Local Playgroup Is All Fun and Games

It’s Monday morning. Traffic is light but steady, and pedestrians are keeping a careful watch. Construction is also underway but not to the detriment of traffic–or pedestrians.

With all the trappings of a cityscape, the makeshift street scene was fully powered by the pitter patter of tiny feet on the gymnasium floor at St. Catherine’s of Siena Church in Mountain Lakes.

Welcome to Moms and Tots—or in the case of this group’s era—Dads. The automobiles of choice were courtesy of Little Tykes and the buildings by Fisher Price: Timeless old-school classics suitable for the tiny hands that take charge of them. Pajamas were the preferred attire, at least on this particularly wintery Monday.

While the exact year of origin remains somewhat of a mystery, the group continues to span across generations, and the baton-passing continues.

Tiny Tots

Today, Jesse Mynahan of Mountain Lakes, a father of four including twin four-year-old boys Veer and Arjan, is at the helm. Mynahan joined when his two now school-aged children were small. The playgroup is open to children 12 months to 4 years old, and the only ask is a non-perishable donation for nonprofit Fr. English Food Pantry in Paterson.

Prior to Mynahan, Laker Lauren Ficara manned the group, initially attending when her now 5-year-old, Rona, was a baby and then taking the reins from 2014 to 2019. She also has two other children, Maeve, 10, and Donovan 8.

“The program started long before me,” she says. “My husband grew up in town, and I believe as a kid he was even involved in it.”

In addition to Jesse, the most recent group is commandeered by a number of caregivers such as Alex Fila of Boonton, a nanny who was minding the store of brothers Michael and Leo Naughton.

Their mom, Amanda, found out about the playgroup through a friend when Michael was 2 and Leo was 8 months, and it’s been a win all around.

“It’s a great environment for toddlers to freely play and meet other children in the community. Especially in the winter,” she says. It’s a great place to go to when you want to get out of the house.”

Michael and Leo are both big brothers to Jack, who was just 8 weeks old at the time of publishing, and Fila, the nanny, has been with the growing family almost from the get-go, about two and a half years. For her, attending to little ones is more of a joy than an actual job,” she says. “I just really love children.”

Marleni Menendez, a babysitter from Union, echoes those sentiments. She boasts 18 years of childcare experience including seven with her current family, and brings first-hand motherhood to the table as well.

On this recent Monday, she was keeping tabs on Francis Regina, another 4-year-old boy from Mountain Lakes, who was at the wheel, alongside the other children.

Francis is one of the regulars and has been attending the group for about a year. “He goes every week and he loves it,” says his mother Sarah Regina, who, like Mynahan, has three older school-aged children ranging in grades from sixth to third.

Francis even made some friends—the Mynahan twins—and just in time for their kindergarten debuts next year.

While the group operates within the church, St. Catherine’s membership is not required in order to participate. The only ask is a canned-food or monetary donation for Fr. English Food Pantry. Last year, the playgroup raised a few hundred dollars for the cause, Jesse says.

Moms & Tots meets every Monday from 9:30 to 11 a.m. at St. Catherine’s of Siena on North Pocono Road in Mountain Lakes. For more information contact Jesse Mynahan jesse.mynahan@gmail.com with any questions.