Ample Hills of Deliciousness; Ample Hills Ice Cream, Brooklyn, NY

Ample Hills Creamery

623 Vanderbilt Ave  Brooklyn, NY

Houston, we have a problem.  And her name is ice cream.  Don't get me wrong, I love a good scoop of toffe heath or fresh strawberry.  But I married a icecreamaholic.  And what happens when you mix my recessive genes with her dominate sugartastic ones; a kiddo that loves the stuff.  "What do you want to do for your 8th birthday Sydney?"  "I want a party at Ample Hills, the best ice cream shop in the world!"  How does a parent say "no" to that?

Before opening this Prospect Heights bastion of the new "Brooklyn" cool, Brian Smith was a published Sci-fi author and producer for the Sy Fy station.  Clearly, giving up monster movies for cream was a genius career move.  Sydney got to go back stage to see the magic at work.  What makes that "cracked caramel" so good?  How many egg yolks go in that "egg nog" flavor? (uh, yeah 10!)  "I'm sorry, did you say the 'Munchies' has ritz, potato chips AND pretzels?"  He got to ride the ice cream bike, as did all of his friends.  Props to our friend Emily S ("Emily's Homemade" cookies, amazing!) for pioneering this outing in our circle, it was amazing AND delicious.

We used to walk the twenty or so minutes there every once and a while. It was a good buffer.  Today I discovered that they have an outpost at Pier 4 in the Brooklyn Bridge Park.  But then, on the way home I was reminded of something terribly sinister that I had read this spring.  There is now an Ample Hills factory and shop just down the street at Union at Nevins.   Oh no!

Sydneiana Jones and the Pit of Sponge: Planet Gymnastics, Natick, MA

Planet Gymnastics
7 Strathmore Road
Natick, MA

Sydney is a crazy man. This kid loves to dive head-first into a pile of sponge. He will hurl himself down a mountain without an ounce of fear in his thoughts. Perhaps it is the great work that they have done with him at our local gymnastics outlet. He has great teachers, they're safe facilities and he even gets to go with his classmates from Tobin School on the days he doesn't go to school.


Planet Gymnastics is da' bomb. But, we were going to have his birthday party at Playtown Express simply because he tears it up there, (they were sold-out till Liji's bday in March.) Boston Sports Club was also a great place to party for Ronen's 4th. But I'm so glad we picked his homebase for fun . Instead of his weekly tumbles, balance beam and trampolines, Sydney got treated like a king. While I was languishing in bed with a 102 temp and praying to the porcelin gods, Sydney "the birthday kid" was the only one flying through the air like Mary Martin in Peter Pan.


He was so princely, he even got his own throne. Sure, like any great kid he shared it with his little bro, (and even the crazy Ben and Jerry's underwater theme ice cream cake - clearly learned that from me.) It was a blast, or so it appeared as I sat through the footage, cursing into my piece of left over cake, two days later when I was finally well enough to sit at the table and behave.

Where the Party Never Ends: Boston Sports Club, Waltham, MA

Boston Sports Club
840 Winter Street
Waltham, MA

I have often wondered what lurked on the other side of Cambridge Reservoir as I zip past every morning on 128. Well ladies and gentlemen, if you live within shouting distance of Winter Street in Waltham and love to work out in style, this is the place for you. Is it the Aqua Tai Chi that first piqued my interest, you wonder? Perhaps it's the gigantic, beautiful bball courts that make the TD Garden look like its old predecessor. No people, it's the kiddie parties.


Now, I'm not talking any Y-M-C-A parties here. I mean, the Dominos pizza looks and even tastes the same. But I ask you, do they have a working helicopter on their play structure after millions of dollars in renovations at the Y? Nooooooo! Do they bring out not one, not two, not even three, but four full-time staff to run, jump and act crazy with your kids in Newton Corner? Noooooooo! Most importantly, can you slamma jamma with your daddy friends at the Y on their seven foot rim? I think not!



Granted, I have no idea how much this delightful party for our 'cuz Ronen's fourth birthday set back his Drs. Newton mom and dad. I also didn't get in the pool or check out their Pro shop. But man, after two hours of trampoline, two stories of play structure and a few alley-hoops from my main man Don, I was ready for bed. Oh yeah, the kids fell asleep on the car ride home before I could even read them "Let's Go Celtics," by Aimee Aryal. Oh well !

Goooaalll Kinderkicks!: West Suburban YMCA Sports Parties, Newton, MA

Goooaalll Kinderkicks!: West Suburban YMCA Sports Parties
276 Church Street
Newton, MA

Reasons to venture:

• 20 kids, 4 sports, one hour of sideline heaven
• Ever wonder what organized soccer for three year olds looks like?
• They even throw a Petite Princess Ballet Party if you want the other end of the spectrum.

Best kids party local in Metro West?