Great playgrounds aren't the first thing you picture when you think about Midtown West. However, if you move away from Times Square and roam the side streets, you'll be surprised at how many parks and playgrounds you'll find.

Of course Midtown West's most famous green space is Bryant Park, and we could easily do an entire post on all of the cool things for kids there, from the carousel to the seasonal ice-skating rink. The one thing it doesn't have? A playground. As we conclude our month-long focus on Midtown West, we take a look at our top five outdoor romping spots in the area, from small local playgrounds to amenity-filled multiacre parks to a public plaza with an iconic Tom Otterness play structure. You can find all of our posts about the neighborhood in our Midtown West Kids Guide including our roundup of indoor places to play.

I'm one of those parents who likes to plan. You know the type: I buy a big wall calendar every December and take strange pleasure in filling it all up with birthdays, class schedules and my family's favorite annual events. There are certain New York City celebrations we love so much, my daughter and I try to go every year, like the interactive art-filled Figment on Governors Island, the massive Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair and Street Games, the Parks Department's tribute to old-school pastimes.

Since we've enjoyed such a great response to our NYC Go Lists, which highlight the absolute best things to do with kids every month, I know I'm not the only mom out there who likes to plan ahead. And with festival season kicking into high gear this month, we figured it was a great time to round up our top 25 annual festivals for families, so we could put them on your radar. Every single pick on our list is either an event my family or one of our bloggers has been to personally with kids, or an annual favorite endorsed by our friends and readers. In other words, they're really worth your time and money—in fact in most cases they don't cost a penny.

You can find additional kid-friendly celebrations in our NYC Festivals Guide, including our list of the city's best annual parades.

It's been an incredibly emotional week, from the tragic attacks in Boston to the new ELA Assessments to the gun control craziness. Even though Mommy Poppins' mission is to help families go out and have fun in NYC and beyond, we can't help but acknowledge these concerns since they're weighing on our minds. We suspect you're thinking about them, too.

And yet in stressful times, it's particularly important to find ways to enrich our lives by enjoying ourselves and spending quality time with our kids. Happily, spring is a time of renewal and celebration. There are lots of outdoor festivals, kids' concerts and new family-friendly shows this season. Plus with Earth Day coming up on Monday, there are many ways to honor our planet and give back to nature in NYC, New Jersey and on Long Island.

Since the weather looks iffy this weekend, it may be a good time to explore the new Legoland Discovery Center in Westchester—just make sure you buy your tickets in advance. And if you've already been there, our New Jersey site has a roundup of cool places to play with Legos, besides your kid's room, of course.

Looking ahead to May, our Travel site has a slew of great getaway deals for Mother's Day and beyond that sure beat even the fanciest NYC brunch. And if your child's a movie fan who attended screenings at last month's New York International Children's Film Festival, check out this cool kid critic contest our LA site has going. If your brood saw any of the flicks playing at the Los Angeles Children's Film Festival when they screened in NYC, they can enter the contest, too and get published on the site to boot.

Whatever you end up doing this weekend, even if it's just hanging around the house, we hope you and your kids are able to relax and enjoy each other's company. That's my family's goal! Here's what else we covered in NYC this week: