Parents looking for places for kids to burn off steam or learn a new sport will be happy to know Westchester has two new businesses on the way: SwimLabs Westchester in Elmsford and Kids in Sports in Scarsdale. Both are franchises of larger chains, and both intend to provide families with new ways to stay active. 

Looking for more places kids can have fun? Check out our Sports Centers, Gyms & Fun Zones Guide and sign up for our newsletters! 

Of all the cool things you can do in NYC, surfing is probably not the first one that comes to mind. But that's what we love about living in New York: It seems like you can do just about everything in some nook or cranny of the five boroughs, including catch a wave.

New York City actually offers 14 miles of beach, more than many more obvious beach destinations, and a population of surfers to rival any of them. While surfing is still illegal at most NYC beaches, thanks to an overturned law in 2005, Rockaway Beach has become the surfing mecca of the city.

Read on to find out where kids can take surfing lessons, rent equipment or sign up for surfing camp, plus learn the ever important Surfer's Code, without having to leave the five boroughs.

There's no doubt about it: The kindie band movement is thriving in New York City. Although I make it a point to expose my son to kid-friendly “grown-up” music, I also have a soft spot for kindie bands—even hopping on the bandwagon and heading Putumayo Kids and producing Kindiefest, Brooklyn’s Family Music Conference.

For those of you new to the kindie music scene—or well-versed but looking for some variety—I've pulled together a curated list of my top picks for NYC-based artists available for streaming on both Pandora and Spotify. Of course, these artists reflect the multicultural city that New York is and draw on their many diverse backgrounds, producing bilingual and global tunes.

Got a little music fan? Find upcoming NYC kindie band concerts, including these artists below, in our Event Calendar, or check out these parent and me baby music classes. The big kids might consider music camp, too!

February is Black History Month and Westchester is bustling with ways to learn about and celebrate African-American heritage. 

The origin of Black History Month can be traced to back to 1926, when it was founded by Harvard historian Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (now ASALH) as a week-long event. Woodson, who selected February because it coincided with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, was troubled by the inequality in black education. The event was expanded into a month-long honor in 1976 by President Gerald Ford, and, since then, every U.S. president has issued Black History Month proclamations. (We will see if our new president follows suit.) 

All month long throughout Westchester, you'll find family-friendly ways to learn about and celebrate the contributions of African-Americans throughout our country's history. Below are some of of our favorite Black History Month events, almost all of which are FREE. Read on, and then visit our Event Calendar for other great happenings throughout Westchester this month!

Expecting a baby in 2017? If you're in New Jersey, you'll have the opportunity to receive a FREE Baby Box that can serve as mini crib for the newborn months and comes stocked with infant supplies, such as diaper and wipe samples.

The boxes, created by Baby Box Co., are modeled after the same ones provided by the Finnish government for decades to new moms and aimed at tackling SIDs, or SUID, Sudden Unexpected Infant Death, aka, every parent's worst nightmare. The sturdy cardboard box is considered a safe sleeping environment and has earned the seal of approval from CPSC, Health Canada, and EN for safe infant sleeping spaces. It can also be kept close by, which makes things easier on parents but also further encourages healthy habits, from breastfeeding to bonding. Finland has one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world, and the boxes, along with the prenatal counseling that comes with them, are credited with its successful rating.

Planning another birthday party? Looking for something different? For those kids whose interests lean to the culinary or who love to decorate with sugary goodness, here's a great idea: a cooking party! There are a bunch of places in and around Philadelphia that host cooking, baking, and decorating parties, and even some who will drive to the birthday kid's home. So, if you've got an aspiring chef, check out some of these great nearby birthday parties.

Given the STEM movement in education and the always popular DIY-birthday party theme, it’s no surprise city kids are requesting robotics-fueled shindigs to celebrate their birthdays. At a robotics party, kids construct their own models—sometimes in 3D—that move and roll while also learning about the mechanics behind it all.

We've rounded up a collection of fun-and-educational spots to celebrate your kids next birthday robotics style where creativity—and sometimes little robotic creatures themselves—run wild.

Check out our NYC Kids' Birthday Party Guide for more inspiration.

Music, art, swimming, dance, playgroups: When you're the parent of a young child, the opportunities to introduce your son or daughter to new experiences and friends can seem limitless. But if you're a working parent, the last thing you want to do is cram your already packed calendar with classes that happen at inconvenient times. Luckily, Boston is home to many stellar programs that are particularly accommodating to working parents' schedules. Here are some of our favorites.