Bigtop Cupcake Review

Alright, I fell for it. I can't believe I bought an AS SEEN ON TV product!

My son and I saw the Big Top Cupcake commercial on TV and he thought it was the coolest thing ever. I explained that things always look better on TV, but figured it wouldn't be a total waste as we frequently bake. So, even if it didn't work too well, it would be an extra silicon bake pan. I actually bought the set at Walgreen's for about $13, as I had a Walgreen's coupon that I had to use. Back to the review.... The set is actually 2 silicon baking pans, a top and a bottom. They seem fairly well made. We used a Betty Crocker cake mix and followed the directions. Approximately half the batter went in one pan, half in the other. We also used the 3rd piece, a lid that fits on the bottom pan to make a depression for filling the cake. When the cakes where ready (they take much longer to cook because the cakes are thick) we allowed them to cool and removed them easily from the pan. So far so good. When we actually put the filling in and top on the bottom we noticed a problem. The top was not wider than the base as a cupcake should be. We'll have to use less than half for the base next time! One more issue. Surprisingly, the pan is NOT easy to clean. I scrubbed the silicon with a sponge, as I would any other pan, but the cooking spray was hard to remove! I actually had to clean it twice! What a pain.

Bottom line, my children enjoyed decorating, even though you need to be a master to make the cakes they show in TV or on the box!

Note: The Walgreen's or other retail store BTCC does not come with the cookie cutters that the TV/INTERNET box comes with!

Fathead Black Friday Sale

Just thought I'd point out that there is a Black Friday sale going on for Fatheads. Fatheads are large removable stickers or decals that can be used to decorate a room. My son (6 years old) received a GIANT Spider-Man Fathead for his birthday in September and it has proudly been decorating the wall by his bed. He loves it! Today there is a big sale, so if you were wavering, and you want an opinion... they rock! We just bought the Tinkerbell Fathead for my 2 1/2 year old daughter. She's going to love it!

Also, note that there are discount codes all the time for Fatheads, just google it! No discounts can be used with the current sale, and the prices are good!

Here's a picture, from the Fathead website, of the Spider-Man Fathead my son has:

Shrek The Musical

My parents took my son (6 years old) to see Shrek the Musical on Broadway. Bottom line: HE LOVED IT! He came home after a LONG day in the City with Grandma and Grandpa (lunch, show, dinner, walking...) and couldn't wait to tell my wife and I about it. He was singing the songs, telling us about the makeup, explaining that Lord Farquaad was really a guy on his knees, and he said the show was so funny he was laughing the whole time ["daddy, it was hysterical"- Grandma and grandpa said it was cute].

Below is a listing of the musical numbers:

Act I
Overture/Big Bright Beautiful World – Orchestra/Mama Ogre, Papa Ogre, Shrek
Story of My Life – Guard, Fairytale Creatures
The Goodbye Song – Shrek, Fairytale Creatures
Don't Let Me Go – Donkey
I Know It's Today – Young Fiona, Teen Fiona, Fiona
What's Up, Duloc? – Lord Farquaad, Ensemble
What's Up, Duloc? (Reprise) – Lord Farquaad, Ensemble
Travel Song – Donkey, Shrek
Donkey Pot Pie – Donkey, Dragon
This Is How a Dream Comes True – Shrek, Fiona, Donkey, Dragon
Who I'd Be – Shrek, Fiona, Donkey

Act II
Morning Person – Fiona, Ensemble
I Think I Got You Beat – Fiona, Shrek
The Ballad of Farquaad – Lord Farquaad, Ensemble
Make a Move – Donkey, Three Blind Mice
When Words Fail – Shrek
Morning Person (Reprise) – Fiona
Build a Wall – Shrek
Freak Flag – Fairytale Creatures
Big Bright Beautiful World (Reprise) – Shrek
This is Our Story – Company
I'm a Believer – Company

If you are in the city and have young kids, and money for $100+ tickets (there are discounts out there!) I would check it out.
Notes:
1. The theater has booster seats for the kids.
2. The show is scheduled to close January 3, 2010.
3. There is talk of the musical being sold on DVD soon.

Thanks Overstock.com!

I wanted to thank Overstock.com for "doing the right thing"! I purchased a 3 piece play tent set about a month ago and didn't even realize that only 2 pieces were sent. I JUST got a call from overstock apologizing that the 3rd piece (the teepee) never arrived. They told me they would refund my cost ($20) or send me another tube and tent. I opted for the free additional pieces! Great job guys- you now have a loyal customer!

FYI: Here is the tent set (minus teepee)

Sesame Place

Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street? Or rather, Sesame Place! Well, that all depends upon where you are starting out from! What I can tell you is WE LOVE SESAME PLACE. We've been there before, but I won't review any place we've been in the past... it has to be "real time".

My son has been to Sesame each summer for the last three summers, and we took our 2 year old for the first time this year. Although my son (just turned 6) was hoping for some bigger rides, he had a blast. The "best" ride for him was the Grover roller coaster. There is plenty to do for kids of their (2 1/2 and 6) age. They loved the character lunch and took pictures with them all. Sesame does a great job making the characters available to the kids and keeping it organized. Although you hope for a beautiful day, there is a good mix of water rides, dry rides, and indoor activities. The park has always been clean and well run, although a friend of ours had a different experience when she took her kids. Let me know what your experience has been!

Advise if you plan on going:

-Check Sesame's site for package deals. They tend to be a good prices.
-Look for coupon codes online- there are tons of them!
=If you go for 2 days, the park is small enough to do everything a couple of times and go for a meal or 2 outside of the park! There are plenty of places right by the park.
-The parade is great, just plan to get to the route about half an hour early. Every one advises watching the parade where the blue pavement meets the black pavement. Just watch out for bully parents that will actually block out your kids!
-If you have young kids and are in the North East, Sesame Place is a must!


Where did we stay?

We've been to 2 other hotel's when going to Sesame in the past, but this time we went to the Courtyard by Marriot in Langhorne, PA.


Here's the skinny

Included breakfast- decent
Room- clean
Free Wifi
Free shuttle service to and from Sesame... MOST hotels in this area offer this service! If you plan on staying in the area, make sure there is a shuttle- beats parking in the lot and dealing w/ traffic.
Pool- clean and empty when we went!

Would I recommend this hotel? Yes. Beats out the other 2 we've stayed at.

Phialdelphia Dinner at Pizzicato

We were walking down Market Street during the afternoon and took notice of Pizzicato during it's busy lunch hour. The restaurant is a block or so from Ben Franklin's house, which was an interesting 10 minute stop on our travels. I checked out the menu and a waiter saw us with the two kids. He was very polite, asked how our day was, if we were visiting from out of town (it was a work day and we were obviously not the work lunch crowd). I said, we'll be back for dinner. We returned a few hours later and took a table inside. It was a warm sunny day and my wife wanted a cooler area to sit, after a long day of exploring the city.

The restaurant waiter asked if we would like something not on the menu for the kids, such as chicken fingers and fries or plain pasta. My son had the pizza Margherita and my daughter had penne with marinara sauce. My wife had there lasagna and I had a pizza with grilled chicken, spinach, fresh mozzarella, red onion and proscuitto. We were very happy with the meal and would go there again. The prices were fair ($10 for a personal pizza) and the service (I think our waiters name was Ross) was fantastic.

Things we didn't get to do in Philadelphia that we wanted to do!

Mutter Museum, Ghost Tour, and Eastern State Penitentiary.
Any thoughts on these??

Franklin Institute and the Academy of Natural Sciences - Philadelphia

I hadn't been to the Franklin Institute since I was in elementary school and went there on a class trip. I had never been to the Academy of Natural Sciences before.

Let's start with the Franklin Institute:

You can get a great idea about the place by checking out it's website... but it's basically a bigger, better version of the New York Hall of Science. The Franklin Institute has MORE stuff to do, MORE demonstrations, MORE supervision, a MUCH BETTER DINING AREA (larger, cleaner, and better food) but lacks the really cool outdoor playground the NY Hall of Science has. If you have kids and are in the area, this is a MUST DO!

Unfortunately, we had a small problem while we were there. An alarm began to ring as we started eating our lunch. No one moved at first, and then we noticed staff members emptying out the register. There were NO announcements made, but a couple of visitors started to exit the dinning area and leave their belongings. A woman sitting next to use walked up to a staff member that was counting money and asked, "Is that a fire alarm?" He responded, "Yes." My wife asked, "Is this a drill? Should we be leaving?" He responded, "They don't tell us if it's a drill." She responded, "Should we be leaving?" He said, "Yes." So we all began to walk out, leaving our food. Other people began to follow us. My kids were nervous and scared, but we told them it was a drill. Just as we got to the door the alarm stopped and we saw people walking back in. No one said it was safe to enter, or made mention of the alarm. Seems that the FI needs to work on their emergency plans! If anyone from the FI would care to leave a comment about this, it would be appreciated.


Now the Academy of Natural Sciences:
It's basically a smaller version of the Museum of Natural History. A few dinosaur fossils, a butterfly area (pales in comparison to the garden at the Bronx Zoo), and some really DATED dioramas of Africa, Asia, and North America. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to see the "outside in" exhibit, which the kids probably would have liked. Not my favorite of Natural History Museums, but even if the kids learned 1 thing, and had some fun, it was worth it. The highlight of the museum was the dinosaur digging area. Usually museums give goggles and a brush to move sand covering "fossils", but at the ANS they give a chisel. My son thought it was cool. My daughter, strangely, liked the 1 mummy the museum has on display.

Penn's Landing and the Independence Seaport Museum

After grabbing some icecream at Franklin's Fountain, we strolled down Market Street and across to Penn's Landing ( a waterfront area on the banks of the Delaware River) in the afternoon. This is an off time for Penn's Landing, as apparently there are concerts and such in the evening. If you are looking for a lively atmosphere you can check out the gophilla.com website for dates and times of activities. There is a ferry there that will take you across to New Jersey and the Independence Seaport Museum. We got to the Museum at 3:30 and I asked the desk clerk what the museum had to offer (I had never heard of it before). She said there are 2 floors are exhibits and a boat and submarine you can explore docked out back. I noted that the place was empty and she offered to have my son go free (my daughter was already in the under three= free category) since the Museum was closing at 5. I paid for me and my wife and we headed out to the boats. Turns out the kids loved it.

Here's a run down of the two ships from the ISM website:

The Olympia (C-6) is the oldest steel warship afloat in the world. Launched in San Francisco, CA, in 1892, she is similar to many early steel warships built in Philadelphia for the US Navy.
On May 1, 1898, Olympia devastated a Spanish fleet at Manila Bay in the Philippines,beginning the Spanish-American War. Olympia helped catapult the United States into the role of superpower and won fame for her most famous officer, Commodore George Dewey. It was from Olympia's bridge that Dewey delivered his famous order, "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley." Olympia also served her country during World War I.

and

Dive into history aboard Independence Seaport Museum's battle-tested World War II Submarine Becuna! Launched in 1944, the Becuna (SS-319) completed five wartime patrols in the Pacific Ocean. Becuna is similar to many submarines built in Philadelphia for the U.S. Navy.
Becuna is a BALAO-class submarine built in New London, CT. During World War II, "Becky" prowled the Pacific Ocean for Japanese ships, and is credited with sinking 3.5 Japanese merchant ships.

Becuna's Cold War missions often found her in the Atlantic, trailing Soviet submarines with eavesdropping equipment aboard. She served in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic during the Korean and Vietnam Wars and ended her long and distinguished career as a training submarine in Connecticut. Becuna was decommissioned in 1969 and has been part of Independence Seaport Museum's Historic Ship Zone since 1996.


The regular exhibits include predominantly models of ships. There were a couple of fun, interactive exhibits, but we breezed through the interior museum in about 20 minutes. That was more than enough for the age of our kids. The ships (Olympia and Becuna) were the highlight of the stop! My son loved it. He still talks about the size of the sub and the small passageways, and the big guns today (a week after our trip).

Sonny's Famous Steaks - Philadelphia

Let me start by saying in the past I've been to Geno's Steaks, Pat's King of Steaks, and Jim's Steaks cheese steak joints. I rank (least favorite to best) them in the order I wrote them. Where does Sonny's Famous Steaks stack up? Probably right in front of Pat's, but not as good as Jim's. All in all, another cheese steak place... Jim's still stands above the other's!

Philadelphia- Franklin's Fountain

I heard about Franklin's Fountain, an ice cream shop on Market Street, from a family member that lived in South Jersey and went to college in Philadelphia. I looked it up on Yelp and saw the great reviews. As we were in the area, and it was a HOT day, we thought it would be nice to grab some ice cream. We could have stopped at a couple of other places on our walk down Market, but i wanted to try this place! I'm happy to say we all loved our ice creams. The place is pricey... 8 or 9 bucks (forget) for a sundae! But the ice cream and hot fudge were delicious.

Unfortunately, the service left something to be desired. A young woman served us and not once cracked a smile or offered a pleasant word. Even my 6 year old noticed this- he asked me why she looked upset. I said maybe she had a bad day. After ordering 3 ice creams... ~$25, I asked for a glass of ice water. I saw someone else get one three people ahead of me from the other server and being that it was so hot out, I asked for the same. My server said "there is a fountain outside with cups near it." I said ok, because i couldn't hold the glass anyway and would have needed to take another trip. I got to the fountain outside and filled a cup. It was hot out and the water was warm. I went back in and asked my same server for a glass of ice water. Her response was, "didn't you see the fountain?" I told her the water was warm, to which she responded, "you didn't let it run enough." I said, "I'll take a glass of ice water please, to go with my $25 in ice cream." With the same sour look on her face she made me the water. Unfortunate that some employees leave a bad taste in your mouth!

Over all Franklin's Fountain is a 4 out of 5 for taste and value (yeh, it's expensive, but it's delicious).... BUT a 1 out of 5 for service! When I go back to Philly I may stop back again... maybe I can talk about how great the service was??

Philadelphia's Franklin Square Attractions Review

After checking out the Independence Visitor Center, National Constitution Center, and the Liberty Bell, we moved up to Franklin Square. My kids loved the park. We played a round of miniature golf with a Philadelphia tourist trap theme (Liberty Bell, Art Museum-Rocky's steps, Love sculpture, Franklin Bridge...) and took a ride on the carousel. There is also a playground the kids had fun in for about 20 minutes. They wanted to stay longer, but there was MUCH to be done, after all there are playgrounds like this near us! We sat down near a large fountain and had a little snack. This is a great place to have a family picnic- you have to go here if you have young kids. There is also a bench area were they have someone telling stories at various times.

Independence Visitor Center, National Constitution Center, and the Liberty Bell

We began by walking down Market Street and checking out the Independence Visitor Center. We were able to learn about some of the local sites, the kids enjoyed seeing the workers in 1700s garb knitting, drawing, playing, and strolling about! We then made our way over to the Liberty Bell across the street. My soon to be 6 year old wanted to see every document there. He had learned about the bell this past year in kindergarten and was very excited! He even stood through what was probably a 10 to 15 minute short film on the history of the bell from it's creation through "today". I know he was paying attention because he later asked me about slavery, women's suffrage, and the Vietnam war! Heavy topics for a 6 year old! My wife and I did our best. My 2 1/2 year old was also in good spirits as we strolled her through. When we finally saw the bell, my son was a little disappointed in its size- I think he was expecting something HUGE! :)

We then walked through the park area near the Visitor Center to the National Constitution Center. Not the best place for such young kids. Perhaps we'll go again when they are a bit older. I'd stay away until they are about 8-10?

Philadelphia Hotel: Alexander Inn

We just returned from spending 2 days/1 night in nearby (we live on Long Island, NY) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We were originally planning of staying at the Embassy Suites, since the suite setup is great for families, but after checking out www.tripadvisor.com my wife and I decided to try out the Alexander Inn located in the Antique Row area of Philadelphia (this also happens to be a "Gay Area?" (unsure how to write that in a politically correct manner- Think the Village in NYC??). It's a small hotel and we were nervous about the "cramped" setup. Our nervousness was assuaged the moment we walked in and were greeted by 2 of the friendliest front desk attendants! We got in VERY early (9 AM?) and seeing we had 2 children, they quickly got us our room. We went up to our nicely decorated room, left our bags, picked up some fruit for the road (they provide fruit and danish through out the day), parked our car in their indoor lot 3 blocks away, and were off for the day. The hotel is in a pretty good location, as there are attractions in all directions.

We returned that night and were greeted again. They asked our children about the day and seemed genuinely interested! The next morning we woke up, had our continental breakfast (included)- fruit, danish, bagels, waffles, cereal, milk, coffee, juice, tea, hot chocolate... and were out the door for more site seeing.

Over all I was very happy. The only negative (according to my son) was they had no pool (they do have a small gym and computers/wifi) but we were in Philly to explore a little, not sit in a hotel pool!

NY Hall of Science, again

So we went to the NY Hall of Science today, with the goal of checking out the new mini-golf setup. W arrived moments after it opened in order to avoid the afternoon heat and had the kids out in the playground. Let me reiterate how much they love that playground. It's great. We then went to the miniature golf course. My 2 year old was allowed to play for no charge and was given a small plastic golf club- nice touch. My son more or less enjoyed the course which is 9 short holes with a space theme. I should say it was actually 8 holes because the second hole was being fixed. Less than a month old and things are broken- I'm not surprise (more on why later). The holes are not very challenging and are not very unique. It's just a simple space themed mini golf course- I think they could have done a lot better, but it was fun nonetheless.

We then went inside to have some lunch. And here is where the problems began. THE HALL NEEDS TO LIMIT THE NUMBER OF CAMPS ALLOWED ON A GIVEN DAY. If they do limit it, they need to reduce the number. The cafeteria was FILLED, with a small section blocked off for other guests. This blocked off area had about 10 small tables pushed as close together as possible! We couldn't get in with our stroller so we decided to find a table outdoors. There were picnic tables with umbrellas set up by the golf course, so we sat there. It turned out to be a good thing we moved out, because there was a nice breeze and we enjoyed ourselves. Then we moved into the regular exhibit areas and ALL HELL was breaking out. Kids pushing, shoving, and treating exhibits in such a manner that I felt the need to speak to a couple of workers. I think it's great that they have such marvelous hands on exhibits, but there has to be some supervision or things will be destroyed and someone will get hurt. I understand that camps and schools need to supervise there own students, but when there is such chaos, someone needs to step in! Case in point, a young girls (7 years old?) was pulling on a moving chain and causing the gears to grind. The sign posted in HUGE WORDS warns that one should only TAP the chain, not yank or hold onto it. Needless to say the girl hurt her finger and cried to her camp counselor who told her, "Be careful." He was NOWHERE near her. Hall volunteers were standing nearby watching kids push and shove, treat exhibits like garbage, and cut into lines of waiting patrons. If group leaders will not do their job, staff members of the Hall NEED to step in. It's a lawsuit waiting to happen! I went to voice my concerns to a staff member as I was exiting and she simply gave me a slip of paper to write down my feedback. Hey Tara Keblish (her name was on the feedback form)- This is my feedback.

Orlando Science Center PART 2

Ok. Since I posted my review of Orlando Science Center and commented about the air conditioning I have gotten a comment and heard from a family member that visited the museum. Seems that the center still has not fixed it's air conditioning. I was told from a recent guest that he complained to a few people and finally spoke to a guest relations rep that said the A/C is 12 years old and has repeatedly tried to be fixed and they are a non profit and don't have the funds for a new system. Seems to me whom ever is in charge needs to step up! I'm not a big fan of the "nonprofit" response... The employees (not volunteers) take a salary! Get working on a grant! Do some fundraising! Get it fixed.

To make matters worse, there is no mention of the broken air conditioner on the website and calls to the museum apparently go unanswered. One patron left a message to please call him back and let him know if the a/c was fixed before he drove an hour and a half the next day to get there. No such luck. He went and the a/c was out!

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the OSC, but no A/C in Central Florida in AUGUST is a recipe for disaster!

Hmmm. Any comment from OSC? What's the deal?

Orlando Science Center

While in Florida we spent an afternoon at the Orlando Science Center, through ASTC Travel Passport Program our entrance was free. When we arrived a sign was posted apologizing for the air conditioning not working properly. You'd think that July in Florida and no A/C equals BIG problem. Remarkably it stayed bearable and the Museum provided free bottles of ice cold water.

We planed on staying at the Museum for an hour or two, but wound up staying closer to four hours. The facility is basically set up with four floors with a few large exhibits on each floor. The highlight for my son (almost 6) was the dinosaur wing (DinoDigs), the nature center (NatureWorks), and the grossology exhibit (the hows and whys of farts, snot, burps, stinky feet, and more!). Don't get me wrong he also enjoyed the KidsTown area, where you can run through the process of picking oranges, be the mechanic on a play car, and a few other fun activities, like the hurricane wind booth. My daughter (2 and a half) had fun in KidsTown, playing with a water exhibit, running through a small body playground (in the mouth, through the esophagus, then the stomach, intestines, and out the rectum onto a poop mat!), and checking out the dinosaurs.

The museum has a nice clean cafeteria (kid's meals run $5 so it's not at all expensive) and well kept bathrooms. We really had a blast and was a fun educational experience! If you're in the Orlando area going to Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, or some other theme park, take a day (especially if it rains) to check this place out! My family looks forward to returning.

Daytona Museum of Arts and Science

We spent a couple of hours at the Museum of Arts and Science in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Museum was a 25 minute drive from where we were staying and it was a rainy afternoon, plus through ASTC Travel Passport Program our entrance was free. So, why not!

Here's the skinny- The Museum has a new Children's Museum which is small, but more than enough to keep my 2 and almost 6 year old happy for about 2 hours. It's basically a small hands on science center, with a TINY infant/toddler area. I do mean TINY! There was 1 other child in this area with my daughter and it was crowded. Luckily she lost interest in the couple of toys and moved on to the "big kid" area. Aside from the science stuff, they have a pretend pizza making area, and doctors office, both of which my daughter enjoyed. There is also an art museum (too young for it, but we walked through and discussed some pieces), a Coca-Cola area they enjoyed, and 2 real trains. Entrance would have been less than a movie, and was more enjoyable! I wouldn't drive out of my way to get there, but if you're in the area and it's a rainy day, it would be a good way to spend part of your day! You can check their website for more info: http://www.moas.org/

Universal Studios and Universal Islands of Adventure

We spent a FULL day at these 2 parks. I highly recommend getting here early. We were on line to enter 25 minutes before the park opened (the park actually opened 10 minutes before the listed 9 AM open).

1st stop - Islands of Adventure. Got to do everything we wanted to do with minimal waiting. Seriously...hardly any lines for attractions my almost 6 year old could go on (~44in.). My daughter is 2 and a couple of months. Not much for her. The Dr. Seuss area was fun and colorful. If your child likes the stroller, you'll be fine. It is great to just see the sights around the park.

After lunch, we went to Universal Studios. Now the lines begin - HUGE LINES. As a plus, there are digital signs throughout the park letting you know the waiting times. Some of the employees are helpful in recommending how to plot your day. Also, outside of the Woody Woodpecker, Feivel, Curious George land, there is not much for little kids. My daughter loved those play areas, though. But it's really just a playground. Definitely bring bathing suits. It is hot in the summer and these kiddie areas have lots of opportunity to get wet.

Bathrooms - they were pretty clean, located everywhere, and never a wait. A great thing as my little one is learning to use the toilet.

Food - we did the pay ahead all you can eat food plan and all day refill cups. BAD IDEA. You could only go to a three places to use them and you had to wait on line even for a drink refill. The food lines were incredibly long later in the day. They actually close half the service area at 5:30 PM in the the I.F.F., one of the usable restaurants, which makes it impossible. Why would you reduce service for the "all you can eat" restaurant ? Are they trying to slow you down and reduce your consumption? We actually wanted to grab a snack a couple of times but refused to wait 45 minutes on line! Better just pay as you go and go anywhere...there are a million places to eat meals and snacks. Plus the lines are almost nonexistent in the pay as you go areas. Bring a bottle of water and keep refilling it at a fountain so you can have it on line for the hour you are waiting to see an attraction. It is easier to hold than a bulky souvenir cup...especially when you are carrying a backpack and a child.

We left the park at closing and actually had to stop for a bathroom break by the City Walk. We're not sure if this is the rule in the area, but the bathroom we stopped at next to some NASCAR store and below Panda Wok, Moe's, TCBY, and Burger King had NO diaper changing facility! Surprising for a family destination.

Space Shuttle Launch

One word: Amazing

On July 15, 2009, while on vacation in New Smyrna Beach Florida, we planned on watching the space shuttle launch. The mission had been scrubbed a number of times, so having 2 young children with us, my wife and I decided to watch it from the beach. Realize that if you have young children watching a shuttle launch from Canaveral is tough! Very frequently launches are delayed or postponed, and traffic into the area is a killer!

Most people that don't live on the Eastern Florida coast 50 miles North or South of Cape Canaveral don't realize how visible the launch is. We were approximately 20 miles away and the beach was packed with locals looking to get a view of Endeavour blasting off. The sky was perfectly clear, but apparently the view is still awesome on a cloudy or over cast day. After "take off of Endeavour" was announced on the radios onlookers had brought, the orange red flame shot over the ocean. My son stood awe inspired and said, "it's like a fireball in the sky... wow!" With in a minute the shuttle was out of site and all that remained was the enormous smoke trail. We stood, all of us, silent, for what seemed to be an eternity. The only sounds were that of the ocean crashing in front of us. Then, without warning a loud rumble shook us. The sound of the launch had finally reached us.

If you ever have the opportunity to be in the area during a launch, DO IT! You will not forget it.

Queens Zoo

Let me start by saying that for most of my life I have lived no more than about 30 miles from this zoo. I have passed by it hundreds of times, whether on my way to a Met's game, a trip to the NY Hall of Science, on route to LaGuardia airport, or just taking the Grand Central or LIE somewhere. Not once did I ever stop at the zoo. I've seen the sign for it, been in Flushing Meadows park where it is located, and even have a membership to the zoo through the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)! Today I took my 5 year old and 2 year old and we had a blast. The zoo is small, only a handful of animals, but the intimate setting and lack of crowds was GREAT! We saw a bald eagle, an alligator, sea lions, puma, lynx, Bison, pudu (a small deer), and a host of other animals. There is also a cute little domestic animal petting zoo. We also went to there discovery center which is open on weekends for children's crafts. The craft was a cheesy paper diorama, but my kids enjoyed it. The zoo was clean, as were the bathrooms. One word of caution, there is NO restaurant on site. There are some vending machines for drinks, snacks, and ice cream. We brought lunch and had a nice picnic under an umbrella by picnic tables located by the vending machines and sea lions.

We spent about 2 1/2 hours there including lunch and saw everything. This is a great little day trip that could be included with a stop at the Hall of Science within walking distance down the road. Citi field and the tennis center are also nearby. I wouldn't go out of my way for such a small zoo, but if you're in the area and looking for a fun time, check it out.

Camping at North-South Lake

Review of North South Lake in Haines Falls, NY:

I took my son on his first camping trip to North South Lake in Haines Falls, NY. All I can say is that it was a great experience. He loved it, I loved it, as did the 8 other people we went with. We had a great time building a camp fire, setting up our tent, going on a great little hike to Kaaterskill Falls, a nearby water fall. As a group we rented a canoe, kayak, and row boat, so that each child could get a ride in 3 different boats- they loved it. The camp is set up so you drive right up to your camp site, which is a major plus for families. I went camping as a child, but I am by no means an "out doorsy guy" but they NYS DEC has set up a great camp. The facilities were clean and convenient. Each camp area has showers and bathrooms that were very well kept. Thanks and great job to the workers and visitors that keep it in such great shape. My son wants to go back to this campground ASAP, but I think we may try a NY/NJ camp with cabins next!

Some info:
Address: County Route 18, Haines Falls, NY 12436
Campground Phone: (518)589-5058
Regional Office Phone: (518)357-2289
Camping Fee: $21
http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/24487.html

Bronx Zoo vs. San Diego Zoo vs. Central Park Zoo

The Bronx Zoo is my FAVORITE ZOO! It beats out the San Diego Zoo, in my humble opinion. No offense to San Diego!

Here's my take on the two.
*Kids will love to see the pandas in San Diego, so they have a MAJOR plus right there.
*San Diego Zoo is smaller, although they are building a new section for the elephants soon! I look forward to taking my children there in the future. The smaller size makes it easier if you have small children.
*Kids LOVED the skyfari. But as of this January it's grounded at the Bronx Zoo and still up in San Diego. There is talk of an "amusement park attraction" in the future at the Bronx Zoo. I'm personally hurt by the closing of the skyfari. The zoo said it was a financial decision, and not a safety reason, which gets me more upset. Losing the skyfari almost pushed me over to voting for the San Diego Zoo.
*The Congo Gorilla Forest is a MUST SEE at the Bronx Zoo! As is the Wild Asia Monorail ride.
*Outside of the San Diego Zoo there is a cool little kids train. Nice touch, but it is OUTSIDE of the zoo.
*Bronx Zoo has a great Bug Carousel- what kid doesn't like a carousel?
*San Diego Zoo has awesome flora.

I can't really compare the Bronx and San Diego Zoos to the Central Park Zoo. The Central Park Zoo is MUCH smaller, but is a great way to spend a couple of hours. You'll enjoy the children's zoo here as much as the children's zoo in the other zoos. What's most amazing about the Central Park Zoo is it's location in the heart of Manhattan! Make sure you compare your "paw" to Gus' paw by the polar bear exhibit!

What do you think?

New York Hall of Science

This is a tough review for me to write. I and my son both love going to the Hall of Science; in fact, I'm a member of the Hall! If you are visiting the area or live in the area and have never gone, it's a must see. The indoor activities are great for young and old. My son especially liked the sports section that they have upstairs. They really need to add a few things in this area. If they asked me I'd tell them my ideas. Anyway, back to the point. The outdoor playground is great! If it's a nice day you MUST try it out!

Now to my problem with the Hall. I paid $155 for a 2 year membership. That's a lot for a place I go to maybe three times a year. Now they charge members for kids crafts. It's only a couple of bucks, but it really burns me up after dishing out $155 that they can't afford to "give" us a piece of paper, maybe a rubber band, and some crayons to color with! This is nickel-and-diming at it's worst. My other issue is they now have a video simulator (you sit in a capsule with a video screen in front of you and the capsule moves around)- but they charge members for this 3 minute ride! I believe it's at a small discount to non members, but come on!

All and all it's a great place and my son loves it!
Let me know what you think.

Baltimore - Matthew's Pizza

The pizza is good. But if you're from NY, or maybe even Chicago, you know GREAT pizza. We tried this place, again because it was recommended in Mike Strzelecki's book "Baltimore With Children" and our son's name is Matthew. The place is a hole in the wall as Mike said. But how old are Mike's kids? There's no changing table here and the only other customer close to my childs age was a college kid that was sitting behind us studying! Not a single other family here and we were there for lunch watching customer after customer come in, eat, leave, come in, eat,....
The place has won all kinds of awards which leads me to believe Baltimore is no pizza capital and should stick to crab cakes.

Baltimore - Friendly Farm Resaurant

We read about the Friendly Farm Restaurant in Mike Strzelecki's book "Baltimore with Children." Why he would recommend driving 45 minutes from Downtown Baltimore I'll never know. He made the place sound great for kids, but we were the only young family there! EVERYONE else was older. That's a slight exaggeration, there was a couple that was perhaps in their 40s and a family with a teenager. The place sort of reminded me of a nursing home cafeteria. The farm land area was very pretty, but the signs reading "keep off the grass" kept us away. The food was NOTHING to write home about, I've had better steaks at chain restaurants. The highlight of the meal were the sweet rolls which were ok and the ice cream for desert (no sprinkles or whipped cream for the kids). Also, how many kids do you know that eat the sides the serve: pickled beets, coleslaw, cottage cheese, and apple butter? Mine don't. They are willing to try things, but this was not their cup of tea, or ours. NOT worth the trouble to drive out to nearly the Pennsylvania line! What were you thinking Mike?

Baltimore - National Aquarium

Beautiful. Well run. Clean and friendly! The exhibits were fantastic. Sure I'm partial to the New York Aquarium in Brooklyn, but this was nice. Make sure you check out the Australia exhibit and watch them feed the archer fish. We didn't stay for the dolphin show, but people were saying it was great. Wish they had some out door exhibits, because on a nice day you don't want to be couped up inside. This makes for a great rainy day activity.

Some comparisons:
The shark area is nice, but not as cool as Sea Worlds in San Diego or Orlando.
The NYC Aquarium requires you to be outdoors to get from exhibit to exhibit, like I said this place is totally indoors.
No walrus or seals at the National Aquarium.
Much cleaner facilities than NYC Aquarium or Sea World.

Baltimore's Paddleboats & Chessies

Bottom line, if it's a nice day, rent a boat. We had tons of fun. My son was so excited about "going on the dragon boat." We paddled around and got a great view of the harbor and got nice and close to the Torsk. Great experience. Period.

Baltimore - B and O Railroad Museum

The B & O (Baltimore and Ohio) Railroad Museum was another place we visited this week. Here's the real deal for kids. They have some awesome trains in the Roundhouse which I thought were impressive,as did my son. Don't think you can go on most of them though. Only about 5 train cars or locomotives are you actually allowed on. Our reason for going was the train ride you can take on the "first commercial railroad track in America." Sure the tracks may have been historic, but the train cars we sat in were from the MARC (Maryland's commuter train). There is nothing cool about that. My son was disappointed that the train didn't move faster than about a crawl. He wasn't the only disappointed one, many passengers said the same thing as we S-L-O-W-L-Y moved along. If you are a historic train buff, as many of the OLDER patrons were, it might be great. If not, take the MARC from Baltimore to D.C. and you'll have just as much, or more fun. FYI, we ride the Long Island Railroad and NYC subways somewhat frequently, so maybe that's why it wasn't so cool. On a positive the volunteers there were REALLY helpful and the place was VERY clean.

Baltimore - Port Discovery

Alright, let me start by saying my son had a great time playing in the small indoor soccer field and climbing up and down the large tree house, club house thing that makes up the majority of this glorified indoor playground. Unfortunately there is ZERO supervision. Parents are supposed to supervise their children - yeh right. My 2 year old was sitting and playing with some grocery boxes when she was nearly pummeled by a child 3 times her size and age! Where were his parents? I still don't know. As for security, they have a few kids standing around not saying anything. Upon leaving they are supposed to check your ID bracelet to make sure you have your kids, and only your kids. We walked out through the handicapped/stroller exit without being examined- just a little troubling. Food is not available here, except for a couple of vending machines. There are a ton of restaurants just outside though. We went during the week so we had to pay for parking i a nearby lot- they will apparently validate on weekends, but why would you want to go there? Until they show me that they have a supervision plan, I'm out.
Any questions leave a comment.

Baltimore- Maryland Science Center

I'm glad this is my first review! Why? We all had a great time here. My son is 5 and had a blast "playing" with the science toys and checking out the dinosaur section. We live in NY and have gone to the NY Hall of Science many times (in fact we are members of the NY Hall Of Science, so we got into the MSC for FREE! ) so I would compare it to that museum. The dinosaurs are a nice touch, and they don't nickle and dime you like the Hall of Science does- more on that in a future review! One of the bathrooms was VERY clean and had a changing table , which is important when you need to change a 2 year old (my daughter). The Beaker Cafe has very reasonably priced ($3 kids meals!) and the eating area was very clean. UNFORTUNATELY, the bathroom near the cafe was FILTHY! The floors were disgusting and there was no changing table.
Any questions?