Back on June 29, we hosted a special Mommy Poppins family cruise on the Clipper City Tall Ship with Manhattan by Sail. The sold-out voyage was such a huge success that many readers asked if we could do more cool New York Harbor trips. Ask and ye shall receive: We are thrilled to be partnering with Manhattan by Sail for our new Mommy Poppins Family Cruise Series.

We have four fun-filled sails coming up between now and October, each with a different theme and enriching kids activities to enjoy while cruising around the harbor (including a festive Halloween sail!). Take a look at some of the photos from our June excursion and read on to find out more about our upcoming sails and how you can book your tickets.

It's hot in Boston, and we're hopeful that our Cape trip in August will be sunny and warm, and just a tad cooler. But we're bringing a few rainy day toys with us, just in case, packed alongside coolers and camp chairs, sunscreen and bug spray. Maybe we won't need them, but one thing I've learned from traveling with a two year old is that it's better to be prepared, for sunny days and not-so-sunny ones. Here are six great indoor activities around the Cape to help you weather the storm, or at least buy you some time until it stops raining. 

Unless you've been living under an industrial sized, air conditioned rock, you may have noticed it's a tad warm around the area. Shockingly, the hottest temperatures of last week's heat wave hit the shoreline like a ton of very hot and humid bricks.  We beach folks aren't used to 100 degree days, so on the off chance we see one or, in last week's case, several in a row, we headed for the most entertaining places that accommodate us the longest and with the best cooling system. Our Indoor Play Guide has come in handy for many trying to have fun on rainy or hot days. And, now that my twins are nearly 8, our adventures include more exciting excursions during the summer, so to beat the heat, we headed out of this world. Well, not exactly, but close. We spent the day recently at Galaxy Roller Rink in Groton, Connecticut and, to say the least, we had a blast!

Watching a movie on the big screen isn't the only way to beat the heat and to entertain the kids in the summer. For those who want to cool off inside, but also want to get the kids' blood pumping a little, take advantage of one of the bowling programs offered to kids this summer in bowling centers throughout Long Island.

It's 10am, and it's already insufferably hot outside. The kids have abandoned the back yard and are now climbing the walls, bored stiff by their "rainy day" (or should we say "indoor day") toys. What's a parent to do? If you live much east of the 405 like I do, then you have a love/hate relationship with the beach. I'm a lover at heart, but after a few continuous days of schlepping cross-town, my family and I have had it with the coast. We need other ways to get out of the home in our own sweltering neck of the woods - ways that aren't compromised by a random Sig Alert. Is our only option the nearest overly-crowded, overly-chlorinated public pool? No!

Movies and television are fine sometimes, but nothing beats live theater to spark young imaginations and to keep children mesmerized. With several top notch theater companies in the Hamptons and North Fork, there's no need to drive all the way into Manhattan to take kids to a show. From Kid Fest productions at Guild Hall in East Hampton, to national touring companies at the Westhampton Performing Arts Center, to the North Fork Community Theater, here are our top picks for live children's theater.