Our Trip to Adventureland & Six Important Tips

I wanted to wrap up our Family Summer Fun Series with a trip to Adventureland.  We thought about visiting theme parks out of state, but decided against it (which was a smart idea).  We ended up spending less time driving, and saved a ton in gas.

Even though we stayed on New York turf, we still had to make sure we had all the important essentials packed.  Here's a quick checklist along with helpful tips:

1.  Have a stroller handy.  Unfortunately we took my hubby's vehicle, and forgot Princess's stroller in my car.  We had to carry her around sometimes.  But, we still managed just fine.

2.  Apply sunscreen before heading out, and keep it handy throughout the day.  The sun was pretty intense.  

3.  Bring snacks and water.  There’s plenty of food at Adventureland.  But, Princess is a very picky eater (like her mama).  Packing her favorite sandwich and/or fruit has bailed us out of cranky situations in the past.  I didn't want to risk changing the game plan now.

4.  Be sure to pack something in the event of an upset stomach.  Amusement park rides tend to make me nauseous.  Yes, even the kiddie ones.  I brought along Culturelle Kids just in case.  Ever since Princess was an infant, she’s had a sensitive tummy too.  Her pediatrician recommended the powder formula.  Now that she’s older we keep the chewables handy.  It provides ongoing maintenance for a healthy digestive tract.  We haven’t used it in a while.  But since it’s her first time going to a theme park, we’d rather be safe than sorry.

5.  Don’t forget to pack baby essentials like wipes and diapers.  I know it’s sounds elementary.  But you wouldn’t believe the things we sometimes forget (e.i. the stroller).  Princess is almost done potty training.  But, I try to have pampers with me.  Wipes are a must for a quick clean up.

6.  Don't forget your smart phone.  There were times when we had to wait an eternity to hop on a ride.  It was a meltdown averted when my hubby whipped out his phone with Dora the Explorer cued up.  Also, your smart phone dubs as a great camera for taking awesome pics.

It’s such a bummer that there’s only a few weeks left of summer.  We’ve had so much fun trying knew things and spending some quality time as a family.   Have you had enough of the summer months yet?  How did you spend it?

For more Adventureland photos complete with captions, check out my Google+ page.

 Weather Anchor Mama

This is a sponsored post.  However, all opinions expressed are my own.

Sprinkler Time!

Having fun doesn't have to mean shelling out big bucks.  With the hot temps and increased humidity, turning on the sprinkler could be the perfect way to beat the heat. Princess and I enjoyed some mommy daughter time with an impromptu photo shoot.  She loves the sprinkler!

We're approaching the fourth heat wave of the season, how do you plan to cool off?

Weather Anchor Mama

Celebrating Independence Day

There's nothing like family summer fun on the 4th of July!  Even though mother nature threatened to rain on our parade, it turned out to be a picture perfect day.  Temperatures soared into the 90s across portions of New York, but we lucked out with highs in the 80s in our hood.  A nice cool breeze and warm sunshine meant we didn't have extreme conditions to have to contend with like most folks did in the city.  To celebrate Independence Day, we took Princess to her first parade!

She smiled with glee when we got there, but took a more serious approach when the parade got underway.  She really didn't know what the heck was going on.  So I had to give her a little lesson, as did grandma.  "It's America's birthday," I said.

One of the things she learned was the progression of fire fighting.  She found out from grandma that before there were fire trucks, there were horses and wagons used to assist in putting out fires back in the day.

She later had fun hangin' with grandma and blowing bubbles with cousin Katherine.

And what would July 4th be without a BBQ? Fun!!!  As it turned out, our grill was out of service.  But, I managed to whip up a tasty meal which our picky eater Princess tore up!

How did you celebrate the holiday?

Weather Anchor Mama

A Trip to the Long Island Children's Museum

Our Family Summer Fun continues!  With highs reaching well into the 90s this past weekend, it would be torture having my baby girl in the house.  I search Facebook for idea and stumbled across this.  The Long Island Children's Museum was the perfect place to be to cool off from this season's second heat wave.   As you can see, Princess couldn't wait to get inside and check out all the museum had to offer.

The first on the agenda was the bubble gallery.  It was hard to get her to leave after about 10 minutes of using bubbles to form different shapes.

Then it was off to the music room where she played instruments like the temple blocks, log drum, and scales.  She seemed surprised at the sounds that came out of these blocks.

Now, I've done features about the Children's Museum back in my feature reporting days.  It was fun to be able to to enjoy all the exhibits without having to turn a package for the newscast.   Princess had a great time too.  Not only did she enjoy playing the different instruments, she also learned about how music is made.  When we asked her what her favorite thing to do at the Long Island Children's Museum, she said "the show!"

'The show' was a performance of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  It was an hour long and my hubby and I worried she wouldn't make it through the whole thing.  We made sure we had our bag of tricks and goodies to keep her calm, but we really didn't need it.  Princess had a blast!

Once the show was over, we made one last stop at the toddler room to check out some more activities.

It was a great day filled with learning and fun!  Plus, it was a nice break from the hot temps.

Who knows where we'll end up next!  I'm open to ideas.  How did you spend your weekend?

Weather Anchor Mama

Family Summer Fun

As I mentioned in a previous post, I'll be focusing on family fun this summer.  I'll be highlighting kid friendly places the whole family could enjoy.  So far, we've been to the zoo.  But this weekend, we chose to keep it simple.  We live near the water, and decided to take Princess for a walk to our neighborhood park overlooking the Atlantic.

She had so much fun running around, playing on the monkey bars, and going down the slide.  This is the fun side of parenting.  It's great being able to watch her enjoy herself, and spend time together.  The best part is that this trip didn't cost a dime.

Do you have any fun activities planned for your kiddos this summer?

Weather Anchor Mama

Father's Day at the Bronx Zoo

With summer just around the corner, I've been thinking of ways to enjoy some family fun.  Then I  thought, "Wouldn't it be great to do a Summer Family Fun series?"

Throughout the summer I'll be highlighting some exciting places.  My blog is about balancing career and motherhood (and a ton of other things).  It's always a challenge to squeeze in some quality time with my hubby and Princess.  For Father's Day weekend I wanted to do something that we've never done before.  So, we visited The Bronx Zoo!

I can't remember the last time I visited the zoo.  It might have been in elementary school.  Now that we have  Princess, I wanna to do things that combine learning with lots of fun.  Kicking off our Summer Family Fun series at the Bronx Zoo was perfect! (even though summer officially arrives on Wednesday)

Princess is a huge fan of shows like Dora the Explorer and Diego.  She loves learning about different animals.  When we got there, she kept saying "tiger."  We made a b-line for the tiger exhibit.

We also stopped by to check out the bear, deer, and giraffe exhibits to name a few.  But, our favorite was the Dora and Diego 4-DAdventure.  It combined a high-definition 3-D film with wind, mist, scents and dramatic lighting effects to make you feel like you're apart of the journey.

What a long day!  Not only did we have a blast, we also got in a pretty good workout.  I think we walked a few miles around the zoo.  Princess was so pooped-she didn't even make it through dinner.

Stay tuned for part two of our Summer Family Fun series!

How did you spend Father's Day?

Weather Anchor Mama