Learn more about Valley Trails Summer Camp at Open House
On March 7, March 31 and April 18 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., parents will find out first hand what makes Valley Trails so special. Tour the 200-acre property - featuring two 500-foot zip lines, two swimming pools, ball fields, go-carts, a climbing tower, basketball courts, hiking trails, arts and crafts and much more - and take advantage of Early Bird rates and free registration (if enrolled by March 7). Valley Trails, which is built on 40 years of day camp experience, now offers free extended care, as well as free transportation to and from Stevenson Ranch, Valencia, Saugus and Canyon Country. Kids K through ninth grade will thrive while making friends - and memories. Age-specific activities and incredible counselors make the experience exceptional; 257-0266 www.vtranch.com

Family-Friendly Event Calendar
Saturday > February 27
Creative Years Preschool Hosts Open House
From 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., learn about how Creative Years may be a perfect fit for your little one; 254-0718

Saturday > March 20
Math/Science Conference for Seventh- and Eighth-grade Girls
Starting at 8 a.m., the SCV branch of American Association of University Women will host their 11th annual Math/Science Conference.

The day is devoted to hands-on and career workshops led by professional women in math, science, engineering or medicine. Students will explore their areas of interest in three morning sessions. Parents and interested adults are invited to participate in a separate session to explore high school course planning, college entrance requirements and financial aid programs. $10; www.aauw-scv.org

City of Santa Clarita Hosts "Hit the Trail"
Come out for a community bike ride and rally celebrating the City's 30-plus miles of off-street bike trails. Enjoy an escorted leisurely bike ride to Bridgeport Park from one of three convenient starting points around the city; www.santa-clarita.com/tourofca

Stitch Cafe Hosts Basic Knitting Techniques 4 Class
From 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., learn to make cables, mock cables and get yourself introduced to knitting in the round! Online enrollment available; 818-980-1234 www.stitchcafe.com

Sunday > March 21
"Spring into Health and Wellness" Festival at William S. Hart Hall
Uplift mind, body and soul with Qigong, a drum circle, musical entertainment, a children's corner with bounce house, storyteller and face painting, plus arts, crafts, books and food vendors. There will also be a food drive benefiting Help the Children. Free; 254-1265 www.celestialvisionproductions.com

Saturday, March 27
Centre Pointe Business Park Presents Grand Opening Party for the Cross Valley Connector
From 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., celebrate the grand opening of the Cross Valley Connector in the Dick's Sporting Goods parking lot (26591 Carl Boyer Drive, Santa Clarita). Family fun includes games and raffles, an art show, a car and motorcycle show, food vendors, surprise guests and more. Event is free. Proceeds benefit SCV non-profit organizations.

Samuel Dixon 5k Family Run/Walk for Heroes
Starting at 6 a.m., this tribute to heroes in uniform is a uniquely fun family run/walk with excitement at the park and along the Southfork Trail, followed by awards, raffle and a Hero Hotcakes breakfast. All proceeds benefit the Samuel Dixon Family Health Center. Held at Newhall Park; www.sdfhc.org

702-8712 www.bettyferguson.org

Free Youth Program for Girls in Fifth Grade through High School
Youth With A Voice (YWAV) is an incredible free program, sponsored by the Betty Ferguson Foundation, that provides young girls and teens a safe place to meet new friends, work on personal growth, learn leadership skills and give back to their community. This year, YWAV will work on a curriculum titled "Thrive: Steps to Daily Growth." Participants will begin to see growth in the area of relationships with parents, friends, teachers, the community and themselves.

Your daughter is invited to the next YWAV meeting! Fifth- and sixth-grade girls meet on the third Wednesday of the month at 5 p.m. Junior high girls meet on the third Wednesday of the month at 6:45 p.m. High school girls meet on the third Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m. Publishers' Note: As a former YWAV leader and volunteer, we give this program our enthusiastic thumbs up! We've seen how YWAV can make a real difference in the lives of SCV girls and teens. Give it a try!; 702-8712 www.bettyferguson.org

294-1159 www.aallbright.com

"Paint it Pink"
to Fight Breast Cancer
Local Painting Company to Give Percentage of Sales to Clients and Circle of Hope
A.Allbright Painting, Inc. has announced the kickoff of its "Paint it Pink" campaign, created to help those in the community battling breast cancer. For every exterior or interior painting job scheduled from February 1 through April 30, 2010, A.Allbright Painting will donate 5 percent of each job (up to $500) to Circle of Hope in honor or memory of an individual of their choice.

In addition, A. Allbright Painting will give another 5 percent of each job (up to $500) back to their customer. That way, everyone who participates in this campaign wins. And don't worry: You won't have to paint something pink to participate in this campaign or to receive your discount.

Owner Joshua Abramson is thrilled to team up with Circle of Hope. "We are extremely proud to contribute to this very worthy foundation that needs everyone's support, not only in Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but all year long. You will be doing more than painting your house; you will be helping Circle of Hope's mission to provide emotional support and financial assistance for individuals with breast cancer who live in, work in, or receive treatment in the Santa Clarita Valley," he reflects.

Colleen Shaffer, founder of Circle of Hope, says, "Some of these women never in their dreams thought it would happen to them and now they find themselves in need of financial assistance to help with their treatment. Life just hits them and now they have to deal with financial struggles and the fear of cancer. Remember that breast cancer can easily cost someone $100,000. Costs such as personal insurance, doctor's co-pays, medications for the side effects, patient responsibilities of the remainder of the bill after insurance runs out, to even paying the insurance/COBRA premiums, can add up quickly. Patients should be able to focus on recovery, not debts."

Help A.Allbright Painting make their first annual "Paint it Pink" campaign a big success and beautify your home or place of business at the same time; 294-1159 www.aallbright.com

252-3232 www.missscvpageants.com

Are You the Next Miss Santa Clarita Valley?
The next Miss SCV Pageant orientation is Sunday, February 21 at 6 p.m. Women ages 8 to adult are encouraged to participate in this fun scholarship and community service program. RSVP to the orientation held at Pamela Johnston's Dance Studio (17716 Sierra Highway in Canyon Country), bring a friend and dress to impress! The Miss Santa Clarita Valley Scholarship Pageant will be held on May 2 at the Hyatt Regency Valencia; 252-3232 www.missscvpageants.com

This March, Why don't You...
Hop on Pop on March 2?
In honor of Theodore Seuss Geisel's (better known as Dr. Seuss) birthday, the country celebrates Read Across America Day. For little ones, few Seuss tomes are more treasured than One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish. For burgeoning environmentalists, get your hands on The Lorax; budding political activists will be motivated to topple tyranny (literally!) by Yertle the Turtle. And for the disenchanted adult? There's no nicer kick in the pants than Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Spring forward on March 14?
Riddle us this: Why can't we "fall back" in November and "spring back" in March? It's not like jumping backwards is hard. And it's not like anyone would argue if the whole world snatched an extra hour of sleep. If anything, this world's been pretty cranky lately. Maybe another 60 minutes of snoozing would do it some good. But we digress... Daylight Savings Time requires us to move our clocks ahead a whole hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 14. Wind 'em forward before you head to bed and crash early, before the bitterness takes hold. Fall will be here before you know it.

"go green" on March 17?
It's said that on Saint Patrick's Day, everybody's Irish. We guess the same can be said about every bar and restaurant. The green beer will be flowing, and many a serving of corned beef and cabbage will be pushed around a plate (unless paired with copious amounts of aforementioned green beer). But neither option is kid-palate approved.

Be the coolest lass or lad on the block and whip up a tried and true Green Milkshake, no food coloring required. "Desperately Seeking Children's Approval" Version: Blend four cups of milk, four scoops of vanilla ice cream and one large box of pistachio pudding mix. Serves four. "The Happy Hippie Compromise" Version: Blend one pitted, peeled avocado, two tablespoons of honey, one heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream, one cup rice milk, one teaspoon lime juice and five cubes of ice. Serves two. "Just Drink It!" Version: Blend two cups of fresh kale (firmly packed), one and a half cups of pineapple juice, one cup frozen pineapple chunks and one-half cup vanilla yogurt. Serves four.

host a cleaning party on the first day of spring, March 20?
No one wants to clean underneath the trash can. We get it. But don't forget: You can catch more flies with honey (Note: No one wants to clean out a fly-ridden honey dish, either.). Make pancakes (with extra syrup - kids move faster when high on sugar) and hand out age-appropriate to-do lists, ensuring that you've properly separated the tasks so that no one person has too many heinous jobs. Get the stereo system ready and be prepared to whistle while you work. Your attitude is key. A playful flick of a towel and lots of smiling encouragement will make it easier to slave away under your supervision. And, of course, keep their eyes on the prize. We like to think of popcorn and a movie as motivation, not bribery, but call it what you will.

Have Faith...
Relationship Tune Up for Engaged and Long-time Married Couples
"Here's my best advice for couples: be best friends. Friendship is more than having the same address; it is the sharing of feelings, dreams, and life's experiences. Though differences exist among couples, these are opportunities for learning, laughter and tears. Best friends may disagree and get mad but the bond that binds is rediscovered and developed.

Two biblical texts describe the friendship to which couples should aim: 'Some friends play at friendship but a true friend sticks closer than one's nearest kin,' (Proverbs 18:24 NRSV) and 'No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends,' (John 15:13 NRSV)." ~ Minister Ray Davis of North Oaks
Church of Christ 252-2298 www.northoakschurchofchrist.org

Friday, March 12
Legacy Christian Academy Hosts Free Parenting Class
From 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., get valuable tips on successful Christian parenting from well-known pastor and teacher John MacArthur. Pastor MacArthur, of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley and the "Grace to You" radio program, is president of The Master's College & Seminary, located in Santa Clarita. RSVPs required by March 5. Childcare provided for ages 5 and younger; 257-7377 www.legacy-christian.com

photography by Ted Dayton

Enter "SCV's Cutest Baby's Room" Contest
Does your baby have the most adorable nursery? If so, this is the contest for you! ABC Baby Furniture has announced their second-annual "Cutest Baby's Room" contest, and the Grand Prize is a $100 gift certificate to the store, plus a professional photo shoot of the room published in an upcoming issue of Inside SCV Magazine. All you have to do is submit photograph(s) of your baby's nursery to ABC Baby Furniture before March 5, 2010. Entries can be sent via e-mail to abcbabyfurniture@yahoo.com or dropped off at the Valencia location (25030 W. Avenue Stanford, Unit 20). Please include a daytime phone number and full name with your entry. The contest is open to all Santa Clarita residents; 775-0360

College of the Canyons' Junior High Summer Institute Back for Third Season
Offering more than the typical summer camp experience, the popular Junior High Summer Institute (JSI) at College of the Canyons is back and better than ever, with new curriculum tracks and activities that are sure to provide students with a fun and engaging atmosphere this summer.

Available to incoming seventh and eighth graders, JSI allows students the option of enrolling in week-long curriculum tracks - taught primarily by College of the Canyons instructors or field experts - in areas including animation, robotics, video gaming and musical theatre. New to JSI this summer is a nursing track and a robotics and automation track using the newest generation of robotics equipment.

362-3300 www.canyons.edu/juniorhigh

"Three years ago we created the Summer Institute with two things in mind: to expose young minds to possibilities that may encourage a career path and to provide an alternative to the traditional day-care style summer camp," said Gina Bogna, director of community education and job development at College of the Canyons. "We continue to fine-tune the program to make it an exceptional experience for our local students."

JSI will run Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. from July 5 through July 30 and will consist of four one-week sessions.
At a cost of $125 per child per week, parents have the option of enrolling their student in different tracks for as many as four weeks. Morning extended care, as early as 8 a.m., is available for an additional $25 per child per week. The JSI will not have after-hours care as it did in prior summers; "There just wasn't a demand," said Gina Bogna.

JSI will be offering a limited number of need-based camp scholarships. To be eligible, students must be currently enrolled in one of the Santa Clarita Valley or Castaic school districts. All scholarship forms and paperwork must be submitted to the College of the Canyons Community and Continuing Education Office for review no later than May 14, 2010.

For more information about how to apply for a JSI scholarship, or to register for the 2010 Junior High Summer Institute at College of the Canyons, call the college's Community and Continuing Education Office; 362-3300 www.canyons.edu/juniorhigh