Manhattan's Upper West Side is home to popular spots, including Lincoln Center with the Metropolitan Opera and the New York City Ballet, but it’s also one of the most famously family-friendly neighborhoods in NYC. Upper West Side families enjoy easily walkable access to tons of parks and playgrounds, plus kid-friendly museums ranging from the world-class AMNH to the tot-haven of CMOM. There are also plenty of kid-friendly stores, restaurants, and activities for little ones to enjoy on the Upper West Side.

Here are our top picks for the best things to do on the Upper West Side with kids, all guaranteed to keep your family busy year-round whether you live here or you're just visiting.

Winner winner pizza dinner! And one that the kids made for themselves, at one of Square Peg Pizzeria kids' pizza-making classes. Wanting to involve my kids in food making at home, we decided to sign up for a free pizza-making class at our local Square Peg Pizzeria. During this event, kids are shown how to shape their dough, spread sauce, and add toppings to their very own personal pizza. The restaurant's chefs engage with the kids and their families, showing them how to get their pizza just right.

My kids learned how to make food, we all got our hands on dough together, and did I mention that it's FREE? Read on to get the details, including where the classes take place and how to sign up.

For more great restaurants for kids in CT, including the more great pizza spots (because Connecticut has the best pizza on planet earth—I said it!) and restaurants where kids can play while parents eat, check out our Family-Friendly Connecticut Restaurant Guide.

Bruh... if it feels like your tweens and teens speak a different language, it's time to brush up on your gen z slang. Trust us, you're not alone: When we asked readers and fellow parents to share which teen slang words and phrases baffle them, we seemed to have hit a nerve. Moms and dads across the country bombarded us with gen z slang words and terms they just don't understand, from "bet" and "bussin'" to "drip" and "no cap."

And, NGL: Texting your teen can get you even more shook, FR. Mind-boggling acronyms have made deciphering teens' text messages similar to solving a puzzle, TBH. IYKYK.

We're here to help with our list of 50 common gen z slang words and text acronyms to help you understand your teens. Once you've mastered the lingo, score even more cool points with our teen and tween gift guide and our list of over 100 ideas for college care packages. Will your teens appreciate it? Bet!

New York City is packed with fun indoor play spaces to keep kids active all year. From indoor playgrounds to kid-centric museums, there is no shortage of fun activities perfect for bad-weather days or just because. But, keeping kids entertained can cost a pretty penny. So, we've rounded up 16 affordable indoor play spaces in NYC offering drop-in play for $20 or less a visit, and a few of these indoor playgrounds in NYC are significantly cheaper!

Read on for our picks for budget-friendly play spaces in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and the Bronx, and find more fun places to play in our NYC Kids' Guide to Indoor Activities.

New Jersey is chock-full of indoor swimming pools where kids can splash around all year long—and that's good news when your little fishies need an aquatic fix to work out the winter wiggles. We've rounded up some of New Jersey's most family-friendly indoor pools where you can either drop in for the day or sign up for an affordable membership.

If you'd rather make a night or weekend of it, you can’t go wrong with any of New Jersey's awesome local indoor water parks—think water slides and wave pools! But if a quick dip in some warm water sounds like the perfect way to spend a chilly day, grab your swimsuits and goggles and scroll down for a list of the best indoor swimming pools in NJ. And when it's summertime, spend a little time in the sun at an outdoor pool that offers day passes.

Find more cold-weather playtime ideas in our Winter Fun Guide.

Is Mardi Gras kid-friendly? If you think of Mardi Gras as a raucous, bawdy, booze-fest, you might not think it’s a very family-friendly event. But, for locals, Mardi Gras is for families.  

I took my nephew to New Orleans for Mardi Gras to celebrate his tenth birthday and I think it’s safe to say that he had the best 10th birthday weekend imaginable. Everywhere we went, we were surrounded by other families and saw first-hand how much people cater to kids at Mardi Gras to make sure they have a great time. Not only did we see anything “adult”, but it was actually an educational trip where we learned a lot about New Orleans and the history and culture of Mardi Gras. 

If you want to plan a Mardi Gras vacation for your family, I’ve created a three-day itinerary that will give you the best of kid-friendly Mardi Gras, plus many other kid-friendly activities to explore New Orleans and its history and culture.  For more New Orleans fun, check our other article, The Best Things To Do in New Orleans With Kids.

At the newly opened Brooklyn Museum education center, kids don't just look at art—they actually become the artists. Named the Toby Devan Lewis Education Center, this large welcoming space invites kids of all ages—and their adults—to get hands-on and contribute to the museum's exhibit.

Guided by friendly museum workers, kids can try their little hands at everything from crafting with clay to making their own zines. Check out what the Brooklyn Museum's new education center has to offer visitors, and start planning your trip to the Brooklyn Museum to explore this newly renovated space.

Finding summer camps in NYC can be especially stressful for your family's finances, and while we want our children to have a fun, rewarding, and safe experience, we don't want to dig into our retirement fund to pay for it. New York City families are lucky because free and cheap summer camps abound all across the five boroughs, where arts and education funding subsidizes some excellent New York City programs so all children can enjoy fantastic summer camps in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island.

Read on for all our picks for free and affordable summer camps in NYC. Find more summer camps in New York City, including preschool summer camps, great sleepaway summer camps in the Northeast, and STEM summer day camps in our Summer Camp Guide and NYC Camp Directory, where you can search for summer camps in NYC by type, age, and neighborhood.