Raven Snook

Raven is a writer, editor, performer and mom, who was born and bred in NYC, just like her husband, her mother and now, her daughter. As a writer, she's contributed articles to New York Magazine, Time Out New York, The Village Voice, the New York Post, TV Guide, Better Homes and Gardens, iVillage, AOL TV and Moviefone, Parents.com, and worked as an in-house editor for ParentsConnect.com and TimeOutKids.com. As a performer, she's appeared on many downtown stages (sometimes even for pay!), a couple of obscure films and TV shows, and The Maury Povich Show as a female drag queen. She's also the founder of Hot Mama Burlesque, the world's only all-moms burlesque show. After being the NYC editor from March 2011-March 2015, she is now happy to just be a blogger as she pursues additional writing opportunities.

Latest posts by Raven Snook

This Week: Best Summer Getaways, NYC's Free Pools and Renn Faire

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 08/06/2015 - 4:00pm

Every year around this time of summer, I start to wonder if my family and I are the only New Yorkers left in town. Judging from my social media feeds, everyone I know is away! If you too are suffering from vacation envy, there's an easy cure: take a family day trip. Hit a nearby beach, explore a quaint upstate town, go peach picking, get doused at a recently expanded New Jersey water park or see how many rides you can stomach at a Pennsylvania amusement park. Don't worry if you're car-challenged, many of these destinations are accessible via public transportation.

Can't get it together to get out of the city? Go on a virtual vacation to Kiawah Island, South Carolina courtesy of our Travel site. Once you click through our slide show of the Kiawah Island Golf Resort Sanctuary Hotel, you may be inspired to put in for some real time off, not just a weekend.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

This Week: August's Best Bets, New Water Park and Whale Watching

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 07/30/2015 - 4:00pm

Between all the back-to-school ads and the calendar on the wall, there's no denying that August is nigh. That means summer break is half over—or only half started, depending on how you look at it. August brings some of the season's best family activities, and we've rounded up our top picks of the month in NYC, Westchester, Connecticut and elsewhere. It's worth browsing the GoLists on all of our sites to inspire a day trip or two.

Speaking of skipping town, there's a brand-new water park near NYC, and we could all use some serious cooling off right about now. Our Westchester site profiled one of our favorite easy getaways, the alfresco art spot Storm King Art Center, a 75-minute drive from Manhattan, while Connecticut raved about the Mashantucket Pequot Museum, located just 15 minutes away from family hot spot Mystic. If you're up for a true vacation, consider whale watching in Boston or hopping a plane to Las Vegas, which is amazingly kid-centric.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

This Week: Beat the Heat in NYC, Water-Filled Trips and More Freebies

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 07/23/2015 - 4:00pm

For obvious reasons, fun ways to cool off with the kids was the theme across all of our sites this week. Even though there are dozens of ways to beat the heat in the city, the dog days of summer are the perfect time for a water-filled day trip (plus you get to avoid the subway, which apparently reached more than 100 degrees this week!). If you have access to a car and some free time, consider frolicking at a spectacular splash pad in Westchester (though you'll need a friend with a county park pass), whiling the day away on a Connecticut beach, or getting totally wet at a nearby lake, river or water park.

Of course, our NYC summer's got nothing on the South's, which is why our Travel site's new list of the best things to do with kids in Charlotte, North Carolina includes multiple ways to cool down—though you may want to save your visit for winter when you'll be longing to feel sweaty again.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

This Week: 10 Brand-New NYC Spots, Perfect Weekend Trips, Best of Rockaway

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 07/16/2015 - 4:00pm

What's new in NYC? A lot, actually. This week we focused on a slew of fresh family attractions, including a new interactive exhibit, a FREE new children's musical and 10 new NYC destinations with options to please a variety of ages and interests. (That's my kid in the pic, enjoying the new Whitney Museum.)

Not that we're knocking the old—sometimes the best summer adventures are experiences that are just new to you. If you're looking for family day trip ideas, our New Jersey site has an awesome roundup of old-school activities you can't do in the city, like drive-ins, historic villages and swimming holes. Or maybe you want to check out a quaint and walkable NJ town, or connect with nature in Hudson Valley or romp around an outdoor museum on Long Island? Our tri-state area sites are overflowing with getaway inspiration.

For those looking to go further afield, our Travel site has a lovely slide show of the Skyline Drive in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, which is close enough to NYC to be doable on a weekend.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

Free Family Musical Skippyjon Jones Snow What Is a Perfect Little Kid Theater Experience

Submitted by Raven Snook on Mon, 07/13/2015 - 10:00am

For my family, seeing Theatreworks USA's FREE seasonal kids' musical is as much a rite of summer as hitting the beach or the pool. And why not? For 27 years the national family theater company has been presenting high-quality productions every summer in a real Off-Broadway theater and given the tickets away!

This year's show is Skippyjon Jones Snow What, based on one of Judith Schachner's popular picture books about a quirky Siamese cat who goes on pretend adventures as his alter ego, Skippito Friskito, a sword-wielding, Zorro-like Chihuahua. Back in 2012, Theatreworks USA adapted the first title in the series to great acclaim so the troupe reassembled the same creative team for this sequel of sorts (it's not like you need to have seen the original show or even read the books to enjoy it). Although my jaded tween daughter is older than the target audience, Skippyjon Jones Snow What is so clever and jubilant that by the end she admitted it was the cat's meow. We've got the scoop on how to snag FREE tickets to this fun (and air-conditioned!) musical.

This Week: Great Ways to Get Wet in NYC & Beyond, Cool Day Trips

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 07/09/2015 - 4:00pm

Water, water everywhere! Fun ways for families to get wet was the theme across all of our sites this week. From play fountains in NYC to the top public pools in the Hamptons, exceptional splash pads in New Jersey to Splish Splash Water Park on Long Island, plus a new video game-style waterslide at Great Wolf Lodge in the Poconos, we've got the scoop on the best places to cool down this summer in the tri-state area.

If you're looking for day trip inspiration, be sure to peruse our regional sites. Just this week, NJ rounded up pick-your-own fruit farms, Connecticut spotlighted outdoor museums, Westchester profiled Hil-Mar Lodge and, of course, there's always the Hamptons and the Jersey Shore.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

This Week: Free Ice Cream, July 4th in NYC & Beyond, Summer Travel Deals

Submitted by Raven Snook on Thu, 07/02/2015 - 4:00pm

We're just one week into summer break and already my kid has made her own chocolate, gone to her first commuter camp outside the city and changed her name to Blue. I can't wait to see what adventures the rest of the season has in store!

Two things I know we'll be doing this 4th of July weekend are stalking the Good Humor Truck that's giving out FREE ice cream and staking out a spot to watch Macy's Fireworks. But if your family is itching to hightail it out of town for a holiday day trip, our regional sites have posts about the most explosive Independence Day celebrations in Westchester, New Jersey, on Long Island and beyond, all probably much less crowded than Macy's.

Looking to plan out the rest of your month? We just published a roundup of the best things to do throughout July in NYC, and our Travel site has a list of awesome summer travel deals to destinations near (Boston) and far (Rome!), plus details on a Puerto Vallarta trip giveaway.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

Inside Out Parent Review: Is Pixar's Amazing New Movie Good for All Ages?

Submitted by Raven Snook on Wed, 06/17/2015 - 12:31pm

There was a time when the release of any Pixar movie seemed like a major event. Even before I became a mom, I ran to the theater on opening weekend to see Toy Story 1 and 2, Finding Nemo and Monsters, Inc. After my daughter was born, we enjoyed WALL-E, Up and Toy Story 3 together. But I admit, our Pixar fever waned a bit over the past few years, perhaps due to increased animation competition, or maybe it was just those awful Planes movies (technically not Pixar flicks, but spun off from Cars). So my 9-year-old kid and I were thrilled to discover that Pixar's brand-new adventure, Inside Out, harks back to the studio's best work. It's got Toy Story's perfectly balanced blend of wistfulness and whimsy, mixed with a surreal, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind-style take on the complex emotions and memories that make us tick.

At the advance screening we attended, kids and grown-ups were enthralled—even the group of rowdy teens in front of us stopped texting, they were so into it. At times, each group laughed out loud (or cried) at different scenes, proof that the movie works on multiple levels. And yet, even though this is the first must-see family film of the summer, is it good for all ages? It's rated PG for a reason, so here's what you need to know before taking young children to see Inside Out.

Latest posts by Raven Snook

Pages