May 2012: Scoop

SERVICE

Stroller TLC

Solve all of your pram problems with Stroller Spa. What
began in 2006 as one mom’s dream to revamp her outdated, rickety stroller is
now a full-fledged tune-up service in several major U.S.
cities including Manhattan. Heading
up Stroller Spa NYC, Brooklyn moms Carolyn Pravda and Allison Leale help local
families achieve the baby gear of their dreams by providing a variety of
services—from fixing faulty brakes and replacing a flat tire to cleaning and
detailing. Plus, they’re opening three new locations on
the Upper East and West Sides, as well as Tribeca. For more information, visit strollerspa.com.

ART

Arts &
Crafts Everlasting

Every child’s drawing is a masterpiece in the eye of the
parent. But, eventually, there is the dilemma of where to stash the growing
number of collages. This quandary motivated two NYC moms to implement a simple
solution—Plum Print. Instead of stashing items in a drawer or—the
unthinkable—throwing things away, Plum Print Founders Carolyn Lanzetta and Meg
Ragland will eternalize your child’s art. Using top notch techniques, Plum
Print will help you digitize your child’s creations and transform it all into a
stylish photo book. For more
information, visit plumprint.com.

EATS

A Slice Of The
City

Walking tours can be a tough sell to kids, but not if
they’re about pizza! Local entrepreneur Scott Wiener began
his tour enterprise, Scott’s Pizza Tours, soon after researching the NYC
history of the cheesy choice and obtaining a Sightseeing Guide license. With a
variety of tours available—some even catering to food allergies and
sensitivities—there’s a pizza jaunt for every taste. A ticket will get you a
guided educational tour (think Italian immigration, dough and oven
science) to three or four of Manhattan and Brooklyn’s best pizzerias, as well as a slice at each eatery! For more information, visit
scottspizzatours.com.

BOOK

Scary Reading

If you haven’t been reading Jill Smokler’s Scary Mommy blog,
you’re missing out on all sorts of confessional hilarity. The mother of three
hosts an online community where moms can divulge on everything from secretly crying
in the shower to joining a gym for the free daycare. Now, Smoker has compiled
her “best of” in a new book, Confessions
of a Scary Mommy: An Honest and Irreverent Look at Motherhood—the Good, the
Bad, and the Scary. It’s a quick and relatable read that will have you in
stitches by the end (or right at the beginning). Our favorite admission? “I’m
wearing maternity jeans but I haven’t been pregnant in six years.” Write on,
mommies. For more information, visit
scarymommy.com.

MUSIC

Angsty Beats

Music is the universal stress reliever for all ages. With
this in mind, we found two CDs that give “edgy” a whole new meaning. Releasing
next month, KinderAngst features the
talents of Palmyra Delran and New York
native Rachelle Garniez. The kiddie songs on this alternative punk rock CD take
place in the imaginative world of Alphabet City (a nod to the Lower
East Side) and cover everything from friendship and
self-sufficiency to loneliness and neighby dynamics. Similarly, New Yorkers
Amelia Gewirtz and Harold Stephan are Parents
With Angst. With tunes that play on the themes of joy and frustration in
parenting, Parents With Angst is folk-indie soft rock with more than a hint of
family. To catch them live, check out Mamapalooza on May 20 in Riverside Park. For more information, visit kinderangstmusic.com and
parentswithangst.com.