A collection of fun events to keep you busy over the next three months.

NOVEMBER

1 San Marino, California
Beautiful Science: Ideas That Changed the World
Celebrate the elegant breakthroughs and remarkable discoveries that keep the lab coats coming back for more at Beautiful Science: Ideas That Changed the World , a new permanent exhibition at the Huntington in San Marino, California, about 10 miles from Los Angeles. Browse four galleries of exploration—astronomy, natural history, medicine, and light—focusing on how the role of science has evolved over time. In the Astronomy gallery, examine a 13th-century copy of Ptolemy's Almagest , a Greek volume from the second century that illustrates when people began to doubt that Earth was located at the center of the universe. Later, check out a 1566 edition of Copernicus' De Revolutionibus , complete with the original censor marks, as well as a 1913 letter from Albert Einstein to the astronomer George Ellery Hale. The Natural History gallery features more than 250 copies of Darwin's Origin of Species and a microscope displaying insects and other objects observed in Robert Hooke's Micrographia . Rest your feet in the fifth gallery, a designated reading area where you can settle in at one of the interactive computer terminals or curl up with a tome of your own for a nice long read.

1 Washington, D.C.
Fritz Scholder: Indian/Not Indian
No need to wait for Thanksgiving to celebrate American Indian culture. Instead you can head to the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in D.C. for Fritz Scholder: Indian/Not Indian , an exhibit about one of the most successful painters of American Indians in our country's history. Browse 135 of Scholder's prints, paintings, drawings, and bronze sculptures from public and private collections. The collection includes work from the late 1950s to 2005. See how Scholder experimented with such themes as mythic figures and crucifixions from 1980 into the new millennium. Too occupied with planning for Turkey Day? Not to worry. The exhibit runs through August 2009.

1 New Orleans
Swamp Fest
Mardi Gras may be months away, but there's already fun on the bayou in November thanks to the Louisiana Swamp Festival. A celebration of Cajun culture, heritage, and cuisine, the festival takes place all weekend at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. The zoo, you ask? So did we. The annual celebration features the 25-year-old Louisiana Swamp Exhibit, the most authentic swamp exhibit in the state. (Who knew there was a lot of competition?) Join about 17,000 other people for such authentic Cajun cuisine as fried alligator, crawfish pie, and jambalaya. After you've filled up, wander the booths to watch local craftsmen weave baskets and sell driftwood paintings. Naturally, no New Orleans party would be complete without live music. You can kick back and listen to Grammy winners Terrence Simien and the Zydeco Experience, Beausoleil Avec Michael Doucet, and other artists perform on three stages. Then get schooled in fast-paced Cajun dancing. Want a true taste of swamp life? Meet one of the zoo's most famous residents—a white alligator named Spots. Probably best to settle for a polite wave.  

2 San Diego
Fall Back Fest
The end of daylight saving time means setting the clocks back an hour, but in San Diego "fall back" means falling way back into the Wild West. During the annual Fall Back Festival in the city's Gaslamp Quarter, which starts at 11 a.m., your family can fall into a cultural and historic children's street fair chock-full of Western-themed activities and entertainment. Take a tour of the grounds on a hayride and let the kids play cowboy on the back of a pony. Round out your evening with puppet shows, Mexican folk dancers, and balloon artists. You can watch American Indian dancers act out a myth, as well as historical demonstrations including a live cannon shooting. And your kids will get all the sweet-tooth satisfaction they need during the pie- and ice-cream-eating contests. Just don't let them fall in.

6 Tampa, Florida
Tampa Bay International Auto Show
Gear up, motorheads: Four days of engines and exhaust pipes await you in Tampa, Florida, during the International Auto Show at the city's convention center. The event starts on the 6th and revs on until the 9th, giving you plenty of time to drool over your favorite head-turning automobiles. See what 2009 has in store: new cars by Ford, Honda, and other major auto manufacturers; concept cars; exotics from the DuPont registry; and pre-production models. Take a spin behind the wheel—sort of—during interactive ride-and-drives, and stroll through the show's Green Trail, where you can admire the latest fuel-efficient and hybrid vehicles. Adults pay $9; seniors, military, and students $4; and kids under 6 get in free. So get your motor running, and head out on the highway.

7 Washington, D.C.
Washington Craft Show
By crafts, we don't just mean crocheted toaster covers or papier-mâché: More than 190 jury-vetted artists from across the country will display their one-of-a-kind pieces at the annual Washington Craft Show in Washington, D.C. Head to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and check out a variety of American crafts—ceramic bowls, hand-woven baskets, studio furniture—in 11 different mediums. View a special display featuring work by students at the Corcoran College of Art and Design. On Friday night, a celebratory party will benefit the Levine School of Music in Washington, D.C. This year's theme, "Making it Personal," includes just-for-you activities like a 15-minute consultation with an interior designer or fashion consultant who can help you pick out the most appropriate fabrics and color palettes. Discuss the outfit you're wearing or bring a photo of the room you'd like to redecorate. Even better, the consultation is included in your admission fee. Good luck going back to macramé and yarn dolls after that.

7 Columbus, Ohio
J.R. Indoor Electric Festival
Watch an airplane soar as high as it can—until it hits the roof, anyway. The largest indoor model airplane-flying event in the country lands in Columbus, Ohio, this month for the J.R. Indoor Electric Festival at the Four Seasons Golf Dome. The expansive 270-by-300-foot space gives visitors the chance to fly radio-controlled aircraft rain or shine. Show up for the demonstration at noon, when manufacturers display their latest model plane designs. Stay for the full-contact Demolition Derby, where those models go into full-blown attack mode. Watch your hairdo, though, if you're sporting a beehive: More than 400 miniature electric model aircraft, including jets, sea planes, and helicopters, will be zooming through the air.

8 Washington, D.C.
Green Festival
The White House might as well be called the Green House this month during the annual Green Festival in Washington, D.C. The largest green-living event in the nation, it will attract some 31,000 people to the city's convention center Nov. 8 and 9 to learn about the latest   developments in renewable energy, green building, clean technology, eco-fashion, and more. Visitors will get to sample organic cuisine, enjoy live musical performances, and visit 350 eco-friendly businesses and exhibits. Listen as eco-oriented speakers give presentations about their experiences; past guests included Jim Hightower, Greg Palast, and Julia Butterfly Hill. Can't make it to the capital? Don't worry. Green Festivals take place across the United States in various cities throughout the year. And it turns out going green will save you green: Attendees who ride their bikes to the event earn $5 off their admission price.

15 Santa Monica, California
Los Angeles Asian and Tribal Art Show
Jet lag's no issue: Asia comes to California this month for the Los Angeles Asian and Tribal Art Show. The two-day event in Santa Monica—about 15 miles west of Los Angeles—brings together more than 60 international art dealers and galleries. Held at the city's Civic Auditorium, you'll get a chance to admire such unique pieces as tribal carpets, silk textiles, Chinese snuff bottles, and ornate Mughal art, all of it available for purchase. Imagine that: Bringing an artistic taste of Asia back home without the hassle of customs.

21 Washington, D.C.
National Museum of American History
Just in time for Thanksgiving, the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History will reopen its doors to the public after a two-year renovation. The $85 million project added plenty of new touches to the 44-year-old building's architecture, including some patriotic additions. The original Star Spangled Banner, removed for 10 years to undergo conservation, will debut in a new gallery dedicated to the flag and our national anthem. The second-floor exhibit includes the addition of a 40-by-19-foot abstract version of the flag under special illumination intended to mimic Francis Scott Key's "dawn's early light." You'll also get a close-up view of President Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. The document will remain on loan from the White House until Jan. 4, just in case you can't make it until the twilight's last gleaming.

28 Albuquerque, New Mexico
Rio Grande Arts and Crafts Festival
Know what you're most thankful for? Residents of Albuquerque know to give thanks for the Rio Grande Arts and Crafts Festival, an annual event in the New Mexico city that was recently ranked as one of the top shows in the nation. Head for the Lujan Exhibit Complex to browse pottery, jewelry, woodworking, clothing, paintings, and more; the juried festival features work from more than 200 artists and craftsmen from across the country. Let the kids get their hands dirty making their own art at the Kid's Creation Station while you rock out to live music throughout the show, view artist presentations demonstrating their craft, and join in a holiday cookie walk. Best of all, the festival kicks off over Thanksgiving weekend, the busiest shopping weekend of the year. That means you can get your holiday buying done early, if you can tear yourself away from the turkey.

28 Dallas
2008 Holiday Celebration
Where can you find the tallest indoor tree in the country—topped with a 10-foot Christmas star—and a Santa on rocket-powered ice skates? In the state where everything's bigger. The annual holiday celebration at the Galleria in Dallas starts Nov. 28 when Santa's village opens on the shopping center's second level. Since 1982, families have watched the Galleria's tree lighting and ice skating show, then set off to fill your stockings as you wander the center's 200-plus stores. The first lighting of the 95-foot, four-story tree, which the center claims is the tallest indoor tree in the nation, happens the day after Thanksgiving. It sits in the middle of the ice-skating rink and features nearly 225,000 lights, 10,000 ornaments, and a whopping 10-foot star. The opening event will feature a performance by Olympic and World Champion ice skating couple Jamie Salé and David Pelletier. After that, "Missile Toes," the Galleria's skating Santa, will join the couple on ice wearing fireworks-shooting skates.

DECEMBER

4 Portland, Oregon
Holiday Ale Festival
Warning: Portland's annual holiday festival is held outdoors in December. But the city makes up for it by providing an ample supply of a classic cold-weather cure: beer. Bundled-up attendees can slurp a variety of popular brews, from Belgians and Barley Wines to Scotch Ales and Stouts. Expect to warm up early, since the four-day event starts at 11 a.m. every day. When you feel brave enough to wander away from the tasting tent, check out the complimentary root-beer garden (for designated drivers), browse the assorted beer merchandise, and enjoy plenty of food and music. Best of all, the featured brews will have a holiday theme. Sample drinks include St. Nick's Sock Knocker, Brewdolph, and Wreck the Halls—three ways to guarantee a jolly holiday season.

6 Chicago
Reindog Parade
You remember Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen—but what about Spot? On Dec. 6, Rudolph gets replaced by man's best friend during the annual Reindog Parade at the Chicago Botanic Garden. For three hours, visitors to the garden can bring their dogs for a visit and a photo op with Santa, watch demonstrations from dog experts, and browse a variety of pet supply stores and vendors offering treats for your dogs or information on local nonprofits aimed at helping Chicago's canines. Don't miss the parade: The dogs march along one of two routes and those with the best costumes earn prizes. A costumed Santa walks in the lead and carries a giant baton in the shape of a bone. How else could he get the dogs to follow him?

6 Northampton, Massachusetts
Mayor Higgins' Hot Chocolate Run
Mix 150 pounds of sugar, 50 pounds of cocoa, and 160 ounces of vanilla extract, add 120 gallons of milk, heat, stir, and what do you get? A reason for kids and adults to go outside in the December cold. The first 2,500 people to register for the 5th Annual Hot Chocolate Run in Northampton (about 30 miles north of the Hartford airport) receive a custom-made, artist-designed mug, and all participants will be served a cup of steaming hot homemade chocolate. You can enter either the 5k run or the 2-mile family walk (strollers, dogs on leashes, and grandparents encouraged). All of the revenue goes to help Safe Passage, a local agency that supports survivors of domestic violence. Kids like walking with the polar bear and penguin mascots, serious runners get a first-rate workout, and everyone enjoys the music and giveaways that follow the holiday festivities. Just don't forget your mittens.

17 Newport Beach, California
The Christmas Boat Parade
Trade snow for sand this December in Newport Beach, California. Located between Los Angeles and San Diego in Orange County, the city celebrates a monumental anniversary with its 100 Years of Cheer, commemorating the first annual Christmas Boat Parade in 1908. The oldest parade of its kind in the United States, the five-day event draws more than 1 million people every year. Festivities kick off each evening at 6:30 p.m., when nearly 100 decorated yachts cruise their way around a 14-mile path in Newport Harbor. People can gather in restaurants, beaches, private homes, and yacht clubs around the harbor to catch a glimpse of the floating vessels. Later, holiday revelers can stop by and check out what locals say is the tallest Christmas tree display in the country. A 115-foot-tall white fir stands in Bloomingdale's Courtyard at Fashion Island, decorated with 17,000 white lights, bows, and ornaments. It's safe to say you can't miss it.

JANUARY

7 El Paso, Texas
Pro Musica Chamber Music Festival
Technically, the annual El Paso Pro Musica Chamber Music Festival melds both music and film—but apparently the organizers deemed "the El Paso Pro Musica Chamber Music and Film Festival" too much of a mouthful. Even so, for a taste of culture in a desert setting, you'll want to hit the festival. Running from Jan. 7 through Feb. 1, the festival features free performances and full-blown concerts by musicians from around the world, plus a film series screening a different flick each Wednesday. Kick off the festivities by watching a documentary on the Guarneri String Quartet, then head to the Western Hills United Methodist Church to hear the quartet perform in-person. Pianist Awadagin Pratt and violinists Paul Rosenthal and Rachel Barton Pine are just a few of the names in the festival's lineup, while films like Humoresque and Ben Hur round out the film series. Throw in a side of tortilla chips and Tex-Mex queso, and we'll even sit through the credits.

21 Los Angeles
Art Show
"As the sun colors flowers," Sir John Lubbock once said, "so does art color life." Douse your life in color this month at the Los Angeles Art Show, the West Coast's largest retail art show. At the city's convention center, you'll find exhibits ranging from contemporary installations to paintings by the Old Masters. This year, the show nearly doubles in size to accommodate 175 international dealers, a film series, and lively evening mixers. Join more than 50,000 visitors for this five-day event, where you can attend the Artist Films series, featuring movies created by and about artists, or hop over to a discussion led by prominent artists and museum professionals. Just don't forget the bottom line—the artworks for sale—and if you need a reminder, go ahead and browse the more than 15,000 paintings, sculptures, photographs, and prints primed for a relocation to your living room.