section. In this section I found books in a variety of languages, including children’s books! 
I then asked the librarian if I could take a look at the space where they have the children’s programs. She grabbed a key for the elevator and we headed downstairs (access to the downstairs classroom is locked unless a program is in session). She let me know that when a program is being held, the children and families will meet in the kids play area in the library and then the librarian will take them down right before the class begins. If someone is running late for a class, though, they can just head straight down.
When we got off the elevator, the classroom was straight ahead and there were restrooms on either side. Only one of the restrooms had a baby changing area, I think it was the one on the right as we exited the elevator (don’t hold me to that, though 🙂
I took a quick look around the classroom. It was large and full of fun things for the kids to enjoy. When I saw it, I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t come to a children’s program at Faxon before. Honestly, I think I assumed that because the library was small that the classroom must be small as well. I had no idea that it was downstairs and rather large. I definitely should have come here when the twins were little! 
Like the other libraries, sign up for the winter children’s programs will be in January (January 6th to be exact), but Faxon is offering a few November/December programs right now. One of them is an all-ages, drop-in story time on Tuesdays called, Sensory Story Time. The program is at 10:30 am and runs for two more weeks (November 26th and December 3rd).
While I was checking out the classroom, I noticed a bookshelf filled with one of my favorite books to read my kids, Press Here by Herve Tulle. Have you seen this book? It is so simple but soooo creative. I highly recommend it.
We finished up our downstairs tour and headed back upstairs to check out the books, music, and movies I had selected. These days, I never leave the library without bringing home a few new goodies.
Have you been to the Faxon Branch Library? What do you think? Have you taken a class there?
1073 New Britain Avenue, West Hartford, Connecticut
Phone: 860-561-6950
Hours:
- Monday & Wednesday 1:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
- Tuesday & Thursday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
- Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Please note that the library is closed on Fridays and Sundays and not open until 1:00 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays.
Admission: FREE
Parking: Parking is FREE and available behind the building, off of Woodlawn Street.
Tips and Things to Bring:
- Strollers: The building is stroller-friendly. There are automatic doors throughout and there is an elevator that accesses the classroom on the lower level.
- Food: Food and drink are not allowed inside the building.
- Classes: Library classes are available at this location. Check out the library’s calendar for more details. The classroom is located on the lower level and can be accessed by either stairs or an elevator.
- Restrooms: A family restroom with a baby changing station is located on the lower level near the classroom. There are also restrooms located on the main level but I forgot to check and see if they had a baby changing station 🙂
- The children’s section has a few play items. There are also computers, plenty of comfy seating and, of course, books.
- A few OAAM destinations are located nearby including: The Elmwood Community Center (the Dance Dance Program and Gym Kids) and Wolcott Park .
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