When we revisit the classic experiences of childhood, sometimes they lose their rose-tinted luster, while other times they are just as good, if not better than we remembered. The ice cream truck holds up well. Lemonade stands are still pretty darn neat, too. And, as it turns out, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus really does have a right to its boastful tagline, The Greatest Show on Earth.

July and August are prime festival months here in New Jersey. On any given weekend (and sometimes weekdays) you can find a town offering a craft fair, a 4-H festival perfect for children and adults, or some street party with a bounce house and grilled meat on a stick. If you're the kind of person who travels off the beaten path, however, you'll also find some other lesser known events that are pretty darn neat. Here are a few of our favorite "offbeat" summer festivals in NJ.

Wow…I had forgotten how summer eats into our savings.  Literally, eats into it.  My kids are so active all summer that their appetites are enormous…just like my grocery bills!  Our solution?  Well, we’re eating in a lot, planning our meals in advance, and, when we do go out, frequenting restaurants where kids eat free.  Yup, you read that right…there are a few area restaurants that offer free meals to kids with the purchase of adult meals. We've also made a list for Central CT. Bon appetit!

The North Fork of Long Island is known for its lush farmland, quiet beaches, farm stands, and vineyards. There are plenty of family friendly activities to enjoy in this quaint part of Suffolk County. From Riverhead to Orient Point, there are indoor and outdoor activities that are suitable for kids of all ages. Don't forget to check out our Hamptons and North Fork Family Guide for expanded coverage on regional activities.   

In my college intro to art history class, I learned how to examine and really 'read' a painting, its symbols, icons, and contexts.  I loved how all the details contributed to a greater understanding of the composition as a whole. Since kids have an uncanny ability to observe (and remember) the most obscure details, why not help them practice on a painting? When summer days are hot (or winter days, miserable), we trek out to the Museum of Fine Arts with our daughter. Read on for tips we've learned from our visits. For more tips on ways to engage your children before and after your visit to the MFA, check out Tara's post from last summer. 

It's the end of a long and lovely day at the beach, and you can't quite brush the last of the sand off your shins. You're sunburned and pooped, with a mop of sea salty hair blown dry by the wind. Everyone's famished, but let's face it: a nice restaurant just won't have you and your bedraggled lot. What to do, oh weary surf dwellers? Why not head to a roadside fish joint. Lucky for us, we have a few fab and affordable ones along our slice of the coast.These eateries won't mind your flip flops, and the menu variety is sure to please everyone in your crew.

Every year around this time I start to feel like I'm the only New Yorker left in NYC. I was on a Fifth Avenue bus yesterday and it sounded like the Tower of Babel (even more so than usual). My family and I actually love sticking around the city in the summer because there are so many wonderful things to do, many of them FREE. And I was reminded of that as we put together our Free in NYC Kids Guide this week. This brand-new guide lists no-cost things to do and places to go in the five boroughs throughout the year, but the section on free summer fun is particularly robust. So the next time you're trying to plan a no-cost NYC outing, you know where to look.

Of course I can't deny the appeal of a quick summer getaway. In addition to checking our NYC Day Trips Guide for inspiration, it's worth perusing our regional sites for ideas. Our Westchester site just rounded up 25 things to do in Pelham; our New Jersey site profiled the Watchung Reservation; the annual Sailfest hits the water near New London this weekend, Connecticut and blueberry picking is on at farms throughout the tri-state area. If you do go out of town, be sure to download a few of these apps to keep preschoolers busy in the car, on a plane or even if you just need a few minutes to yourself at home.

And a quick shout out on behalf of our Long Island site, which is on the hunt for a few good bloggers. If you're an LI expert who fits the bill, we encourage you to apply!

Here's what else we covered on our NYC site this week, including details about a new drop-off summer playdate program by Project Playdate that Mommy Poppins is co-sponsoring.

Boston families will find plenty of fun and free things to do in and around town this weekend. Take advantage of the great outdoors and head to the Circle the City festivities at Franklin Park, or the WGBH FunFest in Boston. New this summer is Outside the Box, a nine-day summer performing arts festival, that offers a variety of children’s entertainers - musicians, dancers, magicians, puppeteers, arts and crafts workshops, and more.

Looking for more things to do? Find out what's new at the zoos this summer - Franklin Park, Stone, Roger Williams Park and Southwick Zoos. Plus, Kristin reviews the work that was done to improve the New England Aquarium. Tara has the scoop on watching the PawSox games at McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket - a family-friendly, budget-friendly alternative to Fenway. And of course, we all love reading to our kids, but sometimes it's just so nice to listen to someone else read to them for a change.

Read on for more of our weekend picks, and be sure to check our Events Calendar for more ideas.