Store for New Moms
You can pick them out of a crowd: circles under their eyes, hair slightly mussed, a look of distraction bordering on desperation clouding their faces. They are brand-new mothers, sleep-deprived and overwhelmed. But they have a haven—a maternity support center called Kangaroo Kids. Also a clothing and baby equipment resale store and a coffeehouse, this is a place where new mamas can get help solving nursing problems and exchange necessary newborn information. With a helpful and nurturing staff, the place has the feel of a favorite blanket. 10090 Manchester, 314-835-9200, kangarookidsonline.com
Dinner With the Kids
Once you have the little ones in tow, it is always a challenge to find a restaurant with a) good food, b) a cocktail if you so desire, c) a fun atmosphere and, most important, d) freedom for your children to speak at a kid's volume. Dewey's Pizza meets all those needs and beyond with a relaxed, children-welcome vibe, great gourmet pizza and first-rate salads. 124 N. Kirkwood, 314-821-7474; 559 North & South, 314-726-3434; deweyspizza.com
New Clothes
Petunia's shelves are stocked with the likes of Knuckleheads, Hula Mula, Mischa Lulu, Tea Collection and ZAZA Couture. Translation: the hippest duds for kids. The recently opened third location will make any pint-size fashionista swoon (sizes newborn through 14 for girls and newborn through 7 for boys). Be sure to have a look (and laugh) at the message T's from Petunia's own line. 169 Carondelet Plaza, 314-721-3133, babypetunia.com; two additional locations
Girls' Birthday Party
It's 2008: The idea that a girls' birthday party needs ponies, tea parties or makeup kits has been officially retired. More substantive fun awaits your girls at the Saint Louis Science Center, home to hundreds of exhibits and the interactive Discovery Room. The center does offer officially catered, private-room events (the Flying Comets Birthday Bash is $220 for 10 guests), but you might also just buy the number of tickets you need, then head elsewhere in the city for your ice cream and cake. 5050 Oakland, 314-289-4400, slsc.org
Boys' Birthday Party
In our day, you got one birthday activity. You could go to a mall arcade, roller skate at the Palace or run around the zoo, and that was it. Boys these days, however, can wage battle in the ball pit, play pinball, visit the aquarium and navigate several stories' worth of caves, slides and jungle gyms, all in one place—the City Museum—all in one day and with all-you-can-eat pizza and a cookie cake to boot. Rock on. 701 N. 15th, 314-359-4787, citymuseum.org/birthdays.html
Furniture
City Sprouts will make you want to be 2 years old again ... Oh, the fun you could have decorating your "crib" in überhip brands like Dwell, Nurseryworks and Stokke. Durable furniture with sleek lines, mod rocking chairs and toy boxes worthy of placement in any Neutra-designed home are the norm here. 6354 Delmar, 314-726-9611, citysprouts.com
Kids' Day Camp
Sometimes the old way just seems to be the best way. That can be the case for places where little children spend their summer days, splashing in the pool, playing foursquare and hide-and-seek. Fundamental pre–Super Mario fun. Like the kind Camp Pegnita specializes in. Founded in 1948, the camp is nestled away at the end of a residential street in Kirkwood. Situated on 6 acres and open to kids ages 3 to 12, the camp's activities include two swims, archery, campfires, hiking, studying nature and, of course, arts and crafts. Loop up that lantern. 1280 Simmons, 314-822-2601, camppegnita.com
Youth Sports Program
Every fall and spring for nearly two decades, boys and girls with mental or physical disabilities have been cleating up at Soccer Park to take part in the Special Needs Soccer Association (SPENSA). Loved by the kids, their parents and volunteers—including top area coaches and players for the SLU women's team—the free SPENSA program is a true reminder of the value of teamwork and the satisfaction of sport. 314-894-1339, spensa1.teamopolis.com
Kids' Entertainment
You can't get too goofy for kids. If you have any doubts, invite Rob Compton, otherwise known as Babaloo, a comedian, songwriter and musician, to your child's next fete. "Babaloo is just really funny!" says Hilary Cedergreen, mother of three. "He makes up songs that are ridiculous and silly, and he presents them in a way that makes the kids crack up." Subject matter includes sidesplitting booger and fart jokes, but along the way, he throws in do-the-right-thing messages. He does freeze dances while partygoers bang on buckets and bop with beanbags. "It's wild," says Cedergreen, "but that's why the kids love him." 888-583-9514, babaloomusicandfun.com
Kids' Tutoring
What better place to go to help your child overcome difficulties in school than The Churchill Center & School, which specializes in helping children cope with and conquer learning problems? Anyone can go there to be tutored. The staff is composed of teachers who have trained at Churchill and may still be on the faculty. No contracts are signed. Parents just set up times and a convenient place to meet the tutor for as many sessions as they would like. The rate is hourly. 1021 Municipal Center, 314-997-4343, churchillschool.org
