Hello, hello, hello! Welcome back to the print edition of The Newtown Bee! I’m a purr factory of delight to see my paw prints inked onto the paper again (though I hope you followed my “mew-sings” at newtownbee.com these past two months). I’ve been social distancing and continue to do so, but still finding the good news you long for and the amusing antics around town that seem to always pop up.

As a matter of fact, here’s a bit of good news shared with us: The Newtown Bee’s Sports Editor Andy Hutchison along with his wife, Mary Beth, and their daughter, Kelsie, recently revealed the gender of their second child in a — well, a very Andy way. The trio recently went to Wonderland of Ice (where Andy plays in a hockey league) in Bridgeport so Andy could skate the rink and hit a hockey puck to reveal a spray of color identifying the gender of baby-to-Bee-Hutchison. Mary Beth filmed Kelsie’s reaction from the side of the rink at the burst of blue, and the video was used to surprise family and friends. Kelsie is excited to have a baby brother. Our heartfelt congratulations go out to the Hutchison family.

In cleaning out her parents’ home and four barns, Kelley Johnson, a volunteer with Friends of the C.H. Booth Library, came across a clipping from 1974 noting the formation of the Friends in November of that year. Current Friends’ members have been enjoying that clipping, she said, as you may, too.

It’s time to get a new dog license! Available now from the Town Clerk, send a self-addressed stamped envelope with a check made out to Town Of Newtown, Town Clerk’s Office, 3 Primrose Street, Newtown CT 06470; there is also a drop box on the north side of the Municipal Center at 3 Primrose Street. Existing licenses can be renewed online by CLICKING HERE. You will need a copy of a current rabies certificate, if there is not one on file, and a copy of spaying or neutering certificate if this is your dog’s first license in Newtown. Cost for a license is $8 for spayed/neutered dogs, of $19 for unaltered dogs. Questions? Call 203-270-4210 or e-mail town.clerk@newtown-ct.gov.

If you have products around the home that need to be disposed of safely, remember that this Saturday, June 6, from 9 am to 2 pm, is Household Hazardous Waste Drop-off Day. Newtown Public Works Department staff will be on hand at the 4 Turkey Hill Road facility to assist you, and ask that you stay in your vehicle at all times when bringing items to the drop-off. Keep windows rolled up, too, and be ready to place your driver’s license against the window for proof of residency. Staff will remove contents and will wear full safety gear. A full list of items accepted can be found at https://www.newtown-ct.gov/home/news/reminder-household-hazardous-waste-drop.

Newtown High School graduates will be graduating in a very unique manner, June 10, 11, and 12. Do you have a congratulatory message you’d like to send a special 2020 grad? The Newtown Bee will be publishing messages in our edition of June 12, along with the supplement featuring photos of the 2020 NHS graduates. You’ll find the form to print in order to place an ad at https://static.ew.ntb.infomaker.io/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/29121445/Bee-Grads-House-Ad-2020-3x8.jpg. Just $20 will send a message townwide to your favorite high school graduate. Slip it into our door slot at 5 Church Hill Road, or e-mail the information to ads@thebee.com. Content and payment are needed no later than Tuesday, June 9. Call 203-426-3141 with any questions.

Peg Heetmann thinks there is a business in town that deserves the Good Egg Award. “I want to give a ‘Good Egg’ shout-out to Sabrina Style in Sandy Hook,” she tells me. “Even though they’ve been closed since mid-March, they’ve kept their beautiful window displays updated for each season and holiday. The displays have given me a lift each time I’ve driven by and/or waited in line at the traffic light in Sandy Hook.” Well, that certainly seems to be deserving: Sabrina Style, here’s your Good Egg!

Our latest newtownbee.com poll is asking people: Have your summer plans changed in light of COVID-19? As of early this week the results were approximately 65 percent “Yes” and 34 percent “No.” If you are among those whose plans for summer 2020 have changed, please contact Associate Editor Shannon Hicks at shannon@thebee.com with details. She’s hoping to hear from those who have adapted or canceled plans, for a story on how local residents continue to contend with pandemic protocols. If you haven’t already voted, please do that, too. Visit newtownbee.com, and find the poll along the right side of most pages.

Gardeners from all over the state love the Plant Science Day hosted each year in Hamden by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES), but this year’s 110th annual Plant Science Day open house event will be a virtual event in August.

“Given the current concerns during the global pandemic and the fact that this event draws nearly 1,000 visitors each year to our Lockwood Farm, we felt there was simply no way to safely hold an on-site live event,” notes Dr Jason C. White, CAES director. The CAES Plant Science Day has a long history and was last cancelled during WWII, when a significant portion of the staff was on active duty, he adds. So, CAES will host the special day on Wednesday, August 5, from 10 am to 4 pm. The virtual event will be held via Zoom and other platforms and “will feature updates on the Station’s research advances in agriculture, food safety, the environment, forestry, and public health. The event is free and open to the public.” Highlights will include pre-recorded technical demonstrations on container gardening, as well as management of deer and other herbivores in yards and gardens. You’ll find more information at https://portal.ct.gov/caes.

I don’t know about you, but digging around in the garden gets me pretty sweaty; and what’s better than ice cream to offset that? I’m very happy to see our two big ice cream stands figuring out ways to safely allow customers to get their cool offerings. Thank you, Holy Cow and Ferris Acres Creamery!

When I get done licking the ice cream from my whiskers, I’ll be putting my ear to the ground again for next week’s news. Be sure to... Read me again.