It is way more exciting to see animals in the wild than it is to see them at the zoo. And even here in New York City we are able to glimpse some animals in their natural habitat– and I don’t mean rats, squirrels or pigeons, either. Each fall hundreds of harbor seals start their annual journey from Maine for a warmer climate, traveling south until they reach the temperate waters surrounding Long Island.

I’ve read a lot of books, but some of the best were in a series. That way, when you’re done, there’s more! A few of my favorites were The Mysterious Benedict Society books by Trenton Lee Stewart, Percy Jackson and The Olympians by Rick Riodan and Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery.

When did I become the type of person that travels to another borough because she heard a new candy store opened up? I have no explanation, but that's just what we did yesterday after seeing wonderful pictures of this fantastic new sweetopia in Dumbo, Dewey's Candy.

Surrealism and kids have a lot in common—stream of consciousness, mischief, dream-reality confusion, lack of inhibitions, non-sequiturs—yes, kids are just as random as surrealist painters. In short, kids tend to find Surrealist Art to be pretty swell, the weirder the better.   

And there is plenty for kids to enjoy at the family friendly Man Ray retrospective (“Alias Man Ray: The Art of Reinvention”) at the Jewish Museum. Read on to discover highlights of the exhibit and tips for viewing it with children, as well as some projects you can do at home and where you can see more surrealism in NYC.

We just awarded two lucky winners free Ice Skating Lessons from Battery Park City on Ice and for the next three weeks we'll be giving away a free Ice Skating Party each week. Since we know how much our readers love freebies, we're jumping right in to some more. We're giving away 25 free family passes to see a screening of the new Jackie Chan family flick. Also find out about free access to Parks Department Rec centers next week, how to get your kid's artwork in a museum or possibly win a scholarship. Lastly, find out what prominent New Yorkers think NY's resolutions should be this year. Read on for all these goodies:

Happy New Year! As a parent sometimes the outside world just seems like the ambient music to the milestones of our family's life. Luckily it's never too late to catch up. I've rounded up some great Top 10 lists from 2009 and the decade to help us catch up on the important events we might have been napping through—or just bring it back up from the depths of our sleep-deprived minds. From useful links and information to historic events and some stuff that's just for fun, here's the best of the top ten lists from 2009 and the decade:

This week, to wrap up 2009, we've been posting some great lists of your favorite places and ours. already we've posted 20 favorite family friendly restaurants and 30 fun places to play indoors. We did lots of great list posts this year and since they were some of our favorite posts this year, I though as part of our year-end round up I'd share the best ones. Of course our most popular list post, 100 Things to Do With Your Kids in NYC Before They Grow Up wasn't from this year, but it was still one of the most popular of this year. Here are the rest:

[UPDATED: JANUARY 7, 2013]

We recently asked readers to recommend some of their favorite places for families in New York City. This week we'll be posting some round-ups that include your favorite places and ours. We've already posted 20 favorite family-friendly restaurants and now we're sharing 30 fun spots for indoor play when the weather is too cold, hot or rainy. Make this your to-do list for the winter and you're guaranteed to keep busy and entertained, no matter how brutal the weather gets.

Got a favorite place that didn't make the list? Please add it to the comments below—we'd love to hear additional suggestions!