My kids are lucky enough to not have any allergies themselves, but with nut allergies on the rise, friends in each of their classes since preschool have had allergies that could result in deadly reactions to certain nuts. While it's hard for families to ensure dishes are allergen-free in restaurants, we as parents can do our part at home to try and send our kids to school with nut-free lunches and snacks each day so that everyone stays safe.

For me, this starts in the grocery store when I'm purchasing ingredients for the week. Many of the processed foods available—including granola bars, cookies, crackers, and yogurts with toppings—are made in facilities that also process nuts. These items generally carry such a disclaimer on the package under the ingredients, but I've found it easiest to only purchase items for school made from whole foods and then pull together my own fun meals at home.

When the shorter days and longer nights of Winter have my family bouncing off the walls we frequently turn to the Mommy Poppins guide of Indoor Play Spaces.   Lucky for us in Fairfield County, there are quite a few to choose from. Having a fun, safe, clean, dependable indoor play area is crucial to surviving winter in Connecticut.  For my family, that magical place is called “Our Back Yard”.  You may not notice this expansive play space driving down the road in Fairfield. It’s tucked into a strip mall, above the Nutmeg Bowl Bowling Alley.  Our Back Yard is in the same building as the bowling alley, but if you follow the driveway along the side of the building, you will reach the separate parking lot and entrance for the play space.  Our Back Yard offers a “weather resistant” playscape. Even though we have been “bounced out” after about 60 minutes, I still feel like this is a tremendous bang for your buck.  

If you haven’t considered the family vacation potential of forward-thinking Amsterdam, it’s time to start. This walkable European city where nearly everyone speaks English, offers great things to do for the young and old alike.

Martin Luther King Day is approaching, and while most kids will be excited about the day off from school, many may not even be aware of the tremendous contributions of Dr. King.

You can learn more about Dr. King at your local library, where they are sure to have plenty of age-appropriate books on display, and you can visit the King Center website to learn more.

In today’s digital world—which most kids know quite well!—more and more camps are catering to aspiring game designers and engineers. Not only are these camps informative, but they help prepare tweens and teens for real-world jobs at a young age—digital media is always booming, so why not send your tech-savvy kids to a camp that meets their interests? Below is a list of design camps in New Jersey for the gamer in your life.

Preschool favorite Peppa Pig is making her U.S. theatrical debut in life-size puppet form as Peppa Pig’s Big Splash tours the country, hitting 90 cities, including New York City in April.

If you have a preschooler or toddler at home, you likely know all about Peppa Pig, her snorting family and their love of muddy puddles. The British-accented pink pig plays on Nick Jr., and ahem, YouTube, on a loop in many a tot’s house, entertaining kids with simple graphics and wholesome themes. You can expect the same from the musical Big Splash, including plenty of Daddy Pig antics, games involving brother George and sightings of Peppa’s friendly pals: Pedro Pony, Danny Dog and Suzy Sheep.

We headed to New Jersey to see the show last month before it arrives here in NYC. Read on for our review, what to expect and how to manage a squirmy tot's first theater experience. Have an older sibling? Try one of our 10 Best Broadway Shows for kids.

It should come as no surprise that the rains have finally come.  We've been getting warnings for like a decade now, or maybe a year,  but they've said "Hey. It's gonna rain. You should get a raincoat, and maybe an umbrella." Which I'm sure you've totally done because we parents are all about planning ahead.

Like for this weekend, for instance. You can plan ahead for this summer, or, if you didn't plan ahead, you can still catch CHILL and the Mummy exhibit before they close. You know who did some major planning ahead? Mummies. For this life and the next. You know who didn't plan ahead? Those mammoths who got caught in the tar pits.  "Hmm, I think I'll check out that black gooey stuff ..."  What happens in the tar pits, stays in the tar pits... 

As for my weekend, I am planning to 1) stay dry and 2) get wet in the process. I will accomplish this by going to indoor activities, (of which there are many, it being January), but getting wet on the way in because I may or may not have an umbrella yet. All my bases covered, and it's not even baseball season yet!

Keep reading to plan ahead for this wet-or-dry weekend…

As January finally brings cold winter air into Philadelphia, many families retreat indoors, while others brave the plummeting temperatures. Whatever best suits your family, there are many ways to spend these cold winter days throughout the Delaware Valley.

If you are ready to experience brisk wintertime weather, participate in the Conservancy Cottage Winter Bird Count or learn about unique animal critters at Warwick County Park's Weird Wildlife workshop. However, if your family prefers to retreat indoors when the mercury drops, this weekend does not disappoint. Enjoy the Academy of Natural Sciences' Reptile exhibit, the Delaware Children's Museum's Try Science workshop, or The Michener Museum's Family Drawing Days.

Whether indoors or out, much fun awaits this weekend. To stay on top of the latest activities, be sure to sign up for our newsletter which is delivered to your inbox on Sundays and Thursdays.