Taking a leisurely stroll from Macy's to Barneys to look at all of the magical holiday windows is a long-standing tradition for my family. In our pre-parenting days, my husband and I took this walk during the wee hours of Christmas Eve. Once our son was born, we moved it to Thanksgiving weekend at a much earlier hour. It's a wonderful and totally free way to kick off the holiday season, and it creates lasting memories that our son will cherish long after he's outgrown the toys under the tree.

For the fourth year in a row, my son and I were joined by fellow Mommy Poppins blogger Raven and her daughter. Fantasy seemed to be the overarching theme this season, with Macy's interstellar Santa adventure, Saks fabulous fairy tales with an NYC twist, and Barneys outrageous collaboration with Hollywood director Baz Luhrmann, featuring live performances right in the windows. Of course the kids went gaga for Bloomingdale's display since it involved playing video games!

Read on for all the details and click through our slide show for a peek at what you'll see on your NYC department store holiday windows walk. You can find lots of other seasonal activities in our Holiday Fun Guide.

While the Museum of Modern Art has lots of great family programming, it's usually thought of as a hands-off kind of place. That's why we've been such big fans of its series of interactive Art Labs, hands-on studios where kids can get creative doing a variety of activities around a particular theme, like Materials or People. MoMA's latest Art Lab invites kids to explore Places and Spaces, encouraging them to look at these concepts from a fresh perspective through artistic projects.

As the mother of three children ages 15, 11 and almost 8, it's always a challenge to find an activity that will engage them all. So, did Places and Spaces please my entire brood?

Even before they can write, children can start honing their pre-literacy skills. Story stones inspire preschoolers, and even toddlers, to "write" their own tales. The act of storytelling can take your child off to imaginary places and inspire endless adventures without ever leaving your living room. They won't even know they're learning.

Our simple take on this project allows you to make your own story stones in minutes, no drawing ability necessary.

When it comes to peppy musicalizations of super-popular picture books aimed at girls, Vital Children's Theatre seems to have cornered the market. Many a tutu-and-tiara-clad kid has seen the troupe's adaptations of Pinkalicious, Angelina Ballerina and the original Fancy Nancy. Now just in time for the holidays, the company has unveiled its latest page-to-stage show: Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas based on Jane O'Connor and Robin Preiss Glasser's 2009 book of the same name.

Like all of Vital's kid-lit-inspired musicals, Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas caters to preexisting fans, but that's not a bad thing. There's nothing wrong with knowing your audience and giving them what they want. So if your children love over-the-top outfits, spectacular decorations and expanding their vocabulary as much as my seven-year-old, then Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas is a wonderful holiday indulgence—that's a fancy word for treat.