Water Fun

Back in August we did a giveaway for 4 complimentary tickets to the Kiddie Cruise and it was so popular, we are doing it again but this time two lucky Mommy Poppinistas will win 4 tickets to the Halloween Kiddie Cruise.

Setting sail on Oct. 26 at noon, the Halloween Kiddie Cruise will take you on a ghoulishly fun two hour tour of the Hudson. The cruise ship is a 3 level Louisiana-Style paddle-wheel boat that is packed full of Halloween kiddie entertainment. Recommended for kids ages 2 to 8, you can expect face painting, balloon sculpting, arts and crafts, magic shows, performances, story telling, live music, raffles and yummy food for kids and adults.

Keep reading for details on how to enter... Read more »

Photo by egarc2

The New York City Parks Department provides a variety of free, water-based programs for all ages and levels, ranging from swim lessons to recreational swimming to training for swim team competition. Programs are available for toddlers, children and adults, and both after-school swim classes and Saturday swimming lessons are available. All programs are free and offered in Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan and After School Swim Classes are available in Queens.

Classes are free and space is limited. Registration is on a first come-first served basis. Here's more info on these free swimming classes and how to register: Read more »

10 Year Old Jennifer is THRILLED with her Shark Boat ride.

Shuli, our Shark Boat Giveaway winner, wrote me a nice note saying what a great time her family had on their free Shark Boat ride this Labor Day Weekend. Read about their great day:

Photo Credit: Downtown Express

Reading Downtown Express today, I stumbled on an event too good not to mention, so you're getting an extra post today. The 16th Annual New York City Tugboat Race is this Sunday, August 31st. Tugboats are one of those magical, anachronistic, secret microcosms of NYC that we so often forget about, but the more you learn about them, the more interesting they are.

At 9:30 about 15 tugboats will gather off the waters of W. 44th St and parade up t o 72nd St. where there will be a race and then a "pushing contest." Crews will compete in a line toss competition and there will be spectator competitions too. The event ends at 2pm. Check the Working Harbor Website for details on the the event, schedule, best places to view the events or to purchase tickets for a spot on the spectator boat.

Follow up this event with some Tugboat Children's Books like Little Toot which will paint a rich picture of the life of tugboats on the NYC harbor. Read more »

You don't need to burn a lot of dough or fossil fuels (meaning even more dough) to have a great Labor Day Weekend. We've got 10 fun family activities that you can enjoy for cheap or even free.

Labor Day Weekend for me is all about having one last hurrah for summer, so these activities all focus on getting outside, either with an easy day trip from New York or doing something in the city that makes you feel like you're not. This isn't like most of my free and cheap lists. Some of these activities cost a bit of cash, but I figure, if I'm staying in the city or skipping the hotel, it's worth it to pay a little bit to feel like I'm getting some vacationing in.

Here's 10 ideas that will take you away, without getting too carried away: Read more »

Will you be happy when the summer ends or are you dreading it?  Either way, the end of summer is a time to celebrate so why not have a last hoorah on us with this giveaway for four tickets to the NYC based Kiddie Cruise!

You will board your cruise ship and set sail for a three hour tour (actually its only two hours but I couldn't control myself from writing that line) on the Hudson and around the Statue of Liberty.  The cruise ship which is called the Queen of Hearts, is a 3 level Louisiana-Style paddlewheel boat that is literally packed full of kiddie entertainment. Recommended for kids ages 2 to 8, expect lots of kid pleasers including face painting, balloon sculpting, arts and crafts, magic shows, children's performances, story telling, live music, raffles and yummy food for kids and adults.

Keep reading to find out how you can enter the giveaway. Read more »

Mommy Poppins reader, Jodi Call, like many NYC parents, is sticking close to home this summer, but that doesn't mean she's not having a blast. With Mommy Poppins, and her friend Kara, as her guides, she's been on a quest with her son, Roan, to make this summer the Best Summer of His Life. (No pressure or anything.)

Lucky for us, she's reported back, sharing four of her best days so far this summer. Read on to hear about some of the great adventures they've been having, what's worked, what she will know better next time, and where the bathrooms were along the way. [Thanks, Jodi!]

Got a tip or suggestion you want to share? Send it in!. Read more »

The incredible popularity of DUMBO has created this new love for New Yorkers and that is hanging out in the magical and somewhat creepy space that is created under our massive bridges. If you are one of these LOSUBs (lovers of spaces under bridges), and getting tired of loitering under the various Brooklyn crossings, I have a new one for you that won't disappoint - the Triborough. Head to this neighborhood of Queens for a great day of water fun, ethnic eats, a kid-friendly beer garden, and maybe even a fun Museum stop. Read more »

We have been getting lots of great tips from readers in our in box and in the comment section of the site. It's been hard for me to keep up with it all on top of our regular posting. Some of them I've been able to slip into regular posts, but the tips are all too good to let go, so this week and next week I set aside some days that I am going to be posting the great ideas for things to do with kids in New York that you have been sharing.

If you have some tips you'd like to share with us please send them to me.

Thanks to Sharon Kleinhandler, Tricia Gillespie and Neeta Vallab for these tips: Read more »

One of the most anticipated events of this summer is the New York City Waterfalls. Starting on Friday, June 26th and running through October, four spots in the East River will be morphed into 100 foot high waterfalls. It's all part of a public art project by artist Olafur Eliasson who is challenging us island dwellers to pay a bit more attention to our water.

The five 90 to 120-foot tall installations will operate from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week, and will be lit after sunset, adding a striking element to New York City’s iconic skyline. One will be by the Brooklyn anchorage of the Brooklyn Bridge, the other between Piers 4 and 5 at Furman and Joralemon Streets in Brooklyn. A third waterfall will be located in Lower Manhattan at Pier 35, and the fourth on the north shore of Governors Island.

The project uses only environmentally sustainable energy and they promise that the structures won't harm the fish, shoreline or aquatic life (yup, thats right, fish actually live in the East River).  And if your family gets really into it, you can follow up the waterfalls with trips to MOMA and PS1 where Eliasson currently has exhibits which incidentally are great for babies since they include lots of colored lights.

Bonus: Mommy Poppins is teaming up with Circle Line Tours to give 3 lucky readers a 4-pack of tickets to the Shark Boat speed boat tour of the waterfalls. What better way to get kids psyched to see some cool public art then by passing it at really fast speeds? And, learn after the jump about other FREE boat tours of the waterfalls that anyone can get tickets for! Read more »