This Week: Best August Events for Kids in NYC & Beyond, New Summer Fun Like a Carousel, an Ice Cream Parlor & a Free Family Show

7/31/14 - By Raven Snook

I keep staring at the calendar and wondering, how can it be August already? That old saying that time flies when you're having fun seems to be especially true in summer when the long days (and even nights) are filled with family adventures. (Already this week my kid and I saw Cirque du Soleil: Varekai at Barclays Center, ate at the legendary Brooklyn Junior's and tonight we're off to see Marvel Universe Live! in New Jersey.)

Of course a new month means a bunch of brand-new Go Lists. We've already published roundups of the absolute best things to do with kids throughout August in NYC, Westchester and Connecticut, and the posts for Long Island and New Jersey go up on August 1. If you're hoping to get out of town for a day trip, these exceptional Go List events make for great inspiration. Or just browse our regional sites for destination ideas, like these five great family campgrounds in Westchester, five things to do with kids in Bridgehampton, Long Island and the top trampoline parks in New Jersey. Or, for a multi-day getaway, consider building a trip around the recently opened Legoland Discovery Center in Somerville, Massachusetts.

We're entering the final weeks of our SUMMER OF PLAY CHALLENGE and we're gearing up to give away our grand prize: all the fixings your family needs to throw the Ultimate Summer of Play Bash including a $200 gift card for Imagine Toys, a $100 gift card for Big Dot of Happiness, and delicious organic snacks from Ella's Kitchen and Earth's Best. So keep posting playful pics on social media and you may turn out to be our big winner! If you need family playtime inspiration, we have hundreds of ideas in our SUMMER OF PLAY GUIDE.

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

OUR LATEST VIDEOS

We kicked off the week with our August Go List, which features some of our favorite family events of the whole year, including Summer Streets, Arthur Ashe Kids Day and the Richmond County Fair.

Let's all scream for new ice cream: the brand-new Ample Hills Creamery in Gowanus is a two-story scoops wonderland complete with delicious homemade flavors and a roof deck.

Our SUMMER OF PLAY series continued with a roundup of six unexpected ways to play... even when you're doing chores.

Fishing is a classic summer activity and we've got the skinny on the best places to fish with kids in NYC (no need to leave the city limits).

There's a brand-new merry-go-round in NYC: the Conservation Carousel at the Staten Island Zoo, which also recently opened a bunch of other noteworthy attractions.

FREE theater alert: Don't miss Theatreworks USA's musicalization of popular YA novel The Lightning Thief—tickets are gratis and it's great to boot.

This week's WeeWork post showed you how to make fun bubble paintings.

Best bets for the weekend include the first installment of Manhattan's Summer Streets, the entertainment-filled Kids Rule Weekend in the Bronx and the Cirque du Soleil spectacle Varekai at Brooklyn's Barclays Center.