Growing up, special restaurants for birthday dinner were few and far between in my small South Dakota hometown. We had two choices for our birthday dinner: The first was hitting the Burger King for a cardboard crown and a cake with no candles. The second was the Electric Rainbow Arcade for 20 tokens, which lasted about two minutes, and some microwave pizza we politely hid under the skee-ball machines when mom and dad weren’t looking.

Living in New York City, that is not the case. My two daughters don’t know how good they have it. This foodie paradise is home to plenty of great restaurants for birthday dinner celebrations. Here are just a few of our favorite go-to spots when we're ready to party. Find more family-friendly eateries in our Guide to Kid-Friendly Restaurants, and make sure to save time for cake from one of these top bakeries for birthday cakes in NYC.

Kids are growing up in an increasingly digital world filled with apps, games, and social media– and that means lots of new challenges for parents wanting to keep children safe and healthy. From screen time limits to cyberbullying, plus the ever-changing landscape of social media and online games, it can feel almost impossible to keep up.

Navigating the Digital World is an online parenting toolkit with clear and simple advice that addresses challenges like choosing appropriate apps and understanding parental controls on social media platforms. Developed by pediatric psychologists, sleep specialists, gaming specialists, and other experts at Connecticut Children’s, you can feel confident that the information comes from a trusted source.

The month of Ramadan is fast approaching and we have some festive and meaningful ways to make Ramadan traditions something your family can learn about, celebrate, and look forward to each year!

For my family, Ramadan is more than a holiday season, it’s about having honor and pride in our Islamic identity. Filled with lights, decorations, and incredible food, the month of Ramadan is a time to focus on faith and perform generous acts as we try to better ourselves in all aspects of life.

I want to share some of my family's favorite traditions and celebrations with you. With books, crafts, decor, and food, here are 10 inspiring ways to make your Ramadan festive and memorable! For more ways to celebrate any and every holiday, check out your local Holidays Guide.

The Autry Museum of the American West is known for stunning wild west paintings and artifacts celebrating cowboy culture. It’s also now home to a sweet little indoor spot for kids—the brand-new family play space. 

What the new space accomplishes at the Autry Museum is powerful: it normalizes bringing kids to museums. It allows parents to soak in beauty and culture without boring the littles. While most art galleries might not appeal to young kids, this space invites children to enjoy and play. This adds to the already long list of enticing things for kids to do in Griffith Park. The Autry made a museum adventure easy and even relaxing for our family. Read on for everything you need to know about this new family play space!

For more local museums with great kid spaces or attractions—like the Skirball, the Getty, and The Huntington Library and Gardens—read all our local parent museum secrets in our Museum Guide for Kids in LA and OC. 

At these indoor play spaces, few preschoolers can resist the lure of the water table where they can dunk their toys and hands in, fill containers just to spill them out again, and splash around. After all, in a tiny NYC apartment, not many of us have space for such messy playthings, so we rounded up a handful of NYC indoor play spaces that offer water-based sensory stations. No bathing suits or parental cleanup required.

Best of all, these soggy attractions are open year-round, even in summer just in case you can't face another sweltering day on the playground. So, for those who beg to play in water long after the lifeguards go home, there are options beyond the bathtub.

These leprechaun trap ideas will help you catch St. Patrick's Day's famous little mascot while he's causing mischief! Or, you can make a memorable St. Patrick’s Day for kids by staging a silly leprechaun prank. We’ve rounded up ten festive, funny tricks to try out at home or in the classroom.

And if you’re looking to trap the sneaky little guy, we’ve also compiled five creative leprechaun trap ideas. Remember, leprechauns are master escape artists, but they do sometimes leave a treat or surprise behind...

Check out our other super cute St. Patrick's Day activities, like this shamrock craft or rainbow on a stick treats. Plus we've got crafts and activities to do at home all spring long with 100 awesome kids' crafts and more boredom-busting fun you can have at home.

The NYC Parks Department's FREE swimming lessons have returned from a prolonged pandemic hiatus, and we have the details to get you—and your child—back in the pool. These FREE swimming lessons require entering an online lottery for each session, which run year-round in spring, summer, fall, and winter. The FREE spring swimming lessons are on the horizon, and the lottery registration for these swim classes is open through noon on Monday, March 20, 2023.

Read on for the details on where to swim for FREE, or check our directory of paid kids' swim classes, and mommy-and-me swim lessons for babies and toddlers.

Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge in South Jersey is a peaceful nature sanctuary on the edge of the unique New Jersey Pinelands ecosystem. This large, non-profit nature center sprawls over 171 acres and is a great place for family fun. My family loves to visit in all seasons to romp in nature and enjoy the many different animals. 

On weekends the nature center can be bustling with families and birthday parties, but you don’t have to walk far into the woods along a picturesque trail to find some solitude. The trail runs in a loop crossing over a creek, through the wildlife viewing area, and along a bridge over a pond surrounded by evergreen trees. Dozens of animals native to New Jersey call Cedar Run home.

Be sure to check out our rundown of New Jersey nature centers and other great activity ideas in our Outdoor Activities Guide for New Jersey Kids.