Moving to NYC: Queens/Brooklyn or Stamford, CT

Go with Stamford. I would love to have a new mom near my NYC home (very near Long Island City) but if you can get a single family home and the commute is not far, go for it. The city is crowded, dirty, and parking and noise is a nightmare. I love the parks and playgroups near me, but the pricing of everything is crazy. One bedroom lofts are going for $2200 a month plus utilities. Very few backyards in the new complexes (which gets difficult in the colder months) and I'm not so sure about washer/dryer access unless you're living in a condo or co-op complex. Those are insanely expensive around here. The only thing I will say for the city that you may not find in Stramford is convenience. Depending on where you live you may have three grocery stores, a few clothing shops, and at least one childrens activity place and school within easy walking distance. Outside the city you'd probably need a car to do most activities. However, you'd have more space for less money (most likely), cleaner and safer streets, and probably more down to earth moms to hang out with. But, I'm biased. I've lived in NYC my whole life and now that I have a child, I'm saving for a house in PA. I just don't think this is any place to raise a kid. If, however, you choose NY email me and I will share with you several places you can find moms groups, depending on the area you choose.
Good luck with the move, whatever you decide!

I live in the Ridgewood section of Queens. With a rent of $900 for two bedrooms, a backyard, and basement storage, and the convenience of a drug store around the corner, shopping within walking distance, and plenty of parks and child-friendly activities, who could ask for more?

Hi:
Well, most of the neighborhoods you mention are in Brooklyn. LI City is in Queens. Some areas are still "emerging" from LIC's previous state of industrial wasteland, but there are some hip, artistic urban oases there. If you are interested in Queens, you may want to look at neighborhoods like Bayside, Bellerose, Forest Hills, and Kew Gardens. We live in Bayside, and it is a short commute to Manhattan: 25 mins on the Long Island Railroad. LIRR doesn't go to GC, but to Penn Sta, however. Construction is in the works to connect the two stations, though, and one can take either a subway or brave the 15 min. walk to GC from Penn. Northeastern Queens (the neighborhoods I mentioned) will give you a more suburban experience than those in Brooklyn or other parts of Queens. There are high rises and apartment complexes, but the majority of residences are single or multi-family houses with yards on tree-lined streets. Real estate prices are high, but rentals are reasonable. The schools are good, and there are a lot of activities for preschoolers. Most people park in their driveways or on the street (usually not a problem).
If you want a more suburban experience in NY, I'd suggest NE Queens or that rental in Stamford. If you want a more urban one, the neighborhoods in Brooklyn you mentioned are family-friendly and mostly very livable, although it can be tough having a car. The rental situation may be different than what you anticipate, though...even pricier apartments are often walk-ups.
Hope this helps.
-K.

HI! I moved to NYC about 1 1/2 years ago from Los Angeles with my son who was then 3 years old and my daughter who was 6 months old. They are now 5 and 2 years old, respectively. I don't know too much about Queens or CT, but I know Brooklyn (Park Slope, Cobble Hill) is a lot like NYC. My husband works near Grand Central and we live on the Upper East Side. I absolutely love NYC!! It's really easy getting around with the kids via bus or taxi. I don't ride the subways much with my daughter. The subway stops where we live do not either have elevators or ones that work.

The biggest adjustment to the City was living in an apartment, especially with a baby and no washer/dryer in the apt. Usually when we were going through a transitional period with my daughter like sleeping through the night or taking the bottle (as opposed to the breast) we explained to our neighbors and they were very understanding that it would take a couple of days. We also gave them a bottle of wine.

Our building has a washer/dryer so I just do really big loads or I send our laundry out( costs around 70 Cents per pound). And everyplace delivers from the grocery store, dry cleaners to the restaurants. I really like FreshDirect to order our groceries. They are in Long Island and you place your order over the internet and you pay around $6 for delivery. They are very popular.

We also have a car in the City but we park it about 50 blocks from where we live because it's really expensive to park in our building. We actually don't use our car much because it's easier to use mass transit if you're in the City. We use our car if we want to visit Brooklyn, upstate NY, or NJ.

There are parks where we live with a lot of kids, especially if the weather is really nice. My son always sees one of his friends or finds another kid to play with. During the winter, it's a lot harder. You're indoors a lot because it's too cold and the winters are long from Dec. through March sometimes April. I go to an indoor playground and its really crowded but there's not much you can do. My building has a children's playground and I sign my son for a class to take during the winter. I've met other moms and a lot of nannies at the playground or at classes and in my building. When we first moved to NYC we were fortunate to find an apartment with a big yard. We had playground equipment for both of my kids. We lived there a year and then moved to another apartment because our landlord decided she wanted to return to the city. The apartment we currently live in does not have a yard and my kids don't miss it. They always want to go to the park where there are other kids , sandbox, and swings.

We're problably be here for 1 1/2 years and we considered about living elsewhere because of the rent. But for me, it's easier to get around and take the kids to the museums, parks, zoo, and restaurants. My husband works late and travels a lot so for me its a lot more convenient to live in the city. And the shopping is great!

Good Luck and I hope I was able to answer some of your questions.

The areas you are mentioning are Brooklyn. Not Queens. carroll gardens, cobble hill, boerum hill, park slope, are all areas in Brooklyn. These are excellent areas to live in if you're husband is working in NYC