All Over Albany

Where to have an indoor dart tag party?

Richard emails:

My son loves NERF Dart Tag. He will be turning 13 in March and my wife and would love to throw him a NERF Birthday Blast Party with all his friends. We just found out that for the past few years - there has been a NERF DART Tag Championship (still wondering how people get selected for this championship tournament - cash prize is $25,000) - Wow. ...

We are looking for a local place that offers this kind of cool blow up dome with obstacles etc (featured in video) or a safe indoor place to hold a NERF Dart Tag party. We thought about asking Laser Tag facilities to accommodate us if possible (and may ultimately go in that direction) - but would love to find something a bit more soft like the inflatable dome.

That does sound like it could approach best-birthday-ever territory (for a 13-year-old). Got a suggestion for Richard? Please share!

Earlier on AOA: Where to take the kids when they're bouncing off the walls during the winter

photo: Hasbro

LEGOmania at the Albany Institute

Legos + creativity at the Albany Institute

This weekend, fortified by turkey and stuffing, teams from all over the Capital Region competed in the Albany Institute of History and Art's first LEGO Building Challenge. Teams of LEGO-maniacs faced off on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Their mission: create Albany architecture from either the past, present or future.

We got to judge the contest on Sunday afternoon along with David Brickman, Jim Kambrich and Rebecca Angel Maxwell. We saw everything from an awesome model of the 1864 Saratoga Race Course, to a Village People concert at The Egg, to a futuristic hydroelectric power plant...

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A good family gift -- not just for kids?

One suggestion: MASS MoCA. Big indoor spaces. Art that kids might groove on (Sol LeWitt made instructions for people to draw on the walls!). And, of course, something to keep the adults interested.

Abby emails from afar:

For Christmas I wanted to give [my sister, who lives in the Albany area] a family pass to somewhere cool in your area. I was thinking something the whole family would enjoy, not just an indoor playroom. Could you make New York suggestions?

Anything from Six Flags type stuff, museums that are kid friendly (but not necessarily just for kids), science museums, or anything else that's fun to do.

So, Abby's getting an early start on the season. But she's working from out of town, so give her credit for getting a jump on it.

It sounds like she's open to a lot of ideas -- not just "family" stuff (sometimes it seems like the "family" label is license to be completely boring for adults). Got a suggestion? Please share!

A good pediatrician?

Sara emails:

I have two boys, ages 2.5 & 6. We all currently visit a very popular family practice in Slingerlands, and while we like a couple of the practitioners there, it's a hike for us to get there, we wait forever once we are there, they don't answer the phones between 11:30AM-12:30PM, etc.

We'd like to hear about some good practices or specific doctors, whether they are pediatricians, internists, and/or general practitioners. We live in Wynantskill, and our preference is within 15-20 minutes drive. Pleasant office staff, realistic scheduling, thorough doctors (NP's or PA's are also fine)...

Thank you! I really appreciate the input of AOA readers.

Showing up at the doctor's office on time and having to wait seemingly forever is frustrating. Having to do it with a sick kid? Eek.

Got a suggestion for Sara? Please share!

Earlier on AOA:
+ A good doctor near Saratoga?
+ Know of a good doctor near Albany?
+ A good eye doctor?
+ A good dentist?
+ A good oral surgeon?

photo: Flickr user a.drian

Kids in public

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

I was sitting in the Panera in Latham Farms doing work for class. I sought the air conditioned sanctuary of free WiFi and a predictably decent, cooling yogurt-berry smoothie. I buckled down to the task of wading through academic articles, having deposited children with grandparents and dispatched husband to work.

The three year old bouncing around the room, running up and down the aisles chasing imaginary aliens, was totally killing my buzz.

I took a deep breath. I said nothing. I tried to remember how much I value those two seconds of quiet at a table when my child is jumping up and down on something that is not me. But there was this niggling voice in the back of my head whispering, "I drove across two county lines and a river and cashed in a favor with my parents, so that I could sit here and get work done. Please, please, please, corral your kid."

Where do we draw the line as parents and as members of a greater community? Where is the line between "children should be seen and not heard" and "children should be see and heard with zero restrictions on the glory that is all forms of childhood and parenting?" How do we remember that one person's adorable is another person's obnoxious?

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Pass It On Sale summer 2011

The big Pass It On Sale for kids stuff starts today with the private pre-sale, and then throws open the doors to the general public Wednesday.

What is Pass It On? It's basically a giant exchange for parents to pass on "gently" used kids items to other parents looking for a bargain. And it's enormous. The sale takes up the 20,000 square foot field house at Albany Academy. (There's a sale each August and March.)

We checked out the sale a few years back. It looked like there were some great bargains. And be ready to shop like you mean it -- the sale can get a little intense.

The sale opens today for consignors, volunteers, and new parents (you had to register ahead of time). The sale open to the general public Wednesday (9 am - 8 pm) and Thursday (9 am - 5 pm). Friday (9 am - 5 pm) and Saturday (8 am - noon) are half price days. It's free to enter.

Where to watch July 4th fireworks with kids?

Planning for the Fourth of July, CVAA emails:

I am trying to find a perfect spot to watch the 4th of July firework. It has to be kid-friendly. A place where very active toddlers can walk around and is not too crowded would be ideal. Although I won't let the kids roaming around wildly, I don't expect them to sit still while waiting for the show to start either. If your readers have any suggestion, I would really appreciate it. Just a background. We live near Siena collage but would be willing to drive 15 minutes or so. I love fireworks and really hope to find a good spot to enjoy one this year.

We bet there are at least a few spots CVAA and her kids could watch the ESP fireworks, all while having a bit of room to roam.

Got a suggestion? Please share!

photo: Sebastien B

Most popular baby names in New York 2010

As it does every year, the Social Security Administration today released a list of the most popular baby names in 2010, sorted by state.

So we pulled the list -- the 100 most popular names for boys and girls born in New York last year are after the jump. We also looked at the top 10 names this year ranked during the last few years...

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Capital Region cloth diaper services

No pins required: Diaper covers make cloth diapers easy.

Cloth or paper? Which one would you prefer cradling your butt?

On second thought, don't answer that. I'll just jump right in to talking about diapers.

With my first baby, I chose cloth. It was soft. I liked that it "breathed" better than disposables. And I liked the fact that we weren't sending extra crap (ahem) to the landfill. But washing diapers at home was not an option: We were renting; the landlord had shut off the hot-water line to the washing machine, and you can't wash diapers in cold.

So we contracted with a diaper service. Easy: They provided the diapers. We just tossed the used ones into a bin, set them out once a week, and fresh clean diapers would magically appear the next morning.

But by the time our second daughter came around, the diaper service we'd used had gone out of business. We went with disposables. Yeah, she got diaper rash more often. Yeah, we threw out a lot of trash. But whether we deserved the eco-guilt we felt isn't completely clear: When you take the laundering into account, reusables aren't exactly guilt-free, either. Studies comparing the environmental impact of cloth and disposables have shown mixed results, and even the Natural Resources Defense Council has reported that "environmentalists from various organizations declared a draw, suggesting we all move on to issues where the costs and benefits were more clear-cut."

Me, my heart's still with cloth; but whatever your feelings, it's nice that parents have options. There are now several diapering businesses in the Capital Region, and they make it as easy as could be to go cloth with your baby.

Read on to learn more about three of the area's cloth diaper services.

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The Riverway Storytelling Festival

Bill Cliff, a.k.a. Mr. Bill, weaves a yarn Monday night at Albany's Delaware Branch library.

It's no mean trick to fascinate six-year-olds. But to hold the children and their parents in rapt attention? That requires a gift.

It's a gift that will be in great abundance this week, as public libraries in Albany and Rensselaer counties play host to the Riverway Storytelling Festival.

Riverway is a community storytelling festival that's been held in the Capital Region annually since 2003. There are more than 20 events in all this week, and all of them are free. Some performances are for families; others are meant for adults. All of them celebrate the art, the power, and the joy of storytelling.

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The Wild Center

Otters = fun

If you've wanted to explore the Adirondacks but don't know where you begin, the Wild Center in Tupper Lake is a good place to start. You can learn about the history and biology of the largest park in the lower 48 states -- and being almost smack in the middle of the Adirondacks makes it an ideal starting point for a variety of day trips.

Also, they have otters.

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Howe Caverns: fun, underground

Of course kids love it. But it's a really cool experience for adults, too.

If you haven't been to Howe Caverns since your elementary school field trip, I can give you five reasons why you should go.

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Planning ahead: Winter break activities

Because there's only so much Uno you can play.

Pssst ... The little dears are home from school next week. Got any plans?

Monday should be all right. Tuesday, too. But with all the snow days we've had recently, the crazies may set in by Thursday, and Friday may see faces pressed to the windows, desperate for a change of scenery. And that's just the parents.

Luckily, there are plenty of activities lined up for next week. Here are some that stood out for us. You know, the stuff we'd take our own kids to.

Here's what we found. ...

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Albany, Tula -- Tula, Albany

Uspenskaya Church, Tula, Russia.

Know any teens with a yearning to travel? Here's a chance for them to write their own ticket.

The Albany-Tula Alliance, the Capital Region's sister-city exchange program with Tula, Russia, is sponsoring an essay contest for local students ages 16 to 18. Two winners will receive a two-week trip to Tula this summer. (And yes, there's also an essay contest being held in Tula, that will allow two Russian teens to come here.)

The topic: "Describe your vision for a cooperative international program for future space exploration, and how it could affect U.S.-Russian relations." A Tula-born cosmonaut, Sergei Zalyotin, will come to Albany to greet the winners in May (via airplane, not rocketship -- probably).

This is the essay contest's second year. Last year's contest sent students from Bethlehem and Shenendehowa high schools to Tula.

This year marks the Albany-Tula Alliance's 20th anniversary. The program promotes business development and cultural exchange with the city of Tula, 125 miles south of Moscow (similar, you'll note, to Albany's distance from New York City).

Contest submission deadline is March 1. Here's more information.

Photo: Flikr user Vokabre

Stack 'em up

The Saratogian's Lucian McCarty had a fun story today about Ethan Thomas, a 10-year-old from Ballston Spa who's a competitive cup stacker:

Winter getaway: Great Escape's indoor water park

Winter on the outside, something a little more like summer on the inside.

I'll be the first to admit it: I'm not an "artificial environment" kind of person.

I like that New York has seasons, and that each season brings its own activities. January is for sledding. August is for camping. April's for watching the squirrels eat my tulips.

I kind of enjoy not being able to do everything all the time. It makes seasonal activities more special.

Which makes it all the more strange for me to admit: The Six Flags Great Escape Lodge and Indoor Waterpark is pretty fun.

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Bouncing off the walls? There's a cure for that

Bounce. Bounce. Bounce.

The snow will come and the snow will go, but one thing is constant: the need to get the kids out and moving. When sledding, snow forts and skis aren't an option, and when you can't stand losing one more Wii tennis match to your six-year-old, you might need to look elsewhere for a place to let the kids get their wiggles out.

What follows are some indoor activities that'll keep the youngsters -- and yourself - active, no snow (or membership contract) required. Please feel free to add your own suggestions below.

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Stuff to do with kids the week after Christmas

Because there's only so much Wii you can play

Between shopping, mailing packages, and cleaning the house for guests, you probably haven't found too much time to think about what you're going to do for that stretch of time between Christmas and New Year's Eve.

Oh, sure, right now, it's shimmering on the horizon, an oasis of restfulness and serenity after the pre-holiday bustling around. You'll have a new book, maybe, and a cozy fire, and the kids will be playing that brand-new video game.

Sounds wonderful, right? Except that then, maybe six hours will pass, and you'll realize that the kids are still playing video games. And your visiting relatives are starting to get itchy. And any minute now they might start noticing all the not-so-clean parts of the house that you didn't get around to fixing up for them.

That's when it's time for a little post-holiday outing. Here are a few suggestions:

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A peek inside Vicarious Visions

This is fun: local filmmaker Mike Feurstein shot a piece about a school field trip to Vicarious Visions, the video game studio in Menands. It likes it could be a fun place to work.

Mike's piece is part of series trying to get kids interested in science, math and engineering. He tells us the piece was also crewed by local high school students.

Also: Sandra over at Albany Kid has put together a short list of local resources for kids interested in learning about video game development. Both Vicarious Visions and 1st Playable in Troy sometimes have kids come in to test games. She's hoping you might know have a few other ideas.

By the way: the next season of Mike's eScape series, shot here in the Capital Region, recently premiered.

Capital Region Etsy: kid stuff

Cute.

All this week Crystal is sharing local finds on Etsy.

Because I refuse to set foot into the madness that is a children's store during holiday shopping season, I've spent a lot of time on Etsy trying to find a great Christmas gift for my one-year-old nephew.

Between all the people who love this kid, he probably already owns at least one of everything in those stores, so I decided my best bet for getting him something he doesn't have would be to browse the kids shops on Etsy. In the process I came across some great local finds.

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Good neighborhood Christmas light displays?

Judy emails:

My kids LOVE Christmas lights. The oohs and ahhs from the backseat this time of year makes driving at night a fun adventure, but there's just one problem - we're getting used to our usual streets! Do your readers know of any local neighborhoods that really put on a show (and don't mind a little extra traffic, of course)?

We also got this question from @touchofgr3y.

The first place that springs to mind is Apple Blossom Lane in Colonie -- here's video by Christen Gowan from last year's decorations.

There have to be others. Know of one (or more)? Please share!

(And thanks to Katie at Capital District Fun for doing a little asking around on this one!)

photo: Flickr user George Deputee

Stuff to do with kids on Thanksgiving weekend

Learn the truth behind the 3 Little Pigs this weekend at Hudson Opera House.

Sure, Thanksgiving is great for spending time at home with family, friends, and food. But if you've got kids in the house (your own or guests or both), chances are pretty good that they'll be climbing the walls with energy to burn Friday morning.

Since I'm always on the lookout for family fun activities for my blog, Capital District Fun, the AOA editors asked me to look around for some good stuff going on this weekend.

Here are a few ideas...

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Martial arts classes for kids?

Charley emails:

I'm interested in taking my girls, at least the 4 year old, to start learning a martial art. I'd heard about daddy-daughter martial arts in other towns, and am wondering if there's anything like that around here.

Some stuff I'm eager to drop kids off and let the teachers do their thing, but it seems like it would be really fun to do this and I can't believe I'm the only dad who wants to help his daughter become a blackbelt. Love your input.

Anyone have suggestions for Charley and his daughter? Please share!

photo: Kai Schreiber (Flickr user Genista)

Driving schools?

Carl asks:

I wonder if anyone has any good experiences to share with Albany / Troy area driving schools. Because the do-it-yourself model is not working with my daughter.

We've always thought having your parent teach you how to drive is maybe not the best idea. There's just so much... baggage. (Red light! You don't have to use that tone with me. Brake! I am braking!!)

So, a suggestion here could really smooth the road. Please share!

photo: Naimi Grondin (Flickr user Naimi&virg)

Capital District Soap Box Derby

Might be fun to check out: the Capital District Soap Box Derby is this weekend on Madison Ave outside the New York State Museum. Kids will "gravity race" in three divisions for a chance to compete at the "world" championship in Akron, Ohio later this summer.

When we think of "soap box derby," all the pictures that flash in our head are in black and white. The whole thing seems so retro. As it happens, the wheels almost fell off the sport last year, but it got something very modern: a bailout.

Also, another modern (and cool) thing about it: girls were the winners of four of the six divisions at the championship last year.

The races here in Albany start at 9 am on Saturday.

photo: Capital District Soap Box Derby