KidsOutAndAbout.com is Americas online network of local web sites that show parents the wealth of opportunities available for kids and families in local areas.
KidsOutAndAbout is not a blog (though we do have a great free weekly e-newsletter that provides scintillating wit and penetrating insight in addition to lists of things to do, and we do have a section for our weekly publishers notes), we are not exactly a community calendar (we have too much event information to fit in a calendar program), and we are not one of those flashy commercial sites that are trying to push their advertisers in front of your nose. We do accept advertising to make a living, of course, but we do so in a way that enhances your reading experience rather than detracts from it, and we only accept advertising from those who provide valuable resources for parents. (Youll never see one of those hideous "local mom discovers teeth whitening secret!" ads on our site!)
In early 2001, when Madison was one-and-a-half and I was just about to have Ella, I (Debra Ross, founder and publisher) realized how helpful it would be if there were some web site that gathered all of this information in one place. So on my maternity leave, I created the Rochester site of KidsOutAndAbout.com, with the help of several great programmers, a graphic designer, and a terrific nanny who helped me gather information.
Over the course of time, as word about the site spread, others in the greater Rochester community began to donate articles, information, resources, and suggestions. In 2010, we started launching outside of Rochester, and our sites now reach to Albany, Buffalo, Fairfield County, CT, Hartford, Hudson Valley, Westchester, Salt Lake City, Houston, Ann Arbor - Detroit, Saint Louis, Nashville, Austin, and San Antonio.