This post may contain affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
My oldest hates most board games — every round of Chutes and Ladders inevitably ends in tears. Then, someone told me about cooperative games where, instead of working against each other, players work together.
One of her favorite cooperative games is Outfoxed! Two to four players gather clues and rule out suspects to find the missing pot pie. The game only takes about 20–30 minutes, perfect for little ones with short attention spans. It’s a great way to introduce younger kids to board games — Outfoxed! today may become Codenames tomorrow!
Gamewright’s Outfoxed! Is $19.99 at Amazon.
Sales of note for 4.18.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 50% off full-price dresses, jackets & shoes; $30 off pants & skirts; extra 50% off sale styles
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything; extra 20% off purchase
- Eloquii – 50% off select styles; 60% off swim; up to 40% off everything else
- J.Crew – Mid-Season Sale: Extra 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off spring-to-summer styles
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Spring Mid-Season Sale: Up to 50% off 100s of styles
- Nordstrom: Free 2-day shipping for a limited time (eligible items)
- Talbots – Spring Sale: 40% off + extra 15% off all markdowns; 30% off new T by Talbots
- Zappos – 29,000+ women’s sale items! (check out these reader-favorite workwear brands on sale, and some of our favorite kids’ shoe brands on sale)
Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – Up to 70% off baby items; 50% off toddler & kid deals & 40% off everything else
- Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off spring faves; 25% off new arrivals; up to 30% off spring
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Up to 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off kids’ spring-to-summer styles
- Old Navy – 30% off your purchase; up to 75% off clearance
- Target – Car Seat Trade-In Event (ends 4/27); BOGO 25% off select skincare products; up to 40% off indoor furniture; up to 20% off laptops & printers
See some of our latest articles on CorporetteMoms:
Click here to see our top posts!
And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- If you’re a working parent of an infant with low sleep needs, how do you function at work when you’re in the throes of baby’s sleep regression?
- Should I cut my childcare down to 12 hours a month if I work from home?
- Will my baby have speech delays if we raise her bilingual?
- Has anyone given birth in a teaching hospital?
- My child eats everything, and my friends’ kids do not – how should I handle? In general, what is the best way to handle when your child has some skill/ability and your friend’s child doesn’t have that skill/ability?
- ADHD moms, give me your tips to help with things like behavior in the classroom, attention to detail, etc?
- I think I suffer from mom rage…
- My husband and kids are gone this weekend – how should I enjoy my free time?
- I’m struggling to be compassionate with a SAHM friend who complains she doesn’t have enough hours of childcare.
- If you exclusively formula fed, what tips do you have for in the hospital and coming home?
- Could I take my 4-yo and 8-yo on a 7-8 day trip to Paris, Lyon, and Madrid?
Anon says
Our whole family enjoys Outfoxed. It’s cute!
Anonymous says
We love this game too, and I am not really a games person.
anonM says
When do kids really start liking board/family games? Mine are 2 and 4, so I’ve yet to find anything that works for both. Yeti In Spaghetti turns into throwing noodles everywhere. I love games so I’m wondering when I can really expect that to be a fun activity.
Anonymous says
I think the game First Orchard would be great for a 2 and 4 year old. It is a cooperative game somewhat similar to Hi-Ho-Cherrio. It is a bit on the simple side for my 3 year old, so I think a 2 year old could participate, and it would still be fun for the 4 year old.
Anon says
We tried Candyland around 3 but she didn’t have the attention span (that game is long!). We had more luck with card games (Go Fish, Uno) and cooperative board games like Outfoxed around 3.5-4.
2 seems way too young to me for board games unless your child is very precocious.
eh says
I manipulate candyland for my child by stacking the deck so you don’t go backwards with the candy cards.
Anon says
i have twins who will be 4 in two months and so far they like games for approximately 7 minutes and the games then turn into pretend play with the pieces. it doesn’t bother me that much, but it drives their grandfather nuts. but i’m just not going to expend energy forcing them to play something they dont want to play
Anonymous says
Entirely child-dependent. If your kids don’t like board games, consider yourself lucky. Little kid board games are mind-numbing torture. Chutes and Ladders is the worst because it never ends. Uno is much more fun and can be played as soon as they can recognize numbers.
Anon says
I found even the stupid board games way less mind numbing than endless repetitive pretend play.
CCLA says
My older started getting really into games a couple of years ago at age 3, younger is 3 and is hit or miss on interest. We play a family game pretty much every night, but 3 yo occasionally opts out. Games in our rotation are memory, animal stacking from Haba, Jenga, and many cooperative games – hoot owl hoot, blastoff bingo (nice and fast!), race to the treasure…I’m sure I’m forgetting some. We try to avoid Candyland but if we play I usually stack the deck so it’s shorter!
Walnut says
For an even faster CandyLand experience, spread the cards face up and you choose your card. Chutes and Ladders can die a fiery death. If I must play, we also climb slides.
Anon says
We tried at 3 and kiddo didn’t like following rules and neither of her type A parents can handle playing without rules. At 4 she does much better and understands (we think) the concepts of playing fair and cheating (breaking the rules of the game). Now she’ll even “play” with my parents over video chat. She draws cards for them, moves their pieces, etc. Otherwise DH will play with her (I’m on board once we get to strategy games, but she’s 4 and these games are not my cup of tea). Her favorites are Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, Hungry Hungry Hippos, Hi Ho Cherry O, Monopoly Junior, and Pretty Pretty Princess.
Anonymous says
I’m having a couple second graders over from after school-8ish for play/dinner/movie. I had been planning to order pizza, but one of the girls doesn’t like pizza and my daughter will eat it but isn’t wild about it.
Ideas for an alternative? Either take-out or easy to make and consume (eg not a taco bar, not cleaning that mess). Maybe baked ziti & garlic bread? My kid voted for pad Thai but I’m pretty sure that won’t be a winner for everyone.
Katrinka says
Chick Fil A to-go tray? Most kids love nugs.
anon says
Chik fil A trays are ALWAYS a huge hit
Anonymous says
I’d be shocked if someone in my community served Chik fil A! So homophobic
Anon4This says
BAHAHAHAHAHHA are you friends with any LGBTQIA folks? Because…most folx are fine w CFA despite that stance. That reaction to CFA is the epitome of White liberal outrage.
Anon says
lol
Anonymous says
Yeah many and they all refuse to eat there and find it shocking when people just casually do.
Anonymous says
I think cancellation for serving Chick Fil A is a legitimate concern in some circles.
Anonymous says
Eating CFA regularly is a lot more exotic than being queer in my circle. (I live in NYC, where CFA only just arrived, and there isn’t one anywhere close to where I live).
Anonymous says
We used to donate to an LGBT charity whenever we got Chik fil a, which was rare but not never, but now we do Raising Cane’s instead (no idea what their politics are though, lol).
Anon says
I wouldn’t be shocked but I would be taking mental notes. If it was a real friend and not an acquaintance I would say something, or I would expect that they would (“this is 8’s favorite, but don’t worry, we made a double donation of the cost to help a trans child move out of TX”).
anon says
Anon at 8:57, be shocked at poverty, at failing schools, at war crimes. You know, actual problems. Don’t be shocked at…chicken nuggets.
Anon4This says
Yup and like the fact that most CFA employees are BIPOCs, and CFA (as terrible as they are politically) is a good employer in a very troubled, low-wage industry. So…the outrage/cancelling is a bit misplaced to me. I say this as someone who has lived in NYC, DC, and now in a Blue City/Red State and known PLENTY of CFA consumers across the board.
But again, a comfortable place for White Liberal Womxn to put their outrage is chicken nuggets.
I’m not trying to be an a** but as one of the regular posters on this site that is non-White, this type of pearl clutching gets grating.
Anon says
Agree with Anon4This. I also wonder if some of the outrage comes from people who don’t have ChikFilA around? I feel like it’s easier to “boycott” something you would never buy anyway. I live in a blue college town in a very red state and our friends are pretty much 100% liberal but I don’t know anyone who would be outraged about serving Chik Fil A at a party. It’s delicious and like you said a really good employer (and also by far the fastest and most accurate drive-thru in the area, so very easy with kids). TBH, I assume most restaurant owners in my area support Trump and donate to GOP PACs. I know for a fact that some of my family’s service providers (including beloved daycare teachers) are very politically conservative, so singling out Chik Fil A for outrage feels performative to me.
Anonymous says
I have less of a problem with Chick-Fil-A than I do with Hobby Lobby.
Test says
Also agreed.
I strongly disagree with Dan Cathy’s politics, but I like Chick fil a’s product. If the company itself were making donations to causes I oppose or otherwise doing egregious stuff, I would try to avoid it, but he’s an individual and that’s how political donations work. I cannot keep track of every business owner’s political giving or every rich person’s income streams, so it feels very performative to me to take a stand on this one.
Anonymous says
Good call but I’m not driving there and back. ;)
Anon says
They doordash in my small city.
Anon says
+2 for Chik Fil A
Anon says
Order the pizza and get a side order or two of chicken fingers and fries. Add a fruit or veggie tray from the grocery store and let everyone pick what they want to eat.
Anonymous says
I like how your daughter thinks, but based on experience I agree that not all the kids will be eager to try pad Thai. There is a kid who won’t eat pizza in my daughter’s circle. When we have a big group of kids over we usually order from a pizza place where we can also get “boneless wings.”
GCA says
This is a great use case for ‘catering by Costco’, which is what I call it when you just get a tray of their prepared pasta, a large bag of dinosaur nuggets* to pop in the oven, and a tray of fruit / veggies with dips.
*As my kids like to point out, the dinosaur nuggets are not only shaped like dinosaurs, they are made of dinosaurs.
Anonymous says
It is honestly less work for me to make baked ziti and dino nuggets (both in my house already!) than to drive to Costco and back today before they get here at 3, but maybe I’ll just cook.
Anonymous says
Order pizza and heat up the dino nuggets.
anon says
Yeah, I like this. Gives the kids options, and it’s less work for you.
NYCer says
+1. This seems like the easiest solution!
GCA says
Order in! (Costco delivers on Instacart in my area.) But really, this is a pretty low-stakes occasion, I’d do the thing that is the least work for you and delivers the most kid satisfaction :)
Anonymous says
You should have them try alligator nuggets sometime. Really made of dinosaurs!
More Sleep Would Be Nice says
This made me smile! You must be a fellow Gulf-Coaster. We just went to a food truck that had “Alligator Sausage Pizza” as an option and my 4-year-old looked me in the eye and said that’s what he wanted…
GCA says
Ha! I’d be open to it and I’m sure they would too. (My kids, not the alligators.) Alas, probably not available at my local Costco.
Anonymous says
I think baked ziti will be less popular among second-graders than pizza.
NYCer says
I agree. I would prob just go with spaghetti if you want to do a pasta.
I still think the easiest/best solution is to order pizza and cook the Dino nuggets.
Anonymous says
Or do Thai food? Get pad thai and some appetizers — dumplings, spring rolls, chicken satay, tempura veggies, etc.
Anonymous says
I would not advise this. We did it for a birthday party at my daughter’s request, and she was the only kid who ate anything but cake.
Anon says
I would only do this is if you know the kids like Thai foods. Most 8 year olds don’t.
Anon says
Does anyone else have a toddler who wakes up screaming and generally very unpleasant in the mornings? Kiddo is 18 months and has woken up screaming/crying and very upset ever since he was born. I’m shocked that kids actually wake up cooing or smiling or happy. He’s generally happy the rest of the day.
Will he grow out of it…?
So Anon says
My oldest was like this! I learned that the best thing I could do was get him up (basically bring him into our bed), turn on Mickey Mouse, offer a drink and a larabar and give him time to wake up. It was like putting him down, but in reverse (deftly and without much interaction). I would leave him alone for a while because if I tried to interact or get him dressed, it did not go well. We continued this routine, or some variation, for years. The irony is that now he is 11 and is up at 5:30 or 6:00 every day. He still likes to be left alone in the morning for a while, and if I get up early, he is affronted that he doesn’t have the house to himself early in the morning.
anonM says
My MIL describes my (adult) SIL like this even as a baby too! And she still needs quiet in the morning. Hm, funny.
Aunt Jamesina says
Yup, I’ve been this way my whole life. My mom made sure to make the morning routine as low-key and with as little talking as possible. I still prefer quiet and some alone time the first 15 minutes I wake up.
Anon says
You all give me some hope that I’m not alone and it will end one day!
And I love this tip. I do think kiddo needs to “get up” in the mornings.
Anonymous says
Yes. My daughter basically woke up screaming and crying every day of her life from about age 6 months to 2.5 years. Somewhere between 2.5 and 3 years old she finally realized she could just call for us rather than crying at the top of her lungs. We have much more pleasant mornings now!
anon says
Yep, that’s when it changed for us too. I don’t know if it was just maturation or if the Hatch light made the biggest difference — instead of shrieking in outrage, he now shouts “Lellow!” in a happy voice when he sees the color change. Big improvement.
Anon says
I’m curious to see what other people say on this. My 2.5 year old still cries and screams first thing in the morning. I have coworkers speak of their toddlers waking up chatting, singing, playing, etc, first thing. It sounds like a dream. I will say using the Hatch OK to Wake set-up (green for wake-up) has worked even with the screaming. It helps in scenarios where she wakes up earlier than her designated time. She’ll still scream, but if she sees the red light is still on, will go back to sleep quickly when prompted. We started using that around 2 years old. In general, we usually just pick her up and start going about our morning and then she calms down.
I’d love to know if other parents have seen kids grow out of this.
Pogo says
My second is like this, and generally a weird sleeper. He wakes up often in the middle of the night and hangs out in his crib, sitting up and talking to himself. Eventually he starts howling and screaming, but nothing is actually wrong. This is how he wakes up too. My first was not like this at all, but he became a difficult sleeper at 2.5 so I’m praying for the reverse situation with this one!
Anon says
If it’s just a phase, we used to greet DS with a sippy of orange juice and that immediate sugar jolt really helped. Don’t remember how long it lasted at this point!
Anonymous says
Nope. One of my kids has been like this since birth. She’s 7.
Anonymous says
We joke that she needs a cup of coffee. I brought her herbal tea once and we sipped it quietly together. It was great.
Spirograph says
I have a 7 year old like this… once she gets some food in her, she’s a lot better.
Anonymous says
My brother is still like this at age 36. Having a dog help wake him up helped as a kid and still now it helps him to have his dog there when he wakes up.
My older son is like this and we just need to get (a) truly enough sleep and (b) food ASAP. Used to bring him a sippy cup of milk in bed. Now (7) we just try to get him to eat as soon as possible. And he’s still a crank case most of the time.
avocado says
This is me and my 15-year-old. My husband brings me coffee in bed and knows better than to speak to me until I have consumed it. Then I make our daughter’s breakfast before I wake her up. If breakfast is not on the table when she wakes up she will groggily yell “FOOD” like a 3-year-old. I know I should teach her to make her own breakfast but it seems hypocritical when I cannot get myself out of bed without coffee delivery.
Anon says
Do your elementary age kids play with the other neighborhood kids, walk to the park, or play on the street? I did this when I was little, but we live in an apt with no green space within walking distance so I never see kids around and can’t get a sense of what kids do these days. We are looking to buy a home and the houses are either:
A) smaller house but walking distance to park and school, and it seems like there are young families in the neighborhood with similarly aged kids. We would outgrow this house in the next 5-10 years.
B) larger house in nicer neighborhood, but nothing is within walking distance and the neighbors are older families. Bigger yards though (and higher price point).
How important is it to you that you have neighborhood kids and a park close by? I realize this is a “know your kid” kind of question, but curious how other families value proximity to parks and other families in similar life stages.
Anonymous says
A. And don’t move.
Anonymous says
Walk to park doesn’t matter to me. Neighbor kids matter a lot. I’d choose Option A.
Anonymous says
Counterpoint: We would never go to the park if it weren’t within walking distance. We have zillions of kids on our street but none are close to ours in age and we have safety concerns about their parents (smoking, setting off fireworks, allowing kids to play with BB guns, etc.), so having neighbor kids is of no use to us.
So Anon says
I moved from a house on the outskirts of our town that had lots of greenspace but no kids nearby to a house in a little subdivision with lots of kids and families three years ago. We went from 5 acres to a smaller front and backyard. My kids are now 8 and 11. I would pick the house with similarly aged kids and walking distance to park and school! My kids and the other kids in the neighborhood frequently play outside and run between the yards. Everyone knows that kids are out, so drivers are generally slow through the neighborhood. If I am late to meet the bus, there are 4-5 other parents that I know and trust to text and grab my kids off the bus. It has provided a community not only for my kids but also for me. We are walking distance to sledding hills and will send one parent while the others stay inside. Also – agree on the not moving. It may get tight on space for a few short years (like a few while kids are in high school), but then they will be out on their own (hopefully), and if you move to a bigger house, you will have tons of space that you don’t need.
Anonymous says
We live on a Main Street with a sidewalk to a neighborhood behind us. Kids are always out on bikes, shooting baskets in the cul de sac, etc. my kid is just now old enough (8.5) to wander down and see who is around. If we lived back in the ‘hood she’d have done it at 5/6.
AwayEmily says
We live in A and it’s amazing. Most kids in my daughter’s kindergarten class live within walking distance and after school the playground is filled with neighborhood kids (and parents!). And you may be surprised by how little space you need in a house. We thought this house might be too small when we moved in four years ago but it’s been great, even now that we have three kids. I sometimes wish we had a second full bath but eh, worth it for the neighborhood. If it becomes an issue down the road we can consider adding one, moving, etc. Someone said on here recently to buy a house for the life you have now, not the life you may have in the future, and that really resonated with me.
Cb says
Yeah, I’d do A and remodel if you’re desperate for more space. Walkability is so important for quality of lfie.
We bought the small house with loads of green space, but no neighbour kids (3 bed houses, so too small for bigger families). We’re walkable, and have parks nearby, so I’m hoping kiddo will meet some kids in the neighbouring estate when he starts school.
Anonymous says
Agree with this. We live in a small city townhouse but walking distance to the kids school and therefore many of their friends. They are only 3 and 5 but so far I LOVE it. It is so easy to make playdates, casual brunch plans, meet-ups at various playgrounds, all without getting in the car. And I do hope to be able to just let my kid out eventually so she can go knock on her friends doors.
anon says
I would choose A in a heartbeat. Being within walking distance of a park and a school is amazing during the elementary school years.
anon in brooklyn says
A. We have an apartment that’s not really big enough, but would not move because our community is so valuable. We have a park a block away with the school right next to it. We have a huge community of other families around the park, which means that we can head to the park at almost any time with our kid and there will be friends there to play with. If we’re running late to pick up our kid at school, there are 10 other people who can pick her up with their kid, and then all the kids will just be playing in the park until we get there.
Anonanonanon says
Even when we lived somewhere with a lot of school-aged kids, including kids my elementary-schooler knew and liked, the kids did not get together without the parents talking first. Kids are very rarely outside unsupervised where I live even though it’s a totally safe area. The preschoolers and very young elementary schoolers were a bit of a different story, because the parents would regularly stand outside in a group and watch them ride their various toys and play together. Older elementary kids obviously don’t want to be watched like that.
All of that to say, we recently moved from the neighborhood full of kids to a bigger house in an older community with no sidewalks and it hasn’t made a bit of difference for my elementary schooler. He still sees kids but it’s always scheduled get-togethers, just like before.
This is obviously not true everywhere, but wanted a share a perspective from someone who has noticed the same thing you have (that older kids aren’t roaming the streets like we did)
anonM says
We ended up in B. A few considerations – we were in a house more like A, but unfortunately on a busy street/weird setup where I could not let the kids outside on their own ever (ex – people also were always walking past our yard to the local liquor store, so litter and fair amount of drunk people), but we did LOVE walking distance park/chatting with other parents. Things I love about our B-like house — we host our families/friends (and plan to do so more post-covid) in a more comfortable way than was possible in our other house (DH’s immediate family alone is large). I can just let the kids go play out back by themselves — so wonderful and beautiful. They play in their playhouse, swingset, the wooded area. My own home office due to WFH permanently (a big issue in our prior house; this is really great long-term). We do have some kids in the neighborhood, so that helps. A few cons compared to our prior house – we miss our old neighbors and park friends, upkeep difference is real (we now outsource lawn care/cuttting, leaf pickup), any expense is usually much more (instead of one tree, many trees that will eventually need trimming, etc., two furnaces, etc.).
Anonanonanon says
Second a lot of this about the B option.
Our A option was nice and we made it work, but the street was busy enough that kids could not be outside unsupervised and there was no yard. It was important to us to have space to do things with our kids like plant a little vegetable garden and some berry bushes, let them have loosely-supervised outdoor play in a backyard, and space to have my mom stay with us since she lives out of state but is retiring soon. Also, it’s only 10 minutes away from our smaller, walkable house.
One thing I appreciate that I didn’t anticipate is the privacy. Loved the close community in our former house, but I also like being able to sit on my back porch in my pajamas and have coffee and not risk having to see/talk to neighbors. Sometimes I want to be outside without having a conversation or putting a br@ on! Or step outside to enjoy the sun on a work call without the risk of people/kids/cars being loud in the background.
I miss the lower mortgage. We can afford our new one, but with our option A house we were in a situation where one of us could quit our job and we would be fine. A lot of the benefit of house A was the extra money to travel and dine out. At the time, I kind of enjoyed the design challenges of small-space living (family of 4 in 1200 sq ft) but man is the extra room nice! To your point, a lot more house means a lot more stuff that can break/wear out/need replacing.
Anonymous says
We have A and would like to move to B (except B is a subdivision where pool and playgrounds will still be walkable). We desperately need more space, and remodeling would be a bad investment that wouldn’t solve some of the problems. We also want to get some more distance from our obnoxious, noisy neighbors.
Pogo says
I’d pick A. That’s actually where we are, though we aren’t technically outgrowing the house we just have the desire for more space as the kids grow up and we work from home more consistently. But I cannot stress how much I love walking to the park, the coffee shop or the ice cream stand. Last weekend we rode our bikes over to the neighbors and it ended up being an impromptu party with the neighborhood kids, roasting marshmallows and the adults drinking beer.
We are tentatively planning an addition to give us the space we want.
Pogo says
oh and how I DREAM of the day the kids can walk/bike to school on their own. I think they have to be 10 or something in our district, but that will be awesome. We are within walking distance of elementary, middle and high school.
Cb says
It seems to be 8-10 here based on our current nursery commute. There is one busy road but it has a crossing guard, so I’d feel pretty comfortable with kiddo cycling or walking from a decently young age.
anon says
Oh, I am so jealous. The elementary school is 0.2 miles from our house. It’s amazing to just be able to walk down there, and the school playground is a total meetup spot for the neighborhood kids. Our middle school is technically within biking distance, but nobody in their right mind is going to send kids down that road because it just isn’t very safe (no dedicated bike lane/sidewalks in several areas, lots of fast traffic). Even as an adult, I wouldn’t willingly bike that road.
Anon says
Yeah our school district requires kids to be in fourth grade to walk alone. I’m sure I would comfortable with it earlier, since I have a cautious, responsible kid but it is what it is. But I am still excited to walk as a family when the weather is nice. I hate driving everywhere.
Boston Legal Eagle says
Around here, kids start walking to school by themselves at around middle school I think (which in our district starts at 5th grade). We’re also walking distance to the elementary and middle schools and I’m excited for my kids to do that walk on their own someday! For OP, I would also go with A – walking distance is nice. Our neighborhood kids are a little more spread out, but I did see lots of kids playing and walking around together, particularly the older elementary kids around Covid times.
Pogo says
Ours is probably 5th grade too – that would make sense. There is a steady stream of kids in the morning and afternoon walking and biking down our street, which gives me hope that it is very much the norm.
Anonymous says
We just moved from a tiny city apartment to a medium (2200 square ft) house in an inner suburb, small yard, walking distance to school (our local elementary has an on-site daycare) and playgrounds. We have a 3YO, and we’ve already made friends with neighbors at the playground! We would potentially outgrow this house if we have more kids, which we’re on the fence about, but we love it for now.
EB0220 says
Highly highly recommend the walkable option. We just moved 2 years ago to a home where the kids can walk/bike to school, 2 parks, and friends. It’s also reasonable for us to bike to a handful of restaurants, a brewery and the library. It’s awesome and a huge upgrade over our last home (everything was just a little too far to bike to regularly).
Anon says
we sort of did A 1/2. The neighborhood with option A near us, most houses that were the size we wanted were out of our budget. DH really wanted a bit of a backyard and our families are out of town so we wanted space to host them. THere is another neighborhood adjacent to neighborhood A that doesn’t have quite as many playgrounds, but you can still walk to one playground and the library and there are a lot of kids in the neighborhood, just not yet on our block bc our block has many people who’ve been in their homes for 50 years and the turnover hasn’t happened yet. so far i love all of the space the house provides, but am sometimes a bit jealous of friends in the other neighborhood. (these neighborhoods are literally separated by one road). Basically in our situation i think while I would’ve been fine with a smaller house in neighborhood A, after living in an apartment where we felt cramped, DH would’ve been annoyed to move into a house and still feel like we didn’t have enough space
Spirograph says
I live in A, and my elementary kids do all of those things. We live on a non-thru street and they scooter, bike, and play street hockey and basketball in the street with the neighbors all.the.time. The pack of neighbor kids roams freely among all the houses with kids on the street, and my kids are old enough that I will let them ride bikes alone a little further afield within the neighborhood to go to the playground or other friends’ houses. Parents have impromptu happy hours in the front yard all the time while our kids entertain each other.
We’re outgrowing our house and looking to move, but only if we can get a bigger house in another A neighborhood. Otherwise we will just add some space to our current house. Our neighbors have been one of the biggest sources of joy in our lives, especially the last couple years.
Anon. says
A, without question. We made this exact choice as well about 3 years ago and I don’t regret it one bit. The pack of kids roaming our backyards is the best. Our pack is still mostly preschool aged so there’s always a parent too, but I can see a not so distant future where that’s not always needed.
Anon says
I would choose A (although at the time we bought, we chose B but knew that the neighborhood was likely to (and already starting to) turn over from original owners to young families and we were newlyweds and did not yet have a kid at the time). My kid (4) regularly plays in a pack of kids in the cul de sac (ranging from ages 4-12). Her bestie lives across the street and they basically run back and forth between each others houses. I also let her play in the backyard by herself (I keep an eye through the window while doing dishes). Our neighborhood park is about a mile walk and crosses several larger streets in our neighborhood where notwithstanding the 25 MPH speed limit, folks regularly hit 40 MPH, so it will be many years before she is allowed to walk to the park by herself.
Anon says
Definitely A. Why do you think you’ll outgrow the house? I’m not sure teens need more space than little kids – they spend a lot less time at home.
Anon says
A, but pay attention to streets as well as neighborhoods. Pre-kids we bought a house in a neighborhood that has a reputation as the nicest “A” neighborhood in our town, but my kid has not found a pack. I’m pretty sure there are no children under age 18 on our street or or the streets right nearby. We play all the time at the park a block from our house, but the vast majority of kids we met drove there from a different neighborhood or at least the other side of our neighborhood (almost a mile away). I like the walkability (we can walk to elementary school, farmer’s market and park and can scooter to an ice cream shop and restaurants), but I really grieve the lack of a neighborhood pack for my kid. I had that and it was the best part of my childhood.
Anonymous says
I would chose B. It seems like an unpopular opinion to express, but I love our big house. I wouldn’t need a park within walking distance if I had a big yard. We are walking distance to the school an which is nice. There weren’t that many neighborhood kids when I moved in, but there has been a lot of turnover and there are more now. The kids still only play together when the parents set it up.
So Anon says
Easter basket ideas that are not plastic junk? So far, I have Easter Mad Libs, bath b0mbs, and stickers. What have you all found – both for the basket itself and to put inside refillable eggs?
anonM says
Found a few of their favorite books from the library to buy for home. My idea WAS to give them their summer swimsuits in Easter baskets but I gave them to them already, but FWIW I still think that’s cute!
Cb says
I’ve got a matchbox car, and some new art supplies (washi tape). But we’ll be in a big city for Easter so no hunt this year.
Last year, I got one of those tubes of animals and put those inside. Still plastic, but something that was fun to play with/use as counters etc.
Anonymous says
Sidewalk chalk, a new pair of sunglasses, small bubble gun, band-aids with a favorite character, new bath toys.
Anonymous says
For my 9 year old, I’m doing a book, a card game (Taco Cat) and maybe another travel game (Cinco Linko) because we are going to be traveling. On and a new lid for his beloved water bottle, since he broke the old one.
Anonymous says
One-two jellybeans per egg is a big hit with our kids.
anon says
Candy (because Easter candy is superior to all other candy), each gets a new spring/summer top. I try to load up on outdoor things I’d be buying anyway, like new sand toys, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, etc. My older kid has gotten water balloons the past couple of years, which is a mess, but a big hit.
Anonanonanon says
Second that easter candy is the best candy
Anonymous says
Third. At this very moment there may or may not be open bags of Dove peanut butter eggs and Butterfinger crunch eggs hidden in my house that no one else knows exist.
anon says
#Goals
And kids, there is a reason why my Mini Eggs are hiding in a sock drawer.
Anonymous says
Candy in the eggs, but only if you will be doing the egg hunt indoors. When my daughter was two or three years old we attended an outdoor egg hunt where the candy-filled eggs had been sitting outside for a couple of hours. She picked up an egg, opened it, and found a melted piece of chocolate crawling with ants. The shriek she let out while throwing the halves of the egg as far away from herself as possible was impressive.
Anonymous says
This reminds me of the time I had the brilliant idea to mix hershey kisses and legos in a pinata at a lego-themed birthday party, then hung the pinata in the sun for several hours. Each child received an impressive assortment of chocolate-covered legos. Since then I have limited myself to fun size bags of M&Ms if we want chocolate in a pinata.
Io says
Sunglasses, egg shaped chalk/crayons, floral notebooks, anything gardening related we need this year (new gloves, seed packets, kit to make seed bombs). I’ve also done books and play dresses (the play ones with netting work as replacement for plastic grass).
If you do plastic eggs, tattoos, stickers, Lego mini figs, fun sized candy (to go in the desert bag and replace the Halloween and Christmas candy), matchbox cars.
If you wanted to do one bigger gift, you could print out a picture, cut it up and stick the pieces in the eggs to be reassembled.
Anonymous says
Gardening supplies–kid-sized gloves, seed bombs, a little trowel. Umbrella. Bubbles. Pens and notebooks. A fun t-shirt. Fun socks. Eos lip balm. Basically any useful thing that comes in cute springtime colors or is round so it vaguely resembles an egg.
Anonanonanon says
I think your kids are a bit older if I’m not mistaken. For my older one’s basket, I do things like color by number books for big kids with fancy colored pencils, sticker by number books (I love those), etc. Summer accessories like sunglasses. If I had an older girl I might do easily-removable nail polish. It’s hard to find egg fillers for older kids so I stick to candy and hide them indoors. There are some mochi squishy toy egg fillers online that I might use for an outdoor hunt get-together this year. Seeds to plant could be fun. If I had an older-ish daughter maybe little things to make a fairy garden in a pot? Craft kit of some kind?
Realist says
I got a cute outfit I know kid will love, some fidget toys, and some little egg Hatchimals (which get a lot of play in our house).
Spirograph says
Our Easter baskets are actual baskets. My kids did a craft project with grandma a few years ago and decorated them with ribbons, we’ll reuse them until they suffer some terrible fate. We do a big chocolate bunny, a cadbury egg or two, and then small candy like jelly beans and m&ms in the refillable eggs. Bath bombs, little art stuff and card/travel games round out the rest.
Anona says
I’ve always used Easter baskets as a way to give my kids their swim suits for the upcoming season. They have almost always outgrown last year’s suit, so I put a swim suit and a plethora of beach goodies (that I’d buy anyway – new water shoes, sunscreen, lip balm, replacing towels if needed, etc.). If you add in a book and candy, it’s a great basket without any of the one and done plastic themed toys. It also makes for a really fun, festive basket with lots of goodies, but it’s mostly stuff I’d have to buy anyway.
LadyNFS says
My kids (nearly 2 and 4) are each getting in an individual basket: matching PJs, T shirts with favorite characters, bubbles to blow, a bubble machine (to share), a personalized Yeti (shout out to whoever recommended those 12 oz insulated ones a few weeks ago!), glow sticks, puzzles, and books. Egg hunt will be small candy, crackers, tattoos, stickers. I hadn’t considered not using candy outside – good call!
Lily says
Total shot in the dark, but does anyone have any experience with the following daycares/preschools in South Jersey (or suggestions for other daycares in Moorestown/Mt. Laurel area)?
Goddard (Moorestown)
Creme de la Creme (ugh at the name but seems nice) (Mt. Laurel)
Chesterbrook Academy (Moorestown)
TIA!
Anon says
Hi! I grew up in Mt. Laurel. I no longer live there so can’t give great advice, but Goddard and Chesterbrook are both highly rated schools. Chesterbrook is a chain while Goddard is a franchise. I know Chesterbrooks provide food which is a big plus. I’m not sure about Goddard.
Lily says
Thanks!
Anon says
Totally unimportant question: My son’s 5th grade class is collecting postcards from all 50 states, and they’re down to 7! If anyone lives (or is traveling to!) in Iowa, Connecticut, West Virginia, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oklahoma or Vermont and would be willing to send them a postcard, please email me! Burner account is [email protected]. I am happy to reciprocate with California, Kansas or Missouri! Thanks in advance!
Spirograph says
I can’t help, but what a fun idea!
EP-er says
Fun! I can’t help with those states, but love this project!
EDAnon says
Post again around Easter if you need Iowa. I will be driving through for the holiday :)
Anon says
Will do! Thanks :)
Anonymous says
I’m helping coordinate an egg hunt for kids ages 1-6(ish). What candy can I stuff in these things? Has to be individually wrapped, no nuts, fits in a small easter egg. So far I have candy bracelets, trial size jelly belly (just barely fit), tootsie rolls and indivudlaly wrapped sour patch kids. I have about 5000 eggs to fill (and won’t be doing it myself).
Anonanonanon says
Hershey’s kisses (they make easter ones wrapped in easter colors) unless you’re somewhere hot enough for them to get extremely melty
Wal-Mart had some decent bags of mixed egg filler candy that was all individually-wrapped
AwayEmily says
I assume it has to be candy? Otherwise you could get some stickers and then cut up the sheets into smaller pieces and put those in the eggs (that’s what’s going in our eggs).
Anonymous says
Oriental trading can do this for you.
Anonymous says
Can you put stickers in them? My child loves tickets and I have gotten large rolls of animal stickers where each sticker is on an individually perforated sheet. I did this last year for his Easter egg hunt since I wanted a non- food thing.
Anonymous says
What sunscreens do you like for little kids? 6 month old is ageing into sunscreen maybe being appropriate (?) and I have no idea what to get.
Curious says
OP here….this was Curious! Did not mean to go Anon
Anon says
Thinkbaby
AwayEmily says
+1…or ThinkSport, which is the exact same formulation but without the “baby” scent.
Anon says
Babo botanicals. There is a non aerosol spray version too.
There was an issue with benzene in sunscreens last year. If you search for the list of sunscreens where benzene wasn’t present, it should help you narrow down your search!
Anon says
Tubby Todd
Anonymous says
I like any of the 100% mineral sunscreen for that age. The best I found for convenience and cost is the spray-on mineral sunscreen from Trader Joe’s. It is comparably so much easier to rub in than the creams. We also like and use Aveeno Baby mineral sunscreen. I use the cream when we’re going to have a ton of sun exposure and the spray when we’re just taking a quick trip to the park or something.
Anon says
We loved ThinkBaby when my daughter was a baby and toddler, but it has a faint orange scent and when she was 2 she kept getting stung by bees at school and the teachers said the sunscreen caused it, so we stopped using it. ThinkSport is the adult equivalent but my kid didn’t like that for some reason (they seemed the same to me, but she swore they felt different – she is fairly sensitive to this stuff though). We tried a few other “natural” brands including Blue Lizard but had issues with the sunscreen not seeming to work that well. Now we just use Coppertone SPF 70 that’s probably filled with chemicals. My daughter and I are both extremely fair and freckle-prone and at the end of the day, good sun protection is more important to me than “natural” sunscreen.
Anonymous says
I have tried all the mineral sunscreens and none of them actually prevents sunburn, no matter how thickly I apply it.
Anon says
We liked Think Baby until the bee issue but otherwise I agree.
Curious says
This is good to know, because baby is super fair (like me) and the Seattle solstice sun is actually very intense. I may look into a couple UV protective shirts, which is where I’ve ended up instead.
Anon says
Yeah fabric is better than any sunscreen. I always do a long-sleeeved rash guard for swimming or beach days.
Pogo says
Even my 4yo sports a long sleeve rashguard and giant floppy hat.
Aveeno makes a stick that you can apply easily to baby, I started using that at around 6 mos.
Anon says
Odd. I have used only mineral sunscreen for the last 10 years (my welcome to 25 (now 35) psoriasis reacts to chemical sunscreens) and I am ghostly white on a good day (Irish and Norweigan background for context, most makeup is too dark for me) and did not notice a difference from a protection factor between the two kinds. That being said, I would much, much, much rather wear a rashguard and have less skin to which I have to apply sunscreen, so I can almost always be found with a rashguard on and because mommy does, my kiddo just thinks that’s normal (at 4). She is a quarter Hispanic (from DH) and tolerates sun well, but I still keep her covered because a tan actually means skin damage even if DH is still convinced that a tan just means healthy (he also believes that being outside in cold weather causes one to get a respiratory virus (because somehow cold air spontaneously generates germs), so I make all science and medical decisions in our family in case you were wondering).
Anon says
I’ve never burned while wearing mineral sunscreen, but I often feel a heat and tightness in my skin that is indicative of sun damage. Sunscreen (in the US, anyway) is only required to protect against the UVB rays that cause burning. But UVA rays do a lot of damage too, and my understanding is chemical sunscreen generally protects better against those.
Boston Legal Eagle says
I like Blue Lizard for my kids – there is a baby version, although I don’t know if it’s any different than the kids one. The bottle turns blue when there is UV light, which is fun. It also leaves minimal white marks and isn’t greasy, like other sunscreens we’ve tried.
Anonymous says
+1 – this is what we used when my son was little
Anon says
Babo and pipette. Babo is more water resistant but pipette is nice for day to day as it washes off easier.
Anon says
I like Hello Bello for daily use, and mineral Water Babies if we’re on a beach trip and slathering on the stuff multiple times a day.
Anon says
Cerave mineral stick or neutrogena pure and free baby stick, and then neutrogena pure and free baby. Also great for sensitive skin adults (me).
jz says
Thinkbaby and Pipette
Curious says
I love CeraVe lotions and Neutrogena sunscreens, though I guess I get to check the latter against the benzene list as some Neutrogena was on there. But that’s good to know that there are baby options.
Curious says
Nesting fail, meant for comment directly above.
Anon says
Baby was not on the list!
makeup sponge says
we’ve done a lot of Aveeno Baby mineral, as well as Neutrogena’s mineral sunscreens. The biggest tip though is to apply it to their face with a beauty blender or other makeup sponge, better coverage and they don’t fight you.
Curious says
Oooo thanks for the tip! Glad I checked back.