Sesame Place

Hey friends! First let me just say, this is not a sponsored post. My family and I just got back from two full days in Sesame Place, and I have a bunch of thoughts that I'd like to share with you all.

I don't know about you but I love Disney World. It's magical. You get transported to different mythical places, countries, periods of history, etc. as you walk through the park. Two years ago we went with my then two year old and got to experience the magic through the eyes of a toddler and it was amazing. HOWEVER, Disney with a toddler is both stressful (especially if you have a kiddo who doesn't nap well in a stroller) and expensive. Since my family would have to get on a plane or drive for two days, it's not a trip we can make every year. And if you've ever been to Disney you know that the trip back to your car alone makes coming and going a lot more daunting if you are staying off property. Now that we have a 4 year old and an 18 month old we felt it was time to do a toddler friendly theme park that was a lot closer to home. Sesame Place.

If you've never been to Sesame Place and you have kids who watch Sesame Street, you have to go. Even if your kids don't watch the show, there is plenty to enjoy between the dry and wet rides, the shows, parades and character meet and greats. So here are my top 10 tips to maximizing the fun and minimizing your budget.


1.) Get the App.  Sesame Place is under the same corporate umbrella as Sea World. Whatever your feelings about Sea World, it does give the much smaller park the benefits of the bigger parks like the App. It gives you a map, schedules and best of all discounts. I'm sure the types of discounts available change throughout the year so I won't list details, but to give you an idea- I saved $15 PER TICKET by purchasing my park tickets in the app, and then I just pulled it up on my phone at the gate. You can also make diner reservations- more on this later.

2.) Bring Snacks. Sesame Place has a policy against bringing picnic style meals, but they do allow snacks. And trust me not only will your wallet thank you, but also your kids who will not understand why you can't get off line for a ride to get a snack. And when you are surrounded by popcorn, cookies and ice cream a bag of frozen grapes will seem like the best parenting decision you've ever made. To make these snacks seems a little more appealing in a world of goodies, I also bought some Earth's Best organic treats with Elmo's face on them. They are single serve, shelf stable (no refrigeration necessary) and feature a character. We went with fruit bars and yogurt pouches. Inexpensive, filling, easy to fit in even a small bag and organic. :-)

3.) Bring refillable bottles and buy a souvenir cup. One thing that I absolutely hate spending money on is drinks. Water has one of the highest mark up prices and it almost always comes in a plastic bottle that I am vehemently opposed to on behalf of our planet. So finding a solution to staying in the park all day and not lugging an entire cooler of water around (which I couldn't do anyway) was something I couldn't quite figure out. But here's the solution I came up with. When you arrive, purchase a souvenir cup at almost any stand that has fountain drinks. We picked Abby but I also saw Elmo and Cookie Monster. They are $14.99. And I know that sounds like a lot for a cup but here's why it isn't. First, it's large. Second, it's a reusable cup so there is a lot more than a single use. And THIRD, the day of purchase you get FREE REFILLS. Technically the policy is that for every day after purchase within the year you get $.99 refills, but we didn't pay for a refill at all. Don't count on that. But even if you have to pay for refills it's worth it. We used our large cup to refill our daughters cups that we brought in with us. You can get water like we did or soda, lemonade, iced tea or apple juice.

4.) Dine with the characters. On our first day we had dinner with the characters. It was easily the best decision we made. The food is meh at best. It's sort of an odd arrangement of ravioli, mac and cheese, chicken tenders, pulled pork and hot dogs. The dessert bar is also ok, not great. But the entire hour of dinner is dancing, singing and playing with Elmo, Abby, Grover and Cookie Monster. Seriously, conga lines, the cupid shuffle, Sesame Street songs- the works. You take pictures and that's great. But you can do that "on the street" as they say in the park. The great thing about dinner is the playtime the kids get with these magical characters. I would spend that money three times over to see my kids jumping and playing with cookie monster like I did. Ok let's move on before I cry... Money wise, it depends of the age of your children to determine whether or not this is much more expensive than the other dinning options in the park. For me, my youngest was free and my oldest was only $9. If you have to pay full adult price for all your family members ($28) it might not be a great choice, but like I said my kids were enchanted and it was air conditioned- no brainer.

5.) Buy character stuffed animals and t-shirts before you go.
This one is self explanatory but just to give you an idea- I got roped into buying two medium sized Abby dolls and it cost me about $60.   -_- The Bert and Ernie I bought from Target before going were $6 each. Although to be fair their sized was more comparable to the small sized stuffed animals from the park which are $16. Still a much better deal to buy from Target. Same with T-shirts. No, they won't say Sesame Place if you buy them from Target. But is it worth the upcharge? You decide.

6.) Go on a Weekday. If you are able to get to the park on a weekday you will have a much smaller crowd. Yes you will deal with camps during the summer, but they are a little easier to avoid than an influx of families every where.

7.) Don't pay for priority parking. There are three tiers of parking at Sesame Place. And if you've ever been to Disney you might think that sounds completely wonderful, but don't bother. The lowest tier ($18) is still plenty close and as long as it's not an insanely busy day you will likely be able to get close to the entrance. There is no tram or anything, again not the scale of Disney, so in my opinion this upgrade is not worth it.

8.) Stay farther away. Ok so I'm going to contradict myself in this part. We did not stay in the partner or affiliate property hotels. However, I do think it offered a lot of great goodies. If you can stay in one of the hotels that are walking distance from the park, it may be worth it to you and your family. For example if you are going with a large group and there are nappers and non nappers, this might be a good option for bringing the younger children back for naps or at bedtime while older family members stay for the later park hours. It would also save you the $18 a day minimum for parking. However once you get off property the prices of the hotels is significantly more expensive than the hotels another 10 minutes down the road. Once you are in the car, what's another 10 minutes right? Since the area is a suburb of Philly it's pretty easy to find quality hotels. We stayed in Bensalem and it was a great area with plenty of family friendly restaurants and even a casino. It was a lot cheaper than it's sister hotel across the street and not all that much more convenient. Again, make the choice that is right for your family.

9.) Bring shelf stable lunch items. So if you are really on a budget, it is totally possible to do a day of Sesame without buying food in the park. The snacks and drinks we discussed, and you can bring in to the park. We've also covered that the parking is not nearly as much of an inconvenience as at other parks. So if you leave pb&j in the car or something in a cooler, you could definitely go back to the car to eat. We opted to eat in the park for lunch and dinner on the first day. However after a full second day we headed home for our two and a half hour drive at dinner time. Rather than spend the money and time doing another sit down meal I made pb&j sandwiches out of our trunk while my husband was packing everyone in the car. It ended up being one of the best things we did. Silly, I know.

10.) Get glow sticks from the Dollar Tree. If your kids stay up past dark, they will want all the glowing souvenirs for sale in the park. Fight off the gimmies with a multipack of glowing necklaces, bracelets and wands from the Dollar Tree. My kids also used them as makeshift night lights on the drive home.

City Mom Hacks for Everyone

Hello loyal readers!! Today I am nursing a three year old, an 8 month old and myself through a bad cold that is determined to devour my spirit whole. And even through I am covered in snot that is not even mine, I have a smile on my face for this guest post! Kayla McCaffrey is one awesome mom that has boiled down some of her favorite hacks for parenting in the city that will also work for us suburbanites. Not to mention that her little one is pretty stinking adorable and she has included pictures for your enjoyment ;-) Show her some love and she may just come back to us!


City mom hacks for everyone

Since I am coming up on a year of official motherhood, I have clearly reached expert level. I thought of no better way to impart my wisdom than to take over Jenn’s blog for a post, because let’s be real, if I started my own I would pay some kind of fee for the URL and then never post a thing. 

I read a ton of internet content (including this blog!) when I was pregnant to gather information about what to buy for a baby and what a baby can do. This was all very helpful to me, but I couldn’t find a lot of information on the one thing I was really curious about – what do I need to know about raising my daughter in a city? 

I’ve lived in New York for ten years now. I went to college here, met my husband here, and never left. And I don’t intend on leaving. So, with the only moms I knew in the suburbs, and only a suburban childhood to look back on, I needed to figure out some things on my own. This list is a reflection of my experience, but truly, I hope it is helpful to you regardless of where you call home. 

So with that, some lessons and opinions from a city mom.

• The Car Seat. Admission: I still know very little about car seats. I only just recently learned that they are not just for babies. But here’s the thing – I don’t have a car, and I hate driving and riding in them. I would prefer to take the subway at two in the morning than hail a cab. So, we don’t own a car seat. Turns out, babies travel really well on trains, planes, and buses. And, if you really need a ride in a car, that opportunity exists too. Staying steadfast on our refusal to rent a car anywhere, my husband and I hired a car from an app called Kid Car to take us to the airport once, which comes with a car seat appropriate to your child’s size and a driver that knows how to use it. 

• Babysitters. If I never hear the phrases “date night” or “mommy’s night out” ever again it will be too soon. There don’t need to be special, vomit-inducing words for this. It should happen frequently enough that it doesn’t feel like a THING. The magic about babysitters is that they are there for one reason – to watch your kid. So they work with your timeframe and they leave when you come home. One of my best discoveries was Urban Sitter. This is an on-demand babysitter app – kind of like Uber for babysitters. The sitters come vetted and there are lengthy profiles and reviews. The first one I hired literally handed me her CPR certification card when she walked in. You can even type in your child’s school and see who other parents from that school are hiring. If you’re really in a pinch (like last Friday when my husband and I had an, um, emergency need to go out to dinner with friends?) you can post a job and babysitters will apply to it. We even used it on vacation once. 

• You don’t need a lot of stuff. In addition to a car seat, there were a lot of common baby items that I intentionally did not bring into my apartment. A glider? No, I have a couch and a bed. A bassinet? She has a crib. You’ll never complain about your space being too small if you don’t clutter it – even visually. I made sure not to buy things that could not be stowed away when we were finished. If I only have one room to hang out in, I’d rather it not look like a preschool.

• Do a sweep once every month. I sold a stroller (did I really need three?) on craigslist and I have given bags and bags to a charity called the GOOD+ Foundation, which collects baby-specific items for families in need. They also take maternity clothes, although I happily gave most of those to one of my daughter’s teachers. Also toys – you really don’t need that many. If there’s something you bought or received that they don’t play with, donate it to someone who will or sell it and buy yourself a drink. Can’t have too many books, though! 

• But some stuff is critical. Just a list of things I am so happy I got: ergobaby carrier (again, no car), baby brezza, baby bjorn bouncer, bob revolution jogging stroller. There are more, but I am keeping this to top of mind. 

• A few 9-5 hacks. My husband and I both work full time and our daughter goes to daycare. My first working parent secret is really not a secret: your child has to sleep through the night if you want to perform reasonably at your job. I won’t go into all the tricks I used, but my daughter was doing it consistently at four months, mostly using the ideas from the book Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth, MD. Second tip, if you like to work out, do it in the morning. You’ll be too tired at the end of the day and you’re going to want that time with your kid before bed. I jog with the baby in the stroller and my husband does an in-home routine. Third, use your weekday lunch time wisely; this is when I shop, get my nails done, or make appointments. 

• Use your city. I can get away with not having a ton of activities in my apartment because we live in such an activity-filled place. Parks, museums, zoos, and indoor art centers are all within walking distance. And do what you would enjoy – brunch, beer gardens, and dog parks are all kid-friendly activities. 

About Kayla
Kayla and her husband Scott have been together for 9 years and have a one-year-old daughter and a three-year-old fur child. She works in development at an education nonprofit and lives in Manhattan. 

Dollar Store Baby Items!

 If you are a friend of mine, you know I love me a Dollar Tree. There are many items that I buy regularly and a slew more that I try as they come out.  Some of my favorite departments are the office supplies, the organizational bins and :: drum roll:: the BABY SECTION!! Here are 5 items for baby and toddler that you should be buying from the Dollar Tree instead of the big box stores or baby stores.

1.) Formula Dispenser

 This dispenser has three compartments and at 1/4 of the regular price, you can't go wrong.  If you have a formula fed baby, this is a must have.

2.) Diaper disposal sacks 

Even though I have and use a diaper genie on a regular basis, I still like to keep a box of these bags around. They are great for particularly disgusting diapers that might leak in the diaper genie. I also keep a handful rolled up in my diaper bag. No need to buy one of those clip on diaper bag dispensers for on the go diapering. I even use these for putting wet items in after accidents (potty training brings about wet clothes and it's gross) or wet bathing suits after the pool or beach in the summer. When you get 75 bags for just a dollar, you can't beat it. The closest price comparison I could find was 50 bags for $4.99 at Babies R Us, so clearly Dollar Tree is the way to go.

3.) Bath Kneeling Pad

I have never understood why people pay $16 for a cutesy bath tub kneeler. Sure this pink with polka dots isn't as cute as the SkipHop whale, but to me this is something I put away after the bath so I don't need it to look cute in my bathroom. My Dollar Tree always has these in the baby section, but if you can't find them in your Dollar Tree you can also get it in any gardening section. Save your knees AND your wallet!

4.) Lidless snack cup

These snack holders are great for older kids, especially in the car. And at about 1/5 the price of the big box stores, it's a steal!

5.) Outlet Covers

 

This exact same product by the Safety First brand is $2.99. Grab a pack, even if you have an infant who is not old enough to require baby proofing. You never know when the Dollar Tree will stop carrying a product and this one is a must have! At that price, you can grab a pack for Grandma & Grandpa's house as well and still come out ahead.

After taking pictures of some of my favorite steals (btw there are tons more) for you guys I took one more shot of the wall of Sesame Street products. There are some super cute items and I think they would make great filler for a baby shower gift as well. I picked up the brush and comb set with Cookie Monster for my 3 month old and the quality is really quite good. Not to mention that the Cookie Monster character on it is adorable.

 

Christmas 2015 #3

I am a woman of many varied talents as I'm sure most moms are. We can multitask in our sleep. One of my skills is taking something that my daughter needs and turning into something she wants. My mom always said Christmas is both a holiday of fun and necessity. Here's how I take those two seemingly opposite things, fun and necessity, and make them the same.

1.) Stocking stuffers: You can use the stocking for an opportunity to stock up on some of the little things your little one will need or use over the next year. For example:

-band aids with a favorite character
-toothbrushes with a favorite character
-crayons (we go through a lot!)
-personalized utensils (there must be a lost fork vortex in our kitchen)
-funky socks/underware
-hair bows/ hairbands/ headbands
-character cups or personalized cups (one of those things that also gets left/lost everywhere we go)

2.) Clothing: Unless you have a lot of second hand clothing from an older sibling or family friend (lucky you!!) chances are that you are shelling out a fair amount of money each season for your growing kiddo. Christmas is a time that offers great deals (although if you can wait for any reason until after Christmas you'll find even more discounts). I don't know about you, but when I was little I remember taking my first look at the tree after Santa had come and I could instantly recognize the pile of boxes that contained clothes. They were the least fun presents to open for a few years there. I'm sure there will come a time that no matter what I do my daughter will want to open the boxes shaped like Barbie's first- but to hold that off as long as I can- here is what I do to make clothing exciting.

-Licensed characters are your friend. If your child doesn't have a character that they enjoy, or if you don't expose them to any (no judgements either way!) then maybe a favorite color!
-Favorite activities. If your kid loves ballet class there are shirts with ballerinas, if your little one is in soccer... you get the idea. Make it fun!
-slippers
-Animals (got a dog lover on your hands? panda? There's a top for that)

3.) Milestone development items

If you have a one year old or maybe a two year old who isn't in a bed yet, Christmas might be a great time to get them excited about it by picking up a comforter set. Or if potty training is around the corner for you, maybe Santa could bring a big kid potty and books to match! Maybe Mom and Dad had the same idea as Santa and they bought big boy/girl underwear! In our house we are on the verge of adding a new baby to the mix. So the phrase of the moment is "Big Sister". Many of my daughters presents will revolve around that concept. She's either getting things that encourage her excitement over no longer being a baby, like a purse and flavored chapstick which she refers to as lipgloss, or things for her own baby doll so she can be like Mommy. Some of it is subtle and some is not, but the message this Christmas will be, regression is not fun: being a big girl is way better than being a baby. I'll let you know in a couple of months if it helped to stem the tide.

Thanksgiving DIY

I have a dollar store quick and easy DIY for you guys. It requires 0% craft skills and about $2. Here we go...

Framed seasonal cards. I know- it's laughably easy. But since I still see prints similar to these framed beautifully in home decor stores for anywhere from $15-$40, I thought it was worth the virtual ink to remind you that you can achieve a similar look from the Dollar Tree. They sell greeting cards with beautiful designs for any and all holidays as well as the frames, which I didn't do anything to.  These cards are, don't laugh, from my home insurance company. I thought they were pretty so I held on to them. If you can't find a frame thats the right color for you- paint some! A pretty Christmas print in a gold frame would be lovely also! Here are some individual shots of my hard work ;-)

Post #2 Christmas 2015

OK I know many of you are rolling your eyes at me. Trust me, I'm not rushing Christmas. In fact, I'm trying to do the opposite. I am trying to make that incredible season be about more than the frantic need to get in all the shopping, party planning, crafting, decorating and outings in the 25 days we're given. I personally would rather pick 1 or two DIYs and a few family traditions to put me in the holiday mood, than rushing about the crowded stores with what I call the "Christmas Monsters" (aka the people who ruin your cheer by being rude everywhere you go). So since I can't get pictures with Santa done in September and the Christmas decorations need to wait, I would rather accomplish the shopping that I can do in advance and enjoy that time with my family. Who's with me??

So my next few tips have to do with surveying your children's activities and make a list of the teachers, coaches, babysitters, dance instructors etc. that you would like to buy/make something for. This is especially helpful if you plan on DIY'ing something for a large number of people because that is just the type of thing that will have you up at 3am on December 20th covered in glitter and hot glue and cursing the month of December. I plan on doing one or two DIY gift posts, but for now here are my thoughts for those who prefer to purchase.

1- Personalized gifts from Etsy

I know this is vague, but there are soooooooo many options out there. The bottom line is, go to Etsy and type in "dance teacher gifts" or "soccer coach gift" or my favorite- "music teacher gift" and you will get everything from adorable tumblers to jewelry that are appropriate for either gender. Even if you decide not to buy, it's a good place to start for DIY inspiration! If all else fails try "personalized ____" and add an item you think they might enjoy like a keychain or a coffee mug. You can hardly go wrong with either of those items and adding their name gives it a special touch.

2- Body products/candles 

This may be one of my favorites! I love getting, and people love giving, bath products for gifts. They are especially great for people that you would not feel comfortable guessing sizes for or maybe you don't know them on a personal level. If you wait until the month of December you will have tons of delicious smelling options that are holiday themed. But if you are hoping for a more wide range of scents, or if you are perhaps giving this gift to someone who does not celebrate Christmas and don't want to buy "Santa's Helper Soap" than shopping now for the summer clearance scents is a great idea. This is a particularly awesome time to buy seasonal scents if you are looking for an array of floral and perhaps apple or pumpkin fall scents. I know those are my personal favorites, and if I thought someone thought ahead an entire retail season to buy me those scents I would be very touched. You can also get great deals this time of year!

3- Gift cards

If you know that you are a one size fits all kind of shopper who sticks to gift cards for anyone that may or may not enjoy what you pick out, why not do your gift card shopping now so that the visa bill doesn't take the color out of your hair in January?! Besides much like the bath and body products, I find that the selection of designs is more appealing as well as neutral this time of year. Maybe I've mentioned this a time or two ;-), but I am a stasher. If I can accomplish gift card purchases slowly over time it doesn't hurt as much in January. It also helps to have a stash in case you have a last minute thank you to give or you forget it's the last day of a certain activity and you want to have a little Starbucks happiness to add to a card or thank you note.

The best thing you can do in order to keep both your stress level and bottom line low, is plan in advance. If you have no idea what you want to give anyone, that's OK. Even if all you do at this point is to make a list of all the people you plan on giving gifts to and set the amount you are willing to spend on each individual then you can plan your budget over the next three months. If you're going to spend a few months paying for the gifts you give, it's better to pay yourself for the few months before, rather than paying the credit card company with interest after.

Christmas 2015

I know some of you saw the title of this post and winced. I know, I know, it's just barely July and beach season is in full swing. You're not ready to think about Christmas yet. But hear me out... the summer is a great time to start your holiday shopping, especially for your little ones. My daughter is only 2, so she's not yet old enough to have a wish list. That makes things in the present department a little easier. However- even if you have older children you can still take advantage of summer savings. Here are some ideas.


1.) School supplies.
If you have a budding artist at home there is no better time to stock up on art supplies than during the back to school sales. Last year I bought my daughter a backpack and filled it with fun art projects for my daughter. (You can see the post on that here) But even if you aren't making a big gift out of it, crayons, markers and the like make great stocking stuffers.

2.) Summer toy clearances.
Many stores are now doing a version of Black Friday sales in July. Amazon and Target are great examples. You can find a great list of Target's toy clearance sales going on now on the krazy coupon lady website. Target Toy clearance

3.) Clothing.
Right now stores are trying to make room for the new fall items that will come out for back to school shopping, which leads to great deals on off season clothes. You can take advantage of the back to school sales as well, but check the clearance racks for extremely marked down sweaters and winter gear. (After 4th of July is also a great time to think of next summer's needs. Pick up a bathing suit that's a size or two bigger than your little ones are right now.)

4.) Spreading out the payments.
My husband and I are firm believers in not leaving a balance on our credit cards. Thankfully we have never been in a situation where we are unable to pay our cards in full. So in order to avoid interest charges as well as not getting whacked with an enormous bill in January- buying presents slowly throughout the year helps spread out the payments.

5.) "Summer toys"
Many toys that are considered summer toys go on clearance at the end of August. But there are plenty  of those toys that can be used throughout the year if you're creative enough. For example in our house we have outdoor balls that do not come in the house and indoor balls that don't go outside. You can get those large rubber balls for less than $2 at the end of the summer. There are also a lot of pool or water table toys that can be used as bath toys. Christmas aside for a moment, I also like to pick up things at the end of summer for the next year that tend to wear out. You can store brand new bubbles, swimmies and pool noodles in your garage and next year not only will you not have to worry about buying new ones, but you will have gotten them all for pennies! (Keep those clearance stickers on- it's like a little high to remember the deal you got when all the circulars are showing those same items for nearly 90% more!)

This is the first post in a series about holiday shopping that I will be doing as well as possibly a few posts about the gifts I make for my daughter. Stay tuned! Now forget about the cold and go enjoy the vitamin D and pool time!