Start Here

Hi and welcome to Out and About Mom!  If you are looking for things to do with kids in (and around) Connecticut, you’re in the right place.

We created this page to help new readers learn about our site!

Because we have been writing since 2011, we’ve built a huge archive of posts (over 500!) and we know it could seem a little overwhelming trying to figure out where to start.  So below you will find information about us, our site, when we post, how to keep up with the latest information and more.  And if you read through all of this and have any suggestions, comments, or questions, let us know by leaving a comment below.  We LOVE comments!

Get to Know Us

We have always enjoyed an active lifestyle, and when our little ones came along, we wanted to find ways to continue to be active and spend time exploring new places and trying new things.

But with new little ones, came new challenges. And we found that the information we craved to make our outings easier and more fun, just wasn’t readily available.

Then one day, Mandy had an epiphany: what if you could go somewhere for the first time, but it would feel like you had already been there before? And just like that, Out and About Mom was born.

Since then, we have been stocking our site with hundreds of photo-filled “virtual tours” of local family-friendly destinations. We visit each location ourselves and detail everything from stroller access to parking to restrooms to snack areas, giving parents the firsthand knowledge they need to make all their family outings a success.

We know being a new parent can be overwhelming at times, and we hope to make the transition a little less stressful and a lot more fun. At Out and About Mom, you’ll find a community of parents who love getting “out and about”  with their little ones. We share outing ideas, swap travel tips, and just generally support each other on the greatest adventure of all: parenthood. And we’re so glad you’re here!

If you want to know a little more about Mandy and Shawna, check out our personal profiles on the “About Us” page.

Learn How Our Site Works

We try to be as organized (as possible) on the blog and have a somewhat structured posting schedule.  It might be helpful to know a little bit about when we write and other resources we have to share helpful information.

• We post our main content on Thursdays each week.   Note that our posting schedule is a bit loose.  A Thursday post could actually be a “wee hours of the morning” Friday post on some days.  Since we are full-time stay at home moms, our writing time is limited to hours when the kids are napping or down for the night.  Sometimes that schedule can make getting our post in “on time” a bit of a challenge, but we do our best!
• If you want to keep up with our latest posts, you can Subscribe to Out and About Mom by Email.  Please note that we only use your email address to send you the latest post.  Nothing else.
• You can also follow us on Facebook  to be notified about new content.  We are very active on our Facebook page and will use that page not only to share our new blog posts but to also provide other helpful tidbits with our readers.

Discover a New Adventure

There are so many ways to find a fun, new adventure on Out and About Mom.

• Start with our first post on the blog and read all the way through to our most recent post.  Settle in if you are going this route.  Reading 400+ posts would definitely take some time!
• Take a look at one of our blog post listings.  We’ve organized the Places We’ve Been in a variety of ways including:
  • by Activity Type
  • by Posting Date
  • by Town
• For a period of time we also wrote a monthly post summarizing all of our outings for that period.  Those didn’t seem to be popular posts for our current readers so they are no longer included, but the old posts may be helpful for someone new to our site.
• We have a wonderful series of posts dedicated to family-friendly restaurants.  If you are a family that enjoys eating out from time to time, then you should check out our Tiny Dining listing.
• We try to keep a list of our popular, relevant posts in the sidebar of our site, so be sure to check there for our latest and greatest content.  Here are a few of our favorites:
  • 2014 Summer bucket list for the Connecticut Mom
  • Pick-your-own fruit destinations in Connecticut
  • Baby friendly outings
  • Museum reciprocity and how it works
  • A great playground listing
  • Free summer activities
• Each year we also do a roundup of our favorite posts for that period of time.  Check out our posts from 2012, 2013, 2014, 2014, and 2015.

Support Us!

We love sharing our adventures on Out and About Mom and we look forward to writing for many years to come!  If you enjoy our blog and are wondering about ways you can support this site, we have a few suggestions for you:

• If you own a business, consider becoming a site sponsor!  Earlier this year we developed an advertising program that offers a variety of sponsorship opportunities for businesses to share their products and services with our readers.
• Like and share our posts on Facebook.  If you love one of our posts, then just hit the “like” button for that post on Facebook or at the top of the blog page.  This little action helps spread the word throughout social media about our site!
• Share our site and posts with family and friends.  There is nothing more powerful than word-of-mouth advertising.
• If you visit a destination because of our post, let them know that you found out about them on Out and About Mom!

Thank you so much for visiting our blog.  We hope you find exactly what you need on our site to get you “out and about” on a fun adventure with your family as often as possible!