Destinations the whole family will love!

HIT THE ROAD AND CREATE SOME UNFORGETTABLE FAMILY MEMORIES WITH LONELY PLANET’S ROAD TRIP GUIDES

LONELY PLANET TRIPS BUY

There’s an antidote to the abuse commonly known as airline travel (constant flight delays, surly staff, outrageous baggage fees)—the great American roadtrip. If your reliance on your GPS system and GoogleMaps has you a little lost when it comes to planning an on the road adventure, Lonely Planet has you covered. Their Trips series will have you running out to check the oil and tires, and your teens groaning at the prospect of being trapped in a car with you for 3 days.

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Although I guess the 4th should have me thinking about Philly (what with the Liberty Bell and all), my thoughts tend to wander northward on 95 towards NYC. So following this wonderful long, 4th of July holiday, there’s no better time for my review of the must-have guide book for any family planning on taking a bite out of the Big Apple.

Vacationing in NYC is a bit daunting for a family. As a parent (at least to younger children) you live and die by naps and bedtime. So just how does a vacation to the city that never sleeps fit in? Amazingly, with a little help from Fodor’s.
The experts in travel do what they do best in this easy-to-read and succinct enough-to-tote-in-the-diaper bag guide to NYC. But don’t let the smallish size of Fodor’s Family New York City With Kids fool you—there’s enough ideas to keep a family entertained and informed for days and days and days on end.
Covering everything from a general overview of the city to special recommendations grouped by a kid’s interest (dino buffs to princesses in training), NYC with Kids goes in depth on each major neighborhood and surrounding boroughs. The recommendations in each section are cross referenced with the chapters dedicated to museums, restaurants, hotels and maps. My personal favorite feature is the handy ‘Where can I find a …. ” for each neighborhood that includes not only parks but also the essential public bathrooms listings. Although, I have to say I have never gotten turned down at any restaurant when I walk in with a toddler in tow and ask to use the restroom.

While you don’t usually think of Fodor’s unless you’re thinking of travel, this is a great little book for visitors and residents alike, covering the well-known spots (Tavern on the Green, Rockefeller Center) to lesser-known gems (real fishing in central park, the Peanut Butter & Co Sandwich Shop). And they do it in a way that really works for parents—in-depth enough to be informed, but to the point enough to not tax a parent’s already maxed out brain cells.

$10.95+tax and shipping. Buy yours HERE.

Ice cream, parks, bathrooms. What more could you need?

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Kids with Liberty performers photo by VICTORIA PECKHAM

Steven Alan’s Perfect Bag, created in conjunction with Australia’s V Airlines.

Hey hipsters, sorry to get  all mom on the your downtown style but here I go: The  new Perfect Bag by NYC’s boutique/label Steven Alan and Australia’s V Airlines has a lot of family-friendly features going for it. It’s made of a water-repellent waxed cotton top, a leather bottom and features lots of zipper compartments, including an easy-access (but protected) sleeve for your laptop. The straps also allow the bag to convert from shoulder to tote to backpack. But what I think makes it an especially great fit for families is the zippered bottom compartment. Alan and V Airlines (which I believe is Australia’s version of Virgin, but they do a pretty spot-on imitation of Target in Australia, so I’m not going to bet up my first born or anything on that) tout this area’s wet section as a great place to store bathing suits, but when I saw it all I thought was, “instant access to juice boxes and Goldfish! Genius!”

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So, on our last trip to Palm Springs, our friend Bethany Nagy was nice (and thoughtful and generous) enough to give us a gift of these awesome car bingo games. I have no idea where she got hers, but I managed to find them online. And even better, I found them at the ST. JUDE GIFT SHOP. We all know how absolutely important St. Jude is, and any time I can find something to buy from their gift shop, I absolutely do. (And of course donate!).

Refreshingly non-electronic, Car Bingo is a classic that goes down in the books with other car games we all used to play like Punch Bug and my new personal favorite, The Quiet Game.

BUY TRAVEL BINGO AT ST. JUDE HERE

is this thing really soap?!?!

oooh, this is cool

Most parents have the emergency toilet paper cover covered (tissue does double-duty, or even that wadded up Starbuck’s napkin will do in a pinch), but faced with an empty soap container and a kid with sticky, grimy hands presents a whole other set of problems. (And with all the back and forth about the safety of hand sanitizers, maybe best to just stay away for a while.) But carrying around a leaky bottle of hand soap? And I won’t even waste space on the bar soap option.

Paper soap to the rescue! They’re lightweight, dry, perfectly safe and they are about as magical to kids as bubbles or expanding sponges. They’re an essential part of my travel-pack.

Flight 001 has this really cool version that looks like a leaf (click here). Double the magic, quadruple the excitement in lathering up. $7/10 soaps.

Oh wait…now they also have portable soap tubes (gotoob). I may have to reconsider that liquid soap option…

Flight 001

Here’s some multi-purpose snack bags that do the trick, at 30,000 feet or sea level. They’re reusable, adorable, organic and awesome. A great way to organize and make sure it’s easy to grab the pretzels and not the freeze dried peas. And when you’re stuck in that tiny cabin with a tiny tyrant, any little help matters!

GRAZE REUSABLE SNACK BAGS

kids will love the squishy, just don’t let them know this one is called ‘celery’

…or push on it, or step on it, or any of the wonderful destructive things that kids love to do. These silicon bowls are nearly indestructible, which makes them perfect for squishing them into your bag for that will spring back to life whenever you need an on-the-go bowl. They’re temperature resistant for up to 400º F and they come i bright, poppy colors. 

GUYOTDESIGNS.COM

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a happy passenger in her CARES seatbelt for kids  

Your our old choices for securing your kiddo on the airplane: 

1. A bulky carseat that adds an additional 20lbs and 4 cubic feet to all the crap you already have to haul on the plane (and that the kid hates to sit in, anyways).

2. One of those kinda pricey stroller/seat combos (where do you use them outside of the airport?).

3. The flimsy airplane seat belt (I know my kids have little chance of staying strapped in).

Enter CARES, the ‘first and only harness-type Aviation Child Safety Device certified by the FAA’. Basically, it’s a belt that you attach to the existing seat belt. It’s made by a manufacturer of aviation seatbelts so it meets existing safety standards. You do, however, have to wrap it around the seat, so it will be visible to the person sitting behind your child…I know, I know, no big deal, it just basically becomes part of their seat but I’m just putting that disclaimer out there ’cause I’ve flown with some pretty fussy passengers before (and I’m not referring to anyone 18 or under). 

Anyways best of all, the belt weighs only 1lb and fits into a 6″ stuff sack. 

The only thing I can’t endorse is the name. (Hey CARES, If you need help with branding, let me know!)

Ready for takeoff!!

KIDSFLYSAFE.COM

and it works great on private jets, too! 

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photo credits: images taken from kidsflysafe.com. 

portable pocket paint set  

This gem of a kids store/art space in Minneapolis has put together a kick-butt collection of travel toys. Actually, their entire selection of kid items is curated to be heavy on the design and fun fator. And if your travels ever take you to the Twin Cities (one of my former cities of residence), be sure to visit the store. It feels like a gallery, but the kids can play with everything! Finally, a space that’s truly kid-proof. And profits go towards kids charities. 

 WWW.KIDDYWAMPUS.COM

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photo credits: images taken from kiddywampus.com 

Do those adorable little mini-Pumas really deserve the humilation of being wrapped in some hoopty ol’ plastic shopping bag? They deserve to travel in style, too! Enter Lil’ Shubi to the rescue. 

These cloth and grosbrain ribbon drawstring shoe bags are sized to fit your little one’s little kicks, and designed to fit your style. (i.e. They’ll fit right in with your Stella McCartney for LeSporsac roller bag.)

They’re fully lined for a longer life, and, if your child—unlike mine—manages to let you leave shoes on her for over 20 seconds, Shubi also doubles as a mini bag carryall for any of her gazillion other bébé accessories.

shubi website