Jody Mercier

When asked to illustrate her dream job as a first grader, Jody drew a picture of a mom with one kid on each hip and another clinging to her leg. All these years later, that is her reality, raising three kids in New York City. Since that gig only pays in hugs and kisses, she has spent her professional career as a journalist covering health, fitness, sports, and parenting topics. She's currently the regional editor overseeing the Mommy Poppins NYC, New Jersey, Long Island, and Westchester sites and can be reached at jody@mommypoppins.com.

Latest posts by Jody Mercier

100 Free Things To Do in NYC With Kids

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Fri, 09/03/2021 - 2:56pm

Hunting down pop-up public art displays is one of our favorite free things to do in NYC. Zaq Landsberg's Reclining Liberty is on display in Morningside Park through April 2022.

Raising kids in NYC can cost a pretty penny, but it doesn't always have to. From free times to visit NYC's top museums and cultural institutions to restaurants where kids eat for free and stores where they can play for free, it's not too hard to find free things to do—you just need to know where to look. We do, and luckily, we're sharing our secrets with you in this list of 100 free things to do in NYC with kids. Be sure to bookmark our Guide to Free Things To Do in NYC and our Activity Calendar for more all-seasons entertainment on the cheap.

Here's the NYC Public School Calendar for 2021-2022

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Tue, 08/24/2021 - 10:17am

NYC school kids return to the classrooms for the 2021-22 school year on Monday, September 13. Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography

Looking for the 2022-2023 NYC Public School Calendar? Find it here.

If you've got a child in public school, you live by the public school calendar, and after a year of fits and starts, delays, and COVID-induced quarantines and closures, parents are wondering what the new school year will bring. With less than three weeks before the first day of school, we're republishing the public school calendar. Many local NYC preschools follow the public school schedule, too. The New York City Department of Education's calendar for the 2021-2022 school year is below, and you'll want to bookmark it now for reference—and to help with planning family vacations and school break camp coverage.

One notable change for the upcoming school year: There will be no snow days. Plan on logging your kiddos on for a day of remote learning whenever buildings are closed for snow or other emergencies.

These are all of the dates you can count on your kiddos being out of school during the 2021-2022 school year.

Central Park's Top Playgrounds Ranked for NYC Kids and Visitors

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Tue, 08/17/2021 - 4:17pm

Central Park's Heckscher Playground is one of our favorites in all of NYC.

When out-of-towners ask me how I have managed to stay sane with three kids in Manhattan, my answer is always easy: Central Park. It's been our family playground for more than a decade. My son's first steps were taken there, and every day of elementary school in our house has started with a trek across the urban oasis. Our afternoons just don't feel quite right without a stop at the East 110th Street Playground, where my daughter finally conquered the monkey bars.

Central Park is our family's collective happy place, thanks in large part to its diverse array of playgrounds, which always keep us coming back for more (sanity-saving) playtime. In the spirit of our posts ranking the playgrounds in Prospect Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park, and Riverside Park, we present our top playground picks for Central Park. Find more places to play in our Guide to NYC's Top Playgrounds.

Pixar Putt Brings Fun Mini-Golf Course to Battery Park for Limited Run

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Mon, 08/16/2021 - 4:31pm

Test your mini-golf skills on the Pixar Putt course, which has popped up in Battery Park for a limited late-summer run.

Pixar fans take note: You can now interact with some of your favorite movie scenes thanks to Pixar Putt, an immersive, interactive, pop-up mini-golf experience that's taken over Pier A in Battery Park for a limited time.

I recently played the 18-hole course with my trio of kids, and we've got a sneak peek at the fun that awaits. Whether you want to walk in the shoes of The Good Dinosaur, sail away with Up, or whack a golf ball a little too hard at a creepy Benson doll bust, Pixar Putt is a fun addition to the city's mini-golf scene, but act fast: Your favorite characters are only in town until Halloween.

A New Van Gogh Immersive Art Installation Opens in DC

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Sun, 08/15/2021 - 10:00am

Seeing The Starry Night in total immersion is one of the highlights of Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience.

Vincent Van Gogh is certainly having a moment. A slew of immersive, larger-than-life art exhibits dedicated to the Dutch master have opened in cities all over the world. DC can now add itself to that list with the opening of Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience on August 6 at northeast DC's Rhode Island Center. And in a city teeming with museums, it offers something quite unique.

Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience is a 20,000-square-foot light and sound installation featuring two-story projections of the artist’s most compelling works so you can experience them in 360 degrees. It includes three galleries tracing the artist's development and life story. Giant fact-filled placards hang in the first two exhibition spaces before you ever encounter the finale: total immersion.

Autism-Friendly Big Umbrella Fest Returns to Lincoln Center Next Month

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Wed, 08/11/2021 - 12:42pm

How close you get to the action is up to you during Squonk's Big Hands for Big Umbrella performance at Lincoln Center's Big Umbrella Outdoors Fest next month. Photo by Emily O'Donnell/courtesy of Lincoln Center

Lincoln Center's Big Umbrella Festival—the first performing arts fest with programming specifically geared toward autistic audiences—is set for a September return taking over Josie Robertson Plaza and the sprawling outdoor Restart Stages venues for three days of performances beginning Friday, September 17.

NYC Playgrounds With Shade: Play It Cool at These Shady Parks in NYC

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Tue, 07/27/2021 - 10:15am

Many cool playgrounds in Central Park are shaded by tall trees. Photo courtesy of Central Park Conservancy

Need to find a playground near you with shade for a hot summer day in NYC? These shady playgrounds in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens offer a break from the sun but no shortage of fun.

While kids can always cool off in NYC's many sprinklers, there's no reason for us parents to get stuck baking in the heat. A few NYC playgrounds are known to offer exceptional amounts of shade—Hippo Playground in Riverside Park and Discovery Playground in Fort Washington Park come to mind—but we asked our readers if they knew of any super-shady playgrounds in New York City, and they came through with several great suggestions.

12 Unforgettable Experience Gifts for Kids in and Around NYC

Submitted by Jody Mercier on Mon, 07/12/2021 - 3:33pm

Your summer of awesome is here—Legoland New York is now open and a season pass is a perfect present! Photo courtesy of Legoland

It's no secret that little kids mean lots of gear, clothes, and toys—and the stuff only multiplies as your children and family grow. So, rather than going for broke buying all the latest toys and tech, consider gifting your kids an unforgettable only-in-New-York experience for their next milestone birthday.

Whether you've got tough-to-impress teens or preschoolers with more toys than they know what to do with, we've got a dozen ideas for experience gifts for kids in and around NYC.