Battery Park City

You don't have to be Jewish to enjoy Purim. Often called the Jewish Halloween, Purim is a super-fun holiday when kids can do some of their favorite things, like dress up, play games, eat treats and make lots of noise.

Inspired by the great biblical tale of Queen Esther, who saved the Jews from annihilation by standing up to her husband's evil adviser Haman, Purim is celebrated by reading the Megillah (Esther's story), noshing on hamantaschen (triangular fruit-filled pastries meant to represent Haman's ears—gruesome but tasty) and rejoicing in a carnival-like atmosphere.

This year, Purim officially begins on the evening of Saturday, February 23 and ends at sundown the next day, and most Jewish cultural institutions are marking the holiday that weekend. We've rounded up the top 10 Purim celebrations in New York City, including colorful carnivals, holiday performances and even costume parades.

Children are natural inventors. They're always creating, building and tinkering, and coming up with inventive ways to solve life's problems. Take my oldest son, who after watching me scramble for his little sister's discarded sippy cup for the umpteenth time proposed that we add pop-out wings to her stroller to catch whatever she chucked.

While he never did figure out how to develop that product, he's certainly kept busy over the past few years inventing all sorts of other things at a variety of creative places. Here are eight NYC spots where your budding Benjamin Franklins can be inspired to make robots, model buildings, video games and lots of other cool stuff.

Due to Hurricane Sandy, most parades on Wednesday, October 31 have been canceled, even the huge annual Village Halloween Parade. A few are still going on, but some we can't confirm. If in doubt, assume it has been canceled!

Everybody loves a parade, which means we're all absolutely smitten with Halloween parades. While we think every family should take the kids to the big Greenwich Village Halloween Parade at least once, it can be pretty scary. It's always insanely crowded and loud, and many of the costumes are risqué, gory or in poor taste (which we happen to love, but we realize not every parent feels that way).

If you're ready to watch it, the parade starts at 7pm on October 31 and winds its way up Sixth Avenue from Spring Street to 16th Street. (Plan to arrive much earlier though if you want to snag a good viewing spot.) But if your family isn't up for the Greenwich Village Halloween Parade just yet, there are plenty of smaller, kid-friendly NYC neighborhood parades, and many are part of larger fun-filled Halloween festivals. We've rounded up 19 of these community-driven Halloween processions for families to watch or march in, and most of them are FREE. If you don't live in a great trick-or-treating area, these parades are also a wonderful way to hunt for candy in another community. And check out our Halloween Fun Guide for even more seasonal fun.