On Saturday, my family went to a “Dress for a Mess with de Blob” event at the Children’s Museum of the Arts. It was so much fun!

Of course Michael (my little “gamer”) immediately went to play the new de Blob™ video game that’s coming out on 9/22. He mainly enjoyed painting the city by turning de Blob™ into a variety of colors. (There were more challenging levels for older users.)

After we dragged him from the game, we had a chance to enjoy CMA. It’s a really nice children’s museum. Downstairs, Michael enjoyed jumping around in the ball pit with his dad while I had fun building foam structures that Sean knocked down and reading books to him. Then, we all went upstairs and painted. Some of the kids were participating in a Jackson Pollock style splatter paint workshop but my kids (and husband) preferred to paint with brushes. They also had fun doing chalk drawings on this really great blackboard table at the museum.

The other thing that I enjoyed about our visit was that I had the chance to meet Anna Fader, Founding Editor of Mommy Poppins, a great online resource for NYC parents. She was a lovely lady and we realized that we share (at least) one thing in common that we love about blogging: hosting giveaways! (Be sure to check back tomorrow to see some of our new July ones.)

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Recently, I was contacted by two moms who are producing a series of children’s picture books and related products for ages 2-9 under Focus Friends, LLC. I agreed to read their debut title Joy is the Greatest Gift and I’m so glad that I did!

I think that Joy is the Greatest Gift would make a great gift for all kids, but especially for little girls. The main character Joyann shows children different ways to celebrate joy every day in practical ways (i.e. jumping barefoot in puddles, squishing sand between your toes, etc.). It is beautifully illustrated and shares a positive message (without being too “preachy”). I also like that at the end of the book, there is a page that allows the kids to write their own “Joy List”.

(Their second book, Appreciation Party, is expected to be released this fall.)

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Here are four questions that I get asked the most by members and readers:

What exactly do you do work-wise?

In addition to being the lead blogger and event planner for “Mom in the City”….

-My first and full-time job is raising my two sons Michael (4) and Sean (16 months). Hopefully, this will be my primary job until they are both in school.

-Then, my “for-pay” job is New York City & Long Island Major Metro Local Guide for BabyZone.com / ParentZone.com. There, I maintain a family-friendly events calendar and share local resources (everything from pregnancy services to playgroups).

-I also write a weekly column for Harlem News Group, a series of local community newspapers, as their Family Editor.

Other than that, I do various speaking, writing and consulting projects as they arise.

When do you find the time to get all of those things done and have a life?

-For the most part, I’m pretty organized. I have a weekly work schedule that I (pretty much – life permitting) stick to. I don’t usually work more than three hours a day (one hour in the morning; one hour while the kids nap/rest; and one hour after the kids are in bed.) Also, since the focus of all of my work is parenting, it’s easier. I basically write about my life!

How are giveaway winners chosen?

-My dear husband created a random number program. I simply put the number of people who enter the contests in and it pops out the winning number. (I’m too sentimental to be objective in picking!)

You rarely include negative information/reviews on your site. Do you get paid for posts?

-No, I don’t do “pay –to-posts”. In fact, at this point, I don’t even accept advertising. In general, I only mention and review things that I like or think that my readers will like. If I don’t like something, I simply won’t write about it. No need to waste my time – or yours.

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Well, not really.

It just seems that way to me, because for the last couple of days, I’ve been attending holiday media events.

On Wednesday, I went to the Coburn Communication Holiday Suite. While there, I was viewing holiday and signature collections from Boots, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Elizabeth Arden, IMAN Cosmetics, Joy Mangano, Rodale Publications, Sanctuary Spa, Staples, The Company Store, Todd English and more. The main thing that I went away thinking is, “We need a Target in Manhattan”. Why? They carry so many reasonably priced lines (like the Boots line of skin care and cosmetics –that I had never heard of).

Yesterday, I went to an EA “Everyone Plays” event where they gave the media access to a variety of games that would be out for the holiday season. It was a family event, so Michael was in game heaven. My favorites were the “All-Play” sports games – they have various levels so that both young kids and experienced adults can enjoy the game. I’ll share more near the end of the year.

Although the holiday season is still a while away, this year has flown by – it’s half over. (Yikes!)

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Here’s a photo of Mom in the City member Junnie Mark’s kids wearing the Puddlegear jackets that they won in our recent giveaway. The kids are SO adorable.

As far as the jackets, Junnie writes “As mom/dad, we appreciate the fact that they are soft, yet well constructed, and free of toxic PVC. But most of all, our kids love them too: especially their vivid colors and comfy cuttings. These rain jackets are so handy during these unexpected storms we’ve had lately in NYC.”

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Our family went to see The Backyardigans Live! Tale of the Mighty Knights at Madison Square Garden this past Father’s Day. For those of you not familiar with The Backyardigans, the show is an animated musical-adventure series aimed at children between the ages of 2 and 10. In each episode, the show’s five preschool friends—Pablo, Tyrone, Uniqua, Tasha, and Austin—rely on their vivid imaginations to transform their backyard into completely different worlds, in which they go through many sorts of stories and adventures. (via wikipedia)

In this particular adventure, Knights Uniqua and Tyrone are given their most important assignment ever by King Pablo. The task - to protect an egg. “Babysit an egg?!” exclaims Uniqua, “This doth stink!” But the two knights soon learn that this is no ordinary egg, but a very unpredictable one that takes them on an exciting adventure. Along the way, Grabbing Goblin Austin and Flighty Fairy Tasha join the medieval mayhem as the runaway egg hatches feet and wings and makes an unexpected dash all the way up to Dragon Mountain! The Backyardigans use the audience’s help to face a mighty dragon and safely return the egg to the King Pablo.

The show is a lively one with lots of participation from the audience – singing, dancing, and question and answer with the performers on stage. The actor that plays Uniqua is a superb dancer. She has the rad moves!

Being the first live show that we’ve seen with our now 2 year old, I was a little apprehensive of what I thought the experience would be. I expected a lot of loud music and bright lights that would startle his and make his anxious. He still tends to be startled by the loud environmental of New York City. But my fears were assuaged during the first few minutes of the show. The volume of music and dialogue was just right for tiny, sensitive ears. Lee’s dad even commented that for a show with so many little babies, he expected to hear a lot of screaming and crying, but that was not the case. My only disappointment with the show was that we didn’t get a souvenir program and I didn’t see any for sale. Otherwise it was a wonderful experience and one I highly recommend.

Mighty Knights are mighty nice!

-This review is by Mom in the City member Mahalia Watson. The Backyardigans Live are currently touring the country.

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Lately, I’ve received several e-mails asking for mom group recommendations. You can find a list of recommended Mom Groups that I have compiled here.

(I will also be answering some of the most frequent questions that I get asked on Friday.)

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-Step Into Reading is a great, free site that teaches preschool - fourth grade children how to read.

-The Shop It To Me site informs you when online sites have your favorite brands on sale as part of their free service.

-CityPass sells pocket-sized ticket booklets that allow you to visit popular attractions in major cities. In addition to the admission tickets, the booklets also include “insider tips” on the particular city (i.e. New York, Atlanta, Boston, etc.).

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In the June issue of Real Simple (one of my favorite non-parenting magazines), they have a great article about sunglasses on page 215. They divide 15 pairs of shades into three categories: Best Neutral Tone Sunglasses, Best Metal Frame Sunglasses, and Best Colored Frame Sunglasses. The thing that I especially like is the variety. There’s something for everyone style-wise and price-wise (prices range from $17 to $395). Personally, I never spend a lot of money on sunglasses. (Like umbrellas, I lose them too easily and I don’t want to be upset with myself for throwing away money.) This article has several wonderful options wherever you fall on the price range. (You can also see this article online here).

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This (even more than the various children’s museums) is my son Michael’s favorite museum in the city. So, he was super excited when he found out that we were going there for a Media Family Party last night.

We were there to see The Horse exhibit which was great, especially if your kid is a fan of ponies and horses. In addition to the six exhibit areas, the museum also uses hands-on, interactive computers, and video to make this a multi-media experience. You can see a layout of the exhibit (which is at the museum until 1/4/09) here.

Since we were already at the museum, Michael insisted that we see the Lizards and Snakes: Alive! exhibit, which we had seen on a prior visit. The little boys especially loved this exhibit which was full of creepy, crawly actual lizards and snakes (behind glass, of course). Being on the squeamish side myself, I was totally grossed out by a computer game that Michael kept playing where you make the snake eat mice. Yuck! In any event, you can read more about this exhibit (which is at the museum until 1/5/09) here.

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