Entries by Matt Villano

A NYC walk to remember

As transplanted New Yorkers living in Northern California, my wife and I have TONS of memories of living in New York. We’ve shared dozens and dozens of those with our kids over the years. One of our recollections that has stuck out most for the kids: The fact that you can walk everywhere. We live in […]

Life lessons from a broken tooth

“There are consequences when you don’t listen.” I tell my girls this simple, non-threatening phrase at least 10 times every day. Most days, it amounts to nothing more than hot air—they’re being idiots, I utter my mantra, they ignore me, and I take away a Shopkin for 24 (or sometimes 72) hours. Some days, however, […]

Remembering a tragedy with kids in tow

I remember every horrible moment of Sept. 11, 2001—planes crashing into buildings, buildings falling and shaking the ground, my city changing forever. I left New York for California shortly after the attack. Today, since we’re back in the Big Apple for the week, Powerwoman and I took the kids near the World Trade Center site. […]

Pop-up introduction to NYC

We’re less than one week before our first family trip to New York City—the metropolis both Powerwoman and I call home. My wife and I are excited for a week of pizza, bagels, bacon-egg-and-cheese sandwiches, and black-and-white cookies. The girls are excited to see buildings that actually scrape the sky, the Brooklyn Bridge, and “the […]

The check-in ritual when we travel with kids

Forget the minibar. Forget the views out the window. When our wandering pod checks into a new hotel, the big girls have one thing and one thing only on their minds: They must rip off their sneakers and jump on the bed. This fascination repurposes sacred sleeping spaces into trampoline parks immediately. It usually transforms […]