One of my family’s favorite Halloween traditions is to take our little animal-costumed boy (in the past he's been a penguin, cow, bat, bumblebee and flying squirrel) to the Bronx Zoo for its annual Boo at the Zoo celebration. The zoo really goes all out for the occasion and transforms into a festive and not-too-scary Halloween destination for families.

The special Boo at the Zoo activities take place every weekend through October 28, so you've got plenty of time to check them out. Attractions include extraordinary 3D pumpkin carving demos, live music and magic, a spooky hayride, a haunted mansion, cool Halloween-themed animal programs, costume parades and even trick-or-treating. Boo at the Zoo is a great deal, too: For every full-price general admission adult ticket purchased, one child in costume gets in free. Read on for details about Boo at the Zoo and check out our Halloween Fun Guide for even more seasonal fun.

Imagine driving to the California Science Center at 2 mph. Now imagine doing that in a space shuttle with a 78-foot wing span. If you've got that image in your head, try adding Friday traffic, and we have something much more worthy of Los Angeles traffic lore than a simple Carmageddon weekend. The space shuttle takes to LA's surface streets late Thursday night and - with scheduled visits to landmarks like Randy's Donuts - ambles along on its historic last journey for 48 hours. If you think President Obama's visits present traffic challenges, you ain't seen nothing yet.

“Good day my lady”, the man fully clad in 16th century attire spoke in his thick British brogue. Surrounded by knights, Lords, horse-riding jousters and even King Arthur himself I thought I had stepped back in time to the Renaissance. Attend King Arthur’s Fall Harvest Festival and you will also get to experience what it was like to be a part of that era. This past Sunday I attended the opening weekend at the Hebron Lions Fairgrounds where the faire runs now until October 28. In its 14th season the festival is Connecticut’s largest Renaissance Faire.

Our family had such a spooktacular state-hopping daytrip yesterday that I just had to share the itinerary. It involved furry monsters, a historical state park (that actually spans two states) and a ghost tour. Not only did we enjoy our stops, but the ride was just beautiful with the fall foliage. If you're looking for a day trip that combines the best of fall with the best of Halloween, read on!

What child wouldn't like to see "The Greatest Show on Earth"? Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey Circus will be at the Webster Bank Arena October 18-21 2012. Fully Charged is the name of the show and there are sure to be many thrills. Mommy Poppins Connecticut is excited to be offering a Family 4 Pack of Tickets to one lucky winner.

The amazing acts include Tabayara, a dynamic animal trainer who can ride rearing stallions at a fully charged gallop and orchestrate majestic four-ton Asian Elephants in a symphony of dance. The kids will love Ukrainian strongman duo of Dmitry Nadolinkskiy and Ruslan Gilmulin, who are as wide as they are tall. The brawny twosome will lift large cumbersome telephone poles, which weigh up to half-a-ton, and twirl them above their heads while acrobats balance atop. There will be other thrilling acts that include extreme jumps and human rockets. Of course the clowns will be there to draw in the crowd as well.

If you were following our Facebook page last weekend, then you know the Mommy Poppins gang had a pretty jam-packed schedule. We posted pictures from our adventures at the Dumbo Arts Festival, Maker Faire and the Morningside Lights illuminated cityscape parade (see the attached photo). And we're not slowing down this Columbus Day weekend: OpenHouseNewYork, the Historic House Festival and the Blessing of the Animals are all on our must-do list.

Halloween festivities are picking up, too. The New York Botanical Garden opens its annual Haunted Pumpkin Garden this weekend—we're giving away tickets to the jack-o'-lantern display in our newsletter this week so make sure you're subscribed. And of course pumpkin picking is in full swing at pumpkin patches near NYC and even a few right here in the city.

The three-day weekend is the perfect time to take a day trip and our Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut sites all highlight the best things going on in their respective regions. Columbus Day weekend is also a great time to plan your next big out-of-town vacation (or just fantasize about one). Over on our Travel site we just finished a series of posts about Clearwater Beach, Florida, including our visits to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and the nearby Dali Museum, a review of the Hilton Clearwater Beach and our list of the best things to do with kids in the resort town .

Here's what else we covered on the NYC site this week:

With so much emphasis on reading, writing and arithmetic in elementary school, it's easy to gloss over other academic subjects. Science especially seems to get short shrift these days, a shame since children are naturally inquisitive about things like nature, space technology.

Luckily all that focus on reading comes in handy here. since there's a slew of wonderful science books aimed at school-age kids. For this month's Little Lions post, Deborah D. Allman, Head of Children’s Services at the Bronx Library Center, picked out eight of her favorites, and they're all way more engaging than your average text book.

Photo: Rise of the Jack O' Lantern

Ready? There is so much going on on Long Island this weekend, there's no time to be bored. In addition to pumpkin and apple picking and all kinds of farm fun, Rise of the Jack O' Lantern—a cool not-so-spooky walk at Old Westbury Gardens—starts this weekend, and there are so many fairs and festivals going on, no matter where you live, you're certain to find one right near you. Have a great weekend!