It may be the lazy days of summer but we're going full throttle here at Mommy Poppins with (almost all) good news. In fact, we have lots of things to sing about, in particular a brand-new series of kiddie music classes created by children's music legend and NYC mom Laurie Berkner. Plus info on signing up for this year's edition of Morningside Lights, how to snag two-for-one Broadway theater tickets come September, the latest on the battle to keep public school student data private, the sad closure of an Old New York soda fountain and other tidbits of interest to NYC families.

Growing up in the midwest, seafood was always sort of a special thing … or a strange thing.  Raising my kids on the coast, I don’t want them to have a second thought, or have them sneering at a lovely clambake spread.  Even if you’re a fifth generation New Englander, you can still have a kid with an aversion to the smell/look, etc. of any given sea creature.  I figure part of the fun, and all of the flavor, is contingent on finding a good fish market — one with good selection, fair prices and fish heads for the kids to squeal about.  Bonus points if you can find one that's sourcing responsibly.  (Click here for a free guide to guilt-free fish buying, published by the Monterey Bay Aquarium). We’ve only begun our hunt as a family, but I’ve had time to sample a few over the years, and polled my friends across Fairfield County for their faves.

August might be upon us, but summer in the Hamptons and the North Fork is still in full swing with more than a few family-friendly events happening, from the Sag Harbor Fire Department Carnival to a flea market in Westhampton Beach. We've come up with 9 must-attend events during the weekend of August 8-10.

Be sure to check out our Long Island Calendar for more kid-friendly activities, as well as our Hamptons and North Fork Guide. And don't forget to subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you can receive our roundup of fun things to do delivered directly to your inbox.

And for those of you staying out on the East End during the week, be sure to check out CMEE's Summer Concert Series every Tuesday this month. Mommy Poppins Hamptons and North Fork Family Guide is a proud sponsor and we'll be on hand each week with a new prize to give away! This Tuesday (8/12) will feature Tim and the Space Cadets, and we're giving away a $200 voucher toward a Manhattan birthday party.

Before we know it, the leaves will be changing colors and school schedules will consume our days. So round up the troops during these warm and carefree weekends in August and have some summer fun! Get outdoors (and maybe get a little dirty!) as you learn about amphibians at Poricy Park’s Frog Fest, roll up your sleeves for some planting and weeding during Garden Time at Liberty State Park or sign up for S’mores Galore campfire and sing-a-long at Tenafly Nature Center. August in Jersey is also brimming with family-friendly festivals like the Peach, Pirate & Princess Festival at Camden Children’s Garden, Butterfly Festival at Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association or Salt Water Day at the Laurence Harbor. Also, you can check out the full list of weekend activities on our Event Calendar and don't miss our Summer of Play Guide with 100s of ideas for a fun, playful, and tech-free summer!

Several times a year I find myself outside on my tiny patio at all odd hours, staring up at the sky in hopes I will catch a glimpse of some spectacular astronomical happening in the skies over Westchester. There are meteor showers, comets, planet alignments, super moons, eclipses, oppositions and conjunctions--not to mention man-made events like shuttle launches and space station pass-overs.

Recently, a friend asked if I knew of any public spaces in the area where the skies are dark enough for stargazing--places that welcome families and amateur astronomers to observe the skies. Happily, there are several places in Westchester and the surrounding area where families can see and learn about the night sky and we've rounded them up for you.

Pack a thermos of hot chocolate, grab some warm blankets and check out these local astronomical viewing sites and activities--one might even say the views are out of this world!

If you live in one of the towns west of Boston and you have a creative kid, you’re in luck. In Arlington, Belmont, Watertown, Newton and Concord, I’ve found a veritable cornucopia of art and craft making classes for kids. Environmental arts? Check. Cartooning? Check. Zentangle? (What's that?) Yep, that one too, along with clay work, animation, drawing, painting, glass fusion, and fashion illustration.  

If all this sounds great, but you're looking for classes closer to the city, take a look at my posts highlighting arts and crafts classes in Boston and in Cambridge, Somerville, and Brookline.