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By Katie Bianco, Holly Gambrell and Stefanie Gans
Where art thou sunshine?
I’m a big proponent of making your home as cozy as possible. After all, it’s the one space in the world that’s truly yours, representing your personality, likes and ambitions. I love keeping flowers in my apartment, simply because the sight and smell of them make me happy. On Sunday, March 17, I’ll learn how to craft an artificial spring wreath at Merrifield Garden Center. The plan is to send a signal to Mother Nature—begging for warmer weather to stay—by hanging it on my front door. Official countdown to spring: nine more days. -HG // Merrifield Garden Center: 12101 Lee Highway, Fairfax; 4-6 p.m.; $60
Will cookbooks save bookstores?
Cookbook sales were up 25 percent last year; from 2009 through 2015, the number of independent bookstores grew by 35 percent; and #bookstagram is a hot hashtag. I won’t pretend to create a correlation there, but what I will say is there’s a new bookstore in Warrenton, The Open Book, and it’s hosting local baker Brian Noyes on March 16, as he discusses Red Truck Bakery Cookbook: Gold-Standard Recipes from America’s Favorite Rural Bakery. -SG // The Open Book’s soft-opening event with Brian Noyes: 10 a.m.; 104 Main St., Warrenton; free
I like to move it, move it
Saturday mornings have become so much cuter around our household ever since I put my daughter in a mommy-and-me ballet class (at Tiny Dancers, which also scored high marks from our readers as a summer camp hot spot). She puts on her pink leotard, tights and ballet slippers and asks to go to ballet class. She “makes the sun” and prances around the house on her tippi toes throughout the week. She tells me she’s a ballerina. So, this Saturday, I’m excited to take her to the Move Me Festival at Kenmore Middle School, featuring a host of dance performances and other activities. I got to chat with one of the ballet dancers who will be performing at the festival for our March issue. The festival sounds like so much fun—and my daughter is going to freak out when she realizes I know a real, live ballet dancer. -KB // Seventh Annual Move Me Festival: Kenmore Middle School, 200 S. Carlin Springs Road; 1-4 p.m.; free
