Ropes courses, adventure parks and zip lines abound for big kids near Long Island, but did you know there's a tot-sized destination perfect for preschool thrill-seekers? Located on the grounds of The Adventure Park at Long Island, you'll find The Adventure Playground, a miniature version of the action-packed attraction where kids ages 3-6 can scale ropes, traverse log bridges, and even zip line.

This destination is a step up from your typical toddler playground, and its location, nestled in the woods, lends it some cool cred, while allowing tiny climbers to safely explore. Read on for details on our visit and find more outdoor destinations in our Guide to Parks and Playgrounds on Long Island.

Situated on the Long Island Sound, the town of Mamaroneck offers waterfront recreation and a hearty downtown, all of it walkable and destination-worthy. Whether you’re living here or just visiting, this desirable suburban community, encompassing the villages of Mamaroneck and Larchmont, packs plenty of family-friendly things to do.

The primary artery of Mamaroneck's business district is L-shaped: Mamaroneck Avenue, or the Avenue to locals, runs east to west and is loaded with shops and multicultural eateries. It intersects with Boston Post Road, which runs north to south along the Long Island Sound. While new businesses frequently arrive, a fair number have been entrenched for 50 to 100 years. The Mamaroneck Recreation Department offers inventive family programming year-round, and its harborfront park provides tons of summertime fun.

Read on for our favorite things to do in this charming waterfront town and find highlights of other local spots in our Guide to the Best Places to Live in Westchester and the Hudson Valley.

A family camping trip is fun anytime, but a getaway to the great outdoors is especially appealing this summer. We have found several Connecticut campgrounds with fun weekend themes and great kid-friendly amenities for families to enjoy on a camping trip.

Don't forget to check out Mommy Poppins' Day Trip Guide for Connecticut, our list of short hiking trails and longer hiking trails, and our entire summer fun guide for more outdoor adventures.

The best thing to come out of the past year has got to be the flood of creativity in event planning. As quickly as we lost some activities we loved, other new family-friendly, socially distanced experiences sprang up, from drive-through dinosaur museums to walk-through candylands (with a few of hands-off haunted houses and holiday displays in between). The latest innovative addition to the LA event scene is Clue Live!— an in-person, open-air version of the classic board game. Attendees solve a familiar murder mystery: was it Colonel Mustard in the library with a candlestick? Mrs. Peacock in the kitchen with a lead pipe? The walking adventure in Century City brings all of these characters to life this summer so you can play detective.

There is nothing quite like immersing yourself in the pages of a good book. We scoured summer reading lists, book reviews, librarian suggestions, and personal picks to create this list of our top 100 kids' books — page-turners that we hope will transport kids to that state where they lose all sense of time and enter a world filled with imagination. From early readers to young adults, classic books to picture books, check out these top kids' books for a great read any time of year. Find even more great books in our guide to children's books and literature.

From a broken arm or an unexpected cavity to weekly therapy sessions or prescription medications, it's alarming just how quickly healthcare expenses can pile up for families. And, as a parent who has opened more than one jaw-dropping medical bill, I was totally intrigued when I first read about Sesame, the affordable direct-to-patient healthcare marketplace that's making medical expenses more transparent and affordable. Urgent care appointments starting at $26? Tell me more...

Sesame's easy to use website lets you search for, book, and pay for doctor visits and medical services in the Houston area and beyond, all with clear upfront pricing. With no membership fees, no insurance mark-ups, and no surprise bills in your mailbox, you can use Sesame to book in-person and telehealth visits directly with doctors across 40+ specialties.

By allowing the practitioners to set their own prices, eliminating administrative costs, and cutting the restrictive health insurance red tape, Sesame says visits booked on the platform can be up to 60% more affordable than when using health insurance. And, while the marketplace was created with people who are uninsured or underinsured in mind, anyone can use the platform and benefit from the conveninece and transparency it provides. 

If you've been browsing "early readers" at the bookstore or you've eagerly Amazon Prime'd "kindergarten books" for your kiddo like I have, you've likely already noticed that not all books for budding readers seem to be created equal. While these brief books are all known for large text, short sentences, easy-to-follow plots, and loads of sight words, the simplicity of the stories can sometimes make them, well, dull.

Sometimes you just need to get your kids moving. Push-ups are a great way to get the blood flowing, work on endurance, and help to build muscle strength. Of course with kids it's best to turn any kind of exercise into a game! From 'Pat-a-Cake' to the singing the ABCs, we've rounded up 10 push-up challenges and games that are anything but boring. Remember, the first one to fall or break from the push-up position is out. 

For more active games to do with kids check out our monster exercise list.