Your Guide to Family-Friendly Day Trips in New Jersey, New York…and Beyond
Do yourself a favor and take a trip to Hyde Park, New York. Make a weekend of it. You can visit the Franklin Delano Roosevelt house and library, the Vanderbilt mansion, and the 170 acre Culinary Institute of America. The CIA is especially good to visit if you and your kids are foodies.
I bet you didn’t know this year is the 200th anniversary of Frederic Church’s birth. You probably haven’t even heard of him. Admittedly, I had not either, when I went to visit his home and property at Olana New York State Historic Site in Hudson, New York.
You don’t have to be a history buff to appreciate FDR’s house and library with kids in Hyde Park, New York. As someone who did not live through that era, I found it astounding how many advancements in our social fabric came from FDR’s four terms in presidential office (yes, 12 years, four terms – the longest-serving president).
I’ve been to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty a handful of times since I’ve lived in New Jersey Each time I learn something new. But after taking the Ellis Island Hard Hat Tour with kids (have you even heard of it?) I now know even more. This is a great tour to take with kids – though the official age to go is 13+ (more on that later). You see a whole different side of Ellis Island – literally and figuratively.
“Mommy! Are those real rocket ships?”
Rounding the corner into the driveway of the New York Hall of Science, my preschooler lost her mind. You can’t climb the rockets, but yes, they are very tall, very real, and clearly, very exciting.
Continue reading “Review: New York Hall of Science”
I’ve been wanting to go to the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze in Croton-on-Hudson for a long time, and finally did it. Interested in seeing Blaze with kids in Hudson Valley? Here’s what you’ll see, and what you need to know.
We visited Storm King this summer, having visited it in 2013. Given the COVID situation, it was time for an updated blog post, visiting Storm King during the pandemic. Keep in mind that the situation is always changing, so please check the Storm King website before you go.
Our annual NYC holiday windows post! Enjoy.
Bloomingdale’s 2017 holiday windows
Bloomingdale’s NYC holiday windows holiday windows are inspired by the Greatest Showman, the new movie coming out about PT Barnum. You’ll find circus performers galore, and some windows with magical elements. You’ll also find a fortune teller, where you can get your own fortune. Here are Bloomingdale’s holiday windows from 2016.
You’ve probably seen glass artist Dale Chihuly’s work before. But it’s lovely to see it in the garden settings of the New York Botanical Garden, where it will be through October.
For this exhibition, there are plenty of his older works, and a few made for this show. We went over to see it on a beautiful summer day. It was my first time at the NYBG as well, so I didn’t know what to expect. We spent four hours there, and still didn’t see all the gardens (though we saw all the Chihulys, I think). Continue reading “Review: Chihuly at New York Botanical Gardens”
My kids have been wanting to try indoor skydiving for quite awhile. My mother surprised us all with a session at iFly when we were visiting them in Phoenix. While there is an iFly in Westchester, there is currently none in NJ, though they told us that one or two were opening up here in the next year. Here’s our iFly review.
What was surprising to me is Continue reading “Review: iFly Indoor Skydiving”