Hello Chicago Families & Friends-

Let me guess, you can’t believe it is already August! Where has the summer gone?

You also have a list of friends that, like me, you promised to get together with and still have not seen! Sound familiar?  So, let’s all make a Summer Resolution and get those friends together by planning a Potluck Playground Party!

Start by picking an easy local park or tot lot. I love the little one at the end of my street.  It has picnic tables, water founta...

With playgrounds, parks, museums and libraries at our fingertips, we city dwellers are lucky that we don’t have to travel far to enjoy engaging activities with our kids.

But what about when you have only 30 minutes, you’re not motivated to load everyone in the car, or you want your little ones to burn off some energy before naptime? Consider an urban hike, beginning right outside your door.

Almost immediately after learning to walk, our son began asking to “walk on feet.” I love th...

NPN connects families in neighborhoods across Chicago.  Get inspired to check out a new part of the city or discover something fabulous just around the corner.  This stop:  Independence Park & Old Irving  Park with Cyrus - All aboard!  And then explore our other NPN Neighborhoods

When my wife and I moved to the Independence Park neighborhood 4 years ago we had yet to start our family and weren’t sure how easy it would be to transition to a new part of the city so far removed from o...

NPN connects families in neighborhoods across Chicago.  Get inspired to check out a new part of the city or discover something fabulous just around the corner.  This stop: Portage Park with Lisa - All aboard!  And then explore our other NPN Neighborhoods.

My husband and I moved to Portage Park ten years ago, a good five years before we had kids.  We moved here because we liked the safe, quiet neighborhood, the affordable housing, the easy parking and the access to Metra and the Blue Li...

NPN connects families in neighborhoods across Chicago.  Get inspired to check out a new part of the city or discover something fabulous just around the corner.  This stop: Southport Corridor with Megan - All aboard!  And then explore our other NPN Neighborhoods.

My eight years of Chicago living have mostly been spent around the Southport Corridor. The first time around, I had just graduated college and loved the energy and bustle of all of the restaurants, boutiques and yes, many bars....

Welcome to NPNʼs first Playdate of the month!  Here are a few easy and fun ways to fire up your 4th of July!

Hosting playdates are not only a great way to keep your child entertained and to see their friends. They are excellent opportunities to instill basic concepts in your child giving them the opportunity to learn how to plan, purchase for, set up and host something fun! We thought creating a playdate of the month would be a great way to inspire fun, seasonal and themed activi...

NPN connects families in neighborhoods across Chicago.  Get inspired to check out a new part of the city or discover something fabulous just around the corner.  This stop: Bucktown with Carly - All aboard! And then explore our other NPN Neighborhoods.

Bucktown is my neighborhood and my daughters and I love to check out different playgrounds and play spaces, plus grab grub at some kid-friendly spots on the way. 

Each year at this time, when all my neighbors are emerging from their w...

NPN connects families in neighborhoods across Chicago.  Get inspired to check out a new part of the city or discover something fabulous just around the corner.  This stop: East Lakeview with Beth - All aboard:

Lakeview East is bursting with fun things to do and, as the median age of our residents gets a bit older, everything around here gets more kid- and family-friendly!

My daughter loves riding her bike around the neighborhood and she’s already made some new friends at a few stop...

NPN connects families in neighborhoods across Chicago.  Get inspired to check out a new part of the city or discover something fabulous just around the corner.  First stop: Lincoln Square with Amy - All aboard!  And then explore our other NPN Neighborhoods.

I love living in Lincoln Square!  We have lived here for more than eight years and there is always something new to do or see. 

My boys always enjoy Tuesday morning trips to the farmer’s market (at 4700 N. Lincoln Ave.).  We’d s...