Anna Fader

Founder of Mommy Poppins

A fourth-generation Brooklynite, Anna started Mommy Poppins in 2007 to help families find the best things to do with kids in NYC, with a particular emphasis on sharing activities that are free, affordable, and enriching. The site, used by millions of families, has grown to become the ultimate resource for parents in the major US cities, plus travel guides for 100s of destinations.

Anna is a believer in the magic of summer camps, traveling with kids, and that you can raise kids on a budget and still have a rich life full of amazing memories. Anna's first Mommy Poppins book, The Young Traveler's Journal and Activity Book, published in 2025 and co-written with her daughter, Amelia Eigerman, brings that ethos to life, in addition to this website.

Latest posts by Anna

30 Exercise Games and Indoor Activities to Get Kids Moving

Submitted by Anna Fader on Tue, 01/18/2022 - 10:30am

Try a little freeze dancing, robot style! Photo courtesy of Pavel Danilyuk via Pexels

Whether it's rainy, snowy, or simply too cold or hot to hit the park or backyard, exercise games and indoor activities that keep kids moving are a great way to get everyone in the family moving, giggling, and away from the screens for a bit.

We've put together a list of 30 easy indoor exercise games and fun exercises for kids at home. It's a really simple way for a family to integrate movement and exercise into any day. Most of these can be done right in your living room and will even work in tight city apartments (or hallways). We promise that everyone will be tired and laughing after attempting just a handful.

Looking for more indoor activities for kids? We have lots of ideas, including science experiments and sensory activities for all ages.

Keystone Wants To Be Colorado’s Best Family Ski Resort

Submitted by Anna Fader on Sat, 01/15/2022 - 12:00pm

Keystone offers amenities, perks, and free skiing for kids! Photo courtesy of Keystone

Many ski mountains want to attract families, but Keystone Resort in Colorado is raising the bar for family ski resorts with more amenities, perks, and free skiing for kids.

One of the closest ski towns to Denver airport, Keystone does all it can to make itself a fun and family-friendly destination. On top of conveniences like ski-in/ski-out condo accommodations and wagons for hauling all that gear, Keystone has a full lineup of children's programming to keep kids entertained on and off the mountain, plus special perks like an express family gondola line and free family parking. And, perhaps best of all, kids 12 and under ski free.

About 75 miles west of Denver and a roughly two-hour drive, I visited Keystone Resort to check it out. Here are the top things that make Keystone one of the most family-friendly Colorado ski resorts. For more kid-friendly ski resorts, check out our Skiing, Snowboarding, & Snow Sports Guide for families.

Westgate Resorts Orlando: Budget Hotels Near Disney World with Kitchens and Water Park

Submitted by Anna Fader on Sat, 12/25/2021 - 12:00pm

Treasure Cove water park offers a full day of fun for kids right on site.

When planning a trip to Orlando theme parks, staying at one of the off-site hotels near Disney World or Universal can be a big money saver—especially if you also want to do things in Orlando other than the theme parks. Westgate Resorts Orlando offers two properties near Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, and SeaWorld. Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa is closer to SeaWorld and Universal Studios, while Westgate Vacation Villas is slightly closer to Disney World, but both of them offer large family-sized rooms with kitchenettes, on-site water parks and activities, and budget-friendly prices.

We recently stayed at one of the Westgate Resorts Orlando budget properties, Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa, to see how it stacked up for an Orlando family vacation. Here is the inside scoop.

School Closings: How to Know if it's a Snow Day in New York City

Submitted by Anna Fader on Mon, 12/06/2021 - 8:03am

Snow days are the stuff of childhood magic during the winter. Photo by Anita Gregorio Marsault

How do you find out if your kid's New York City school is closed because of snow? In short, snow days are unlikely for public school students during the 2021-22 school year. The mayor made waves by announcing there will be no snow days this school year at all, instead public schools are expected to host remote lessons on stormy days. Still, you'll want to know if you need to bundle up and head to a school building, or hunker down and sign on.

If you've got children in the city's private schools and nursery schools, they tend to close more often.

Here are the best resources for finding out if New York City schools are closing for a snow day, as well as ideas for what to do in the event of snowmageddon, like NYC's Top Sledding Hills and snow day boredom busters to do indoors.

Insider’s Guide to Sitka, Alaska: Free and Fun Things to Do in Sitka with Kids

Submitted by Anna Fader on Sat, 07/31/2021 - 11:02am

See the view of the bay from the local Sitka library.

Whether you’re doing an Alaska cruise or individual travel, costs can really add up on a family vacation, especially when traveling in Alaska. Luckily, if you know the area, there are actually plenty of fun and free things to do in Sitka and other SE Alaska cities, as well as affordable eats.

My grandparents moved to Alaska when I was a tot, so even though I’m not a local, I’ve been visiting Haines and Juneau my whole life. It wasn't until I started bringing my own kids that we started exploring Alaska’s tourist attractions and also traveling as a family to other Alaska destinations. This summer we decided to visit Sitka.

Visiting the Poconos with Kids: 70 Top Things To Do as a Family

Submitted by Anna Fader on Thu, 05/13/2021 - 1:00pm

Canoe or swim in the many lakes and rivers in the Poconos. Photo courtesy of Pocono Mountains Visitors Bureau

Just two hours from New York City or Philadelphia, the Pocono Mountains offer pristine natural beauty mixed with enough family-friendly activities to fill a long weekend getaway or an entire summer vacation. Truly a four-season resort area, during the winter people flock to the Poconos for skiing and other winter sports, and the cool lake-dotted mountains draw families for swimming, hiking, boating, horseback riding, and more in the summer. It's also loaded with great water park resorts, both indoor and outdoor, and lovely cabin rentals, many of them either lakeside or mountainside.

LA Camp Fair Is Back! Check Out Our Camp Info Sessions

Submitted by Anna Fader on Tue, 04/06/2021 - 1:40pm

Explore summer camps with our Online Camp Fair in 2021.

We're excited to announce the second annual Online Summer Camp Fair from Mommy Poppins Los Angeles. Last year, we created this online camp fair to help parents discover what was happening with summer camps in an upside-down year. In the process, we discovered that an online fair is a great way to learn about both virtual and in-person camps. It was fun, informative, and super convenient. So, we're doing it again!

This year's camp fair will have even more camps to discover, video tours to watch, and camp demos to help experience all the camp fun—all without leaving the house. You can even talk to the camps face-to-face in live virtual sessions. The Mommy Poppins LA Online Camp Fair is completely free, but register in advance for live sessions.

Camp Fair is now live!

GO TO CAMP FAIR