Editor's Note 8/27: Check out the great Hurricane Irene post on our NYC site here-- has great links and stuff to do with kids while you're stuck in the house!   Well, we can all make our fun weekend plans, but just know that there may be an extra visitor hangin’ with us—a little lady named Irene. We hear she has a rather stormy temperament, so let’s all be safe out there. And just in case the hurricane passes us by, there are lots of activities in NJ this weekend, from a 19th century fashion show to a jazz and blues festival to a kids’ bike parade. Have fun! (We hope).

Amazingly, it is the middle of August and there's only two weeks left of summer. Before you start crying into your mojito, remember that with September's cool breezes come... back to school for the small people. Which just might be cause to celebrate for some of us weary parents. Or maybe that's just me. In any case, there's plenty of fun stuff happening mid-August, like outdoor parties, fests, bug-eating, art, rubber ducks, surfing and so much more. Enjoy!

Had enough festivals yet? Of course you haven't! It's summer! Time for food on a stick and hot sweaty bouncehouses! There are fests in Hoboken, Middletown, Tenafly and the Shore this weekend, but if you don't feel like walking through ten thousand other people to get your Zeppole, you can also count fireflies for a scientific study, let your kid become a Junior Zookeeper, or watch a cool old-fashioned baseball game being played. We love summer, we really do. Food on a stick and all.

New Jersey is humming with summer activity this weekend, so choose your fest or ‘stock wisely. Do your festival tastes run more toward a giant sloppy barbecue contest or a much more dignified music and art offering? Are you up for Beachstock or Maplewoodstock? Or maybe you’d rather see T-Bone Stankus' hilarious one-man show or just eat ice cream all day. Choices, choices. That’s what summer is all about.

Summer in the city is all about free alfresco entertainment. There are complimentary concerts (for kids and grown-ups), no-cost movies and lots of free festivals.

But don't forget about free storytimes in city parks! Because you know your kids don't want to hear a tale told in a hot, crowded library. (And even if your local branch is swanky enough to have air conditioning, your children shouldn't be cooped up indoors.)

We've rounded up a dozen storytelling series for families to enjoy all summer long.

There's a ton of fun to be had in NJ this weekend (if the weather decides to cooperate), so grab the offspring and head out for ocean fun, a children's festival, a family fun day, a tea for your junior fasionista, a fairy festival... okay, the "f'" alliteration is getting to be a bit much. But have a fiesta anyway!

Even before I was a working mom, I never had time to properly clean my house. Okay, I never made time to properly clean my house, but let’s not split hairs, shall we? Honestly, I have the greatest respect for people who spend precious time to keep their homes tidy, and I do try very hard to be part of their exclusive club, but when Merry Maids contacted me and offered me a free cleaning, I jumped on it like a monkey on a cupcake. Or like a busy working mom on a maid service.