| Page 1580 | Mommy Poppins - Things to Do with Kids

The NJ Kids' Birthday Party Ideas Guide is Live!

Submitted by Shari Simpson on Sun, 04/08/2012 - 4:06pm

All of us here at Mommy Poppins New Jersey have been working hard and birthday-partying like crazy and we're proud to finally introduce our NJ Kids' Birthday Party Ideas Guide! Chock-full of tips, ideas, locations, pricing, and personal experience, we hope our Birthday Party Guide will take some of the stress and legwork out of your planning and let you just enjoy your special boy or girl's big day. We'll be updating our Guide continually, so check back often for the skinny, gathered by our Mommy Poppins partiers. Enjoy!

Kids' Classes in Dumbo: Places to Play and Learn Indoors

Submitted by Blythe on Sun, 04/08/2012 - 12:00pm

We continue our month-long focus on Dumbo with a look at indoor places for kids to play and learn in the neighborhood. Although many families are moving to the area for its amazing views, cool culture and great things to do, Dumbo is still a work in progress when it comes to kids' play spaces—there's nary a kiddie gym franchise in sight. But in addition to a handful of athletic spots like Dumbo Gymnastics and Brooklyn Bridge Fencing, we've found some more offbeat spots where kids can take cool classes or just run around a bit.

Family Travel Deals: Spring and Summer Deals for Myrtle Beach, Montreal, South Beach, Disney and More

Submitted by Anna Fader on Fri, 04/06/2012 - 10:00am

Last week I posted a bunch of last minute spring break deals, but I think this week's crop of travel deals is even better. Whether your'e looking for a last minute getaway this week, or a Spring weekend getaway or a summer vacation deal, I found big discounts on trips to Montreal and Myrtle Beach, Philadelphia and South Beach and, of course, DisneyWorld, plus a bunch of hot destinations for this summer. These deals are so good, I'm tempted to go on these vacations myself. If you see I suddenly stop posting next week, you'll know why!

This Week: Easter Egg Hunts and Spring Festivals, Focus on Dumbo, Things to Do Over Spring Break

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 04/05/2012 - 4:00pm

Easter is the main event this week and all of our sites have posts about cool community Easter egg hunts and festivals, from NYC to Long Island to New Jersey and beyond. We also updated our posts about New Jersey's awesome Easter Bunny train rides and where to take photos with the big rabbit in NYC, and our Boston site has tips on creating healthier Easter baskets.

This week also marks the start of Passover and spring break. If you're planning a NYC staycation, we have lots of ideas about what to do over spring break. And if you want to get out of town, you have plenty of time to take a day trip or even plan a longer getaway with the help of our new Mommy Poppins Travel Site.

Here's what else we shared this week on our NYC site:

Great Wolf Lodge Review and Money (Sanity) Saving Tips

Submitted by Anna Fader on Thu, 04/05/2012 - 2:53pm

Indoor water parks can be a great weekend getaway when the chilly weather has the kids going stir crazy or any time you want a mini family vacation without the expense of getting on a plane. Great Wolf Lodge is a chain of popular indoor water park resorts that kids clamor for. We were recently invited to review the Great Wolf Lodge in Scranton, PA and even given a free ride courtesy of a test car from Chevy. Talk about gilding the lily.

Kids will obviously love Great Wolf Lodge for the over the top indoor water park and the wild MagiQuest adventure game that takes them running through the hotel looking for treasure. We've reviewed Great Wolf Lodge Resorts for families before, so I thought in this post I'd focus on some money (and sanity) saving tips to help make this kid-tacular retreat a more grown-up friendly vacation too.

Long Island Kids' Activities April 7 and 8: More Easter Egg Hunts and a Spring Festival

Submitted by Dara Stewart on Thu, 04/05/2012 - 11:55am

(Image courtesy of Long Island Aquarium)

It's Easter Weekend, and celebrations abound around the Island. Take the kids on an egg hunt (find even more here)--or even a dinosaur-egg hunt--an Easter Parade or a Spring Festival. Happy Easter and Happy Passover!

Animate Yourself (Literally!) at New York Hall of Science's New Interactive Animation Exhibit

Submitted by Stephanie Ogozalek on Thu, 04/05/2012 - 10:00am

My son and I had been dying to see the New York Hall of Science's Animation exhibit from the moment it was announced. So when it opened last weekend, we trekked out to Flushing Meadows Corona Park to check it out and it did not disappoint. Like all of NYHS's installations, Animation offers hands-on learning fun for kids and adults. Plus, the subject matter is right up every child’s alley: What kid doesn’t love cartoons?

When you step into the huge colorful gallery, you're transported to a cartoon world inhabited by the animated stars of Cartoon Network. (The channel provided funding for this traveling exhibition.) Kids can learn about a variety of animation techniques at a series of interactive stations, and even try to make their own creations. Plus they get a cursory lesson in the history of the genre, and even get to watch classic and contemporary cartoons.

Free and Fun Things to Do this Easter Weekend with Kids in CT: Easter Egg Hunts, Easter Bunny and Seal Watching

Submitted by Mary Beth Lawlor on Thu, 04/05/2012 - 9:20am

Spring Break is about to begin for many Connecticut families and there are lots of Easter festivities around the state on Saturday. Looking for some inspiration? You can check out some fun Easter party and recipe ideas on our pinterest page. Saturday is your last chance to squeeze an Egg hunt in and Easter activities abound this weekend. You can find a celebration close to you in our Fairfield, Hartford and Litchfield posts.