It may still be June, but the Fourth of July celebrations begin this weekend with the Independence Day celebration in Christopher Columbus Park and the Braintree Parade and Fireworks. Somerville celebrates with a family fun day. For details about these celebrations and more ideas for honoring our nation's birthday, check out our post about Harborfest and other local 4th of July daytime events. If it's fireworks you're looking for, check out these great spots to take your family. 

The Frog Pond wading pool opens this weekend if you need to cool off your toes. This weekend in theater, find out why the Knight Brothers are wearing holes in their shoes, see a free performance of Die Fledermaus, and catch the last shows of Cirque du Soleil. If you are looking for live music, head over to the Natick Farmer's market for a performance by Rolie Polie Guacamole, go to club Passim for a family show by folk singer Ellis Paul, or head to Medford for Rockin' Family Concert.

Also on Mommy Poppins this week:

• Celeste shares her experience participating in research studies with kids.
• We bring you up-to-date information about (mostly) free summer movies.
• Our Wee Work series gives instructions on making your own puffy paint, pom-pom garlands, and pencil eraser stamp stationery.

If you haven't already, be sure to enter our Summer of Play challenge! To help you get started, we've rounded up a list of 100 Ways to Play. Enjoy your weekend--the calendar is full of events to check out.

The 4th of July is my favorite holiday. You see, there’s no expectation of gifts like Christmas, no huge feast to slave over like Thanksgiving and no overpriced chocolates and flowers like Valentine's Day. Instead, just a balmy summer evening with cookouts, kids running around with sparklers and lots of relaxed time with family and friends. While a backyard shindig for the 4th can be nice, how about packing your bags for a last minute getaway? No need to orchestrate an elaborate vacation - check out these local and easy weekend jaunts that you can enjoy right in our great state. And for the rest of your fab summer, check out our New Jersey Kids Summer Activities Guide.

What’s that you’re doing? Are you… working?!? Stop that! Stop that right now! It’s summer, missy. S-U-have some fun-MER. We at Mommy Poppins take summer frivolity very seriously, and we want to make sure you do the same. Starting now, we declare this to be the Summer of Play. So what are you waiting for? Get out there, make playhouses out of cardboard, count birds and flowers on your street, paint masterpieces with sidewalk chalk, and turn your lawn into a gameboard. Looking for some inspiration? We can get you started with a list of 100 Ways to Play.

Now, play is its own reward, but there’s no reason we can’t sweeten the pot.  Share your summer fun ideas, photos, and tips on social media and we just might return the favor with some fun-makin' gear. Let the hashtags begin!

Whatever the season, your source for weekly activities remains the same: our ever-expanding calendar of events. This weekend alone, we can entice you with birthdays (Kidspace's, faeries' and our country's), ceremonies honoring ancestors and a new library, celebrations of Shakespeare, and sanitation, and open air concerts and movies.

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for this weekend...

We're nearly at the last weekend of June, and the Hamptons and the North Fork are featuring numerous family-friendly events from the Start of Summer Carnival to the annual cardboard boat race in Riverhead. Below, we list the ten must-attend events during the weekend of June 28 through June 29.

Be sure to check out our Long Island Calendar for more kid-friendly activities, as well as our Hamptons and North Fork Guide. And don't forget to subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you can receive our roundup of fun things to do delivered directly to your inbox.

School is finally out for the summer and you can kick off your season of play with a bunch of awesome activities. In addition to NYC public pools opening on Friday, this weekend brings annual favorites like the ride-filled Astoria Park Festival in Queens, a pair of fishing festivals at West Harlem Piers Park and Central Park's Harlem Meer, and the Soundview Park Summer Festival in the Bronx. Plus, we're psyched for the unveiling of Rockaway!, a display of site-specific installations at the popular Queens beach.

Whatever you do this weekend, make sure you pack plenty of play into your day. To inspire you, we've launched our SUMMER OF PLAY CHALLENGE, a season-long initiative encouraging families to spend quality time playing together. Bonus: Share your playful pics on social media and you can win some great prizes.

All of our best bets for this weekend are below. You can find additional options in our Event Calendar and our Summer Fun Guide. Have fun out there!

Now that everyone is officially done with school and 80 degree weather is upon us, those lazy and fun days of summer are here! Festivals abound this time of year in Jersey so get out there and celebrate all things Italian down the shore at the Italian-American Festival in North Wildwood or get in touch with your Puerto Rican roots at Camden Children’s Garden Festival de Aibonito. For more outdoor adventure, check out the crowded, loud and fun NJ State Fair in the Meadowlands or dress up the kiddos for Hoboken’s 13th Annual Baby Parade. Check out the full list of weekend activities on our Event Calendar.

White Plains is often referred to as the heart of Westchester County for good reason. It is a city chock full of life, diversity and an abundance of family-friendly events and activities sure to keep the entire family busy and learning all year round including several dynamic parks, playgrounds and walking trails that can be enjoyed by residents and non-residents alike. Read on for more details on where Westchester kids can run, jump, play and explore in White Plains. Admission is free for all the parks and no park pass is required, except where noted for certain activities or features. 

Looking for fun beyond White Plains? Be sure to check out our Event Calendar to keep up with what's happening throughout Westchester this month.

Normally I put strict limits on my nine-year-old son's screen time, especially in summer when he should be outside playing and experiencing the world. But when I catch him playing Habitat, I make a screen-time exception. The brand-new FREE app encourages kids to go outside and explore nature (which is what I want) while simultaneously challenging them to a fun, save-the-environment game (which my son loves). No wonder he's been obsessed with Habitat since we were invited to try it out at the Central Park Zoo earlier this month.