A few years ago, we spent a day at LEGOLAND when we were in San Diego, and my then very young kids loved spending time in the mega-brand’s theme park.  That was 3 years ago, and they’re older but who outgrows Legos? So when I heard that there was a new LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester, I was intrigued and excited to take them on a recent half-day of school. My son has never been a huge LEGO freak, but I knew once he got there, he’d be into it. My daughter is open-minded and she’s not bothered by gender-specific activities but LEGOLAND has taken girls into consideration with a section dedicated to them.

I picked them up and didn’t tell them where we going (a first for me – I have a big mouth) and headed to the 32,300 square foot indoor attraction in Yonkers.  When they figured it out, there was a lot of excitement in the car.  I realize that there is only so much time left in their young lives where they’ll want to go to places like this.  My oldest is 10, just 2 years shy of the age LEGOLAND is recommended for but she was very happy, never felt too old for the fun she was to have.

More than 3 million LEGO bricks are used in the exhibits, sculptures and activity areas.  LEGOLAND has a range of educational and interactive experiences that  includes hands-on play areas, a 4D cinema, master classes led by Master Model Builders, two LEGO amusement rides and MINILAND — the venue’s signature re-creation of landmark locations and buildings throughout Westchester County and New York City, made entirely out of more than 1 million LEGO bricks.  There’s Grand Central Terminal, Times Square, Tarrytown’s Lyndhurst and Sunnyside mansions, and of course the Ridge Hill shopping center. Apparently, it took a team of 20 expert Lego model builders six months to complete. Interactive features allow youngsters to activate lights, sounds and moving parts.

Our fist stop was the Factory Tour where we learned how raw plastic creates finished LEGO bricks by own personal LEGO professor who introduced us to everything LEGO. My kids were intrigued.  Then we jumped on the Kingdom Quest, an interactive laser ride where we joined the Good King’s Army to battle evil skeletons, giant trolls and large spiders.  I’m not sure who enjoyed this more – me or the kids. The other ride they offer is Merlin’s Apprentice, a flying wizard ride where guests pedal faster to make their seats rise into the air. This was also much enjoyed by them…and me.

My kids were enamored with the Build & Test zone where they timed their racing car on the speed test track.  The stopwatch is exact to the hundredths of a second, so even the smallest change could make all the difference. They also loved the 4D film’s wind, rain, lightning and snow that flung itself in our faces (personally, I didn’t mind getting wet at all). In the Master Builder Academy, they built high towers as tall as the sky.  There are also LEGO pit areas for free play and build and test exhibits, where children can build LEGO objects and test their performance, like a race car.

LEGOLAND is a fun and educational destination, bringing the worlds of math, science and technology to life outside the classroom. For a few hours, my kids were immersed in using their imagination and creative energies.  Even I enjoyed it.

I also thoroughly enjoyed discovering the Ridge Hill Shopping Center where LEGOLAND is housed.  We will be back there to shop, that is for sure.

Here’s what you need to know before you go:

- Go early on weekends or even mid-week after school.  Apparently, it gets VERY crowded.  By going during a half-day, the crowds were very bearable. You might want to buy your tickets in advance online to make sure you have them, too.

- A visit to LEGOLAND isn’t cheap.  Individual tickets for children (ages 3-12) are $18 and adults (13 and up) are $22, plus-tax.  Children under 2 years-old enter the attraction free of charge. I think it’s worth the money (at least according to the smiles on my kid’s faces) but I wouldn’t repeat the experience at this price (without becoming a member – details below).

- One way to get cheaper tickets is to get annual passes which offer unlimited entry to for 12 months; 10% discounts in the LEGO Shop and on birthday parties; a 20% discount on food and beverages in the café; and more.  

- Outside food is not permitted at Legoland, but they have a cafe. The menu is predictable but ideal for a pit stop when food becomes absolutely necessary. The $15 kids’ meal includes a Smuckers Uncrustables sandwich, a juice box and a choice of chips or a fruit cup. You might be better off if you head into the shopping center where there is a plethora of restaurant choices for every budget.

- Parking is $3.25 in the nearby garage, but LEGOLAND does validate tickets which brings it down to $1.75.

To purchase tickets and annual passes to LEGOLAND in Yonkers, or for more information, go here.  For group sales call 866-243-0770.  Follow them on Facebook.

Disclosure: I was provided with comp tickets to facilitate this review but all opinions are my own.

Social media marketing has not only changed my life but it has helped me change the lives of so many others. Please join me for this fabulous event to hear how.

A seminar and networking event focused on technology’s role in fundraising for non-profit organizations.

Wednesday October 10th at 6:00p.m at the Digital Arts Experience

170 Hamilton Avenue #100• White Plains, NY

Reserve your spot for FREE • info@thedae.com / 914-644-8100

Source: www.LoHud.com

When my eldest was two years old, I made a friend at her pre-school that I will have for life, Elisa Greenberg.  Our friendship is as genuine as it gets and I learn so much from her as a person and as a mother.

It was right around that time when our kids were wee small that she started having an annual hot chocolate and sweet fundraiser in her garage, raising money for important causes.  She’s the type of mom who wants to teach her kids about giving back, and thus this annual tradition began.

It started small.  A group from our pre-school and friends from her neighborhood would come out on that afternoon, year after year, to show support and the Greenbergs would raise $100-$200 for charity.  It was impressive and I have tried to replicate their efforts and have lemonade stands over the years following in her footsteps to raise money for the victims in Japan and Parkinson’s Disease, but my efforts have never amounted to as much.  So, when they started getting publicity in the local newspapers, I knew they were onto something.

Last year the stand got bigger, and I wasn’t surprised at all.  They moved it into a local ice-cream store in Scarsdale and raised over $2,000 for the Pediatric Cancer Foundation.  The young mastermind behind the event, Evan Greenberg (my friend’s son), began to take the event very seriously and he and his parents garnered a wide range of sports memorabilia to raffle off, turning into this into something bigger than life and very important to him and his younger brother, Joshua.

This year the fundraiser is being held on March 10 and 11 at All Things Good in Scarsdale to benefit the Pediatric Cancer Foundation, of which our friend, Nancy Joselson, is the Foundation’s executive director (her son helps out with the fundraiser).

The raffle will include both sports memorabilia and other donated wares. The memorabilia includes two signed posters of Darryl Strawberry and merchandise from the Giants, Jets, Yankees and Mets, game tickets and even a box of Fenway dirt. Evan has personally selected items of importance to him and ones that will make a difference in the amount of money they make.

If you live far away, you can buy virtual cups of cocoa through the Pediatric Cancer Foundation’s website.

So, if you live in or near Scarsdale, join me in supporting this fantastic effort and come watch a little boy who is smart and ambitious enough to try to change the world to be a better place for all of us.

Elisa Contemporary Art presents My Hero, a new art exhibit focusing on Superheroes in today’s contemporary art. The exhibit runs though March 31st, 2012 and the gallery will be offering workshops to introduce the work to children later this month and in March.

From the days of Greek and Roman Gods and Goddess through today’s X-Men, Dynamic Duos, Fantastic Four and many others, we are captivated by the Superhero (male and female).  Is it their superhuman strength and power?   Or their seeming selflessness to put the greater needs of others ahead of their own wants and desires?  Or the fact that they may embody and magnify a single aspect of the human potential in each of us?  They captivate, engage and inspire us in print, on the big screen, under the Broadway lights… and now in Contemporary Art.

In the latest Elisa Contemporary Art exhibit, you will see see the influences of Pop Art from the 1960’s and explore how five contemporary artists bring modern heroes to life in a whole new way.  You’ll see Superheroes including Superman, Wonder Woman and Captain America and meet some new characters.

The gallery is offering a few upcoming events that appeal to families.

Two Art Workshops for Children (age 5+).  Each workshop will be led and inspired by the work of one artist.

• Saturday, February 25^th from 1-3pm Super hero Collage paintings with Oliver Peterson  (ages 5+).
• Sunday March 25^th from 1-3pm.  Super hero in action illustrations with Jerome Walford (ages 8+).

RSVP Required.  Limited Space.

The gallery is located at 5622 Mosholu Avenue (near 256^th Street), Riverdale NY 10471.  For more information, visit the website at www.ElisaContemporaryArt.com.

Disclosure: I was not compensated to feature this information.

This week on November 9th was the annual observance of Kristallanacht, “Night of the Broken Glass”. It was a series of attacks against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria on 9–10 November 1938.  Jewish homes were ransacked, as were shops, towns and villages, as SA stormtroopers and civilians destroyed buildings with sledgehammers.  Around 1,668 synagogues were ransacked, and 267 set on fire. In Vienna alone 95 synagogues or houses of prayer were destroyed.

Every year I lead a group of women from my synagogue to the Westchester Jewish Film Festival.  This past year I met a woman named Ruth Bachner at a screening of Hidden Children at the Jacob Burns Film Center.   The film had been sponsored by the American Jewish Committee, who brought her to the festival.  Meeting her left an impact and mark on my soul, and I pledged silently to myself to bring her to my synagogue in Westchester to speak.  She had shown me her Jewish star and passport that got her to America eventually and I have never forgotten her.

When I discovered that she witnessed Kristallanacht, I felt it was a good time to bring her to speak to my congregation. She remembers the night clearly, as she was living in Vienna, when synagogues were burned, businesses brought to a halt, Jewish cemeteries desecrated, and, for the first time, Jews were imprisoned on a massive scale.  She and her family were devastated and frightened.  She was 9 years old, her brother 5 and she said that even her parents weren’t sure how to protect them.

Her father escaped to Belgium right after that.  But not long after, she and her family were asked to evacuate by the building’s janitor wearing a SS uniform.  Her mother soon obtained forged passports, allowing them to board a train to Germany in January, 1939. Their hope was to go from there to Belgium to reunite with Bachner’s father.

The family, reunited in Belgium, hoped to immigrate to the United States. On May 10, 1940, they had an appointment to take immigration physicals at the American consulate, but the Germans invaded Belgium the same day.

Then it all really started.  They had to wear a yellow Star of David on the left side of their clothes inscribed with a “J.” Bachner remembers the curfews, the ration cards, and the constant raids that followed. With conditions growing increasingly horrible and dangerous for the Jews, her parents, desperate to save her and her brother, entrusted them to a priest, who saved nearly 400 Jews. He helped hide her at a convent and her brother at a Catholic orphanage. Her parents hid in a Christian estate.  During the war, she was incredibly angry at her parents for years for sending her away but came around and is thankful they did what they did.  Her father gave her three $100 bills and a list of relatives in America and hemmed it all into her coat.  She remembers telling him, “Don’t worry, I’ll always be Jewish.”

For the next year and a half, Bachner lived in the convent, often fearing she’d be discovered. To protect her, the nuns changed her name to Marie Renée Le Roi and she became very attached to Christianity.  Looking back, Bachner feels she was brainwashed. “When a nun keeps telling you your soul will burn in hell forever if you’re not baptized, you believe it.”  When she was in hiding, she asked the nuns to baptize her and for private Cathlocism lessons.  They wrote to her parents, who were also in hiding, and asked for their permission.  Her father wrote back, “If it will save my child’s life, by all means, baptize her.”

When the war end wanted to stay with the nuns.  When the war ended, she wanted to stay in the convent, but her family fortunately survived and she was able to reunite with them.  The nun told her, “You can’t be a nun.  You have to go home.  If you decide to come back in a few years on your own will, you can come back.”  Bachner took her rose beads and Bible home and even went to church that first Sunday back with her brother.  Her parents didn’t comment.  She put a statue of Virgin Mary on the mantle.  One day she came home from school and it was gone.  When she asked her mom where it had gone, she told her it had fallen down to the floor and smashed.  That was the end of that.

She knows that her entire family surviving the war was a miracle.  She later married a man she met in America and they were married 53 years before he recently passed away.  They live in Somers, Westchester.

She told us about a trip, in the early 1980s that she and her husband took their children to visit concentration camps, as well as the convent in which she survived the war. At her family’s old apartment building in Vienna, she says, “I was trembling as I rang the bell to our apartment. I saw it was the same janitor who had forced us out. I wanted to come in, but he would not allow me. He slammed the door in my face and I cursed him out in German.”

Ruth Bachner’s visit was sponsored by The Holocaust and Human Rights Education Center.

It was one of those busy days and I didn’t think I’d be able to make the event.  My husband wasn’t able to come home early and the event started at 6.  So, after working in the city all day, and going to back to back meetings, I made the executive decision to drag my kids to the event.  I scooped up my daughter from Hebrew School, gave her dinner in the car and I headed to the mall with my children at 6:30 on a Wednesday night. Call me crazy but I adore Ann Taylor and was desperate to see what their new store was all about.

Sure enough, it’s a beautiful store and the new styles are really chic.  The store carries fashion and wear-to-work styles. Lucy Sykes showed us some fabulous new styles and I have to say that I’d love to own each one.

This was my favorite garment that will soon end up in my closet.  I’m planning to buy it myself.

So, how did my kids fare at this event, considering it was mid-week after a full day of school and activities?  For the first half-hour while I was shmoozing with some of my blogger friends, they sat on a cushion and played on my iPhone.  I even found an 8YO for my daughter to play hangman and tic tac toe with.  But it was just a matter of time before the bickering started and my son felt left out.  So, eventually, they ended up lying down on the cushion.

Well, that was kind of embarrassing.  Thankfully, the program soon started and my son ran to the front of the program when I told him they were going to be having a fashion show.

So, there are two funny things that happened at this event.  The first is that Lucy Sykes and I hit it off. She liked my business card and we connected over our British connection (my hubby is from the UK).  So, when she started the demonstration, she seemed to be looking directly at me, asking my name.  I said, “Holly” and she responded back “Michelle”.  I said “Holly” again and she said “Michelle”.  Was it the fabulous champagne I was drinking?  She started talking about Ann Taylor clothes and brought up the real Michelle who was standing behind me to point out her stylish duds.  Embarrassed again?  Oh, yes.

But the funnier thing was my son.  He was glued to her every word during the fashion demo.  He sat a few feet away from her and really seemed to take it all in.  He is the son who wakes up in the morning and picks out his own clothes and then tells me that they match, or rather he replaces the ones I pick out to clothes he prefers.  I’m the mom who has gotten incredibly lazy in my clothing choices since the kids were born.  He is my little fashionista the child who likes to go shopping to buy clothes.  My other child wears what I put out of her and does not rush out shopping, much like myself.

But when I do shopping, I am admittedly an Ann Taylor girl.  That was why I pushed my kids to the limit to attend this event with me.

One last note, Lucy Sykes was a darling and when I told her of my embarrassment of being mistaken for a chic dresser, we laughed.  If you can’t laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?

Disclosure: I was invited as a guest to the Ann Taylor event at the Westchester, but all opinions expressed are my own and nothing was provided to facilitate this review.

Source: http://chinawhiteusa.com

China White is located at 578 Anderson Hill Road.  The ambiance is sleek and sophisticated, with pale tones and wall mountings and light fixtures that are seem to be an ode to China’s dining style.   They boast to using organic food, something most Chinese restaurants definitely don’t do.  The waiters are dressed in construction worker -type uniforms, dressed a lot like the guys in Disney’s “Imagination Movers”.   The walls are white, everything’s white, but that was one thing that didn’t quite work for me and I don’t think our waiter appreciated my comparison to a kid’s show.  But I do have to say that she was great – full of suggestions and knowledge about the food and what to order.

We started off the meal with delicious deep fried noodles with condiments, which are complimentary and definitely a spin on what you see in your typical Chinese restaurant.  The condiments come in small dishes. We decided to share everything so we could sample various items.  We tried the chicken and peanut spring rolls ($10), which were absolutely divine; barbecued spare ribs ($16); pan fried scallion pancakes ($7) and the most delightful Shanghai noodles I’ve ever had, cooked in “cool peanut sauce” and cucumber ($12).  They have other noodle options which we didn’t try: rice vermicelli ($14), chow fun ($16) and lo mein ($15).  They also offer crunchy vegetable and mango summer rolls ($10), sweet white shrimp ($14), egg drop soup ($6), hot and sour soup ($7), a crispy duck salad ($15), white salad with pears, tofu, cashew, choy and sherry vinaigrette and bao bao buns (chicken, roast pork or BBQ beef for $12).  And dumplings – shrimp, pork or crispy vegetable ($9-$12).

For our meal, we tried General Tso’s fish ($27), made with ginger chile-sauce which was my favorite dish.  Just watch those peppers!  Other dishes we sampled were black pepper beef ($29), tangerine beef ($32), Chef Joe’s spicy dragon chicken ($26) and Chef Joe’s spicy dragon chicken with red chiles and sugar peas ($26).  They also have wok sauteed prawns ($28), wok lobster ($39) and sesame chicken ($22).   The market fried rice with chicken, pork or shrimp ($12) is smooth and rich.  Everything has a distinct taste and flavor, and if you like Asian food, you’ll love their food.  Everything we had smelled and tasted divine.  Honestly, there were no slip-ups.

I also like the fact that there are many vegetarian options.  At the end of the meal, they provided free chai-flavored cotton candy which we all happily munched on with our tea.  They also handed us a Magic 8 Ball (instead of a fortune cookie?) which we all gladly asked questions, and squinted our eyes to read the answer in small print.  It was a nice touch, all in the vein of China and quite possibly, heroin.

I have to give my friend who found China White a round of applause.  A bonafied foodie, she always leads us right to good food in Westchester.  She led us to Alvin and Friends and now here.  Everyone in our group of six enjoyed this unique culinary experience and I have a feeling it will be a repeat for all of us.

Disclosure: I was not compensated to write this review in any way and all opinions expressed are my own.

Photo Soure: Yelp.com

A few months ago, I wrote about the exceptional new restaurant in New Rochelle, Alvin and Friends.  It literally knocked my taste buds off and changed our perception of food in Westchester.  Since then, a slew of good restaurants have opened up in Mamaroneck, the town on the other side of where we live, as well, and we have far superior dining options locally than we ever did.  We have been waiting for the same development to occur in New Rochelle.

So, last night, when my husband and I encountered a new wine bar in the area, based on the recommendation of a friend, called the Gnarley Vine Bar, I was beyond excited.  As soon as we walked in, I felt nostalgic for the Lower East Side and East Village.  The bar has that vibe and definitely brings a bit of NYC to Westchester.  It’s funny, I’ve passed by the bar a zillion times driving down Main Street, but the exterior did not call out to me to let me know about this terrific find.  I would suggest they do something about that, but from the looks of it, as there were plenty of people inside who also seemed to have stumbled upon it, many other Westchester residents have discovered this gem.

The wine choices are interesting, and not expensive.  The bartender was very happy to bring out samplings of whatever we wanted to try.  He even encouraged it.  The servings are also generous.  The menu has lovely cheese plates, delicious salads, tuna tartar, quesadillas, pizzas and other special dishes.  Everything is flavorful and really well presented.  We really impressed by the food and happy to spend a good part of our evening sampling different menu items.

We happened to know several people from Larchmont, but the community definitely is vibrant and diverse, many of whom you’d expect to bump into in downtown NYC.  We can’t wait to go back again, and I think I’ve discovered my new local hang-out.  It’s just not in my own town.

Alex Shoumatoff

Legendary journalist, travel writer, world explorer, environmental activist — and Bedford native — Alex Shoumatoff will be the featured speaker at Westchester Land’s Trust’s Leon Levy Environmental Symposium.

The event happens Sunday, March 6^th, at 3pm, at the Bedford Village Historical Hall.  Admission is free and will be followed by an informal reception.

Mr. Shoumatoff is one of the most far-flung of environmental and travel writers.  He writes for Vanity Fair, is a former New Yorker staff writer, has authored 10 books, and his website Dispatches From a Vanishing World, dedicated to raising consciousness about disappearing species and cultures, is visited by readers from over 90 countries every month.

A graduate of Bedford’s Rippowam-Cisqua School (and later of Harvard University), Shoumatoff credits his youth in Bedford as the primary force in making him a committed, passionate conservationist.

As a young man, he was curator of the Marsh Sanctuary in Mount Kisco and taught natural history at Rippowam-Cisqua, having inherited a love of the outdoors from his father and brother.  Nicholas Shoumatoff Sr. was president of Westmoreland Sanctuary and Bedford Audubon; Nicholas Jr. was curator of the Trailside Museum at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation.

Appropriately, his talk is “Westchester, Bedford and the Making of a Conservationist,” and will focus on how his youth here led to his career as a writer and activist on environmental issues.

This symposium is an annual event held in honor of the late philanthropist Leon Levy, a South Salem resident who established the Jerome Levy Foundation, which provided the majority of the funding to create the Leon Levy Preserve.

The event is free, but seating is limited, so reservations are a must!  RSVPs are being taken at:

Facebook:        http://on.fb.me/Shoumatoff

EventBrite:       http://bit.ly/ShoumatoffEB

Email:              Grace@WestchesterLandTrust.org

Disclosure: I was not compensated to promote this event.