visitors this weekend and next.Escape The Mid-Winter Doldrums

The skies may be gray, the ground frozen, and the trees bare, but winter takes on a different look at Old Westbury Gardens. It's something that the Gardens staff is eager to share with visitors, as it opens for its annual President's Week treat.Stroll the grounds in all their pristine beauty, weather permitting, and tour the magnificent Westbury House, Saturday through Monday and next weekend, Friday through Sunday, Feb. 24-26, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.Special programs on the schedule include:

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Getting Your Gardens Ready - An informative presentation with Cornell Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Gene Lanzaro on preparing for that spring garden, Saturday, Feb. 18, 2 p.m.

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Winter Woodland Walk - A invigorating guided tour of the gardens "out of season," Monday, Feb. 20, 1 p.m.

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Children's Nature Crafts - Kids 3-8 will enjoy making nature-related projects in a creative setting, Saturday, Feb. 25, 1-2:30 p.m. Old Westbury Gardens is located at 71 Old Westbury Rd., Westbury. For more information, contact (516) 333-0048 or www.oldwestburygardens.org.

LICM can always be counted upon to come up with programming that will both uniquely entertain and educate. The museum's plans to keep Long Island's families occupied during the school break continue in that tradition. Explore "Body Carnival," a fun-filled exploration of the human body. Crawl through an artery - The Tunnel of Blood, revel in the reverberations of sound in your bones and muscles at the Feel Music pad, experience the sensation of falling out of control while traveling through the 10 foot-long Dizzy Tunnel, and don "Goofy Goggles" to learn how vision impacts balance.Also, again this year, visitors can examine the mysteries of the human heart, at workshops with medical students from Stony Brook University's Black and Latino Medical Student Union, offered in conjunction with Black History Month. The medical students lead workshops on how the human heart functions, using human heart specimens. Visitors can experience an operation on a real heart, by taking part in a dissection to discover the organ's inner workings. The program is in part a tribute to Daniel Hale Williams, the African-American doctor, who performed the first open-heart surgery, in 1893, on a stabbing victim in Chicago. It runs through Feb. 26. Registration is required.Another special event celebrates LICM's fourth year in its current home. Musician Brady Rymer holds a CD release party, as he introduces his fourth studio CD for children, "Every Day Is A Birthday." He gives four concerts on Thursday and Friday, Feb. 23 and 24, at 1 and 3 p.m. Appearing with Rymer are those very cool backup singers, Claudia and Liz, and Rymer's Little Band That Could. In addition to tunes from his new album, Rymer performs favorites from his previous award-winning albums: "I Found It!," "Good Morning, Gus" and "Look at My Belly." He'll have all ages swinging to his folk, country, blues, and pop tunes.Other activities throughout the week include Inuit printmaking, a meteorology workshop, a contemporary dance performance, and cookie-making.The Long Island Children's Museum is located at 11 Davis Ave., Garden City. For information, contact (516) 224-5844 or www.licm.org.

It's Mars madness at Cradle of Aviation museum this month! Disney's new IMAX feature "Roving Mars" is featured daily at Cradle of Aviation's Leroy R. and Rose W. Grumman IMAX Theater. The movie takes audiences on an incredible journey to the mysterious Red Planet, with NASA's Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity. Throughout the week, on Feb. 20, 22 and 24, from noon-4 p.m. the museum presents its "Mars Invasion." Participants can construct their own Mars Rover Lander, complete with a parachute. And try your hand at the Rover Races, where you can discover how the Rovers receive commands from NASA to drive on Mars, and then attempt to direct or drive a Mars Rover. The younger set can envision what life might be like on Mars by making a cuddly Mars Critter, complete with wacky eyes. Visit the museum at Charles Lindbergh Blvd., Garden City. For further information, contact (516) 572-4111.