Prior to opening La La Land, I spent my entire career in marketing for various consumer packaged goods brands, with one of them being a baby products company. In that role, I learned how much research went into all aspects of childhood development and the positive impact that unstructured free play has on the growth and development of young children. While all that information was helpful to me as a business woman who was marketing a brand, I didn’t realize how important it would be to me until I became a mom myself. It's kind of like all those parenting books you read when your baby was on the way. They’re full of great information, but none of it really means anything until you’re actually in it–then it all starts to make sense!

You’ll probably always remember where you were the day New York shut down in March of 2020. I know I’ll never forget it; the day New York pressed pause was the day that I pressed play on the chapter of my life as a mother. (What can I say–my girl has had a flair for the dramatics since day one!) Having her at the height of Covid greatly restricted where we could go and who we were able to see. Not only was I going stir crazy from being inside all the time, but I felt like my daughter was too! She was a different baby when we’d spend some time outside or have a change of scenery. Once everything started opening up again, it was important to me to take her to different classes and Open Play sessions. I wanted her to be able to safely interact with other children and also explore a place that was different from her home.

The problem here was that I was a working mom, and the locations providing classes didn’t offer a lot of flexibility. You’d have to commit to a certain number of sessions, with hours mostly falling during the middle of the workday. I found myself committing to Mommy and Me classes that I knew I couldn’t physically attend, and I found it nearly impossible to juggle both work and these classes on an ongoing basis. I would end up paying for classes we couldn’t participate in, and then I would feel terrible that I was potentially taking a spot from someone who would have been able to make it every week. While the Open Play sessions I found offered me the flexibility that I was looking for, there was nothing less than 30 minutes away. Now, to someone who isn’t a parent, sure, 30 minutes doesn’t sound like a lot. But the parents out there know: when 30 minutes cuts into nap time… it’s a whole. different. ballgame. I’d find myself singing and basically dancing in the car just to try and keep my daughter awake. We’ve all been there. (Raise your hand if you’ve sung Baby Shark or the Hot Dog Song on a loop for 45 minutes in the car!) I knew for sure that I couldn’t be the only parent putting on a concert in my car daily—it turns out, I wasn’t. And with that, the idea of La La Land was born–an Open Play space located right in the heart of Babylon Village where you can “pay as you PLAY!” Plain and simple: no commitment or minimum number of classes required!

It has been so amazing to see La La Land through my daughter’s eyes and we have already built so many amazing memories here as a family! I’m looking forward to watching imaginations run wild, little explorers discovering new things, and seeing your family create your own memories at La La Land. I hope you get as much joy out of watching your little ones learn and thrive here. Come play with us soon, and if you see me while visiting, come say hello!