It’s a girl! The newest member of Bee Publishing Company’s family arrived early Monday afternoon and we couldn’t be happier with the news. Knox Juniper Baggett is the newest little bumblebee, and big sister Violet is already buzzing with joy to be a big sister. Best wishes to Mom, Dad, and all members of this wonderful family.

A reminder that Town Players of Newtown has delayed the opening of their production of I Never Sang For My Father. Originally planned to open this weekend, the presentation of Robert Anderson’s drama will instead open at The Little Theatre on Friday, September 27. Performances will now continue weekends to October 13, with shows scheduled for Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 pm and Sunday afternoons at 2. If you purchased tickets for September 20-22, you should have seen a refund by now to the card you used for that purchase. If you haven’t, contact Town Players at info@newtownplayers.org. The theater is unable to manually change dates in its ticketing system, hence the refunds for all tickets for the original opening weekend. Gus Bottazzi is directing the show, which shares the story of Gene Garrison, whose life with his father has never been easy. When his parents return from a winter in Florida, however, his mother’s health has deteriorated, and Gene must take greater responsibility for his difficult father. Tickets are $30 for all shows, general admission, and available at newtownplayers.org. The Little Theatre is at 18 Orchard Hill Road.

A few weekends later, a Friends of Newtown Seniors shredding event will be conducted at Plaza South. A little birdie told me it’s time to set aside papers that you’d like to have securely shredded. Additional details are forthcoming for the October 12 fundraiser.

FONS is also looking forward to its annual Oktoberfest, which is moving indoors this year. The October 22 event will remain at NewSylum, and will feature an all-you-can-eat buffet dinner, live entertainment by Solid Gold Times Two, and a raffle. Cost is $36 per person and reservations are available by calling 203-430-0633, 475-263-1111 or sending a note to luann0570@yahoo.com.

If you haven’t had a chance to visit Newtown Municipal Center in recent weeks, you haven’t taken in the presentation of art by friends and Newtown residents Karen Adamshack and Tracy Van Buskirk. The exhibition is on view through the end of the month. Reporter Sam Cross caught up with Karen and Tracy when they were hanging the show a few weeks ago, and then Photographer Bill Glass was there for the formal opening a few nights later.

The municipal center exhibitions are coordinated by Newtown Cultural Arts Commission. NCAC Chair Laura Lerman spoke with Sam about that recently, when she said the commission is “always delighted to have a new artist. Anyone is welcome to hang their work at the Municipal Art Gallery.” If you’d like to be considered for an upcoming presentation contact Laura at lel@se-ltd.com.

I think I’ve talked in the past about The Yellow Cabinet within The Bee’s office and all the things that show up on it. Sometimes it’s a pair of shoes someone is offering to co-workers before donating elsewhere, sometimes it’s drink mix, paper goods, or even a can of tuna. That’s the magic of The Yellow Cabinet.

Monday morning, the cabinet boasted an amazing bouquet of flowers from the garden of Newtown resident and master gardener Paul Hauck. Paul was visited over the weekend by Bee graphic artist Lynn Remson, who spent nearly two hours, with one of her daughters, touring Paul’s gardens before being sent home with an armload of flowers and a rampicanti squash. At “just” 36” long, the squash was on the smaller side for the varietal (ha ha). In addition to the beautiful flowers Monday morning, The Yellow Cabinet also held a tray of rampicanti muffins and cookies. Thank you to Lynn and Paul for introducing that new flavor to us.

Continued congratulations to former Newtown resident Jonathan Danyew, who retired in August following a 20-year career in the US Air Force. A retirement ceremony was held in his honor at his current station in Aviano, Italy. The event was additionally special thanks to the inclusion of a performance of The Star-Spangled Banner on saxophone by none other than younger brother Steve.

Newtown High School’s athletics department has stopped charging admission for home games with one exception: Football. And even when it comes to football, in-town students get free admission, and senior citizens receive a discount, too. It will cost $10 for the general public and $5 for senior citizens and non-Newtown students (including visitor teams) to attend football games. All other sports are free. Keep one more thing in mind before heading to Blue & Gold Stadium: only digital tickets will be accepted. There will be no cash payments at the entry gates. Go to gofan.co (yes, just .co, not .com) and search Newtown Nighthawks to find a list of games and to purchase seats to the games. If you’re not sure what the upcoming NHS athletic schedule looks like, check the Sports pages in our print edition each week. Andy Hutchison is very good about keeping those games listed.

Speaking of the high school’s stadium, Newtown Youth Lacrosse will hold an open house there on Saturday, October 19, from 2 to 4 pm. The event is free and designed to introduce new players in grades K-8 to girls’ and boys’ lacrosse. There will be interactive stations and an opportunity to meet coaches and ask questions. Some equipment is provided. Players are asked to bring their stick if they have one. Protective gear is not needed for the open house event. Families are encouraged to check out the program before the youth program’s winter clinics and spring season begin.

For the second consecutive year, Alyssa Wright has been selected to be part of the USA Tap Team. The Newtown resident, now a junior at Immaculate High School, will head to Prague in late October to compete in The IDO World Tap Dance Championship, an Olympic style competition against other countries. Alyssa will be dancing as a member of the adult formation and an adult small group. She was one of three residents selected last year to represent the United States, combining efforts with the rest of their dance team members to place seventh in the world with their Junior Formation. The three Newtown tap dancers were part of the American Dance Collaborative, a member of the United States Dance Sport Competition Federation. They train year-round through The Station Dance Academy and usually compete in and out of Connecticut. Last year was the first time they competed overseas by joining forces with other skilled tap dancers.

In Prague last year, the local team advanced through the first round into the semifinals as 19 junior formations were whittled down to 12. They got to dance again and although they did not make the cut for the finals, Alyssa told Newtown Bee Sports Editor Andy Hutchison last year it was nevertheless an incredible experience against similarly tremendous talent. Dance teams represented France, Great Britain, South Africa, Germany, Switzerland, Czechia, Croatia, and Canada, among other international locations. Best wishes Alyssa! I hope you have fun, do well in the competition, and come home with additional fun stories to share.

If the world feels a little nuttier than usual these days it’s more than politics. The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station is reporting a significant increase in acorn abundance in the red oak group this year as compared to past years, a phenomenon referred to as either a “mast year” or “bumper crop.” Most Nutmeg State residents can expect to see an unusually high number of red oak acorns hit the ground this fall. The northern corners of Connecticut are the rare exception, according to the report. Unfortunately, those extra acorns mean a lot more than a slip or tripping hazard on the ground. Masting events can also lead to higher rodent populations, which serve as primary reservoir hosts for numerous human pathogens including the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.

On a positive side, a bumper crop can drive several ecological processes in forests, according to Joseph Barsky, the study’s lead forest researcher for the study. The extra acorns can help maintain and perpetuate declining oak populations while providing a nutritious food source to sustain wildlife populations throughout the winter months, he said.

It’s time for me to get back to playing with our newest little Bee. I’ll let you know how she and her family are doing next week if you’ll promise to come back then, when you can … read me again.