Welcome summer!  It’s finally here!  At last, no more school, adios, homework, we get to play at the beach all day and go to the park and ride our bikes and… oh. Wait a minute. We’re the parents. We still have to go to work. Totally. Bogus. So while our kids are playing at totally awesome water playgrounds, we’re bringing home the bacon. While they’re cooling off at a free kids movie, we’re frying it up in a pan. (At least we have something to munch on while they’re out playing).

Though there are some downsides to the longer days (“Yes, I know the sun is still awake but you need to go to sleep!”) overall the summer provides boatloads of fun that even poor overworked, underappreciated parents can enjoy. Behold: the launch of summer concert season. This weekend alone, you can lay out your blanket or unfold your chair (or where relevant buy a ticket and get an actual seat) at the Hollywood Bowl, the Skirball’s Family Amphitheatre performances, Manhattan Beach’s Concerts in the Park, and the Farmer’s Market’s Family Fun Series, (and those are the mere tip of a very large entertainment iceberg!)  From now until Labor Day, your kids are legally barred from stating they are bored, because there is just that much to do.

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

It is the month of June,
The month of leaves and roses,
When pleasant sights salute the eyes,
And pleasant scents the noses.

Nathaniel Parker Willis

I grew up in the South where summer is eternal and often taken for granted. But when I moved to Connecticut, I quickly learned to savor the gorgeous summer days as a Floridian might delight in a few falling snowflakes. This weekend, take time to stop and smell the roses (literally!) and rouse your senses with the sights and sounds of the Nutmeg State.

Although public school kids still have a few more days to go before break, this is the first official weekend of summer! Welcome the new season in style at Coney Island’s colorful Mermaid Parade or Manhattan’s equally fabulous Gay Pride March and Festival.

Other free fun this weekend includes the Family Fishing Festival at the Harlem Meer, the annual Adventures NYC fest at the Central Park Bandshell, an outdoor concert by Moey’s Music Party and kickoff of Carroll Park's Kids' Concert Series featuring Karen K and the Jitterbugs.

Speaking of cool music, Make Music NYC takes place on Thursday. There will be hundreds of free concerts popping up all over the city, including cool kids' bands like the Fuzzy Lemons, who'll play Chelsea's Books of Wonder and Carl Schurz Park on the Upper East Side (at different times). It's worth browsing the full schedule, or just keep your eyes and ears open!

All of our best bets for the weekend are below. You can find additional options in our Event Calendar and our Summer Fun Guide, which is jam-packed with cool activities and destinations for the whole season.

So far during our month-long focus on Riverdale and the surrounding areas, we’ve rounded up the top things to do and the best places to eat with kids in the northwest Bronx. For our final Riverdale post, we're looking at great places to play and learn in the neighborhood, from old favorites like Wave Hill and Uptown Sports Complex, to a brand-new play space that opens next week.

Congratulations parents! If you are reading this, you have survived another school year. Summer vacation may not be as relaxing as it was back in the days of our youth, but it's sure filled with lots of family fun. And of course, we at Mommy Poppins will be here all summer with our top picks from the slew of great events in New Jersey. This weekend there are music festivals down the shore (Point Pleasant, Tuckerton), a Cupcakefest (YUM!) in Rutherford and even in a Firefly Festival in Princeton. Read on for our top picks and remember, you can find a listing of all NJ activities for kids in our Event Calendar.

Even once little girls get over the whole princess fantasy, they still enjoy being pretty and pampered. So a spa birthday party can be a real treat, especially for kids and tweens who get a big kick out of dressing up, getting mani-pedis and having their hair styled. (Somehow once you become a mom, these all become chores you can't find time to do!)

If going to an adult spa or salon seems a bit much, there are lots of kid-centric spots that offer in-house party packages, as well as local providers that will bring the whole shebang right to your apartment: nail polish, facial lotions, hair extensions, robes, magazines, the works. Hey, this might be the perfect opportunity for you to get a makeover, too.

Most summers, my kids have very few organized activities on their schedules.   They each pick one session of camp, and other than that, they focus on making an unholy mess out of our playroom and catching frogs in our stream.  Occasionally a frog gets welcomed into the playroom, but that’s for another post…

But alas, this is not most summers, as we are moving!  And in an effort to keep my three little banshees occupied, out of the house, and away from the moving mayhem, I’ve been somewhat maniacally investigating ways to keep them occupied.   Amongst the coolest activities that I’ve found are the many movies events offered in Fairfield County.    Most are free (always music to my ears) and some are even outdoors – very cool!

Eating outdoors on a balmy day can be a wonderful family dining experience—unless you're stuck inhaling bus fumes at a tiny sidewalk table so crammed with dishes that you're lucky if a passerby doesn't inadvertently knock over your drink with a swinging handbag.

Luckily there are a bunch of kid-friendly restaurants in New York City with wonderful alfresco dining areas that aren't right by the curb. From lush backyard gardens to rooftop gems with panoramic views to eateries located smack-dab in the middle of parks, here are 20 of our favorite NYC spots for outdoor dining in the summer.