Weekly Wrap Up: Mother's Day Fun, Handmade Gifts for Teacher and Drop-Off Date Night Childcare

5/5/11 - By Raven Snook

Moms aren't the only ones feeling the love this Mother's Day week; it's also Teacher Appreciation Week and Cinco de Mayo. Woohoo! As if we needed another excuse to go out and party.

Speaking of going out, when's the last time you enjoyed date night in your family? A number of play spots are offering evening drop-off care, so parents can enjoy some adult time, while their children are plied with pizza and activities.

But this weekend, the focus will be on mom. What will you do? Enjoy a fancy brunch? Or spend quality time with your kids?

And that's just a bit of what's going on. Here's what we covered this week on Mommy Poppins in NYC, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut.

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New York City

Mother's Day is, of course, the main event. We came up with fun things moms can do with their families on Sunday, or any day. Most of the suggestions are doable year-round, like mini golf. We just updated our roundup of courses this week.

Although Cinco de Mayo is officially on Thursday, May 5, there are lot of ways to celebrate Mexican pride this weekend, including the big parade on Sunday.

In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, we shared ideas for handmade gifts that kids can easily create.

If date night is long overdue in your house, pick up the phone and register your kids for drop-off evening childcare. It's often cheaper than a sitter, and more fun for the little ones.

The best bets for the weekend include lots of eclectic events, like the one-of-a-kind Festival of Ideas for the New City StreetFest and the grand-opening of a new space for Teatro SEA, New York City's only bilingual puppet theater for kids.

New Jersey

Across the Hudson, our bloggers also have Mother's Day and Cinco de Mayo on the brain. Some wonderful Mexican culture celebrations are happening in the Garden State, especially the Cinco de Mayo Family Festival at the Camden Children's Garden.

The best bets for the weekend include a sheep shearing fest in Long Valley and a production of The Secret Garden in Princeton.

Long Island

Over on the Island, our writers highlighted three beautifully restored carousels.

Weekend highlights include a live stage version of The Wizard of Oz in Northport and Baby Animal Day at the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County Farm.


Connecticut

In CT, Mother's Day picks include the Dogwood Festival at the Greenfield Hill Congregational Church and a fun Mom's Night Out in New Haven. (You don't have to spend the whole weekend with the kids!)

On the weekend, you can also catch Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey in Hartford and Seussical the Musical in Bridgeport.

Cool Deals and Giveaways

We've got three great Poppins Perks going on right now. Remember, every deal helps fund a project at a local public school.

Our $20 tickets to see New York Theatre Ballet's Sleeping Beauty were so popular, they sold out super-fast. Happily, the company agreed to release more seats. Act fast! We don't expect them to be available for long.

Get four kids' classes, including uniform and boxing gloves, at Modern Martial Arts for $79.

Indulge the mom in your life (especially if it's you) with a deluxe 2 hours of luxury at the swanky Soho Sanctuary for $80.

If you weren't the lucky winner of our Universal Orlando ticket giveaway at the Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair last weekend, you still have another chance to snag the prize! We're giving away another family four-pack of two-day, two-park passes to one lucky Poppins Perks reader. We'll be sending an email to all Poppins Perks subscribers next Thursday, May 12, with instructions on how to enter. If you're not already signed up, now's the time. Go to poppinsperks.com and enter your email. It's free, and you'll hear about great deals every week.