At the start of the new year, we had no idea how many amazing new shows NYC museums would announce for midwinter—and find a way to mount so quickly. Just when we need to stimulate our senses the most, kid-enticing exhibitions are popping up all over town, from a show about whales (at the American Museum of Natural History) and an exhibit looking at the physics of Tony Hawk's skateboarding moves (at the New York Hall of Science) to a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the movie Avatar (at Liberty Science Center) and an interactive exhibition that explores the history, concept and practice of children's self-portraiture (Children's Museum of the Arts). NYC museums are the obvious place for kids and their parents to find shelter from winter's onslaught, as these exhibits—and museum family days galore—attest.