Once again we have a rainy weekend on our hands and as such, some of our outdoor picks may be canceled or postponed. Before you head out, check the event's official website to make sure it's still happening. It's the first weekend of August and while some New Yorkers are leaving the city for far-flung destinations, we're planning a fun-filled staycation for the rest of the summer. This weekend brings lots of FREE fun including the first installment of Manhattan's car-free Summer Streets; the activity-packed Kids Rule Weekend in the Bronx; and no-cost admission to the Children's Museum of Manhattan on Friday evening, the Brooklyn Museum on Saturday evening and the Brooklyn Children's Museum on both afternoons.

We're particularly excited about our Mommy Poppins Family Cruise on Sunday. Join us for a fun New York Harbor voyage on Manhattan by Sail's Clipper City Tall Ship with master storyteller Bill Gordh and other boat-themed kids' activities. There are still tickets available so book now.

These are just a few of the great things going on this weekend. All of our best bets are below. You can find additional options in our Event Calendar and our Summer Fun Guide. And if you're looking to plan out your entire month, check out the new edition of our NYC Go List, which highlights the absolute best things to do with kids throughout August.

With the city constantly texting me about heat and air quality advisories, I'm starting to feel like I have a second overbearing mother. (For the record, my mom still calls me on an almost daily basis to ask if my daughter and I are dressed appropriately for the weather.) My family and I have been attempting to keep cool by trying some of the picks in our Water Fun Guide like great public pools and popular water-filled playgrounds. If you just can't bear to be outside, our Inside Activity Guide has many fun indoor options including drop-in play spaces, and there are lots of kid-friendly exhibits in our Museum Guide.

For the most part though, we haven't let the high temperatures slow us down. This week we explored a couple of new must-experience summer attractions: the Bronx Zoo's awesome Dinosaur Safari and the absolutely magical Fête Paradiso on Governors Island. Meanwhile our Long Island peeps put together a list of the top 25 things to do on the North Fork with kids, our Connecticut bloggers shared the best places to go blueberry picking in New Haven County and New Jersey highlighted the state's best water parks and offbeat summer festivals, including next weekend's Hot Air Balloon Festival at the Warren County Farmers' Fair.

And don't forget to enter our current giveaway, which is aimed at kids and parents: a pair of OnBroadway Performing Arts Training Program master classes for four (two children and two adults). We think moms and dads deserve to win something, too.

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

Every year around this time I start to feel like I'm the only New Yorker left in NYC. I was on a Fifth Avenue bus yesterday and it sounded like the Tower of Babel (even more so than usual). My family and I actually love sticking around the city in the summer because there are so many wonderful things to do, many of them FREE. And I was reminded of that as we put together our Free in NYC Kids Guide this week. This brand-new guide lists no-cost things to do and places to go in the five boroughs throughout the year, but the section on free summer fun is particularly robust. So the next time you're trying to plan a no-cost NYC outing, you know where to look.

Of course I can't deny the appeal of a quick summer getaway. In addition to checking our NYC Day Trips Guide for inspiration, it's worth perusing our regional sites for ideas. Our Westchester site just rounded up 25 things to do in Pelham; our New Jersey site profiled the Watchung Reservation; the annual Sailfest hits the water near New London this weekend, Connecticut and blueberry picking is on at farms throughout the tri-state area. If you do go out of town, be sure to download a few of these apps to keep preschoolers busy in the car, on a plane or even if you just need a few minutes to yourself at home.

And a quick shout out on behalf of our Long Island site, which is on the hunt for a few good bloggers. If you're an LI expert who fits the bill, we encourage you to apply!

Here's what else we covered on our NYC site this week, including details about a new drop-off summer playdate program by Project Playdate that Mommy Poppins is co-sponsoring.