Drew Kristofik

Drew Kristofik's early career editing teen magazines somehow morphed into a seven-year stint at MacNeil/Lehrer, followed by a very long sojourn at Nickelodeon/Viacom as Director of Content for Nick online and then Editor-in-Chief of ParentsConnect.com local. She was a founding member of the WebbyAward winning GoCityKids, has written for Family Fun Magazine, Vanity Fair, and New York, and her novel for middle schoolers, The Time Boat, is available on Amazon Kindle. She strives to keep the MommyPoppins New York Events calendar packed and accurate, and can be reached at events@mommypoppins.com.

Latest posts by Drew

Things to Do in NYC This Weekend: Lunar New Year Parade, Black History, and More

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 02/05/2020 - 4:03pm

Celebrate the Lunar New Year in Chinatown. Photo by John Wenceslao

It's a busy weekend in New York City, as we wrap up the Chinese Lunar New Year festivities with the massive Lunar New Year Parade. If you're in Brooklyn, honor the Year of the Rat with a stop at the Prospect Park Zoo to meet one of the world's tiniest rodents.

Valentine's Day paints the town red next weekend, so it's the perfect time to make a city-themed Valentine, create huggable heating pads to give as gifts, or give your card the old "collage" try. Mark Black History Month with an On the Journey to Freedom living-history program at DiMenna, a special tour of Fraunces Tavern, the New York Botanical Garden's Black History: Rooted in Plants event, and the Paley Center's month-long celebration, which includes a salute to black comedians.

On Saturday, watch the dog fur fly at the Westminster Agility Championship and AKC Meet the Breeds. On Sunday, kids might learn a thing or two about obedience (at least as it applies to canines). Also on Sunday: Don't miss the Children's Museum of the Arts' Indonesian Culture Fest, or City of Science in the Bronx. Rock Center also hosts a day of family art-making.

Plus, there is a ton of exceptional family theater to see this weekend. Film fest season is starting up, and we highly recommend seeing FIAF's Animation First Film Fest.

Still rarin' to go? Options abound in our February Go-List, our dazzling list of 40 FREE things to do with kids in February, and our always stocked Event Calendar.

Things To Do in NYC This Weekend: Lunar New Year, Winter Jam, Groundhog Day

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 01/29/2020 - 4:06pm

Celebrate Lunar New Year at the Met. Photo courtesy of the museum

The first weekend in February is action-packed. First of all, it's NYC Must-See Week, and that means 2-for-1 tickets to some very cool places around town, including museums, zoos, the aquarium, and more. Winter Jam schusses back to Central Park on Saturday, spinning in with a blizzard of activities. And the BAMkids film festival in Brooklyn is back for its 22nd year.

Lunar New Year celebrations abound at the Prospect Park Zoo, The Met, Brookfield Place, and the Asia Society. February is also Black History Month, and you can mark the occasion with a special tour at Fraunces Tavern, family-friendly screenings at the Paley Center, or learn about Harlem's storied history at the New-York Historical Society.

Sunday is Groundhog Day, and while Punxsutawney Phil (accuracy rate 38%) is poised to prognosticate once again, NYC's local groundhog, Staten Island Chuck (accuracy rate 80%!), is the one to watch. Early risers at the Staten Island Zoo get a spring proximity forecast, plus musical performances and animal encounters. In the Bronx, Wave Hill hosts a Groundhog Day Pancake Breakfast as part of its Hibernator's Weekend festivities.

You don't ever need to suffer from FOMO. Our February GoList, Winter Fun Guide, and list of 40 FREE Things To Do in February With NYC Kids keep you entertained. Our Event Calendar is on point through the coming spring (or endless winter, depending on Phil and Chuck).

Things To Do in NYC This Weekend: Lunar New Year, FrostFest, and More

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 01/22/2020 - 4:04pm

Celebrate the Year of the Rat in Chinatown. Photo by Janet Bloom

Winter's chill might be unavoidable in January, but that doesn't mean kids lack for things to do in NYC this weekend. There's a Winter Spooktacular in Queens, a Winter Blast Family Day of Native Games, and Bryant Park's FrostFest embraces the season with live ice carving and ice fishing.

The Lunar New Year is in full swing at the Japan Society. The popular Firecracker Ceremony and Culture Fest takes over Roosevelt Park on Saturday, the Queens Botanical Garden hosts holiday crafts and performances, and the Brooklyn Children's Museum celebrates Sunday. In short, if you love Lunar New Year's events, there are plenty of ways to celebrate, even though the big parade isn't until February 9.

Don't miss the spectacular Thunderbird American Indian Dance Concert and Powwow at Theatre for the New City. You can still snag some seats for Elizabeth Mitchell's Symphony Space performance and The Transfiguration of Benjamin Banneker, which uses shadow puppets, projection, and a marching band to tell the story of a free black man in 1731 and his passion for astronomy. Plus, the Paper Bag Players celebrate 61 years of cardboard costumery.

This unpredictable winter weather is giving us a bit of whiplash, but our Indoor Fun Guide, Winter Fun Guide, and Event Calendar will keep you busy, no matter the forecast.

28 Great Kids' Movies from Around the World Come to NYC This Month

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 01/15/2020 - 3:50pm

Get ready for some incredibly inspiring films this year at NYICFF. Photo courtesy of NYICFF

Who needs Sundance, or even Cannes? The 2020 New York International Children's Film Festival unspools this month in NYC, and we have all the info you need to enjoy it to the max, in an easily digestible format (there's a banquet out there). This is one fest where kids' opinions count: If you go, be sure to grab a ballot and vote on the films you've seen.

Read on for the full 411 on this year's fab films, including how to score discounted tickets. Popcorn mandatory.

Things To Do in NYC this Weekend with Kids: Music, Books, and Colonial Crafts

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 01/08/2020 - 4:04pm

Eataly's cooking classes teach kids the history and process of making a beloved Italian street food. Photo courtesy of Eataly

We've got a song in our hearts this weekend, and not just because the All-Ages Music Showcase is making its annual appearance Sunday (although, for real, you can see Lucy Kalantari, Gustafer Yellowgold, The Pop Ups, The Rockness Monsters, and more for 10 bucks). In searching for things to do, we're also ready to Dance in the Dark at the Brooklyn Bowl's Springsteen tribute, and commune with Beethoven at Alice Tully. Brooklyn's Barbes hosts an awesome new show by composer Michael Hearst, too. Plus, Midtown's new art installation, Impulse, uses seesaws that emit music and light to paint the town fun.

If history is more your speed, amble up to the New-York Historical Society and learn about the pioneering women who worked in commerce in 18th century NYC. Morris-Jumel also shares some colonial crafting secrets, or you can ponder history in the making at the New Victory's, Cartography.

Books, you say? Why, yes. Come right this way! Sugar Hill's got the Three Little Pigs by the tail, Naughty Ninja Takes a Bath at Books of Wonder's uptown location, and the Brooklyn Book Bodega is handing out kid lit all afternoon Sunday. And you can catch a new take on Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book at Symphony Space, too!

Don't forget to scroll through our curated Winter Events Guide and our helpful January Go List. And remember, our team of highly trained kid fun experts is tirelessly scouring the city, finding great events for the MommyPoppins calendar.

Things To Do in NYC this Weekend with Kids: Thomas, Three Kings, Kids' Shows, Mulchfest

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 01/01/2020 - 11:00am

Cirque Mechanics 42FT – A Menagerie of Mechanical Marvels is on stage at The New Victory Theater. Photos by Maike Schulz

All aboard! Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends chug into town at the New York Botanical Garden this weekend for a limited run—and don't miss the Holiday Train Show while you're there. This year all the buildings and decorations are up (it's usually just a fraction of the massive collection).

Ponder the current value of gold, frankincense, and myrrh at Three Kings Day celebrations: WhileTeatroSEA's big Three Kings bash and the annual parade on the Upper East Side aren't until Monday the 6th, The Paley Center hosts its own salute to the distinguished guests with a Three Kings Day party this weekend, or check out the Camels and Kings workshop at St. John the Divine on Saturday.

This weekend also features some very cool performances for kids. Top of the list is New Victory's 42FT, Cirque Mechanics' latest confection. Bust a beat at Symphony Space with the Manzana City Crew, or groove to the music of The Who at Brooklyn's Rock and Roll Playhouse. For something completely different, take little cowpokes to Madison Square Garden to watch professional bull riders bounce around the arena.

Meanwhile, if you've got a Christmas tree or holiday vegetation that needs to make a quick exit, you're in luck. Mulchfest is back! In Brooklyn, you can drop off your tree in Prospect Park.

And don't forget to check out our just-released January GoList and Winter Fun Guide, both filled with must-do winter events. Meanwhile, our Event Calendar is always at your service.

Things To Do in NYC This Weekend with Kids: Christmas Carol, Tubas, Santa Rescue, Unsilent Night

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 12/11/2019 - 4:00pm

Under the twinkling lights of the famous marquee, The Apollo Theater hosts holiday-themed activities for families. Photo courtesy of the theater

Big News: You can party with us on Saturday at Kidville UWS! The Mommy Poppins team is in the house to create gift bags for The Children's Aid Society, and we'd love it if you'd join us for holiday photos, goodies, and doing good.

Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol takes over NYC this weekend, with live productions in the Village, on Broadway, at the Morris-Jumel Mansion, and in Harlem, a reading at the landmark Merchant's House Museum, and even a Ghosts of Christmas Past walking tour. (The Morgan Library's Winter Fair is also deeply Dickensian). On Sunday, Christmas literature devotees can snuggle in for a candlelight reading of Clement Moore's 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, a century-old holiday tradition in Washington Heights, and Richard Scarry's The Night Before the Night Before Christmas gets a reading at New-York Historical Society.

This weekend also features a load of cool Christmas and holiday events known and loved by NYC insiders, like Winter Wonderland at the Apollo and Santa rolling up to meet kids in a police car in Brooklyn. On Sunday, there's nothing more unique than the 45th Annual Tuba Christmas at Rockefeller Center, or the village-to-village Unsilent Night parade, except maybe Santa's annual rescue from the roof of the NY Fire Museum. And it's time for the Christmas Bird Count in Central Park and Prospect Park.

Hanukkah is over a week away (December 22) but why let that slow you down? Get a head start at A Golem from Buenos Aires, a Klezmer Hanukkah Party at Beth Elohim. the Jewish Museum's Hanukkah Family Day, and the 92nd St Y's Family Chanukah Concert.

You can take a break from the holidays (if you need a breather) with a stop at The Museum of Ice Cream Pop-up, where families can zoom down an epic 3-story slide.

As always, our December GoList, our Holiday Fun Guide, and our Event Calendar are standing by at the ready, overstuffed with holiday fun.

Thanksgiving Weekend Things To Do in NYC with Kids: Parade, Trains, Santa, Tree Lightings

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Tue, 11/26/2019 - 1:55pm

Blast off this holiday season with a trip to Bloomingdale's holiday windows. Photo by Jody Mercier

Turkey might be the main course, and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade the centerpiece, but the final weekend of November is when New York City families shift into holiday hyperdrive, thanks to all the kid-friendly seasonal events.

Macy's Santaland opens, and the Dyker Heights Christmas lights begin to twinkle. Catch the opening days of the annual holiday train show at the New York Botanical Garden. On Saturday, you can attend tree lightings in Park Slope, the Upper East Side, and Glendale, Queens, and, on Sunday, kids can meet Santa on a Flatbush Farm or take a ride on a throwback subway train.

For stuff to do on Thanksgiving Day itself, look no further than our guides to 10 things to do on Thanksgiving with NYC kids and 22 Things to Do Thanksgiving Weekend to keep those visitors entertained. And of course, we also have the full 411 on Santa Claus brunches, teas, and cruises, plus neighborhood Christmas Tree lightings. This is also the weekend that cut your own Christmas tree farms traditionally open, and of course holiday shows are popping up all over, including George Balanchine's The Nutcracker and A Christmas Carol.

For more Christmas-season fun in New York City, see our guides to holiday train shows, Nutcracker performances, and 21 holiday activities every NYC kid should experience once. And get a head start on your holiday planning with the Mommy Poppins event calendar, and our action-packed holiday fun guide.

From all of us at Mommy Poppins, have a happy Thanksgiving!