Anyone who knows me knows how much I love free things. I often plan my week around the free events I can hit with my family, and—true confession—I've even started planning ahead for free things to do this summer around town. This past weekend, my family and I spent an afternoon enjoying free events and museum admission at the Harvard ArtsFirst Festival, and this upcoming week is also filled with tons of no-cost activities. From a concert to a big book signing to museum visits, there are plenty of great ways to have a good time without breaking the bank. It's especially fun to get out now that it's May and finally starting to feel like spring.

Read on for our picks of the week, and don't forget to check out our full Event Calendar!

Oh May, how we've missed you! What a beautiful first weekend you've given us. Happily, this week leading up to Mother's Day is supposed to be just as gorgeous. Time to go outside and revel in the spring air! Enjoy a sunset sail, a gardening expo or even a Greek Festival. Remember, if you are still trying to decide on summer camps, check out our Camp Guide, which includes both day and sleepaway options. Although we just highlight one pick per day in this post, you can find lots of other suggestions in our Event Calendar and our Connecticut Day Trips Guide.

Westchester is gearing up for Mother's Day, Cinco de Mayo and more, and we’ve rounded up our top kid-friendly picks for the week to help get you started.

Don’t have a Mother’s Day present yet? There are several craft programs where kids can make a special gift for mom, including Dragonfly Pin - Mother's Day Craft. Ready to go south of the border? Life’s a fiesta at Cinco de Mayo Bounce. Or perhaps you’d rather venture to the Far East at the Japanese Children’s Day Celebration.

You'll find lots of additional activities in our Event Calendar for every day of the week, and our top picks for the entire month in our May GoList. Read on to plan your week, and click through to our listings for all the details.

Spring has definitely sprung in NYC, and this week some of our favorite warm weather activities are starting up for the season. Albee Square kicks off its concert series with Funkytown Playground, Wagner Park's mellow Sunset Singing Circles return and families can hop a ride on the Bronx Culture Trolley to see the borough in a whole new light.

Although we only highlight one event per day in this post, you can find plenty of other options in our Event Calendar and our Spring Fun Guide.

Spring has sprung with an excellent array of travel deals for families. May and June are typically quiet months in Orlando, and Downtown Disney Resorts are responding with slashed hotel rates. East Coast families looking for a weekend getaway can tour a farm in the Catskills, explore seaside Newport or stay at a new hotel in the center of Portland. If you’re craving the beach, Montauk has early season discounts. A vacation or staycation in the Big Apple can be yours for a bargain price. Farther afield, consider a resort in Arizona, a dream vacation in St. Lucia and wallet-friendly flights to Iceland.

Reading to children from an early age helps nurture a love for books, supports brain development, and offers a chance to quietly connect with rambunctious little ones. Library story hour is a time honored tradition carried on at many locations in the Hartford area. To keep those minds growing and occupied when story time ends, head over to our Classes and Activities Guide for all the enrichment you need.

There is something new at the American Museum of Natural History, and it is bigger than the blue whale: Explorer, the brand new app.  Explorer is a mobile GPS, personal tour guide and virtual exhibit hall all in one. Created for iphone/pod/pad, Explorer puts the entire (massive) museum in the palm of your hand, and you don't even need to own an iphone to try it out.

I recently toured the amazing dinosaur collection on the museum's fourth floor using Explorer as my guide and it is, in a word, awesome. State of the art technology, easy to use and a lot of fun, Explorer is a big hit with kids.

Read on to learn about this exciting new way to experience the museum and download your own Explorer:

We recently rounded up free outdoor film screenings for New York City families. But with temperatures stuck in the 80s and 90s, there are days when all you want to do is spend a few hours in a nice, dark, air-conditioned movie theater—you just don't want to shell out $30-plus to do it.

Happily you don't have to. Wonderful family flicks are playing at a theater near you, and the tickets are free (or inexpensive). Now all you have to do is dip into your 401K to pay for that popcorn.