Can you believe it’s almost a brand-new year? As the holiday season comes to a close, take advantage of all the fun opportunities to say goodbye to 2014 and kick off 2015. Celebrate New Year’s Eve at jam-packed family events, including iPlay’s Family-Friendly New Year’s Eve Celebration, First Night Ocean County or First Night Morristown. Warm up those pipes and make it a musical new year with sing-along versions of classic films The Wizard of Oz and The Sound of Music. And you won’t want to miss everyone’s favorite characters on skates in Disney on Ice Presents Princesses & Heroes. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

Here it comes- the first weekend of Hanukkah and the last one before Christmas. While you finish your shopping list, checking it twice, make sure spend time doing something nice! If you haven’t visited Santa yet, there’s plenty of opportunity at Imagine That’s Breakfast with Santa, Red Lobster’s Breakfast with Santa and Cherry Hill Mall’s Adventure to Santa. Take part in great museum programs for the family at New Jersey State Museum’s Story Time and Montclair Art Museum’s Family Art Adventure. And get in the spirit of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa at The South Jersey Annual Car Menorah Parade and Sweet Honey in the Rock: Celebrating the Holydays. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

Who’s ready for a break from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season? Take a breather from shopping, gift-wrapping and decorating, and enjoy the spirit of the holiday season at these fun and festive weekend events. Indulge your sweet tooth at Liberty Hall’s Gingerbread Workshop and Gerrard Berman Day School’s Chanukah Cookie Decorating. Celebrate everything Christmas at A. Casola Farms’ Winter Wonderland and down the shore at Casino Pier Holiday Party. And warm up with some great family-friendly performances of Elf at Paper Mill Playhouse and Max & Ruby in the Nutcracker Suite at iPlay America. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

'Tis the season to go shopping! The busiest shopping period of the year has arrived, and as much as you may want to dodge the malls, sometimes a holiday shopping trip is a necessary evil. And what’s even more stressful than fighting for parking, navigating crowds, and standing in mile-long lines? Doing it with the kids in tow. With the right planning, a trip to one of New Jersey’s 25+ malls can be a downright enjoyable experience during the holidays. We’ve rounded up some of New Jersey’s more child-friendly malls, which feature play areas, food courts, toy stores, events and interactive holiday displays, so bring the family for some fun, meltdown-free shopping.

December is here, and the holidays are coming quick. With just a few short weeks until Christmas, and even less until Hanukkah, New Jersey is bursting with holiday festivities for everyone to enjoy. Grab some breakfast with Santa at the Camden Children’s Garden or the Dickens of a Holiday in Mays Landing. Enjoy tree and menorah lighting ceremonies at Trailside Nature Center’s Holiday Craft Show and the NJ Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Foundation Holiday Tree Lighting. Take the family to the theater for holiday-themed performances of The Hip Hop Nutcracker and The Brave Little Tailor. And for little ones, stop by the free Milk and Cookies Storytelling Series. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

Holiday décor in the stores… Black Friday ads in the mail… Santa making his rounds…it’s beginning to look a lot like the holiday season. And there are plenty of ways to get in the holiday spirit on this pre-Turkey weekend. Commence your Thanksgiving celebration, colonial-style, at an 18th Century Thanksgiving Dinner Demonstration. Greet Santa when he arrives at Camden Children’s Garden. Even the family pet can get in on the Santa action during Pet Photo Night at Quakerbridge Mall. And theatre buffs can rejoice in all kinds of family-friendly performances this weekend, including The Monster Who Ate My Peas, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, 360 ALLSTARS and Little Red and the Hoods. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

Everybody’s working for the weekend--especially Jersey kids who are trying to make it through a full week of school. Look no further than Mommy Poppins NJ for an abundance of well-earned weekend fun. Witness gravity-defying acrobatics at Cirque Peking. Experience old-fashioned holiday traditions at Mrs. Gould’s Annual Holiday Social or Thanksgiving Harvest Home & Armistice Observance Day. Check in with everyone’s favorite ice queen at Meet and Greet Frozen’s Elsa, or join comic book fans for all kinds of activities at the Jersey Shore Comic Book Show. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

Feel that chill in the air? November is here in full force, and there are plenty of activities to keep busy on this post-Halloween, pre-holiday weekend. Get a sneak preview of the holiday season with Santa's Arrival at the Quakerbridge Mall. And don’t forget your shopping list when you stop by the Lambert Castle Holiday Boutique. Speaking of castles, catch a performance of the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at The Pax Amicus Castle Theatre. Treat the little princesses in your life to a day of beauty and fun at the Day Out for a Queen and Her Princess. And the whole family will want to load up on delicious food and fun at St. Anthony’s Orthodox Church International Festival. And remember, you can check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.