Our first links post of 2015 is a grab bag of odds (a remake of John Waters' infamous Pink Flamingos with kids!) and ends (the closure of Lower East Side mainstay Streit's Matzo Factory), plus important news if you're applying to kindergarten. We've also got the scoop on the newest residents at the Central Park Zoo, a rise in the cost of admission at a beloved kids' museum, dinosaurs on Staten Island, FREE coding classes for teens, and other news of interest to NYC families.

We're keeping our last links post of the year brief due to the holidays. But we've got (mostly) good news to share this week, including a pair of adorable new Central Park Zoo residents, special needs ice sledding at Brooklyn's McCarren Rink, how to save money on pet adoptions and NYC culture spots, and perhaps most important, where to score FREE ice cream during holiday break.

NYC, it is a-changing. The end of the year marks the end of the line for two of our top indoor drop-in play spots: Brooklyn Heights restaurant/play space The Moxie Spot and Soho's beloved Scholastic Store. As if that didn't put enough of a damper on our holiday spirits, two of our favorite annual seasonal displays aren't lighting up this year.

But all of our news isn't depressing. On the bright side, a Brooklyn makerspace and a popular kids' yoga studio are both moving to spacious new digs, FREE wireless Internet hubs are coming to public libraries and McDonald's is actually serving something you'll want to give your kids: college scholarships!

It's a truly mixed bag of news this Thanksgiving week. Things to be thankful for: the opening of a new cat cafe (with adoptions!), the announced marine center in Brooklyn Bridge Park and the plan to reopen Central Park's Lasker Rink on Thanksgiving. But there are also things we'll undoubtedly be griping about during our turkey dinners, like the closing of a beloved 110-year-old treat spot in the East Village and the end of Posman Books in Grand Central. Plus, how kids can contribute their art work to a MoMA PS1 display, help your local library get much-needed funds and other news of interest to NYC families.

Last year, the big Black Friday news was that many stores were actually opening on Thursday. For 2014, that trend continues with select stores opening earlier than ever on Thanksgiving Day—Old Navy is throwing down the record-breaking gauntlet of 4pm, and many other chains are following suit with 5 and 6pm doorbusters. (At this rate, people will be having Thanksgiving turkey breakfasts.)

More shopping hours probably means even more shoppers. So as always, you should be prepared to stand on long lines and dash through crowded throngs of fellow bargain hunters while wielding your shopping cart like a weapon. For those who love low prices (and honestly, who doesn't?), Black Friday (or should we rename it Thrifty Thursday?) is almost as exciting as Thanksgiving itself.

We've got the scoop on where, when and how to make the most of Black Friday sales (whenever they start) in New York City, as well as details on another shopping event that's much dearer to our buying local hearts: Small Business Saturday.

While we have some bummer things to report (a couple of closures, such is the way of NYC), most of our news is great. We've got cool new kids' businesses, two awesome entertainment announcements (hello Toy Story 4!) and culture discounts for families. Plus, the scoop on a plan to transform struggling city public schools by helping the students and their families. Check it all out below!

Got creative kids? Young dancers, actors, writers and even circus performers are all needed for a variety of upcoming performing opportunities. Plus, Build-A-Bear opens a new location in Times Square, Kids' Night on Broadway tickets go on sale soon, one of our favorite under-the-radar Brooklyn museums sets a closing date and other news of interests to NYC families.

Got tots obsessed with Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Then they'll love getting a chance to see the creatures up close at the Central Park Zoo's soon-to-open bear habitat. Plus, we've got the scoop on a new enrichment center for kids on the Lower East Side, the closing of one of our favorite East Village family eateries and the sad news that the Bronx's only ice-skating spot, the Van Cortlandt Park rink, won't be open this season. All that and more in this edition of our biweekly news post.