The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze

I think this is the most innovative Halloween event I have ever seen. Almost 3,000 pumpkins each hand-carved to a unique jack o'lantern by artists displayed in Van Cortlandt Manor's dark and mysterious 18th-century riverside landscape. Along with spooky music, sound and light effects it's sensational. I was amazed by the big spider web, dragons and snakes made with pumpkins. It's hard to imagine, so I would recommend you to go see it. Print your tickets online in advance because most nights are already sold out and there are only a few nights left. Don't forget it starts after 6 pm.

Celebrating the fall

As much as I love living in the city, I sometimes feel like I have to get out. I'm not really a nature's person but that doesn't mean that I don't appreciate what she provides for us. Picking my own apples and pumpkins - something I have not done before- is a rite of fall that I'm beginning to look forward to since I moved to New York. It's a healthy day out in the fresh air and a great picture taking opportunity, but most of all it's the thrill of getting close to the land and bringing home fruit and vegetables that you actually picked.
There are so many farms around New York opening their fields to visitors during harvest season. Pickyourown.org lists farms that welcome strangers to harvest their own fruits and vegetables and bring home a crop of fresh picked produce. We picked Greig farm which is almost 2 hrs drive from NYC.

Tara hard at work picking apples.

Alice's Tea Cup

It was a birthday but it wasn't a party. There were desserts but no candles. We spent the afternoon chatting, laughing, sipping tea and eating delicious scones at Alice's Tea Cup Chapter II at Upper East Side. I missed being with long time friends because all we do since for a long time is gather up over play dates and try to chit-chat in that craziness.
Inside Alice's Tea Shop, there are photos depicting scenes from "Alice in Wonderland" on the walls. Parents can customize kids' parties, choosing from fairy dress-up parties or an Alice-themed party where Alice tells stories and paints little faces.
The Children's Menu features sandwiches of granny smith apple slices and peanut butter or nutella, grilled cheese, home made graham crackers, and even pureed baby food.
For those seeking a comfortable and cozy tearoom in the city, Alice's Tea Cup is a find.

Max Brenner

Oh My Goodness! as my little Tara likes to say these days, why haven't I yet written about one of my favorite places in this town? I love love love chocolate but who doesn't? And no wonder I found this place when I was pregnant. You can start smelling the chocolate when you step right into this place. And there is chocolate everywhere you look:) The menu includes yummi sandwiches (not made of chocolate), drinks and of course divine sweets plus a kids menu. Max Brenner chocolate culture is a holistic experience. Live it, don't miss it!

At 841 Broadway (between 13th and 14th Streets).

Crayola Factory

Last Saturday, we didn't have any plans for the day and I remembered an article I saw on TONY Kids about the Crayola Factory, as I was glancing through the pages.However, the only thing I remembered about its location was that it was at downtown. Naturally, I thought it was somewhere at Manhattan's downtown and at the same time I was wondering why I hadn't heard of this place before. I found the magazine and oops! to my surprise it was actually on the Getaways page and it turned out to be at Easton, PA. Well, that at least explained the question in my mind .

So we decided to take this trip the next day and we drove only 1.5 hours to get there. It's called a Factory but it's not where the manufacturing is made although you can watch live demonstrations. It's a hands-on discovery center for kids and even I had a few arts and crafts to bring home. You can create anything using their latest products and yes! you don't have to clean up after you're finished. The top 2 floors are the National Canal Museum where little ones can play with boats through a replica of a canal while learning so much from coal mining in the early 1900's to currents and transportation of canal boats.

The Crayola FACTORY 30 Centre Square Easton, PA 18042Phone: 610.515.8000

Family Swim at Asphalt Green

This summer I finally gave up on the New York beaches. We went to a beach chosen best of all US beaches, still I felt like I was hit by a truck on the way back. The big waves, sticky sand are not for me!

I've been taking Tara for swim lessons since she was 6 months old to Asphalt Green at Upper East Side. Thank God they have an outdoor pool open during the summer. Although we are not members to the Club, drop-ins are allowed on Sundays for a fee during Family Rec Swim. It doesn't get crowded probably because not many people know about this pool. Down side is there is no kiddie pool but Tara learned to swim on her own with arm floats. I'm so proud of her!

Planethailand 212

We hopped on our favorite rocket ship and flew to this 5000-square-foot galaxy for dinner. The first thing that took our attention (other than the dizzying 5000-square-foot space) was the video installation on the wall. Then we settled in our comfy leather booth in a room with red ceilings and walls and giant paintings on the floor. Through Bora's crying and Tara's running wildly around, it took us almost half an hour to concentrate on the menu which had 160 options in all. Luckily we were happy with all of our order and everything was delicious. The service really didn't add to our experience but if you are a family like us who don't want to be bothered by eye rolling waiters when your kid is either spitting on the table or climbing on top of the seats- it could be just what you need. Although when the check did not arrive for some time, we were wondering which planet it was coming from.
If you would like to travel to this planet it's at 30 W 24th St.

Kidfresh

Can you imagine a store that sells food only for kids? Well this is New York and there is something for everyone. When I first saw this place I thought it was perfect for mommies who don't cook but not for me. I mean how lazy could I be if I can't even make pasta for my kid? Still I went in the store and peeked at what they had. Everything looked like they could easily be prepared at home although they had really good ideas. I suddenly thought if I shut down my kitchen for a week, my kids wouldn't starve nor have to eat junk food all the time. They prepare healthy and fun meals daily for 4 age groups as baby, mini, juniors and kids. Needless to say all the ingredients they use are natural and organic.
I think their to-go Breakfast packs and Lunch boxes are great for times like travelling or if you think you'll miss lunch at home and you don't want to stuff your child with fries , you could make a quick stop at their Upper East Side location ( 2nd Ave between 84th and 85th) and get a nice meal which they will happily warm up for you.

You can also order online from their website or get nutrition tips. They even have cooking classes for ages 3 & up.

Water Taxi Beach

I guess we can all agree that living in the city during summer might (pardon the language) suck. If you're lucky, you can rent a summer house by the ocean or you can crash at a friend's/relative's house every weekend. But for those who are stuck in the city, Water Taxi Beach is offering the pleasure of a real beach with real New Jersey beach sand in the middle of the city. That is Long Island City. Transportation is super easy to Hunter's Point with Water Taxi from Manhattan, you even get a free ride. Once you get there, you can either turn your back to Manhattan's skyline and watch some beach volley while sipping your daiquiri and listening to DJ music and forget where you are or face the city and watch the sunset over the tall buildings. What I like the most is while I'm doing either of those, Tara happily plays with her sand toys without bothering me.

This is as close as it gets to the real thing and you don't have to drive for hours to get there. And if your colleagues ask you where you got your tan, you can always say that you were at Hamptons for the weekend.

Family friendly & trendy dining

When we plan to go out for dinner, I like to choose hip and trendy places rather than just going to the corner diner. Since the number in our family doubled up in the last 2 years, now I have to find "family-friendly" and "trendy" dining which might sound like an oxymoron. Of course when you say trendy in NY there comes the at least-half-an-hour waiting lines and that's when I usually lose my husband's interest. He starts eyeing the next door restaurant where he will have his table in less than 5 minutes. I tell him that the next door is not an option and that I'm staying with our beeper in my hand and he frowns at me until we sit at our table.
Enough with the intro, I heard that Rosa Mexicana was a popular place at Union Square so that's where we headed. We had our table right away because we arrived around 7 so there was no frowning to begin with. We started out with guacomole which they make in front of you which is awesome. Not only did they have high chairs and a menu for jr. amigos but they also brought crayons and coloring paper for Tara so I can say they are kid friendly. Plus it's quite a loud place you won't worry about annoying others. Food was good, drinks were amazing and the water wall was a sight to look at.
As we were leaving, there was a young chatty crowd with margaritas in their hands waiting for their tables and it didn't look like they were minding it at all.
The address is 9 East 18th Street (bet. 5th Avenue & Broadway) although there are other locations around town.

Rice to Riches

When my mom made rice pudding for us, I used to say "Eew!" and run as far as possible. Things hadn't changed much since then until I found out about this place. It didn't intrigue me much when I first heard about the place since the only thing you could order was, well, rice pudding. So it took me a couple of times to actually go inside rather than just pass it by. And boy was I wrong! This is rice pudding made over with 24 flavors to choose from. I tried peach, chocolate, mango and had my eye on couple of others for the next time.

No kid will say no to this phenomenon and you will like the slick design in the store as much as the taste.

So let's not waste any time, it is located at 37 Spring Street between Mott and Mulberry St.

We were at the beach today

When I woke up this morning and saw the sunny sky, I asked my husband "How long would you like to drive today?" He raised one eyebrow wondering what I had in mind. I always wanted to go to the Main Beach at East Hampton but never had a chance. That small town reminds me so much of Cesme, the other small town where I practically spent all my summers before I moved to New York and I have to say I terribly miss those summers. Despite the heavy traffic, even though it wasn't a weekend, we had enough time to spend at the beach. We ate our delicious lunch we got from Citarella, built sand castles and called it a day. That is to say just when the dark clouds started thundering above us.

On the way back, we had this double-rainbow treat which amazed me as much as it did Tara.

Our favorite park in the city

My husband and I lived in Manhattan's Upper East Side until our daughter Tara started making it really over-crowded for all of us. So we shared the story of many other expanding families and we moved to the other side of the river. One of the things I loved most about my old tiny apartment was being just steps away from the Carl Schurz Park at 84th St and East End Avenue. The playground in the park quickly became our favorite place when Tara was nearing one although we were enjoying the park long before for walks and weekend picnics along the great views of East River . The playground features safe equipment that attracts toddlers and older kids, a very clean sandbox and water play area which is usually Tara's favorite during the summer. When she is finished playing at the playground, her other favorite thing to do in the park is watching the little dogs playing at the dog run.

For us, we still don't mind the 15 minutes drive from our home to this park and try not to miss a day without it.

If you are ever in the neighborhood and have some time to kill, it will be time well spent.

Why I made a blog...

I've always enjoyed reading my friends' blogs but I never actually considered having one of my own until when I was with a group of friends at a dinner party and I realized I was the only one without one. My reason of not having a blog was simply because I didn't want to write about my daily activities with my kids since they wouldn't be much different from day to day. To my surprise, I had a lot of time to think about some concept ideas later that night, thanks to a cup of coffee with caffeine, something that I'm not used to.

I always like to stroll the city, find new places, try different cuisines and I thought I might even write about them. I'm definitely no Zagat but I could tell you about the parks, restaurants, etc. that I've been to with adding some personal details. As I'm a mom who couldn't get used to the idea of having a babysitter for almost two and a half years now, I know how to go out with children and how to come back without an embarrassment.

So this will be about our new findings, our favorites and not so favorites in the city....