>>> A baby's on the way, a new acquaintance adds to the fun/confusion and some old friends are back.

Yes, "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" will entertain all those who have enjoyed the prior animated "Ice Age" movies that take place in prehistoric times.

This one is in 3-D. Now, you don't need to see it in 3-D (the 3-D experience costs a few dollars more for the glasses), but does add some eye-popping moments. Still, the movie is just plain good in 2-D as well. It's all up to you whether to add that extra dimension.

First, of course, you'll see that Scrat, the saber-toothed squirrel, is back, and he's still on a quest for that elusive acorn. But now the female Scrattè has been added to the mix, and she also becomes an object of longing for Scrat. The two rodents add a kind of Coyote vs. Roadrunner comedy at intervals throughout a major portion of the film.

Wooly mammoths Manny (voice of Ray Romano) and Ellie (voice Queen Latifah) are expecting a baby very soon. Manny has built a darling playground to help keep his offspring occupied and safe.

Diego, the saber-toothed tiger (Denis Leary) has decided it's time for him to go his own way now that the mammoths are building a family of their own. Sid the Sloth (John Leguizamo) desperately wants to have a piece of the child-rearing action. He's so desperate that he falls into an ice cave, where he discovers three dinosaur eggs and subsequently decides to hatch and raise them.

Of course, the mother dinosaur is looking for the triplets and they all end up in a forgotten-by-time land under the one they normally inhabit. Dinosaurs, both carnivorous and vegetarian, are plentiful here. This is where Buck the weasel (Simon Pegg) appears. He volunteers to lead the troupe in search of the lost Sid and his old nemesis, a Moby Dick-like dino about which he's obsessed. Even the opossums (Josh Peck and Seann William Scott) join in the hunt for the errant sloth.

This movie offers a lot to grownups, especially baby boomers who will get a kick out of Barry White moments and an acorn delivering a version of a Gilbert O'Sullivan tune.

This is great fun, perfect for a summer outing, and living proof that family fare hasn't gone the way of the you-know-what.