Hi loopers,
As many families head into Passover and Easter, I’m thinking about how much this season can hold at once: tradition, family, logistics, joy, and a little chaos. I hope there’s a moment to gather, slow down, and enjoy the rituals that matter to your family, whether that’s around a Seder table, at a church service, over a festive meal, or during an egg hunt in the park. Chag Sameach and wishing a peaceful Easter to all who celebrate.
And as always, the events below are free unless noted, because ‘what should we do?’ should not turn into Saturday morning stress. Follow @theparentloopnyc on Instagram for more.
I’m always looking for great local partners. If your business would like to sponsor the dance party, contribute to a swap, or be part of a future The Parent Loop event, just reply here and let’s grab coffee.
Around The Loop: Little shoutouts, local sightings, and meaningful connections from the week.
We had our second bookclub on Tuesday and I’m just so grateful for our mom reading community — thank you all for showing up, sharing, and supporting one another. Special snaps to Abby and Marissa who joined us this time and La Bomboniera for staying open for us!
Thank you to Vanessa for connecting me with Sandy, the founder of Muse Arts, who’s generously gifted several free classes for a couple lucky subscribers. Can’t wait to give these to a couple lucky Loopers!
Grateful for one full night of sleep after a roller coast ride of 15+nights of wake ups.
Mother’s Day gift idea: Dads, partners, significant others, and friends, want to make Mother’s Day feel good for the mom in your life, not just look good on paper? Start by asking whether she’s in a season where surprises (and a night out) feel fun or like one more thing to manage. Then take care of the logistics, cover the night and morning shift, and send her to something genuinely fun: Let’s go, moms!, our first moms+friends dance party, on Wed, April 29, from 7-10 pm at West Side Comedy Club. It’s a night for moms and their friends, with throwback singalongs and music from DJ MK. There will be raffles (TULA gift card! Bondd Pilates classes!), fun, and plenty of friendly faces.
The Loop Edit: On finding joy, community, and space through prance
It’s Friday, March 27, 10 a.m., and when Sarah Burgin Hanks gets on the call, I ask the only question that feels right: did you prance this morning?
“Of course.”
It feels like the only possible answer.
She is still dressed for it too: pink unitard, lace leggings, bright pink leg warmers, headband, the whole glorious neon logic of it all. Not costume, exactly. More like commitment. The kind that says joy is not an afterthought. It is the plan.
That is what stayed with me most from our conversation. Fridays We Prance may look playful from the outside, and it is, but beneath the neon and pop playlists is something many women+ are hungry for: a place to move, laugh, be seen, and feel fully alive in public.
Sarah describes prance simply: it is “not a run, not a jog, not a walk. It’s a forward dance.”
I loved that immediately.
A forward dance feels like exactly the right phrase for this season of womanhood, especially for those of us raising kids, holding families together, working, caregiving, and trying, somewhere in the middle of all that, to remain ourselves. Not a sprint. Not a graceful glide. A forward dance. Keep reading here.
Friday - April 3
First NYC Friday Prance @fridaysweprance.nyc, 6:30 am, 96th and CPW (correction from last week’s location); women+, ages 18 and up.Thank you to my husband for taking the morning shift so that I can prance into the weekend. See you there? Recommended attire is neon. The Parent Loop pick!
Family Storytime @ St. Agnes (82nd & Broadway), 10:30-11:00am, ages 0 months-5 years. No registration required.
Easter Bunny photos - Top of the Rock @ Rockefeller Center, 10:30am-6pm. Meet the Easter Bunny on April 3-5. Tickets +$36. P.S. Kids tickets are 50% off on weekdays through April 24 with code SPRINGKIDS50.
Coloring for Babies and Toddlers @ Columbus Library (51st & 10th Av), 10:30-11:00am, ages 0-5.
Family Storytime @ Columbus Library (51st & 10th Av), 11-11:45am, ages 0-5.
Open Playtime @ Bloomingdale Library (100th & Amsterdam Av), 11am-12:00pm, ages 0 months-5 years.
Children's Family Board Games Night @ Columbus Library (51st & 10th Av), 3-4:00pm, ages 3-12.
Little New-Yorkers: The Ocean Calls: A Haenyeo Mermaid Story @ NY Historical Society (Lower level, 77th & CPW), 3:30-4:30pm, ages 3-6. Inc. with museum ticket (adults $24, ages 5-13 $6, ages 0-4 free; family membership $160). Includes a special hello song, silly dances, games, book reading, and a craft (this week: a mermaid craft!).
Crafts and Classics Club @ NY Historical Society (Lower level, 77th & CPW), 5-6pm, all ages. Inc. with museum ticket (see details above). Craft is sewing appliqué quilt squares and a read aloud of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.
Macy’s Easter Bunny @ Macy’s Herald Square, confirm exact hours on their website, through April 4th. All ages.
Saturday - April 4
Puzzles & Play @ Bloomingdale Library (100th & Amsterdam Av), 10am-2:00pm, all ages.
Easter Bunny photos - Top of the Rock @ Rockefeller Center, 10:30am-6pm. Meet the Easter Bunny on April 3-5. Tickets +$36. P.S. Kids tickets are 50% off on weekdays through April 24 with code SPRINGKIDS50.
Macy’s Easter Bunny @ Macy’s Herald Square, confirm exact hours on their website, through April 4th. All ages.
Annual Easter Egg Party @ Elizabeth St. Garden (Nolita), toddler time is 11:30-12pm, all ages are 12-2pm. BYOBasket.
Open Process Art Afternoon @ Columbus Library (51st & 10th Av), 12-3pm, ages 18 months-12 yrs.
Hablemos: New York, New York @ NY Historical Society (Lower level, 77th & CPW), 11:30am-1pm, all ages. Registration required.
Sunday - April 5
Easter Parade and Bonnet Festival @ St. Patrick’s Cathedral, from 49th st to 57th st, 10am-4pm, watch or saunter on Fifth Avenue. All ages, bonnets required.
Easter Bunny photos - Top of the Rock @ Rockefeller Center, 10:30am-6pm. Meet the Easter Bunny, April 3-5. Tickets +$36. P.S. Kids tickets are 50% off on weekdays through April 24 with code SPRINGKIDS50.
Sunday Story Time: The Passover Guest @ NY Historical Society (Lower level, 77th & CPW), 11:30am-12:30pm, ages 3-6. Inc. with museum ticket (see prices above). Hello song, silly dance and game, story time, and make your own puppets.
Storytime @ The Strand (81st & 82nd), 12pm & 3pm.
Storytime @ Book Culture (2915 Broadway & 114th St), 1pm, ages 0–7.
Classes led by moms
Mommy & Me Pilates @ Bondd Pilates (66 E 85th St). First class is free, then $35.Fridays 9:30 am and Sundays 10:30 am.
Morning Meeting: Fitness and Connection. First class free, then $25. Winter Schedule: Tuesday (UES) at Fastbreak: 1621 1st Ave– 9:30am and Wednesday (UWS) at 350 Central Park West – 9:30am.
Upcoming hot events
Big Umbrella Festival @ Lincoln Center, April 10-26. One of my absolute favorite events on the UWS, so many amazing performances to choose from. The Parent Loop pick! p.s. Lincoln Center just launched their family membership.
Together in Song with Suzi Shelton and Friends @ NY Public Library for the Performing Arts (Lincoln Center), Sat, April 11, registration required, all ages.
Family Day: Spring Fest @ Carnegie Hall (Resnick Education Wing), April 18, ages 3-10, free, first-come, first-served.
Ballet Essentials with the NYC Ballet @ Lincoln Center (Rose Building, 7th floor), April 20 and May 16, $30 per ticket, teens and adults, little or no dance training required.
Let’s go, moms! @ West Side Comedy Club (75th & Broadway), Wed, April 29, 7-10 pm, $45. Because this Wednesday is for you. Get your tickets here.
Children's Access Workshops w. the NYC Ballet @ Lincoln Center (Rose Building, 7th floor). May 2, for children with physical disabilities. Only kids participating need a ticket, $8 per ticket and you can contact for financial support if needed, ages 4-12.
Kid Fest @ Pier 57, May 3, 12-3pm, all ages. The Parent Loop pick!
Family Saturdays @ New York City Ballet (David Koch Theater, Lincoln Center), The Comedy of Coppélia on May 30, price varies +$29, ages +5. Tickets are required for infants, children, and adults.
The Orchid Show: Mr. Flower Fantastic’s Concrete Jungle @ New York Botanical Garden, until April 26, ticket prices vary.
Indoor favorites
Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre @ 81st and CPW, in Central Park, tickets +$12 for ages 2 and up, for ages 3-7, various times.
The Met’s 81st studio @ The Met (on the bottom floor; a state-of-the-art space), stroller parking, 10am-5pm, ages 3-11.
Hands-on-activities (Discovery Room ages 0-12,Climate Learning Lab ages 8+, Human Origins Learning Lab ages 8+) @ American Museum of Natural History, NYC residents pay-what-you-wish. Note: The Discovery is moving from a first-come, first-serve to a registration-based approach so make sure to sign up when you get to the museum.
Libraries are open Friday and Saturdays, closed Sundays: Bloomingdale Library (99th st), Riverside Library (66th st), St. Agnes Library (81st st), Columbus Library (51st st).
Bookstores, times vary: Book Culture (@112th, @114th), The Strand (81st & 82nd on Columbus), Barnes and Noble (@82nd st).
Because “What should we do?” doesn’t need to be stressful.
The Parent Loop
Disclaimer: Event details, dates, and links are subject to change — please check with venues before heading out. Some product links may earn me a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only share items we genuinely use and love. The Parent Loop and its admins are not responsible for member posts, recommendations, transactions, services or arrangements made through the Whatsapp groups. Participations is voluntary, and each member is responsible for their own decisions, screening, and interactions.