Here are our picks for great events and activities for children and families this weekend, including Earth Day celebrations and activities around the Bay Area. Find more events for the whole week in Marin and beyond in our Family Events Calendar.

Friday, April 18

• Annual Flashlight Egg Hunt
  Memorial Park, San Anselmo
  Friday, 8:15 pm
  Back by popular demand, the annual Flashlight Egg Hunt returns on Friday, April 18 at 8:15 pm sharp! Bring your basket and a good flashlight. For youth ages 8 and up only. Egg hunt lasts for about 5 minutes, so don't be late. For more info, visit their website.
• Easter Stroller Strides Workout & Egg Hunt
  Miwok Park, Novato
  Friday, 9:30 am–noon
  Join Fit4Mom Marin for an "egg"-ceptional Stroller Strides workout. There will be an Easter Egg Hunt for the kiddos immediately following class. Please bring Easter baskets for them to collect their eggs. Just bring yourself, your child, stroller, water and a snack. Your first class is free! Classes start on time, so for your first class please come 10 minutes early to load up your little one. To get your first class free, register at www.marin.fit4mom.com. Location: 2200 Novato Blvd, Novato.
• Miss Kitty Sing and Dance
  San Rafael Public Libary
  Friday, 10:30 am
  Join Marin County favorite Miss Kitty for a series of fun family concerts just right for children aged birth to 8 years old. Free, no registration required! Location: 1100 E Street (at 5th Avenue), San Rafael. For more info, call (415) 485-3323 or visit their website.

Saturday, April 19

• Free Entrance Days: Muir Woods National Park
  Mill Valley
  Saturday & Sunday, 8 am–5 pm
  America's Best Idea—the national parks—is even better when it's free! Get into Muir Woods National Monument for free over this weekend. For more info, visit their website.
• Easter Celebration & Easter Egg Hunt!
  Marin Country Mart Farmers Market
  Saturday, 9 am–2 pm
  Children will dye eggs in bright colors, and creatively decorate them with reusable materials provided by SCRAP. Baby chicks and a small animal petting zoo will be on display at Victoria's Fashion Stable, where children can also enjoy a pony ride. There’s children's musical entertainment from 9:30–10:30 am, with an Easter egg hunt with the Easter Bunny to follow. The Easter egg hunt begins at 10:30 am at Poppy Store, located just steps away from the Farmers' Market in the Marin Country Mart. For more info, visit their website.
• Earth Day Celebration
  Bay Area Discovery Museum, Sausalito
  Saturday, 9 am–5 pm
  Come to the museum on Earth Day to celebrate the natural beauty of our environment. Every day, the museum seeks to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards by encouraging children to immerse themselves in our unique place by the Bay. All activities included with museum admission unless noted otherwise. See schedule here.
• Learn to Saltwater Fish
  Paradise Beach, Tibruon
  Saturday, 9–11 am
  Come spend the morning learning the basics of saltwater fishing. A limited number of fishing poles and bait will be provided first-come, first-served to beginners, thanks to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Fishing license is not required when fishing from the pier. Meet at the fishing pier in Paradise Beach Park in Tiburon (3450 Paradise Drive). Parking entrance fee is free. For more info, contact ranger Mike Maraccini at (415) 435-9212 or visit their website.
• Fairfax's Annual Easter Egg Hunt
  Bolinas Park, Fairfax
  Saturday, 10 am
  Children 8 and under are welcome to come and participate in Fairfax's spring egg hunt. Grab your basket and get ready to hunt for eggs at 10 am sharp in Bolinas Park! There will be facepainting, music by James K, and bubble entertainment for the little ones. Following that, there will be an eggstravaganza for the tweens in Peri Park, from 1–4 pm. The celebration continues into the evening, with a movie at the ball field from 8–10 pm! The event for older kids is sponsored by the Youth Commission. and fun. For more information, visit their website.
• Easter Egg Hunt
  San Clemente Park, Corte Madera
  Saturday, 10 am sharp
  Bring the little ones out for the 3rd Annual Easter Egg Hunt at San Clemente Park in east Corte Madera. The egg hunt will start at 10 am—don't be late! Separate areas for under 3 years and big kids. Little ones can trade in their empty eggs for a baby/toddler safe stuffed animal and big kids can "recycle" their eggs (after they empty them of their treasure of course!) in exchange for a prize. Free pictures with the Easter Bunny. Bring your own basket. For more info, contact jessicapridemore@gmail.com.
• Spring Faire
  Strawberry Recreation District
  Saturday, 10:30 am–noon
  The Spring Faire is for children of all ages. Play carnival games, make a basket, get your photo taken with the bunny, bounce in the jump house, and gear up for the candy hunt! $8 per child. 118 East Strawberry Drive. For information, call (415) 383-6494 or visit their website.

These cute and clever bird's nest cookies are the perfect treat for Easter. Light and airy coconut-filled meringues really look a lot like birds' nests—you can complete the illusion by adding a few egg-shaped Easter candies. We like the Cadbury mini eggs, but malted milk eggs or even jelly beans will work equally well.

The kids love to help make these, and of course love to eat them. These treats are a great addition to Easter baskets, too. Give them a try, and you'll probably find that they earn a spot in your spring baking repertoire.

Ingredients

• 4 egg whites
• 1 cup sugar

Earth Day 2014 takes place on Tuesday, April 22. It’s a great time to celebrate and teach our children the importance of preserving our planet’s resources. There are plenty of ways to observe the occasion here in Marin and the Bay Area, and we've created a list of local events that either celebrate Earth Day or help families learn about nature and the planet.

Fun Events for Earth Day

• Earth Day Celebration 2014
  Bay Area Discovery Museum, Sausalito
  Saturday, April 19, 9 am–5 pm
  Join us on Earth Day to celebrate the natural beauty of our environment. Every day, the museum seeks to inspire the next generation of environmental stewards by encouraging children to immerse themselves in our unique place by the Bay. All activities included with admission unless noted otherwise. See schedule here.
• Earth Day: Come Play for the Planet
  San Francisco Zoo
  Saturday & Sunday, April 19 & 20, 11 am–3 pm
  Head to the zoo for some fresh air and good ol' fashioned fun themed around conservation and caring for the environment. Activities include live entertainment with the Raytones, games, a scavenger hunt, wild recycled crafts with SCRAP, face painting, costumed animal characters, keep talks, a Family BikeAbout, and more. Learn more here.

Old fashioned coconut cake is an Easter favorite. We decided to give this classic treat a kid-sized spin and made a fun mini cupcake version.

These light and sweet little cakes with a marshmallow-like frosting are great for parties, playdates, and get-togethers, and of course as dessert on Easter! Sure, you can use fresh toasted coconut on the outside, but we love the old-school white flaked sweetened coconut from the grocery store's baking aisle.

This recipe makes about three dozen mini cupcakes. You can use it to make regular-size cupcakes, too, but of course you'll need to increase the baking time by a few minutes.

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.

This recipe makes cooking Thai more simple than you can image. In less than 20 minutes dinner is served and it is sweet, savory and delish! Did I mention it’s also healthy? After you make this, you will wonder why you ever ordered out for Thai food. Serve with brown rice.

Serves: 3–4
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 6 boneless, skinless cutlets, thinly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced

Easter is just a few days away (it's on April 20 this year), so it's time to start planning for egg hunts, breakfast with bunny and other special events. My children love this time of year when the flowers bloom, and the Easter Bunny hops into town. Part of the fun is celebrating spring and the Easter season with a traditional egg hunt, and there are Easter egg hunts scheduled at communities throughout Marin County. Here's our list of fun Easter egg hunts and events taking place in Marin and other locations in the Bay Area. We'll update this list as we find out about additional events. If we've left out your favorite Marin or Bay  Easter egg hunt, please let us know and we'll add it to the roster.

Easter Bunny Photos

While your kids are waiting for the big day, they can visit the Easter Bunny and have their picture taken with him at his whimsical spring house at Northgate in Terra Linda. He'll be at the Macy's wing from April 4–16, 2014, Monday–Saturday from noon–8 pm and Sunday 11 am–6 pm and April 16–19, Wednesday–Saturday, 10 am–9 pm. The Easter Bunny is located in the north mall entrance near Macy's. For more info, visit their website.

Corte Madera

• Easter Egg Hunt
  San Clemente Park in East Corte Madera
  Saturday, April 19, 10 am sharp
  Bring the little ones out for the 3rd Annual Easter Egg Hunt at San Clemente Park (east side of Corte Madera).The egg hunt will stat at 10 am start time - don't be late! Over 1000 eggs. Separate areas for under 3 yrs and big kids. Little ones can trade in their empty eggs for a baby/toddler safe stuffed animal and big kids can "recycle" their eggs (after they empty them of their treasure of course!) in exchange for a prize. Free pictures with the Easter Bunny. Bring your own basket. For more info, contact jessicapridemore@gmail.com.

Marin Mommies presents a sponsored article from the Marin Childcare Council and its Safe Sleep Campaign. For more information, call them at (415) 472-1092 or visit www.mc3.org.

As parents and caregivers, our top priority is the health and safety of the babies we care for. But are we doing everything we can to keep our babies safe in Marin? The Marin Child Care Council’s Safe Sleep Campaign would like us all to consider these facts:

• Last year in Marin, 2 babies died in their sleep!
• Each year in the US, close to 4,000 infants die suddenly and unexpectedly of sleep-related causes (often referred to as Sudden Unexpected Infant Death or SUID).
• Half of these unexpected deaths are due to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), defined as the sudden unexplained death of a baby younger than one year of age without a known cause.
• The rest of these infant deaths are largely due to accidental causes such as suffocation and strangulation in bed—and are 100% preventable!
• Research shows that there are concrete steps we can take to reduce the risk of SIDS and prevent most other sleep-related infant deaths.

What are you doing on your week off from school? Here are a few of our picks for fun things to do with the family around Marin, the Bay Area, and Northern California during Spring Break. Enjoy!

• Explore the beach and world-famous Boardwalk in the seaside town of Santa Cruz.
• Make an claymation movie and more at the Children's Creativity Museum in San Francisco.
• Look for wildflowers and wildlife on Ring Mountain.
• See the cherry trees in bloom at the Japanese Tea Garden.

Marin Mommies presents a guest article by Marin mom and financial planner Tanya Steinhofer, CFA,CFP®.

There is an old saying that “Cash is King”. Its origins are unclear, but it has been widely used in reference to the tendency of companies and households to hold excess cash in times of uncertainty or distress to preserve flexibility. In the financial planning world, I prefer to think of the phrase “Cash Flow is King” because understanding and managing one’s cash flow is critical to being able to build wealth and save for important life goals.

The first phase of managing your cash flow is to understand how much income you make each month, net of taxes. This should include your annual bonus or commission income, averaged out over the year. Once you know what your monthly net income is, you can decide how to allocate it.