Services

or, how to get the biggest, nicest, cheapest Christmas tree in New York City

photo by slapjack

Our 2008 Holiday Guide is now up! We'll be posting lots more Holiday Activities, Shopping and Gift Ideas and other fun stuff, adding it as we go. This is one of our posts from last year, which I have updated and am re-posting for you.

This morning they were setting up the Christmas tree stall on the corner of our school's block and my kids ooh'ed and ahh'ed at the gorgeous, giant trees. The light rain made walking past them smell fabulous. Even for a Grinch like me it's hard to resist the smell and lure of those beautiful trees while I could feel my wallet having a seizure.

Even though I am ambivalent about the tree, it's one of the rites of the Holiday season I feel I can't really deprive my kids. And if I'm going to get a tree I want it to be the biggest, most beautiful Christmas tree I can get - and cheap, of course.

So here's the sum learnings of my years of where to buy a Cheap Christmas Tree in New York City: Read more »

This is first in a series of posts listing free demo classes for NYC kids. Find more free demo classes and exclusive discounts in our second Free Demo Class Post.

I admit, I have a fear of Mommy and Me classes. I'm not sure how it started but every time the idea was batted around in my house I came up with a million excuses why it wouldn't work. But, now that my daughter is two and we are both sufficiently bored of the playground, I've come to realize it's time to take the plunge. Even better, I've realized that she is now old enough to take classes without me having to participate!

If you are anything like me, here is the perfect baby step - FREE demo classes. Before you shell out the money for a weekly class, why not try it out? We have compiled a super long list of FREE demo classes, most of which are held in August and September. From pottery to gymnastics to music to miming so you can see how you and your kid like the class before committing to an entire semester. Plus, a lot of these places have offered amazing discounts to Mommy Poppins readers if you do choose to sign up for the class.  Keep reading to check out our list. Read more »

It is easy being green, or at least greener, with these three innovative websites. ECHOage,?  Zwaggle, Green Dimes can help your family think outside the box when it comes to birthday parties, swapping and junk mail, plus, they are all free. Haven't heard of them??  Read on to get the skinny. Read more »

Laurel Barrie has 20 years' experience connecting families and summer camps through her free Summer Camp Matchmaking service. The Camp Connection represents over 500 summer programs that have been visited while camp is in session, referenced and reviewed. Their goal is to help make lots of Happy Campers!

We asked Laurel to answer some of our top questions about summer camp and she has been kind enough to share her expert experience with us all. Thanks, Laurel! Read more »

Having a grown up meal out in a restaurant isn't really a luxury. It can be a survival tactic for stressed out parents who have virtually forgotten that they share anything in common besides the DNA of their children and their inability to get The Wonder Pets theme song out of their head. But figuring out the whole babysitter thing can make going out to eat more a chore than a treat.

So when Brian Kaplan, founder of Parent Play, told me they were starting Drop and Dine it sounded like a great idea. Drop and Dine lets parents eat in peace and quiet in a nice restaurant while their children are entertained and fed just steps away in the private party room of the same restaurant. Read more »

As we've been turning everything over onto the new server, we've had the chance to look through the archives at all the old posts. It's amazing. I can't believe how much we covered in one year. This week we'll be posting our best posts from the whole year by category. Look forward to Best Food Posts, Best Activities Posts, Best Outings Posts, Best Travel Posts and today, Best of Services Posts.

Best NYC Services Posts of 2007

Camp Consultants
Read more »

As the end of the year and the holiday season approaches I start to think of photos. Whether it's realizing that another year has gone by that I haven't organized our photos into albums, or the thought that maybe I should put together some photos of the kids for holiday gifts.

Luckily my friend, Sara, has figured this all out for us already. She recommends a website called blurb.com which can help you turn your photos into albums lickity split. It's great whether you're just getting organized or perhaps making some holiday gift books. Here's what Sara says: Read more »

Congratulations to Sharon who won the Ayumie Horie Pottery Giveaway. It's truly beautiful.

Next up, I've been hyping today's giveaway for a week and a half. I'm super excited about it and I hope everyone else is too.

How many moms have thought, "You know what I really need? A wife."? Probably all of them. While I, of course, have a staff of five (you know, nanny, cleaning woman, chef, Saturday nanny and pet concierge), not everyone is so lucky. But seriously, putting dinner on the table is probably the most challenging part of parenting. It's so much easier to just order in, but that's so expensive and unhealthy.

The Dish's Dish is a new service in New York that is just what every NYC parent needs. The Culinistas at the Dish's Dish will plan your customized menu, do the grocery shopping and prepare a whole week's worth of meals so that all you have to do is come home and heat them up. Read more »

If you watch An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's environmental exposГѓВ©, it is quite likely that you followed the exact pattern of behavior we did immediately after watching the film.

For, in the final credits, there is a URL for a website which allows you to measure your personal household carbon footprint. If you do that you can not only see how much carbon you are adding to the earth every year, but what are the biggest behaviors which create the most carbon in your life.

I was surprised to see that eating beef is a big one. I never really though about the environmental impact of eating beef. But the one that really got me thinking was our car. We had an old hand-me-down Volvo station wagon which was quite handy for toting stuff around town and the occasional trip to grandma's.

By the next morning after watching An Inconvenient Truth our car was listed on Craigslist. We're not usually that reactionary or decisive, but this was an easy decision because we knew we had a great alternative to owning a car in NYC.

Zipcar is this really cool service that lets you share cars with other drivers. You can basically rent one of several models by the hour. I'll tell you why I like it better than owning a car: Read more »

Nannies. They're all around you, and yet, somehow the perfect one seems so unattainable. How do you find a nanny in New York City? Where do you look? What do you look for? How do you know they're the right one? And what do you do once you get them? How much will you have to pay? And can you find someone to work the crazy hours you need? I don't have all the answers, but I'll give you my honest, hard-won, down-to-earth experience with this issue and you can add it to all the other junk you hear and make up your own mind.

This is going to be a several part series on childcare. Today's post is all about how to find a caregiver in NYC. Read more »