The new year started with a taste of winter, and while there’s still no snow in the forecast, local ski areas are making their own as fast as they can. The annual Winter Trails Day in Weston will also get families out and moving. Concerts with Gustafer Yellowgold, Ben Rudnick, and Debbie and Friends, and other events are lined up for the weekend.

As part of our occasional area museums series, we visited three museums on the North Shore: the Wenham Museum (Wenham), Cape Ann Museum (Gloucester), and Peabody Essex Museum (Salem). Read our review, and please let us know if your family has a favorite museum.

Hard as it may be to believe, the camp fair season has begun in earnest, starting this weekend with the Camp and Summer Expo at Dexter Southfield School. We’re also working on listings of favorite camps in the area. If you have a great camp to recommend for our articles, we’d love to include it - just send me an email with the information. Thanks!

Enjoy!

[UPDATED: JANUARY 24, 2013]

This time of year those languid summer afternoons spent in the park, watching your children engage in endless free play while their imaginations run wild, seem a distant memory. Never fear, the Upper West Side has become the unofficial craft capital of New York City, a place where neither rain nor snow will slow your kid’s creativity down. It is teeming with all-weather spots to keep the kids engaged for a few hours, without creating chaos in your home. These hands-on craft activities are just the sticky mess that your child craves, with the added bonus of taking home a handmade keepsake. Here are six places to make your own crafts, perfect for the dog days of winter. And since crafting usually makes my family’s stomach growl, nearby spots to pick up a snack are also listed.

The winter months can seem very long when its frigid cold and you’re trying to stay indoors. But just because the temperatures dropped it doesn’t mean you have to go into hiding. There are still plenty of indoor options that can help to lure you out of your home and still keep you toasty warm and entertained. From entertainment centers to shows and sports games check out this compilation of indoor things to do to avoid cabin fever during the cold weather season.

Welcome to the first full weekend of 2012! We're still having trouble writing a "2" at the end of the year and we're not adjusting well to this cold winter weather. But we know we'll get used to both of them soon enough!

Although the frenzy of the holidays is behind us, there are still plenty of things to do in NYC. In fact, one big seasonal activity, the New York Botanical Garden's Holiday Train Show, is still going. If you visit this weekend or next, you'll be treated to an appearance by Thomas the Tank Engine, who'll greet his young fans, pose for pictures and sing a few songs. If your Christmas tree is still up, you can recycle it at the Parks Department's annual Mulchfest this weekend. And if you want one last blast of holiday spirit, you can attend a Three Kings Day celebration, including a parade in Brooklyn and a holiday-themed art workshop at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine.

Other fun on tap includes a Panorama-themed family day at the Queens Museum of Art and a wacky circus show at Symphony Space.

Those are just a few of the great things going on this weekend. Read on for all of our picks and remember, you can find additional options in our Event Calendar. Happy New Year!

I realize that we all feel stuffed from the holidays and either inspired or offended by all the happy magazines encouraging us to get fit, eat less, declutter and so on, but the good news is that in a couple weeks we will all forget how much we ate and be ready to hunker down with some good wintertime eats. I love, love, love spending the day in my kitchen with something simmering away in the slow cooker or on the stove for hours, while I bake bread or help the kids in and out of their snow gear eighty times (it used to snow, I think…). It’s the most peaceful, contented perfect way for me to spend a day, so I’ll indulge the magazines, take a breather and then resume the comfort of comfort cooking.

[UPDATED: DECEMBER 31, 2012]

Seeing a bald eagle in the wild is an incredible experience. I can still vividly remember my encounter with the majestic bird at Umbagog Lake State Park in New Hampshire back in August 2001. With their striking white heads and tails, and massive wingspans, mature bald eagles are an impressive and unforgettable sight.

Like most birds, bald eagles fly south for the winter and pass right through our neck of the woods by soaring down the Hudson and Delaware Rivers. They begin their migration in December, with the highest concentration of eagles visible during the months of January and February.

Eagle viewing is a popular winter activity for bird and nature lovers in and near New York City. We've got the scoop on how your family can marvel at our national bird, either by joining an organized event or heading out on your own.

The holidays are over (boo), which means the kids go back to school (yay!). Yes, we love them, but I doubt I'm the only parent who feels like I need a break to recover from holiday break.

For better or worse, it's time to get back to business, like our biweekly links roundups. Our first 2012 installment includes stories about schools (of course), Legos aimed at girls and sex ed via text message. Gives a whole new meaning to ROTF.