Hey Queens parents: Do you have a kid who's pleading for dance lessons but you dread the thought of schlepping to Manhattan or Brooklyn? That was my worry when my preschooler started begging for ballet. But after doing a little research and talking to many of my fellow Queens moms, I was happy to discover that I don't need to leave the borough to find quality dance studios for children. Bonus: Dance classes in Queens tend to be significantly less expensive than their Manhattan and even Brooklyn counterparts, and many offer scholarships or sliding-scale tuition for those who qualify.

Some Queens dance studios are local favorites that have been serving their communities for years, like Landrum in Whitestone and Heavenly Bodies Dance Studio in Ozone Park. Others, like Astoria's Sol Dance Center, are part of the wave of new kid-friendly businesses opening up throughout the borough. And if you have a dance-loving boy, don't worry: Most of these programs offer classes for boys, including ballet and hip-hop.

Here are 12 Queens dance studios offering classes for kids and teens who are serious about ballet, tap, modern and other dance styles. You can find other enriching programs in our Classes Guide and Directory Listings.

We wrap up our month-long focus on Little Neck, Queens with a roundup of the best places to play in the bucolic neighborhood. As a Queens native, I frequently take my kids to the area to explore the attraction-packed Alley Pond Park and to feed the animals at the Queens County Farm Museum. If you're looking to get a taste of country life without leaving the city limits, Little Neck is a great day trip filled with lots of wonderful, green places to explore. You won't believe you're in NYC!

When looking for truly unique presents for my family, I skip the big chains and shop locally at some of my favorite independent stores. Lucky for me, many of my go-to gift spots are located right in my home borough of Queens.

Over the past few years, lots of cool, locally owned Queens boutiques have been opening up or expanding. These are the kind of places where you can pick up interesting (and often eco-friendly) toys, clothes, books, gear and other items for children and sometimes adults, too. If you don't have time to stop in, most of these stores have websites so you can buy online while still supporting a community business.

Our series of posts on Sunset Park continues with a look at some of our favorite family-family restaurants in the area. As the home of Brooklyn's Chinatown, Sunset Park has long been a foodie destination for authentic dim sum and Chinese cuisine, mostly on or around Eighth Avenue, which is where the neighborhood's annual Lunar New Year Parade takes place.

Sunset Park also has a rich Hispanic population, so there are a number of eateries serving up staples like Mexican tacos and Puerto Rican mofongo along Fourth and Fifth Avenues, plus one spot that harks back to the area's original settlers: the Danish Athletic Club. And while overall the community has been relatively untouched by the hipster artisanal dining scene in neighboring Park Slope, there are a few upstarts in the South Slope section of the nabe, like beer garden Greenwood Park, which occasionally hosts kids' events on weekends.

Here are our top 10 places to eat in Sunset Park with kids.

We finish up our series of posts about Astoria, Queens with a roundup of our favorite family-friendly restaurants in the area. While Astoria is rightfully known for its Greek eateries, you'll find lots of other awesome ethnic cuisines in this diverse neighborhood, too. Our list includes Czech, Japanese, Cajun, Middle Eastern and good ol' American burgers spots, plus two of our top ten destination family restaurants in all of Queens. Here are 13 kid-friendly restaurants to check out in Astoria.

We continue our month-long focus on Astoria, Queens with an in-depth look at its parks and playgrounds. Its namesake green space—the beautiful, 60-acre, waterfront Astoria Park—is unquestionably the neighborhood's crown jewel boasting NYC's largest outdoor public pool, a popular playground and great photo ops with the Hell Gate and RFK Bridges.

But there are other smaller Astoria parks and playgrounds worth checking out, too. Some even offer FREE summer programming and beloved annual family festivals. Here are 9 parks and playgrounds to explore in Astoria, Queens.

While it's true that St. Patrick's Day (make that season) is upon us, my family and I are always on the lookout for great kid-friendly Irish pubs year-round. We love the yummy Irish dishes (soda bread, corned beef and cabbage, shepherd's pie, just like my mom used to make), the drinks, the vibe and the live Irish music.

Many Irish pubs in New York City have kid-friendly hours in the afternoons or early evenings when families are welcome to drop in and enjoy some authentic cuisine and culture. From my personal experience, we're usually able to avoid the more adult crowds by going to off-the-beaten-path places. That's why my list of favorite NYC Irish pubs for families includes some out-of-the-way ones, like Rocky Sullivan's in Red Hook or the Dog and Duck in Sunnyside. Be sure to check the official websites to see if there are any special events going on around St. Patrick's Day—or anytime.

While there are plenty of great drop-in indoor play spaces in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, as a mother of two young girls under age 5, the deciding factor for me is always financial. Can I afford to take both of them without hocking my wedding ring? If the answer is no then I have to move on, regardless of how fabulous the indoor playground is or how stir crazy my kids are.

In an attempt to save money this winter, I decided to look into whether any play spaces offered discounts for siblings or (even better) charged a flat fee per family. Turns out my research paid off: I found 10 indoor romping spots in New York City that fit the bill (make that reduced the bill). So skip the pawn shop: Here are drop-in play spaces with deals for siblings.