Mom in the City

WE ARE NO LONGER ACCEPTING RSVPs FOR THIS EVENT -IT IS AT CAPACITY 

Posted by kdc521 at 05:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

General Giveaways

 1. One The Happiest Baby on the Block cd and dvd set http://www.thehappiestbaby.com/

2. The Complete Organic Pregnancy 
http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780060887452/The_Complete_Organic_Pregnancy/index.aspx

You are entered to win the above giveaways simply by being on the Mom in the City newsletter list.  (To be added, email your name, zip code and referral source to kcoleman@mominthecity.com)

Event Giveaways
There will be several giveaways at the March Event (Family Play Date at GymTime Rhythm & Glues including the following:

1. A $250 gift certificate to GymTime, Rhythm & Glues (http://www.gymtime.net/)

2. A set of family tickets to Go, Diego Go, Live! The Great Jaguar Rescue http://www.nickjr.com/shows/diego/dieg_live/index.jhtml 

3. One Raising Twins is an Extreme Sport!™ t-shirt from Multiple Moms Rock http://www.multiplemomsrock.com/.  (I have their Why Can't I Have a Timeout?™ tee...super cute and comfy!)

4. One The Happiest Toddler on the Block dvd http://www.thehappiestbaby.com/

5. One My Body, My House children's book http://www.greennest.com/index.php?cPath=46

Posted by kdc521 at 05:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by kdc521 at 01:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

1. Recommended by a MitC member, (see Special Offers) the site 1 800 Diapers. http://www.1800diapers.com/, is great.  Discounted prices, FREE fast shipping and a large selection of baby products, (not to mention the convenience of shopping from home) makes this site worth a visit. It's best if you want to buy large (like a month's or more) supply of items...that's what I did.

2. Dr. Seuss' THE CAT IN THE HAT - This classic celebrates its 50th anniversary this March.  Buy any Dr. Seuss book! For every proof of purchase received between January 9, 2007, and May 1, 2007, Random House Children's Books will donate one book to First Book (http://www.firstbook.org/site/c.lwKYJ8NVJvF/b.674095/k.CC09/Home.htm).  For more information, visit http://www.seussville.com/CITH_50th/.

3. Garden in a Bag:  The first day of Spring is 3/21. Enjoy an urban version of planting with your kids with the easy to grow version -- the plants grow right in the leak-proof bag! I did one with my 2 year old son and he was so excited when the plants blossomed a few days later.  You can find the bags at http://store01.prostores.com/servlet/pottingshedcreations/StoreFront  and
http://www.wishingfish.com/gardenbag.html

4. Gift baskets.  My doctor's practice (West Care Medical) has done such an excellent job of taking care of me during both pregnancies, labor and deliveries that I have been looking for a small way to say "thank you".  I'm not a big flowers person, so I don't especially like sending them (unless I know that the recipient really likes flowers.)  Anyway, I found a great, reasonable gift basket site from where I can choose a variety of themed baskets, www.winecountrygiftbaskets.com

5. Pizza Parties.  This year is the first time that my son really "gets" the meaning of a birthday party.  As such, he has his list of things that he wants: a pizza party, the Doodlebops and a cake being the top 3.  Although I can't get the Doodlebops to perform at his party, I think that we can accommodate the other two wishes.  Since I have a new baby at home, I didn't want to do an in-house make your own pizza party.  I narrowed the choices down to three: Two Boots Pizza (http://www.twoboots.com/HTML/Main_HTML/RestaurantKidParty.html) and Uno Chicago Grill (http://www.unos.com/index.html) - they both have pizza making parties...for Unos you just need to call the location and ask for the details; and Chuck E. Cheese's http://www.chuckecheese.com/main/index.php?content=content/party.swf - they now have a city location (in Harlem)...I had taken my son and a friend there a few weeks ago and they loved it. (After getting input from attendees, we have decided to do the party at Uno Chicago Grill in March.)

6. Crockpots (http://www.crockpot.com/).  My mom and my aunt-in-law have been singing the praises of throwing things in these pots in the morning and having a tasty meal at the end of the day.  Now that I'm trying to figure out new time-saving techniques, I'm eager to use my newest gift.  (The site also has great, simple recipes!)
 
7. Companies giving back to the community.  I made Hamburger Helper for the first time at my son's request a couple of weeks ago.  The lasagna flavor was actually pretty good for an occasional meal.  What impressed me even more was their Hometown Helper program, http://www.myhometownhelper.com/, where they are giving away up to $15,000 a month to fund projects in hometowns across America.

Posted by kdc521 at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by kdc521 at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

One of the last things that I wanted to do before giving birth was go to one more high/afternoon tea (one of my favorite things to do).  That's exactly what I did last Saturday with a close friend of mine.  We went to the St. Regis Hotel.  It was a little pricier than other teas in the city ($45+ per person before tax & gratuity) but I figured that it would be a really good tea.

Unfortunately, I was wrong.  The interior was nice, but since we were seated near the door we received a blast of cold air every time someone entered the area.  The tea selection was pretty minimal....I ended up with chamomile tea.  We received an assortment of bite-sized sandwiches which were fine, but nothing exceptional.  The scones and cream were good though, so that made me happy. None of the assorted pastries looked especially appetizing, so I (and my friend) skipped that portion.  Also, the presentation was confusing...it was a combination of English and Asian looking.  (The finger sandwiches and scone sides were served on long, narrow rectangular dishes?!)  The best part of the tea (besides catching up with my dear friend) was the attentive service.  Our waiter was great...it wasn't his fault that the meal wasn't great.

In any event, I would not recommend the St. Regis for high tea.  My friend and I rated our favorites (thus far).  Her favorite is Alice's Tea Cup.  My favorites are The Plaza (I hope that they still have high tea when they reopen in the Fall!); Alice's Tea Cup; Tea & Sympathy; and The Harlem Tea Room in that order.  If you're a tea person, you can also find pretty accurate reviews of NY tea places at http://www.teamap.com/states/state_NY_Name.html.

If anyone else knows of any great tea spots in the city, please drop me a line at kcoleman@mominthecity.com.  (I've also heard that Lady Mendl's has a great high tea...I'll try them next.) 

Posted by kdc521 at 01:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)