After the nonstop barrage of agonizing photos, videos and news coverage of Hurricane Sandy and her aftermath, I find that I'm only now starting to process how devastating the storm has been to our city and the entire East Coast. My family and I were lucky: Our East Harlem neighborhood is practically untouched, and we never even lost power. Other members of the Mommy Poppins family were not so blessed: Many of our bloggers are still without power, a few suffered damage to their homes and our special needs contributor, Alison, and her family have pretty much lost everything in Rockaway. I think all of us know someone in Alison's position. Even if your local area is fine, the effects of the storm have just been so far reaching that all New Yorkers have been personally touched by it in some way.

Over the past few days, I've read a lot of articles about how to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Most suggestions involve donating money to national organizations like the Red Cross and Save the Children, which is wonderful. But for New Yorkers who want to make sure their money is used locally, or readers who are interested in more hands-on opportunities, here are five ways you can give back to New York City after this unfathomable natural disaster.

Talk about déjà boo! Remember that freak snowstorm we had the weekend before Halloween last year? Well, Mother Nature is playing another cruel trick on us as we all brace for Hurricane Sandy. Due to the approaching wild weather, the NYC Department of Transportation has decided to suspend subway and bus service beginning at 7pm on Sunday, and the NYC Department of Education has canceled school on Monday, October 29 and Tuesday, October 30! (Follow NYC Public Schools on Twitter for the most up-to-date info.) All New Yorkers are being urged to stay indoors from Sunday night until the storm passes.

While we hope this turns out to be much ado about nothing, chances are your family is going to be spending a lot of time at home over the next few days. If you're wondering how best to prepare (hopefully you've already shopped for necessities like food and filled the bathtub with water), just turn on your local news or visit the official website of your town, city or state. New Yorkers can find info on potential flooding zones, emergency shelters, evacuation notices, public transportation updates and more at nyc.gov.

So what are you going to do to keep your kids (and you) from going stir crazy during the hurricane? After all, you can only watch TV for so long (especially if the power goes out). We've got the scoop on some fun crafts, kid-friendly recipes, cool analog games and even Halloween fun you can do at home. Here are creative ways to keep busy during Hurricane Sandy.

As you can see from the photo of my daughter in full Nightmare Before Christmas regalia, we're ready for Halloween in our house! We're ready for it on the Mommy Poppins sites, too. This week, we rounded up free family-friendly Halloween parades in NYC, do-it-yourself Halloween decorations and accessories, haunted houses in New Jersey and Halloween train rides in Connecticut. Be sure to check out our Halloween Guides for NYC, New Jersey and Connecticut for a truly terrifying amount of seasonal activities.

Of course Halloween isn't the only scary thing on our mind: We're also all obsessed with the upcoming election. Our Boston site shared a wonderful post about teaching your kids about voting. Regardless of which candidate you support, it's important to involve your kids in the process so that when they grow up, they become voters, too.

In other big news this week, Mommy Poppins is getting our own ice cream flavor! And we want you to help us choose what it will be. Our friends at Malu, which is one of our top places to have dessert in Long Island City, are considering five different flavors and you can vote for your favorite on our Facebook page. Make it sweet!

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