Being the cynical New Yorker that I am, I am not an immediate fan of all things Disney. But while the plastic-y toys and princess cartoons may leave me cold, I'm learning that there are some things that Disney does better than anyone else: creating magical experiences for kids and families.

I recently mentioned how much I love the new parenting book NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman. NutureShock challenges many of our pre-conceived notions of parenting and looks at recent science to show what's really going on with our kids. It covers topics like talking about race, lying, praise and one of the chapters talks focuses on gifted and talented testing for kindergarteners, questioning the our ability to measure true giftedness at that age.

This post has been updated. You can find the new information here. A great way to get a feel for a camp is to visit it in person. Whether you're thining about day camp here in NYC or in the country, or especially sleep away camp, there's no better way to check it out than to meet the people see the facilities first-hand. Many camps will let you visit any time, but some have special open house dates where you can get a our and maybe even try out some of the activities for yourself. We've collected a bunch of upcoming open house dates, but if you don't see the camp you're interested in listed here, just give them a call and ask when you can visit.

Check out our Camp Guide for more ideas on cool summer camps around NYC.

Here is a great new way to spice up your kid-friendly music collection, without spending loads of money or time. Pandora internet radio has finally added children's music to its free online music offerings. So stop playing that same old version of Old McDonald and log on to get the living room dance party started.

The NYC public school landscape is ever shifting like the sands of the Sahara. We try to keep on top of it. Here's the latest news about kindergarten admissions, new schools, an investigation into toxins in some schools, and how having recess before lunch could be better for kids:

An old friend bemoaned on Facebook her frustration at not being able to keep her toddler in bed past 4:30 in the morning. Not only does the kid wake her up, but wakes up the younger siblings as well (sounds like a great morning routine!).

If you have an early riser, you've felt her pain. Sleep. It's the one thing a parent just can't get enough of. And the issues never seem to go away, they just change. Just because you had a baby sleeping through the night at 9 weeks doesn't mean you are out of the hot water. As many parents of toddlers will tell you, the issue becomes not getting your kids to sleep through the night, but to keep them in bed past dawn.