Dinner and a Movie!

The RMH-NY families know that a home cooked meal provided by the JW Marriott Essex House is not one to skip, resulting in a full dining room on Thursday. The chefs prepared a tasty short rib, chicken breast, fingerling potatoes and more. In addition, the volunteer group decorated the tables throughout the dining room and setup a St. Patrick’s day themed DIY cookie station.

Down in the playroom the Thursday Team setup a popcorn stand for the children to grab their own box of popcorn from a variety of flavors. The activity for the night was movie night, featuring the iconic movie, The Lion King. Children gathered from all areas of the playroom to come together and watch the classic.

Submitted by Alyssa Ahern

Pizza Party and Bath Salts

The Sunday Night Team hosted a Pizza Party in the dining room and afterwards they invited the families to the playroom for a DIY Bath Salts activity. Sunday Night Volunteer, Kimberly, led the activity and it was a welcomed idea. Using a few simple ingredients with many options of perfume fragrances, the Sunday Night Team and families were extremely creative mixing scents and enjoying the different aromas. There was lavender, rain, hibiscus, lime, and so many more and the combinations were endless. The moms and kids liked the challenge of creating a unique fragrance and hopefully they enjoyed the benefits of the calming and relaxing salts they crafted afterwards.

Submitted by Helena Russo

Shake & Paint!

Oh what a night! Wednesday, April 4th started out with a delicious dinner provided by Shake Shack. Everyone was so excited for the cheeseburgers, veggie burgers, hot dogs, French fries and most importantly the milk shakes! Todd, from the Board of Associates coordinated the dinner and helped serve as well. He mentioned that the House has had a great connection with Shake Shack for a long time and they are so grateful for all of their efforts. The dinner was such a hit, there was absolutely nothing leftover at the end.

After dinner, everyone was invited downstairs for an exciting art program. Ryan and Cary, from The Paint Place had canvases ready for everyone to paint. First, everyone could choose what they would like to paint and then Ryan or Cary would sketch it out on their canvas so that they could follow those lines while painting. Parents and children both had a blast mixing colors, getting messy and showing off their masterpieces at the end. We were so thankful for the enthusiasm that Ryan and Cary brought to the playroom Wednesday night.

Submitted By Kelly Quane

Spin Art!

On Sunday, March 3rd the Sunday night team took creativity for a spin, with Spin Art! After a delicious dinner sponsored by the Mount Holyoke Club of NYC the children headed to the playroom to take color explosion to a new level. They picked their favorite colors and added them to a spinning piece of paper to become young Picassos, making colorful abstract designs. The children also had the choice to decorate hats with colorful paints. Whatever their choice, it’s safe to say Sunday was a vibrant, colorful night.

Submitted by Coli Bacharach

March Madness is Glowing!

March Madness was in full swing at the house on Thursday, March 28! Volunteers from Marsh transformed the dining room into a basketball arena complete with all the spectator favorites, including souvenirs! Regardless of who was on your bracket, everyone agreed that the soft pretzels and basketball themed dessert bar were the real winners of the evening!

After dinner, the fun continued downstairs with a glow-in-the-dark party! Between the balloon tossing and glow stick building, it was the place to be. A few families even received makeovers courtesy of glow in the dark paint.

Our volunteers even got in on the fun letting the kids paint their faces. We can’t wait to hear the reactions they received on their subway ride home!

Submitted by Liz Lighthall

Macaroni for Breakfast!

On Saturday, March 16th, Breakfast Club #3 spiced up the morning meal with St. Patty’s day themed macaroni art. The lucky children who participated used what they usually associate with dinner — spaghetti, fettuccine, farfalle and more — to make macaroni four leaf clovers, hearts and even necklaces. The children got festive as they designed St. Patty’s day landscapes on colorful sheets of paper, made entirely of different types of noodles. After they finished creating their designs they went back to their rooms with a sudden, inexplicable craving for macaroni and cheese.

Submitted by Coli Bacharach