The day was cold, so they were wearing long sleeves under their clothes and I had a sweatshirt for my daughter. We walked over to meet my oldest child’s friend and his mom.

Trick or Treating on Burns Street starts at Union Turnpike and usually goes to around Ascan Avenue.

This house, right off Burns, was awesome.

How cool is this? This child’s parents made his wheelchair a #7 Train!

This woman was Mona Lisa. Photo taken with permission.

Frankenstein was giving out candy.

We met Green Balloon Boy and he let us take a photo with him.

Our Queen Elsa met Olaf.

About an hour or so in, our little Dinosaur Astronaut pooped out.

My husband took my youngest child home and we kept on going.

We saw Baby Harry Potter.

This gentleman used blue painters tape to finish his Minion costume.

My son is the one on the right.

Homeowners get so creative here!

The baby is dressed as Chicka Chicka Boom Boom! This photo was taken with permission. Isn’t he adorable?

At this house, they were “shooting candy!”. It was hysterical.

We had a grave, I mean great time.

My son met an adult “Vision” — so this is “Double Vision”.

Where do you like to Trick or Treat?

The post What’s the Best Place to Trick or Treat in NYC? appeared first on The Mama Maven Blog.

While NY didn’t get as much snow as Boston did, we still got hit. The pic below was taken this past Saturday right near my apartment in Queens.

Vicks NyQuil/DayQuil and Puffs Tissues are essentials for daily relief when you’re feeling under the weather in the city, from cold and flu season and beyond.

Both my husband and I swear by NyQuil and DayQuil (and yes, that’s our real bottle above).Both my husband and I got sick several times this winter (I spent most of November and January sniffling everywhere). NyQuil lets us get some rest and feel better, while DayQuil makes it possible to function while taking care of our most pressing symptoms. In fact, DayQuil makes it possible for me to still go to work in Manhattan and navigate the subway and the blocks to work. We always keep it stocked in our apartment and boy, have we gone throw several bottles!

Puffs Tissues keep our noses from getting sore –  I have a chronic sinus problem and I am always reaching for one. It’s so much worse when I have a cold or illness. When I don’t feel like dragging myself to the grocery store, I use Peapod to deliver sweet relief to my apartment with NyQuil, DayQuil, and plenty of Puffs Tissues. Peapod carries a variety of P&G products.

Besides the giveaway right in this post, P&G is running daily giveaways until 3/31/15 with one entrant winning a P&G #ColdandFlu prize pack every day for all 40 days of the giveaway! To win, entrants must:

• Tweet a photo using hashtag #NYTough showing how they stay #NYTough during Cold &Flu season.
• Extra entries can also be earned after 3/2/15 by visiting the #NYTough takeover at Barclays Center Station, Brooklyn, NY and:
  • Posting a tweet with the location (tag) on using hashtag #NYTough.
  • Posting a “selfie” photo on Twitter with the location (tag) on using hashtag #NYTough.
• Official Rules: http://bit.ly/ColdFluGiveaway

Giveaway: a P&G Prize Pack — worth $55, includes a $50 Amex Giftcard and P&G coupons
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you to P&G for sponsoring this post. As always, all opinions are my own. 

The post How to Get Through Winter Colds and Flu appeared first on The Mama Maven Blog.

Ellen’s record-breaking Oscar selfie is not the only gathering of mega-celebrities in a small space. The world-famous wax museum, Madame Tussauds, has over 200 of the most interesting celebrities and famous people. My family & I recently got to see them all in the Times Square location. Here are pictures from our experience, plus tips at the end of the post.

Each figure costs approximately $220,000, takes about 3-4 months to complete and involves a team of 20 artists.

To create a wax figure of a current celebrity, the process often begins with a sitting where over 375 measurements and photographs are taken of the celebrity.

The Spirit of New York was one of our favorite rooms!

The Music Experience room was awesome!

My kids had a blast being in the spotlight!

It was cool to show my kids the Presidents they had recently learned about during Presidents’ Day in their school.

My husband and older son LOVED the sports room!

Tips:

• During the summer and busy seasons the lines can be long so now is a good time to go! (We waited about 5 minutes in line).
• It takes about 1.5 hours to go through the entire exhibit, so plan accordingly and don’t forget to bring a camera!
• Be sure to see the 12 minute 4D movie. It’s about all the Marvel superheroes. The 4D experience has vibrating seats, mist, wind and other cool effects. It was an awesome experience and it’s included in the price of admission.
• You can bring a stroller, although some areas have some stairs.
• You can’t bring in food but you can buy food throughout the exhibit.
• The store at the end of the exhibit is not cheap, but it has some really unique items (you can buy your very own Oscar!)
• Save 20% off your ticket when you book online.

Be sure to visit the Madame Tussauds Facebook page and follow on Twitter.

Visit Madame Tussauds to learn more and click here to purchase tickets.I was not compensated for this post. I received tickets to the museum.

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Senior Reviewer Maytal Wichman is the owner of Mama’s Bites and has also written for The Huffington Post. She has been living in New York City for thirteen years and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature as well as a Law Degree, but blogging is her true passion. Maytal is a stay-at-home mom to three kids (ages 7, 5 and 1) and loves finding great products that make her family’s life easier.

The post Enjoying Madame Tussauds of New York with Kids appeared first on The Mama Maven Blog.

Last week I attended the Grand Opening of Walgreens in Union Square, New York City. This store offers Upmarket’s fresh food offerings, a state-of-the-art pharmacy with ordering ahead capabilities, a photo lab, and a Look Boutique for beauty and skin care needs – as well as baby and toddler supplies, cleaning supplies, a yoga gear section and much more.

I got to see the official ribbon cutting. This is Walgreens 24/7 Flagship store in NYC.

But first let me tell you about the fresh sushi!

Made right on the premises, it was delicious!

When you first walk in, you’ll see the Upmarket open refrigerator case full of cut-up fresh fruit, and counter filled with fresh rolled sushi (they make it right there), then a coffee and pasty case, a juice bar area and then another open refrigerator case of sandwiches (which they will heat up for you).

I loved that they offered a coffee bar where you could get a latte or cappuccino. Or even a cup of coffee with soy milk (which is really good for someone like me who is lactose intolerant). The price of the coffee was reasonable (just try getting the same prices at the normal coffeehouse chains).

You could pair it with a tasty pastry. Check out the case below. Everything looked fresh and mouthwatering.

Since I love green smoothies, I had to check out the juice/smoothie bar that was right there. The prices were very reasonable and the Central Park Smoothie I had was so delicious. If you go to your local juice place, you’ll get charged more for the same size juices and smoothies.

 There was also a custom flavor Coke Machine and a huge selection of snacks on the first floor. I loved all the healthy offerings I saw.

Next, I got a chance to check out the Look Boutique upstairs. Anything that you need for beauty or skin care was there.  Plus there was a knowledgeable staff that was able to assist me and find me the perfect products. 

I am a big fan of the British drugstore chain Boots. Walgreens carries their No. 7 and Botanical lines. The Botanical Line offers most products UNDER $10 (sets are around $15- $19.99. Everything is sourced ethically and smelled amazing.

But I needed some skin care help. I spoke to Reylisha, one of the beauty consultants, about some problems I’ve been having. She helped me find No. 7 Intense Serum (which is amazing), which will smooth the tiny lines I’ve been getting (hey, I need to be proactive now).

Next. we checked out the prescription area, which was large. There’s a private room to the left of the counter where customers can have a private consultation with a pharmacist (or get an flu vaccine) and self service kiosks on the far right side, where you can skip the lines (by ordering ahead).

I was pleased to see a yoga section (as two of my kids now take yoga now), plus diapers and baby supplies, cleaning supplies, and personal care.

You can also create your own posters, canvas prints, collages, calendars.. etc in the photo lab.

Walgreens Union Square
145 4TH AVE (Southeast corner of 4Th Avenue & 14Th Street)
New York NY 10003
212-677-0214

The post Walgreens Celebrates their Grand Opening in Union Square, NYC #WAGUnionSq #CollectiveBias appeared first on The Mama Maven Blog.

Is your home packed with football fans (like mine is)? Do you plan to watch the Big Game this weekend? We do and excitement is high around here! So, I took a little trip to Duane Reade in New York City’s Time Square to get ready. Duane Reade is definitely the place to pick up everything where I can get everything I need for the Big Game.

I loved the Big Game Display when you walk in the door at Duane Reade, right in the heart of Times Square. The background is made from 12 packs of Bud Light, Pepsi,and Diet Pepsi, surrounded by potato chips and tortilla chips. I may be watching the Big Game from the comfort of my couch, but this display absolutely got me in the mood.

My kids would have gone crazy seeing this!

I picked up some fun snacks for my children and husband to much on. Tortilla Chips are a must for watching football! Duane Reade’s DeLish brand offered two choices and I picked the tri-color ones (with blue, white and chipolte chili chips). My kids love peanut butter pretzels, so I was excited to find them at Duane Reade. I also picked up some freeze dried strawberries, orange seltzer and pecan and almond caramel crunch popcorn.

Yum! I found DeLish stromboli in the freezer case for us to snack on (my husband loves stromboli).

Duane Reade is the Big Game Headquarters – whether you’re rooting for the team from Seattle or the team from Denver, you will find some great choices for all your snacking needs.

The post Football Fan? Get a Start on the Big Game Experience with Duane Reade #DRBigGame #CollectiveBias appeared first on The Mama Maven Blog.

Dino Tail Exodus from David Shavrick on Vimeo.

I am participating in a sponsored ambassador program from the Wildlife Conservation Society. As part of this program we have received a premium family membership and merchandise for placement of specific postings related to programming.

The post Did You See the Dinosaur Tails Around NYC Last Week? [VIDEO] appeared first on The Mama Maven Blog.