Here are our picks for great events and activities for children and families this weekend. Find more events for the whole week in Marin and beyond in our Family Events Calendar.

Friday, January 27

• Mill Valley Farmers' Market
  Alto Shopping Center—CVS Parking Lot
  Friday, 9 am–2 pm
  Come check out the wide assortment of certified organic, seasonal and fresh farm products. They also have organic and specialty artisan foods: baked goods, pasta, empanadas, crepes, tamales, dim sum, bolani, yogurt, cheeses, and more direct from local producers. Free. For more info, visit their website.
• Nature for Kids at Cascade Canyon
  Cascade Canyon Preserve in Fairfax
  Friday, 10 am–2 pm
  By now the creek should be rushing, and the waterfall might be going full blast. We’ll search for insects, amphibians and anything else we can find in this beautiful canyon. We request that no animals (except service animals) attend. David Herlocker will lead. Questions: Call (415) 893-9508 or e-mail dherlocker@marincounty.org. Heavy rain may cancel: Call (415) 893-9527 on the morning of the walk to hear a recorded message if cancelled. Meet at the gate at the end of Cascade Drive. Directions: In downtown Fairfax, drive about 0.4 mile west on Bolinas Road and make a soft right at Cascade Drive (at a stop sign). Continue about a half mile to gate. Parking is limited, so carpool if you can. For more info, visit their website.
• Guided Nature Explorations with Kelly Morton
  Bay Area Discovery Musuem, Sausalito
  Friday, 10–11 am
  Come by for a guided nature exploration with BADM Environmental Program Coordinator Kelly Morton. Make friends with a worm, follow a trail in search of growing treasures, or explore the “wilds” outside the museum fence. Free with Museum admission and weather permitting. Meet at Lookout Cove. For more info, call (415) 339-3900 or visit their website.
• Baby Time with Sarah Sonnet
  San Rafael Public Library
  Friday, 10:30–11 am
  For babies birth to 18 months of age, accompanied by a parent or caregiver. Sarah is a musician, singer and mother of two. Join her for a delightful selection of books, motion songs, finger plays, lullabies and rhymes just right for babies. The San Rafael Library is located at 1400 Fifth Avenue in San Rafael. For more info, visit their website.
• Breakfast with Enzo (music for families)
  Sports Basement, San Francisco
  Friday, 10 am–noon
  Enzo Garcia plays guitar, banjo, accordion, musical saw, Jew's harp, enzotar, Appalachian dulcimer, slide flute, percussion and more. Enzo has been performing his family music show, "Breakfast with Enzo", weekly in San Francisco for the past 8 years, Recommended for children 7 and under. Two different sets of music starting at 10 am and 11 am. Drop in any time. Cost: $5 per person; siblings under 7 months free. For more info, call (415) 652-2474 or visit his website.
• Patrick Dougherty Willow Sculpture Grand Opening
  Bay Area Discovery Museum, Sausalito
  Friday, 2-4 pm
  The entire Museum community is invited to join in for the grand opening of the new willow sculpture. Bring your children to play in the new sculpture, and purchase “Stickwork”, Patrick’s new book, personalized for you by the artist. Over 200 pages of wonderful photos, plus text by Patrick himself with anecdotes and insights into his methods and his art. Free museum admission. For more info, visit their website.

Saturday, January 28

• Muir Woods Earth Day Celebration
  Mill Valley
  Saturday, 8:30 am–1 pm
  Bring the family (ages 7 and up) to volunteer at the annual Muir Woods Earth Day Celebration. Enjoy the majestic redwoods while helping to restore and preserve this spectacular national park. Projects include planting, habitat restoration and weed removal, mulching, tending the forest floor, and trail maintenance throughout the Redwood Creek Watershed. All participants are invited to stay for lunch at the end of the event. No experience necessary. There will be training and tools will be provided. Advance registration is required by calling (415) 561-3077 or email volunteer@parkconservancy.org. For more info and to see the schedule, visit their website.
• Marinwood Community Farmers Market
  Marinwood Plaza, 101 Marinwood Avenue cross street Miller Creek
  Saturday, 9 am–2 pm
  Marinwood Community Farmers Market is every Saturday. Come have some coffee, and pick up fruits and vegetables to take home. This week's music is Sunday Supper Jam, featuring Marinwood resident Bill Hansell. For more info, go to their Facebook page.
• Marin Country Mart Farmers Market
  Marin County Mart (Larkspur Landing)
  Saturday, 9 am–2 pm
  Enjoy pony rides and a petting zoo for the kids from 10 am–2 pm adjacent to the farmer's market and live music. Storytime with Scott The Storyteller and spiders and dragons and cats, Oh My! Scott has been unanimously embraced by children, parents and teachers for his fun and engaging stories. Live music with Megan Slankard from 11 am-2 pm. This Northern California singer/songwriter proves she's the real deal San Franciscan acoustic folk-rock troubadour. Megan Slankard has the moxy of Ani DiFranco, lyrics reminiscent of both Ani and Tori Amos and the vocal range of an early Jewel.
  For more info, visit their website.Location: 2257 C Larkspur Landing Circle. For more info, visit their website.
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This Saturday, the 150-year-old walls of Fort Point will again echo with the sounds of fifes and drums and tramp of boots as this San Francisco landmark celebrates Civil War living history day. Come watch dozens of reenactors from the American Civil War Association portraying Union soldiers and civilians from the time of the War Between the States as they gather to observe the 150th annivarsary of the war in the only Civil War-era brick fort west of the Mississippi.

Fort Point's Civil War living history day takes place Saturday, January 28, 2012, from 10 am to 5 pm. Activities include artillery and infantry demonstrations and performances by period fife-and-drum and brass bands. Reenactors are happy to answer questions about history and various aspects of life during the Civil War.

We've attended this event a few times (it's usually held the last week of January, too), and it always exceeds our expectations. It's exciting to march into the fort right behind the fife-and-drum band, and entering the courtyard to see only reenactors in period dress was a thrilling experience that was the next best thing to traveling back in time. You can see photos of previous years' events in our image gallery here. If you're at all interested in the Civil War or California's history, it's an event you have to attend.

Both my children were born at Marin General Hospital. Overall, it was a great experience—their staff is awesome and they’re a great resource for new parents. Not only were we well taken care of, but we were also able to take advantage of the wide variety of classes offered by MGH to help smooth things along for new and expectant parents. These classes are offered to the public.

Some of the classes available at Marin General include prenatal and postnatal instruction classes for expectant parents, infant care, CPR, breastfeeding help, a father class, a free mom’s support group, and help for siblings adjusting to a new brother or sister.

They also offer a childbirth and infant-care “value package” for $170 per couple. This seven-class series covers pretty much everything you need to know about bringing home a new baby, and includes topics like breastfeeding, post partum expectations and realities, care of your newborn, and home and car safety. Classes are two hours each, and the first three classes can be taken as a single one-day childbirth class. Programs take place in MGH’s convenient location at 250 Bon Air Road in Greenbrae.

If you’re interested in taking one of their many classes, call (888) 996-9644 to register.  Visit their website to check the 2012 class schedule.

Don't you sometimes wish you could have the perfect cookie, made just for and served fresh out of the oven? Well you can do just that at Modern Cookie Co., Marin's new cookie bakery that recently opened in downtown Larkspur.

Modern Cookie specializes in hot, made-to-order cookies fresh from the oven. It works like this: choose your favorite cookie dough, select mix-ins—like house-made mini marshmallows, nuts, dried fruit, mini peanut butter cups, and chocolate chips, and add a finish such as a drizzle of honey, frosting, or fudge. They'll put it all together for you and bake it up. If pre-made cookies are more your thing, you can choose from a variety of cookies and cookies bars in their display case. They also make ice cream sandwiches using organic Three Twins ice cream.

It's time again to sign up for the swim team for this spring and summer. Listed below are the Marin Swim League local swim teams throughout the county and their registration dates. Click on the team name to go to their website.

Larkspur

• Tidalwaves
  Online Registration opens: January 9

Mill Valley

• Scott Valley Sea Serpents
  Online Registration: January 27
• Strawberry Seals
  Registration: open registration begins February 1, 2012

Novato

• Riptide
  Indian Valley College campus
  Registration: Splash Day, March 3, from 10:00 am–noon

• Rolling Hills Stringrays
  Registration: new swimmers' open house and registration, Saturday, February 4, 1–2:30 pm; returning swimmers' online registrtion, Saturday, February 4, 3 pm

Marin Mommies presents this week's guest recipe from Nicole Cibellis, Marin mom and author of the blog A Family that Eats Together, where she shares meal plans and recipes that will please foodies and children alike. Nicole is also the creator of the new Little Froglet line of children's activewear.

Nicole's meal plan for this week features Moroccan meatballs with couscous, paella made simple and fast, pizza, and—just in time for Chinese New Year—Hong Kong chow mein with beef and bok choy and this delicious one-pot Asian chicken with rice and bok choy.

This recipe is adapted from a clay-pot chicken recipe. I love clay-pot chicken but I don’t have a clay pot to cook the chicken in so this is my translation of the recipe using a Dutch oven. The first time I had clay-pot chicken was at the Slanted Door in San Francisco. It is so warming and delicious. Charles Phan the owner and executive chef makes his clay-pot chicken with a Vietnamese slant. My recipe it is more Chinese-inspired.

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When Marin mom Misa Phutsangdee was rejected from grad school, rather than be disappointed, she used the experience to draw on her diverse range of job experience, become a "mompreneur," and start her own business, Miss Go To Girl Enterprise. We caught up with Misa and asked her a few questions about her and her startup.

To learn more about Misa and Miss Go To Girl, visit her online.

Please tell us a little about yourself. What's your background?

I have been married to my husband, Charlee, for five years. We have the most adorable four-year-old, Micah, AKA "Misa Junior" because he is a carbon copy of his mother! I graduated from San Francisco State University with a B.A. in communication studies as well as graduating from C.L.I.B.C. with a B.A. in family counseling. I absolutely loved the communications program and wanted to continue my learning experience at SFSU. After finishing both degrees, I applied for graduate school. Twice. After the second year of anticipating the letter, I told myself that if I read, "We regret to inform you…" one more time, then God must have better plans for me than the master's program. And so, Miss Go To Girl Enterprise began...

Be amazed and laugh yourself silly when Marin's master magician Jay Alexander and friends appear on the stage at Marin Center on Sunday, January 29 at 2 and 5 pm. Alexander has been amazing audiences around the world for twenty years with his funny, amazing, and intellectually stimulating magic show that will entertain children and adults alike. Featuring high-energy comedy magic that has been lauded by celebrities including Robin Williams, David Crosby, and Bono of U2, Jay Alexander has been seen on the Today Show, Good Morning America and MTV.

Tickets for either performance are $20. You'll not only be seeing a great show, but also supporting a great cause: 100% of the profits will go to Hamilton Meadow Park Elementary School in Novato for after-school, art, and music programs.

The NFC playoffs are coming up tomorrow, and of course you'll need something to eat while you watch the 49ers demolish the New York Giants. In my mind, chili is an ideal food for a football-watching gathering. You can serve chili to your guests in large mugs—they’re easier to hold while everyone socializes—and you can offer a spread of different condiments so everyone can customize their chili to their own liking.

Since the last thing you want to do during the game is hang out in the kitchen and miss all the action on the field, I’ve adapted my go-to chili recipe for the slow cooker. Put all the ingredients in the cooker in the morning and let it go and it will be hot and ready in time for the game. You can also chop up the vegetables for the recipe—onions, garlic, and green peppers—in the food processor, saving a little more work in the process.

Chili is also traditionally spicy, so if you want to heat things up with some cayenne pepper or jalapeños, go right ahead. When I make chili, I usually have to feed both grownups and kids, so I tend to make it more mild. Besides, you can always add your own heat after the fact (but it's hard to take it out once you've put it in).

It's almost as fun for kids to make their own snacks as it is for them to eat them! This pretzel recipe—adapted from one that my daughter brought home from school—is easy and perfect for small children to help with, and the results are pretty tasty, too. It's a great activity for rainy days and playgroups, too. Why not bake up a batch to eat during the big game this weekend?

They won't look like the dark brown store-bought pretzels, though; that color is achieved by dipping the unbaked pretzels in a lye solution, which is way too dangerous for kids—and adults, for that matter. Here we brush the tops with an egg wash, but if that's a problem you could use milk or even a little olive oil.

To make the pretzels you'll need: