My son just got out of school this week, so it feels like our summer weekends are numbered! I want to cram everything in, but often get overwhelmed on how to narrow down the fun activities available in our state.

Mommy Poppins CT is here to simplify your summer plans. Our Connecticut Beaches and Water Fun Guide and Water Fun guide in Hartford County will keep you cool on hot days. We've also researched Carnivals, Fairs and Festivals in Litchfield County, Fairfield County and Eastern CT.  You may find some fresh ideas, especially in the beautiful and less-traveled quiet corners. Independence Day is next week and the 4th of July fireworks start this weekend. Check out our list of Fourth of July Fireworks Celebrations in Connecticut.

School's out for the summer and there's plenty of fun to be found in NYC all season long. Our Summer Fun Guide is packed with cool anytime activities including where to cool off like our favorite public pools, which open for the season this Thursday; fun staycations like Governors Island, Randall's Island and Coney Island; and free things to do every day through the end of August. And if it ever rains, our Indoor Guide has you covered with inside fun.

This weekend, there are a bunch of cool ways to kick off a fun-filled season like the ride-filled Astoria Park Carnival, top-notch family entertainment at SummerStage Bronx Family Day, and a pair of Fishing Festivals at West Harlem Piers and the Harlem Meer. Or take a retro ride to Coney Island on a Nostalgia Train.

Here at Mommy Poppins we're looking forward to our Clipper City Tall Ship cruise on Saturday. Thanks to all of our readers who bought tickets! It's now sold out but don't worry, we'll plan more fun events later this season.

All of our best bets for the weekend are below. You can find additional options in our Event Calendar and our Summer Fun Guide.

Mike and Sully from the hugely popular Monsters Incorporated are back in a new prequel that shows how the scaring buddies first met. As in the original, the scares are played for laughs, though some very young viewers might get spooked.

As we say goodbye to June and welcome the hot summer month of July, there’s tons of fun to be had in New Jersey, both indoors and out. Craving some sunshine? Go stream exploring at Bessie Grover Memorial Park or head to the BBQ bash at World of Wings. Need a break from the heat? Check out Once Upon a Story at the Jersey City Children’s Theater or cool off with a watercolor exhibit at the Newark Museum. Read on for our top picks and find a listing of all NJ activities in our Event Calendar.

NYC is overflowing with cool new carnival rides this summer! Hot on the heels of the opening of Queens' Fantasy Forest at the Flushing Meadows Carousel and the beautifully restored B&B Carousell in Coney Island comes Fête Paradiso, a summer-long festival of vintage French carnival rides and carousels on Governors Island. We've got the details on when it opens, what kind of rides you'll find and how much they cost. Other tidbits this week include a new light show and roller coaster for Coney Island, drop-in soccer classes for the summer, a free way to play tourist in your own town, summer reading fun and dad crafts!

If the arrival of summer vacation and this heat wave (holy heat stroke, Batman!) don’t have your kids jumping for joy and itching to get off the sofa, you are in good company. Luckily, there’s a perfect antidote to summer-heat-induced lethargy: 5 Wits.

My family and I checked out the two 5 Wits shows at Patriot Place in Foxboro last weekend, and discovered that they are enormously fun for parents and kids alike. And if you're wondering what else you can do while you're in Foxboro, take a look at my list of 15 Things to Do With Kids in Foxboro. 

Sometime last summer, I was walking in our neighborhood in Roslindale and ran into my friend and neighbor Meg. I must have looked as exhausted as I felt. “Um, can I bring you dinner some night?” she asked. I said yes, of course, but was blown away by her offer. Apart from a life-saving casserole a friend brought over when our daughter was born and the occasional pot-luck contribution, I was relatively unfamiliar with the experience of food as a gift, of sustenance and time. But it is. Meg’s chicken piccata and pasta were amazing, like take-out, only better. My husband and I enjoyed a much needed break from cooking (and cleaning) and some much needed time together.

I wanted to return the favor. And so our supper swap was born.  What if we took turns making dinner for each other? Every other week? Every week? We spun our plan into action. We doubled recipes, and on our appointed days, walked over casserole dishes of mac and cheese, chicken and biscuits, tomato soup. Our kids got used to “dropping off dinner.” It became, you know, a thing. Here's how to set up your own supper swap and make good use of some of this summer's farmer's market bounty.

We finish up our month-long focus on Ridgewood, Queens with a look at the family-friendly restaurants in the neighborhood. While Ridgewood and the surrounding areas are best known for their old-school European spots like the German Gottscheer Hall, as the community has become more diverse in recent years, so has the cuisine. These days you'll find Asian and Italian restaurants next to old-time Bavarian places. And since the neighborhood is home to so many families, it's not surprising that many of the eateries welcome kids. Here are our top family-friendly restaurants in and around Ridgewood, Queens.