Welcome! The New York Mamas Playgroup is for families residing in NYC and Long Island with children ranging from pregnancy and newborn to 6yrs old. So if you are expecting or have a newborn baby/infant/ toddler/preschooler/homeschooler/Kindergartener, then you are welcome to join our group!

I'm Sandra, my husband and I have a 5yo son and 3yo daughter, and we're expecting again, I'm due on 2/2/12! We just relocated to Nassau County and we're thrilled to be back home (after 8 years living in the South) and so happy to once again live close to NYC where we both grew up. I'm a native New Yorker but a newbie to Long Island, and would like to make new friends for myself and my children. We plan on having playgroups and all sorts of interesting fun for our kiddos and ourselves, all over New York, and we hope you'll join us!

* ♥ ˚ ˚✰˚ ˛★* 。 ღ˛° 。L E T ' S   G O   P L A Y  !    ★ *˚ .ღ 。★ *˛ ˚♥*

We will have playdates scheduled on weekdays and weekends at various locations throughout New York: Long Island (both Nassau and Suffolk Counties) and also in the 5 boroughs of NYC; Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island.

Let's go play at parks, visit museums, explore indoor and outdoor playgrounds, visit the zoo, bounce houses, enjoy in-home playdates, family-friendly restaurants, cafes, the malls, puppet shows, have creative play, musical play, dance, sing, attend parties, BBQ's, beaches, exercise, arts and crafts, paint, sculpt, get artsy and messy, amusement parks, libraries, MNO, storytimes, go for walks, go window-shopping, sightseeing, skating, bowling, berry-picking, visit farms, the City,  etc...and simply have lots of fun in beautiful, amazing New York!

I'm new in town, and always interested in hearing about fun and interesting things to do and places to go with my kids throughout New York. I welcome you to share the events you know of on the calendar, and I'm doing the same. The more the merrier! The plan for our playgroup is to enjoy a calendar filled with many fun options per week. Got something going on in your neck of the woods? Cool! Regardless of where it is -- your ideas for playdates, locations, events, and family-friendly info are always welcome and encouraged. Please post them to the calendar!

* ♥ ˚ ˚✰˚ ˛★* 。 ღ˛° 。N Y C  and  L O N G   I S L A N D :  ★ *˚ .ღ 。★ *˛ ˚♥*

As a stay at home mom with one child in Kindergarten and another in Preschool (3days/week), whenever I can, I enjoy taking my children out to play and explore NY. The last time I lived in New York, I didn't yet have kids - so I'm excited about exploring all the kid-friendly fun Nassau and Suffolk County has to offer, as well as NYC!

I like to travel with my children via LIRR/roadtrip/subway/ferry, and so I also plan on scheduling playdates throughout New York City. I want to take my kids to the places I went to as a kid such as museums and sightseeing at Manhattan landmarks, parks in Queens, the Bronx Zoo, the aquarium in Coney Island, the Brooklyn Bridge, etc. I want my children to experience and enjoy New York from a resident standpoint, but also as a tourist! We hope you'll come out and join us!

* ♥ ˚ ˚✰˚ ˛★* 。 ღ˛° 。A B O U T   M E:    ★ *˚ .ღ 。★ *˛ ˚♥*

Born and raised in Queens. At 30 I married my best friend from the Bronx and we moved to FL to start a family. We then spent a couple of years in NC. Fast forward 8 years and almost 3 kids later, now we love living 45 minutes from Manhattan and 15 minutes from the beach, and we're absolutely thrilled to finally be back home in NY!!

My children are 5yo and 3yo, (and baby on the way!), I'm married to a superman of a husband and Air Force Veteran, and we have 2 German Shepherd Dogs. We speak Spanish and Greek, sometimes proper English :) and are brushing up on our native language, New Yorker Slang.

When we lived in NC for a couple of years, I was the organizer of a super fun and quite active bi-lingual (Spanish/English) playgroup. It was lots of work, but so worth it. Oh the wonderful friends and adventures we shared! So as a newbie once again, I'm once again looking for new friends to share our days. I'm a true believer in the fact that it takes a village to raise a child. I look forward to meeting you all!

* ♥ ˚ ˚✰˚ ˛★* 。 ღ˛° 。M E M B E R S H I P    R U L E S :    ★ *˚ .ღ 。★ *˛ ˚♥*

 

The New York Mamas Playgroup is really a laid-back playgroup, but just a few important things to know:

1) In order to be considered for this group, please be sure your profile contains a photo of you and/or your child/children. Also for the safety of our group, you will need to have an established meetup history or a verifiable Facebook page, before you are accepted to The New York Mamas Playgroup. For example, this cannot be the very first playgroup you join on Meetup. Your greetings must show that you have met other moms and children in person/have attended playdates/other group outings. Or a link to your Facebook showing real people/friends. :) My goal is for this group to be an active group of families to meet and play in person. No lurkers allowed.

2) Once your membership is approved, you will receive an eMail notification welcoming you to our playgroup!

3) Once you're a member, please see our calendar and RSVP - even if you cannot attend, a No is better than nothing. I'd like to know I'm not alone here! :) Then feel free to post a playdate to our calendar for any family friendly events, activities, links, info, etc that you'd like to share with the group. The holidays are upon us, and I'm always on the lookout for places to go, and holiday memories to share with my children and our new playgroup!

 4) When RSVP'ing, please update your RSVP if you are ultimately unable to come out to the playdate/event. Everyone understands if you have to change your RSVP from a Yes to a No. But please do be sure to update your RSVP. Or you can call or text me - even last minute - just to say a quick "hey, I can't make it." That way we know not to search for you, or worry if we missed you at the playdate event. Please note: if you are a "no-show" 2 times, as in if you do not update your RSVP, or text/call me (or someone else attending the event), then you will be removed from the group. You may request to re-join the group whenever you are able to participate/update your RSVPs.

5) If your child is ill, please be sure to wait 24 hours after their last symptom or dose of medication before bringing them out to a playdate. That means no runny nose, no fever, no caugh, no sneezing, no medicine, etc for the last 24 hours. We hope he/she feels better soon, and we wouldn't want the whole group getting sick.

6) We encourage the Mamas who are also small business owners/crafters/artists/etc to note your business website in your profiles, and post your events to the calendar (offering discounts/specials/etc at the event especially for members of The New York Mamas Playgroup). Sponsoring our playgroup would be great! You could also host playdates too if you'd like. Personally I love to support and promote local businesses, especially other Mamas. However, please keep in mind that there is no spamming allowed.

7) If you would like to sponsor our playgroup, and offer our wonderful members a discount on your products or services, please utilize the "Sponsor Our Meetup Group" link located in the left-hand column of this page.

8) There are no membership dues, you can enjoy this playgroup for FREE!

9) If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, click on the "Contact us" link on the left of this page.

10) The motto for The New York Mamas Playgroup is simple: Let's go play! :D

* ♥ ˚ ˚✰˚ ˛★* Take care and I look forward to meeting you!  .ღ 。★ *˛ ˚♥*

Sandra