Photo uber mommy shorts

Last Friday, Mazzy and I got the treat of our lives. As part of a promotion with Uber (that's the popular car service app that allows you to access an available driver at the tap of a button), we were given a car to take us anywhere we wanted to go in the city for an entire day. 

Yes, I do realize how exceptionally lucky I am. (Mazzy does not, but hopefully, she will one day.)

Our car was part of a new service called uberFAMILY sponsored by Care.com, which outfits their best drivers with an on-demand carseat. That's exciting news for city parents, like myself, who usually don't take their kids anywhere out of walking distance.

Our original plan was to go to the Empire State Building (Mazzy has never been to the top) but we woke up to heavy clouds and I had to come up with something new.

What could be more exciting for my four-year-old daughter than being at the top of NYC?

It took about an hour of coffee-fueled brain power, but finally, an idea began to form. I was going to give Mazzy the pinkest day possible.

I started by pulling out Mazzy's pinkest dress.

She countered by pulling out my pinkest dress.

Uh-oh. This was not part of my plan.

I sucked it up and put on the dress. We were not just going out on the town— we were going out on the town in matching bright pink outfits. So be it.

Our Uber car arrived at 11am and our driver Jorge got out to open up the doors for us. Wow, this was going to be FANCY. Before we got in, Mazzy made us both twirl for the doorman. Thank God no one else was in the lobby.

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All the uberFAMILY drivers have been specially trained by The Car Seat Lady, so they really know what they are doing. I let Jorge buckle Mazzy into the carseat and adjust the straps— which was awesome, because untwisting carseat straps is probably my least favorite part about traveling with kids.

Our first stop was Pink Lemon Nail Salon on the Upper East Side for mommy daughter manicures— a first for Mazzy. Needless to say— she was excited.

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It took Mazzy .05 seconds to pick out the pinkest nail polish in the place (Orly La Vida Loca) and then a good ten minutes to okay my selection (Chanel Rose Exuberant).

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Then she magically transformed into my dream child and sat patiently while the technician did her nails.

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No ants in the pants. No sudden urges to use the bathroom. No begging for snacks. It was beautiful. She even sat still for the ten minutes they told her to keep her hands in the dryer. And if you must know, by the time we left the place and got back into our uberFAMILY car, Mazzy's nails were perfect and I had somehow messed up two of mine.

Thank you Jorge once again for strapping Mazzy safely into the carseat. All ten nails would have been ruined otherwise.

Next up— LUNCH.

I know Mazzy could give a crap about lunch so I decided to have Jorge stop at a deli for take-out. I got two plain turkey sandwiches and we ate them in the car on the way to Dylan's Candy Shop. Am I the best mom or what? (Don't answer that.)

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Mazzy is pretty good about regulating herself around candy and enjoyed running around the place more than selecting stuff to eat. Which was fine by me. At the end of the day, she chose a handful of pink gummies and a lollipop and I ended up filling our bag with licorice just for me.

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Then Jorge picked us up and we were off to the Plaza Hotel.

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What's at the Plaza Hotel?

THE ELOISE SHOP!

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The only place pinker than Mazzy's closet. 

There, she tried on dress-up clothes, played a pink piano, wrote Eloise a card and ended up in the lounge glued to the television watching Eloise the Movie.

Mazzy could have stayed there all day if it wasn't for our tea reservation at the Palm Court.

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It's been a little dream of mine to have high tea with Mazzy at the Palm Court one day. I wasn't sure she would appreciate it but I was wrong. She entered the grand room "oooohing" and "ahhhhing" over the high ceilings and fancy furniture.

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In our bright pink dresses, Mazzy and I looked like the two biggest tourists in the place. I fought the urge to scream, "I usually wear black like all of you!" and quietly took my seat. Mazzy scampered into the huge chair across from me with a high back.

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I ordered Mazzy the Eloise tea service and I got the one meant for adults— even though Eloise's tea sounded more my speed.

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Mazzy sipped pink lemonade while I indulged in a glass of pink champagne. It felt appropriate. Then we were each served three tiered trays filled with sandwiches, scones, and sweets. The plate of sweets nearly blew Mazzy's mind.

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She held it together almost until we got the check. ALMOST.

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After we were done, I texted Jorge to meet us out front. Upon exiting, Mazzy spied the fountain across the street. After a full day of acting like a mini-adult, Mazzy let her four-year-old self out by making wishes, naming the ducks and running circles around the fountain while Jorge waited patiently by the car.

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Having a chauffeur in Manhattan (even for one day) certainly changes everything.

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At 4pm, we headed back home. Mazzy fell asleep in the carseat on the way back. 

I would have taken a picture except I fell asleep too.

I'd say the day was a success.

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If you'd like to test out uberFAMILY and their new on-demand carseat option at a discount, follow the simple rules below:

1) Download the App and enter promo code MOMMYSHORTS for $30 off your first Uber ride!

2) Request uberFAMILY and be connected to a highly rated driver with a car seat.

If you already have Uber, enter the code FAMILY to unlock the uberFAMILY option in your app. 

For more details on uberFAMILY, visit: blog.uber.com/uberfamily

Discount is good for ANY Uber city in the US. Currently the uberFAMILY service is available in NYC only, but will be expanding to other cities soon. There is a comprehensive overview of all service related FAQs here: blog.uber.com/uberfamilyfaq. 

Uber partnered with Care.com, the world’s largest online destination for finding and managing family care, to launch the new uberFAMILY service. As a parent of a young child, especially in New York City, getting from point A to B can present its challenges. In teaming up with Uber, Care.com is working to change the conversation on child car safety by making it easier and safer for families to manage their transportation needs. More information about uberFAMILY can be found here: blog.uber.com/uberfamily.
 
This post was sponsored by Uber, but all of the thoughts, opinions and fancy pink dresses are my own.