Funplaydates.com featured in

Triaminic's newsletter

The Perfect PlayDate

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Funplaydates.com featured in Indianapolis Star News
October 2007

A Time to Play — Read article

Funplaydates.com featured in Los Angeles Daily News
July 2007

Kids Carry Business Cards — Read article

Funplaydates.com featured in Philadelphia Inquirer
May 2007

Flights and Fun at Fundraiser — Read article

Funplaydates.com featured in Chicago's Southtown News
April 2007

Play Time — Read article

Funplaydates.com featured in the Wayne Suburban News
February 2007

Redefining the Landscape of 'Fun and Games' — Read article

Funplaydates.com featured in Parents Express Magazine
August 2006

Funplaydates.com was a proud sponsor of the

The National Kidney Foundation's

Spring Tea and Fashion Show

Ritz Carlton Hotel, Philadelphia, PA
May 21, 2006

The designers at Funplaydates.com shared some trade secrets with the visitors to their table. Those who were interested in making their own fashion statement were able to learn how to make an elegant Pashmina scarf using only Elmer's Glue, simple felt and a a bit of old fabric.

Funplaydates.com featured in Working Mother Magazine
Working Mother Recommends
September 2005

With schools ratcheting up the academics, time for play is more important than ever. Fresh ideas for fun get-togethers for kids are just a click away at www.funplaydates.com. Here you’ll find free suggestions for simple activities such as creating crowns out of poster board and craft-drawer detritus, or organizing a neighborhood bike ride (hint: don’t try to coordinate everyone’s schedules; just pick a date and send out invitations). Ready to add a little flavor? Try the recipes for no-bake treats like Citrus Berry Milk Mixer and Monster Madness Hot Chocolate ‘n Marshmallows. Or you can download theme packages like “Classic Family Film” or “Aliens” ($10), which includes invitations, recipes, crafts and games.            – Susan Gerstenzang

Funplaydates.com Featured in WebMD
October 2004

Encouraging Exercise in Your Kids
The ABC's of Getting Your Kids Outside and Active

By  Wendy Fries
WebMD Feature
Reviewed By Brunilda  Nazario, MD

Tool: Find the Right Activity for Your Kids
Special Report: Childhood Obesity

Reading, writing, 'rithmetic, and recess.

One of these things is not like the others. Though kids get plenty of reading, writing, and arithmetic at school, it turns out many can't depend on recess any longer.
Pressure placed on schools to produce higher test scores often means cutting programs that are not graded -- like recess and PE. An estimated 40% of all elementary schools have cut recess or are in the process of doing so, says Rhonda L. Clements, president of the American Association of the Child's Right to Play (IPAUSA).

Worse still, the CDC reports that in 2003, only 55.7% of high school students were enrolled in a PE class.

Yet the CDC says the number of overweight kids has tripled since 1980, putting kids at risk for early heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Now more than ever, we need to encourage our kids to get out and get active.

A Is for Access to Temptation
Webster's defines activity as vigorous or energetic action -- in short, everything that gets the blood pumping, from rolling down a grassy hill to kicking through piles of fall leaves. Adults often think fitness means a formal plan, a membership, or special gear.

Instead, just getting kids moving is the key, experts say, with the American Heart Association recommending at least 60 minutes of moderate or vigorous physical activity daily.

But many kids just aren't getting that much. And most groups are unanimous on the prime culprit: sedentary entertainment, meaning the temptations of the TV, computer, and video games.

"Most physicians and experts recommend children get no more than two hours of television and computer time per day," says Rallie McAllister, MD, author of Healthy Lunchbox: The Working Mom's Guide to Keeping You and Your Kids Trim, and a family practitioner in Kingsport, Tenn.

So the first step toward fitter kids is to reduce your child's TV and computer time by setting reasonable limits, recommends McAllister. Help your child budget their TV time at the beginning of the week, selecting the programs they most want to see. Investing in a device that automatically turns off electronics after an allotted time is also a good idea. This way "the device is the bad guy and the parent is not," says McAllister.

B Is for Being There
Once the TV's siren song is silenced, it's time to get moving yourself. That's because children imitate what they see, and if you return laughing and full of neighborhood news after a bike ride, they're more likely to want to take part in the fun.

But if your child is hesitant, don't force the issue, recommends Michell Muldoon, president of FunPlayDates.com, a website promoting creative play for kids. Instead, she recommends focusing more fully on your own activity so that it has more appeal. More often than not a child "will become involved at their own pace and enter into the activity without feeling he or she has been forced into participation," Muldoon says. Read more...

Funplaydates.com Featured in Philadelphia's MetroKids
July 2004

Practical Parenting
The Evolving Art of the Play Date

By Tracey Porpora
MetroKids
July 2004

Gone are the days of “free play” when 4- and 5-years-old were allowed to ride their bicycles along suburban streets or play hide and seek in a patch of woods near home. Because the world is a different place than it was 20 years ago, many parents today restrict childhood social interaction to play dates.

“People who had kids prior to 1989 or 1990 still raised their kids with more free play,” says Michell Muldoon, president of FunPlaydates.com, a Malvern, PA-based website offering play date resources. “What happened is technology and cable television came about and started providing massive amounts of programming targeted toward creating virtual play, more women went back to work after having children, and the media also made us terrified to leave our children unsupervised.” Read more...

Funplaydates.com Featured in Baltimore Sun article
July 2004

Outdoor Play May Save Day for Parents, Kids

By KATE SHATZKIN
Baltimore Sun
Sunday, July 11, 2004

As summer rolls on with a drumbeat of news about rampant childhood obesity and children spending more time with video games, there's a movement to teach kids and parents to play together in the simplest ways.

A new book, "Catch a Fish, Throw a Ball, Fly a Kite" (Three Rivers Press, $12.95), instructs parents how to get their children juggling, planting trees and spinning yo-yos. The American Association for the Child's Right to Play has organized "Play Days." Read more...

Fun PlayDate's Aliens
Attacked The International Play Association In Baltimore!

Baltimore, Maryland
April 29 - May 2, 2004

While Educators and Childhood Advocates from around the world gathered in Baltimore to address the concerns of children and the loss of free play time at The International Play Association's Conference,
Fun PlayDates Aliens arrived to transform serious professionals into the true fun-loving, people they really are. The conference was held at Marriott's Burkshire Suites in Towson, Md.

During one of the Association's Workshops, Lori Cooperstein and Michell Muldoon of Fun PlayDates LLC, the premier site for group play, gave a presentation on Playdates (scheduled playtime) and the need for initiative on the part of busy parents to use creative gatherings for family fun.

According to Ms. Muldoon, "People' s lives have become so over-booked and over-scheduled that children have lost touch with their core communities. These are the communities that include family, neighbors and friends." Ms. Cooperstein added, "We live in times where you go to a neighborhood, where there are loads of children and it's rare to see kids outside. Parents are afraid to let their kids play freely, without supervision. And when you have to work, it's hard to find time to watch the kids outside so they can get to know each other. You have to make it happen."

The Alien Craft that Fun PlayDates presented at the conference was all about getting everybody together for Event-Style play, so that grownups, as well as kids, could share in the fun. During the lecture, all attendees were given pre-printed Alien template masks and were asked to work on their Alien during the presentation. When the workshop was finished, the room was filled with beautifully decorated Aliens and, as intended, everyone had a chance to laugh and be playful and to find a good deal of inspiration in the activity. Even IPA/USA President, Dr. Rhonda Clements, participated in this fun workshop.

Infinity Broadcasting's Steve Friedman, A.K.A., "Mr. Movie," then spoke for Fun Playdates about the rich abundance of family-safe Alien/Outer Space films that would be a great way to end an Alien Playdate. Dr. Gary A. Cooperstein also addressed the group on the topic of Childhood Obesity and the impact he has seen in his Family Practice. Dr. Cooperstein said that the increases he sees in Obesity are due to poor dietary choices, the lack of excercise and activity in general.

All in all, this conference was Out-of-This-World!

Visit www.ipausa.org for more information