Kid-lit lovers take note: The Eric Carle Story Show is coming to NYC next month, and Mommy Poppins has the exclusive details on how to nab tickets to this latest page-to-stage adaptation that's a perfect first theatergoing experience for tots to preschoolers. The puppet-powered performance is produced by Jonathan Rockefeller, the creative force behind the very popular and colorful adaptation of Carle's most famous story: The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show.

The Eric Carle Story Show debuts Sunday, August 13, and is sure to be a hot ticket for the toddler set. Be sure to bookmark our Guide to Children's Theater for more stories like this.

As summer weather sizzles, we're searching for the best things to do to beat the heat in New York City. There's no denying the heat and humidity can get under the skin of even the most tropical-weather-loving New Yorker. To beat the heat, my kids (and my inner child) insist any outing includes water, industrial-strength air conditioning, or a visit to a local ice cream parlor.

While we enjoy hitting NYC's FREE public pools and running around the sprinklers (oh yes, I get in there, too), lately, we've been longing for more diverse destinations. That inspired us to round up 50 ways to beat the heat in New York City this summer.

Luna Park has lured generations of New Yorkers to Coney Island for summertime fun, and the newest iteration of its famed boardwalk amusement park is celebrating 120 years of fun on Coney Island with a huge expansion that brings a brand new ropes course and adventure zone, plus a family-friendly roller coaster, and wet-and-wild log flume ride to the already action-packed park. That, in addition to classic crowd-pleasers like the iconic Coney Island Cyclone roller coaster, and all the fun along the Coney Island boardwalk and beach make Luna Park a bucket list destination for ultimate summer fun.

Whether you want to make a day of it, or just duck into the amusement park for some carnival games en route to the beach, here are our top things to do at Luna Park, plus some parent-tested tricks to keep you sane during a visit. Find more epic seasonal destinations in our Ultimate NYC Kids Summer Vacation Guide.

It's no secret the Bronx Zoo is one of our favorite local haunts, and we love that it's always reinventing its offerings. The latest addition to the fun at the Bronx Zoo is Budgie Landing. The exhibit transports visitors to the open woodlands of Australia, where 1,000 budgies—small, colorful, and social parrots—fly freely and visitors have a chance to feed them.

These free-flying beautiful birds provided plenty of entertainment for my daughter and I. Read on for our tips for visiting Budgie Landing at the Bronx Zoo and find more fun animal encounters in our Guide to Zoos and Gardens for NYC Kids.

Local families in the know are well aware that Mommy Poppins has been covering the greater NYC area for more than 16 years, and we're happy to announce we're extending our reach again and officially expanding our local Westchester site to include even more coverage of the Hudson Valley.

From the Rivertowns to Legoland New York and the Catskills and beyond, we have always covered loads of fun things to do in the Hudson Valley.  But, we heard from tons of readers who have moved—or are spending more time lately—in the Hudson Valley.

So, in addition to covering even more events and activities in towns across the Hudson Valley, we'll be relaunching our weekly event picks and delivering you the top things to do each weekend in Westchester and the Hudson Valley every Thursday morning. This is in addition to our Saturday and Monday newsletters full of news, picks, deals, and seasonal fun.

So, whether you live in the Hudson Valley, or just spend a lot of time there, make sure you're subscribed to our Westchester and the Hudson Valley newsletter to get weekend picks and more family-friendly activities delivered to your inbox!

If you've got a child in public school, you live by the public school calendar. Many local NYC preschools follow the public school schedule, too. The New York City Department of Education's calendar for the 2025-2026 school year is below, and you'll want to bookmark it now for reference—and to help with planning family vacations and school break camp coverage.

Once again, there will be no snow days. Plan on logging your kiddos on for a day of remote learning whenever buildings are closed for snow or other emergencies.

These are all of the dates you can count on your kiddos being out of school during the 2025-2026 school year.

Harry Potter: The Exhibition is popping up in Herald Square and promises to be one of the it tickets of the summer in New York City. Wizard-loving muggles who are fans of the franchise would be wise to snap up tickets now because this touring exhibition is only in NYC through mid-October.

Grab your wand and your house robes and read on for a first look at this new-to-NYC exhibition, which invites visitors on an interactive journey throughout the Wizarding World with cool immersive experiences and top-notch technology that leaves you feeling like you're smack dab in the middle of Hogwarts Castle. Want more Harry Potter fun? Don't forget to check out our take on the magical Harry Potter New York just a few blocks south.

Even before the Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation opened, the American Museum of Natural History was one of NYC's most iconic cultural institutions, so hulking in its square footage you'd be hard-pressed to see it all in one day. That statement is doubly true now that the Gilder Center is set to debut on Thursday, May 4, 2023.

A modern-looking new wing, the Gilder Center adds a whopping 230,000 square feet to AMNH and, for the first time, allows visitors to traverse the entire 10-building campus without hitting a dreaded dead end.

We got a sneak peek at the brand-new building and walked away in awe and anxious for a return visit with kids in tow. Read on for our review of the Gilder Center, which further cements AMNH's place on our list of the best museums in NYC for kids to visit, and learn about all the family-friendly attractions this brand new wing houses, including a year-round butterfly vivarium, 18 species of live insects, and an impressive, immersive exhibition backed by the science and data the American Museum of Natural History holds at the core of its mission.