While painting parties are all the rage for ladies' night out, kids can also get in the act (minus the wine, of course). Channel your entire family's inner artists to create a masterpiece worthy of your living room wall. All you need to do it is pick up a paint brush and learn how to paint "happy little trees" and more at these Long Island studios/businesses that offer art lessons for families.

And take a look at our guide for other classes, programs and enrichment activities on Long Island. 

Children's theater generally makes the list of things to do with our little ones, so finding a new theater with appropriate shows for the under 10 crowd is always a treat. The Little Theater, a 49-seat theater in West LA, is a great, low key spot to enjoy kid friendly theater, and a wonderful start for the beginner theater goer.  

Ahhh! Feel that, New Jersey? Those milder temps and the sun shining down have everyone in the mood to get out and about! For a dose of fresh, early spring air, head to Manasquan Environmental Center for their Monarch Butterflies program, take a Winter Weekend Scavenger Hunt at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum or lace up your sneakers for a Family Woodland Hike at NJ Botanical Gardens. And of course, St. Patrick’s Day festivities are in full swing! Check out annual parades in Atlantic City, Morris County and Bergen County. For even more weekend fun, check out the full list of weekend activities in our Event Calendar.

At this time of year we get loads of email from parents looking for guidance in finding the right summer camp for their kids. Of course, our LA Camp Guide is always a great place to find our recommendations for all sorts of camps; and browsing the listings in our camp directory also yields oodles of ideas and opportunities. But sometimes it helps to narrow down, to just look at a few—preferably a few you can look at or talk to in person. Below is a list of open houses offered by some of our camp sponsors in the coming weeks; these are great opportunities to talk to the people who would be spending the day with your kids. Click on a camp name to get more information about the camp's programs.

Every camp-planning season, we here at Mommy Poppins scour the city looking for enriching new summer programs for our been-there, done-that kids. To help you make an informed decision about the new camps on the block, we've rounded up nine of the most promising programs set to debut this summer. Some are brand-new, others are places that are significantly expanding their already awesome offerings.

In addition to these newbies, it's good to check out our best new camp roundups from 2014, 2013 and 2012. Most of those programs are still going on and continue to offer top-notch programming. You can also browse our Summer Camp Guide for additional options or use our Camp Directory to search for programs by interest, age and location.

We're big fans of kid-friendly STEM activities and anything FREE. So put them together and you've got an event that we want to shout about. New York City's Brain Week 2015 kicks off today and offers neuroscience programs throughout March. Most of the kid-friendly ones take place this week and next, and include family favorites like the BioBus (of Ultimate Science Street Fair fame), and educational expos such as the NYU Brain Fair. Programming occurs in various locations (mostly Manhattan), and while almost all events are FREE, preregistration is often required. We've got the scoop on the top Brain Week events for families.

Swimming sharks, stingrays, and penguins are the main attractions at Jenkinson's Aquarium, a small but charming aquarium that offers a glimpse of life under the sea. Located on the Point Pleasant boardwalk, the aquarium is a perfect respite from the noonday sun, or a way to combat boredom on a rainy day.