It’s mind-boggling to learn that Apple recently sold its 25 billionth app(!), but it’s certainly not hard to understand why. A dazzling array of wondrous, educational and just flat-out entertaining apps exists for all ages. If you’ve got children, and you’re about to hit the road for a family vacation or have a new iPad and want to explore this amazing technology with your little ones, download these 20 kid-friendly favorites.

ABCmouse.com Zoo Set 1

iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad (99 cents)

Learn about animals in their natural surroundings and test your knowledge of them with the quiz feature in this cool app.

Big Nate: Comix By U!

iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad ($2.99)

Who hasn’t wanted to become a cartoonist? This app, which is based on the best-selling Big Nate book series, allows kids to craft their own comics along with some art assistance from author Lincoln Peirce’s hilarious books.

Cupcakes!

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android (99 cents)

It’s so enjoyable to indulge over and over again in making, decorating and eating delicious-looking cupcakes. Mmm!

Cut the Rope

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android (99 cents)

Kids and adults alike can’t get enough of this silly game in which you have to feed candy to a goofy, cheerful green monster named Om Nom.

Drawing Pad

For iPad ($1.99)

Pen, ink, paints and markers are wonderful things but not so much on, say, a cramped, crowded airplane or the backseat of a minivan. Drawing Pad is an at-your-fingertips, fully stocked easel, so your child has access to virtual paint, colored pencils, crayons, stickers and more. Your kid can even email her finished creations to friends and family. (Also, check out the free Doodle Buddy for another nifty art-based app.)

The Electric Company Wordball!

For iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad (Free)

Catch “wordballs” and sharpen spelling skills while enjoying music videos from Ne-Yo, Jimmy Fallon and The Electric Company gang.

Farkle Dice

For iPhone, iPad and Android (Free)

One tech dad friend raves about this two-to-four player “awesome dice game,” which he says is ideal for those times when you need to kill a few moments.

Fruit Ninja

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android (99 cents)

This slicing-fruit game is insanely popular, so if you’re one of the few that doesn’t own it, go ahead and find out what the hype is all about. You won’t be sorry. Fruit Ninja is fun, slightly ridiculous and a totally satisfying way to make a virtual mess.

Juno Jr’s The Day the Music Stopped

For iPhone and iPad ($2.99)

When everything in Harmonica Springs gets “shushed,” Juno, Rai Rai and their friends have to bring the music back. Your child will be able to help by interacting with everything she sees. Belinda Takahashi, a parent, Ph.D. and Emmy-award-winning composer, created the app.

LEGO App4+

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android (free)

LEGO lovers get the chance to build their own truck and then take their cargo on its merry way. This is a simple game, which makes it easy for younger kids to master and explore over and over.

My PlayHome

For iPhone and iPad ($2.99)

It’s a simple virtual dollhouse with just a few rooms, but there’s plenty to do, from playing a CD to hanging out in the backyard treehouse. It’s hard to be bored, but it’s not sensory overload either. (Can we call a cutting-edge technology app “old-school?”)

Pat the Bunny

For iPhone and iPad ($3.99)

This app, based on the classic book by Dorothy Kunhardt, allows younger kids to read and interact with the beloved bunny, see themselves in the mirror (cute!) and even “color” the pages.

Pianist

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android ($3.99)

Make music on the go with this straightforward app. It’s a full 88-key, realistic-looking piano keyboard that comes with the ability to record and then save your tunes.

Pocket Frogs

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android (free)

Breed and collect from more than 15,000 frogs, decorate their habitats and even trade frogs with friends.

Ranger Rick’s Raiders of the Lost Aardvark

For iPhone and iPad ($1.99)

Perfect for animal lovers, this thoughtfully created National Wildlife Federation app allows kids to help Ranger Rick solve the mystery of a missing, mummified aardvark.

Stack the States

For iPhone and iPad (99 cents)

School-age kids will totally get into this engaging educational game teaching them geography and facts about each of our nation’s 50 states and their capitals.

Temple Run

For iPhone and iPad (free)

For the budding Indiana Jones, this adventure game has your kid controlling his treasure-hunting character as he runs, jumps and slides through jungle obstacles. Plenty of people say the game is addictive.

WeetWoo!

For iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad ($3.99)

Maybe your kids love YouTube but keep stumbling over stuff you don’t think is age-appropriate. Enter WeetWoo! which allows them to browse a bunch of kid-friendly videos that are frequently updated — without seeing something they shouldn’t.

Where’s My Water?

For iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android (free and paid versions)

That mythical 25 billionth app downloaded? Ta dah! This puzzle game has kids trying to help Swampy the Alligator, who just wants to get clean. You have to get water to him by digging through dirt and avoiding obstacles along the way as the puzzle gets harder and harder.

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Andrea Pyros lives in New York’s Hudson Valley, where she raises her two kids and writes for http://www.RetailMeNot.com — the No. 1 online coupon site in the world.