Anna Fader

Founder & CEO of Mommy Poppins
Anna was born in Park Slope, spent her early years in the West Village. By the time she graduated high school, she had lived in 4 of the 5 boroughs. Growing up in NYC in the '70s meant the streets were her playgrounds. Museums and avant garde music venues were the kid-friendly activities. And living downtown taught her the importance of creating community for families in NYC.

Now, raising her own two children in the city, she tries to create the same sense of magic and community she felt growing up, despite today's more commercialized version of kid-friendly New York.

She started Mommy Poppins in 2007 to share a more artsy, educational, uncommercial, community-oriented vision of raising kids in New York City. Today Mommy Poppins is relied on by millions of families as the authority on the best things to do with kids beyond New York City: from Boston to Philly, Los Angeles, Houston and travel guides for dozens more cities and destinations.

Latest posts by Anna

Visiting the Poconos with Kids: 70 Top Things To Do as a Family

Submitted by Anna Fader on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 1:00pm

Canoe or swim in the many lakes and rivers in the Poconos. Photo courtesy of Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau

Just two hours from New York City or Philadelphia, the Pocono Mountains offer pristine natural beauty mixed with enough family-friendly activities to fill a long weekend getaway or an entire summer vacation. Truly a four-season resort area, during the winter people flock to the Poconos for skiing and other winter sports, and the cool lake-dotted mountains draw families for swimming, hiking, boating, horseback riding, and more in the summer. It's also loaded with great water park resorts, both indoor and outdoor, and lovely cabin rentals, many of them either lakeside or mountainside.

LA Camp Fair Is Back! Check Out Our Camp Info Sessions

Submitted by Anna Fader on Tue, 04/06/2021 - 1:40pm

Explore summer camps with our Online Camp Fair in 2021.

We're excited to announce the second annual Online Summer Camp Fair from Mommy Poppins Los Angeles. Last year, we created this online camp fair to help parents discover what was happening with summer camps in an upside-down year. In the process, we discovered that an online fair is a great way to learn about both virtual and in-person camps. It was fun, informative, and super convenient. So, we're doing it again!

This year's camp fair will have even more camps to discover, video tours to watch, and camp demos to help experience all the camp fun—all without leaving the house. You can even talk to the camps face-to-face in live virtual sessions. The Mommy Poppins LA Online Camp Fair is completely free, but register in advance for live sessions.

Camp Fair is now live!

GO TO CAMP FAIR

Virtual Camp Fair 2021 Is Coming! Sign Up for Free, Live Camp Demos

Submitted by Anna Fader on Tue, 04/06/2021 - 12:04pm

Visit the 2021 virtual summer camp fair to find new camps!

Camp Fair is now live!

GO TO CAMP FAIR

Family Travel Bucket List : Visiting California's Channel Islands

Submitted by Anna Fader on Thu, 03/18/2021 - 7:05am

No kayaking experience required to visit the sea caves and see the sea lions. Photo by Ralph A. Clevenger/ Santa Barbara Adventure Company

Despite its location so close to Los Angeles, Channel Islands National Park is one of the least visited national parks in the country. Accessible only by boat, the Channel Islands’ isolation makes them something of a well-kept Southern California secret, where visitors can enjoy a uniquely SoCal ecosystem on an unpopulated island. Make the trip at the right time of year, and you could even spot some whales along the way.

The islands are welcoming visitors again this spring, and boats are making trips to the islands several times a day. For intrepid campers, the campgrounds are also open. Read on to find out why a trip to the Channel Islands should be on every family's travel bucket list.

Best Virtual Party Performers and Kids Birthday Parties to Celebrate Online

Submitted by Anna Fader on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 12:00pm

Make your child's birthday special even while staying at home with virtual parties offered by top performers and kids party providers.

Social distancing doesn’t need to be socially isolating. Take advantage of technology to help your birthday boy or girl celebrate with friends and family. Many favorite party providers are transitioning their acts to digital platforms like Zoom or Google Hangouts so kids and their friends can still have all the great group activities of a traditional birthday party. As an added bonus, these virtual parties are often much more affordable than their in-person alternatives.

Read on for our suggestions on some of the best virtual party providers to try, and make the party even more fun with these at-home party ideas.

Totally Relatable Moments from 'Little House on the Prairie's' Quarantine Episode

Submitted by Anna Fader on Sat, 01/23/2021 - 2:02pm

Quarantine is never fun, no matter the era.

Sitting here on the 3756th day of March 2020—and the five billionth day of remote learning—it's comforting to know we are not alone. Parents around the country are dealing with the same issues. In fact, after watching the "Quarantine" episode of Little House on the Prairie (season 3, episode 13), I now know that our struggles have been shared, not only across the country but across the centuries. This show gets it spot on. Does homeschooling while baking endless loaves of bread sound familiar? At least, we don't have to wash our laundry in a bucket of boiling water! Check out these relatable moments and funny quarantine memes.

Liked Bridgerton? Best British Period Dramas to Watch with Kids

Submitted by Anna Fader on Tue, 01/19/2021 - 8:20am

For those who binged Bridgerton, what's next? Photo courtesy of Netflix

While Bridgerton is being celebrated for bringing much needed diversity to the often whitewashed world of period dramas, it’s definitely not appropriate for children. As a costume drama devotee, historical fiction lover, and devourer of any and all period films and TV series, I’m happy to share some of my favorite popular and lesser known options that are kid-friendly.

Period dramas are wonderful escapism. And who doesn’t need some escapism right now? Common themes are designed to make us nostalgic for a lost era of manners and the purity of the agrarian, pre-industrial past. Pair that with the over-the-top decadence of the costumes and houses, and there’s nothing better than these bingeworthy British period dramas.

My recommendations are all rated G or PG and are available to watch online, either included with streaming services or to rent.

Online STEM Camps With Early-Bird Discounts and Special Offers

Submitted by Anna Fader on Mon, 01/18/2021 - 12:00pm

With Camp Galileo Anywhere, choose from a range of engaging online innovation-infused classes for Pre-K-8th graders.

With summer camp registration opening up, we reached out to a number of virtual programs across the country to see if they had any early bird discounts or exclusive offers to share with our readers. Sure enough, we wound up with deals from some much-loved online STEAM and STEM camps that'll keep your kids' brains busy while school is out of session.

From discounts on tuition to free trial classes, take a look at the timely deals below—and don't dawdle, because they'll literally disappear as they expire. If you don't see an offer listed below, it means that it's ended.

Of course, you'll find plenty more virtual and in-person camps in our Camp Guide and Directory. Read on to see all the summer camp deals and discounts we got just for you!