I Want One of My Own

Yesterday Hot Guy and I loaded our brood into the car and drove into NYC. We should do this more often, as proximity to NYC is one of the perks of living here, but generally we don't bring ChunkyMonkey. Because he's not yet 2. And he's really, really loud.

We brought him yesterday though, because we went to the Imagination Playground and I would have felt guilty leaving him at home. I also feel a bit guilty about how loud he was yesterday, but you can't have everything.

You are probably thinking, why would someone who lives in the suburbs bring her kids into the city to go to a freaking playground?

A. I was invited there by the awesome Role Mommy and the fantastic Mom in the City for an Imagination Playground Family Blogger event. So, you know, that automatically made it cooler.



B. The Imagination Playground is not like your typical suburban playground. The one next to South Street Seaport has a ship's feel, with rigging to climb on, hammocks to swing in and a crow's next. There is a sand/water area and a water area perfect for wading and splashing. Kids can build with sand or with huge foam shapes. Ironflower spent most of her time climbing, though she did manage to soak herself in one of the fountains. Lovebug went straight for the blocks, though he played in the sand as well. ChunkyMonkey just enjoyed running around holding a shovel. He did not enjoy the fountain that soaked Ironflower, but he got over it pretty quickly.

C. We also got to tour a 100 year old sailing ship with a guide from the South Street Seaport Museum. This was definitely geared more towards kids Ironflower's age and above, including Hot Guy. I highly recommend it for school-aged kids, as the ship we visited, the Peking, has restored crew cabins and the like. The kids also got to lower the sails (older kids got to raise the sails) and see some sea creatures. Sorry I don't have more details on that part, but it was my turn with ChunkyMonkey then and he was not very interested in the tour. Or the ship. Or really anything except being really, really loud. And running away from me. I left the tour early to get his stroller from the museum. And to let other people hear the tour guide.



D. There was even a lunch catered by Tom Colicchio's  'wichcraft (seriously the best sandwich I have ever tasted in my life, plus cupcakes described by Ironflower as "paradise") and Stew Leonard's (very yummy ice cream sandwiches).



E. The possibility of meeting other bloggers. I definitely chatted with some lovely women, but my kids so distracted me that I neglected to ask anybody anything relevant like, "What's your blog's name?" or "Do you have a card?" Hell, I was barely able to get my own name out. So I would like to apologize to the other attendees for being more socially awkward than I usually am. Which is saying something.

F. Gift bags! Each kid got a fun gift bag with a note book (Ironflower's favorite), a ship craft (Lovebug's favorite), a ball (ChunkyMonkey's favorite), a telescope, crayons, a book and a spade. There might have been more, but I won't be sure what until we clean up the living room later.

G. Momentary envy. There was a coupon in the bags from something called MaxDirect. Apparently they deliver groceries, toiletries and DVDs anywhere in lower Manhattan in an hour. If lived in Tribeca I would never, ever, have to take the kids to the grocery store. Of course, I might want to since I can't imagine stuffing my 3 kids into a city apartment.

Yes, the event/food/gift bags were free for us. But if any of them had sucked I would have told you, promise. Also, we had to pay for parking and that totally sucked, let me tell ya.

*Photos by myself, Hot Guy, Mom in the City and RoleMommy. For pictures of the kiddos at the event, go to the photos section on my Facebook page.