Valentine's Day is a unique holiday. It is a celebration of love, but usually reserved for romantic relationships. However, in the spirit of showing the ones you love the most how special they are, Valentine's Day can also be a great opportunity to celebrate as a family. In Februrary, when the winter doldrum sets in, finding ways to get out and celebrate in the spirit of love may be just what the doctor ordered!

Here's 14 ways you and your family can celebrate Valentine's Day in a uniquely Philadelphia kind of way. For more Valentine's Day, check out our event round-up of great activities.

Outdoor skating and Connecticut have an on-again off-again relationship. When it snows, the ice has to be shoveled. When we have a string of warm temps, we get slush. A frozen pond in this state has become a rare commodity. And, sure, indoor skating has its benefits with its reliable ice, comfortable temperature and lack of bumps and all.

But there is just nothing like skating outdoors when the ice is good and the sun is shining. Think a picturesque pond surrounded by woods to block any breeze. Think rosy cheeks and cozy scarves. Think Currier & Ives. Are you with me?

We have rounded up some postcard perfect ponds, municipal skating spots, and one particular open-air rink that has drawn in crowds for more than two decades. For even more winter fun check out our winter guide and CT winter bucket list!

I'm always looking for birthday party ideas that don't involve a potential slideshow of my Pinterest fails, especially for my 9-year-old who is blossoming into a mini Martha Stewart. Luckily, NYC seems to open new party spots monthly for the kids.

We've rounded up a sampling of some of the top new locations around the city that are offering kid party packages or room rentals, including a rock climbing spot and cool preschool-age play spaces.

Need further inspiration to kick that birthday fatigue to the curb? Check out our NYC Birthday Party Guide, or peruse these special occasion options, from dine-in movie theaters and fancy high tea to museum sleepovers.

So read on for a list of great birthday party venues that might just save your couch, the dog, the cat, your relationship with your downstairs neighbor, and your sanity!

There are so many great bakeries in every corner of Connecticut. But, like many of you, my daughter’s school is a nut free facility. For everyone’s safety, if we want to send in treats for celebrations and birthdays, they have to be store bought and in their original sealed containers. For really special celebrations, like birthdays and holidays, I like to bring in something a little more festive than a box of Oreo Cookies. Thankfully, Connecticut has a growing list of bakeries that can provide a fresh-baked treat that everyone can enjoy.

Kids might have President's Day off from school, but that doesn’t always mean that mom and dad can stay home too. Many business are in full swing despite the holiday, which can leave parents in a tight spot when it comes to childcare. Even tougher, many February vacation week drop-off camps don’t start until the Tuesday after President’s Day. To make life easier, we've compiled a list of Boston-area drop-off programs that are available on the holiday.

Does your little one love frogs? You're in luck; The Academy of Natural Sciences is hopping with tons of these amphibious friends! There are over 4,000 species of frogs living on every continent except Antartica, and you can see a few of them on display at the museum right now! Frogs: A Chorus of Colors is presented in conjunction with Clyde Peel's Reptiland and is on display Feburary 4- May14, 2017. Read our review and leap on over to the museum to learn more about these awesome creatures.

The truth is that as a native New Yorker, I never actually learned how to drive. While I finally managed to get my license in my mid-twenties, it's just become a form of ID that I pull out on the rare occasion that someone is kind enough to card me!

While living a car-free lifestyle can certainly be freeing, now that I'm a mom, my inability to drive is a total headache at times. When my daughter was first born, I wouldn't commit to any activity before evaluating whether I could actually manage it myself using the good old MTA system or finding out if my husband's parking space was worth giving up to play chauffeur to the two of us. But just as leaving my Brooklyn neighborhood was starting to seem like a special occasion in and of itself, I uncovered the incomparable convenience of my local car service and it literally became my lifeline.

At this point, I'm pretty much a livery cab pro — having seen most of the city from the backseat — so I've rounded up some of my favorite car service hacks with a little help from our sponsor, Legends Limousine. Whether you're license-less or car-less, or you snagged a spot that's good until next week, here are five ways a car service can be a total game-changer for your family:

There's some messy weather in the forecast, so it will be tempting to hang at home when there isn't someplace you need to be this week. But with a wintry mix of exciting hockey, Snow Queen appearances, a princess ball, and more on the horizon too, there's sure to be some event to challenge your hibernating instincts. I'm hoping to venture to the Children's Science Discovery Museum in Acton, where kids will be encouraged to take the concept of "homemade" valentines to a whole new level on Wednesday by crafting their own paper from recycled paper pulp. If you're looking for more activities, mark down (with a red crayon, of course), one of these events from our Valentine's Day lineup. Those cute cards aren't going to decorate themselves.