Stay-Cation: Virginia Living Museum

My girls are crazy about dinosaurs.  Elora can name all the common ones, and the only animal sound I've been able to teach Kaylie is "rawr" for dinosaur.  So naturally, when the Virginia Living Museum started advertising a "living" dinosaur exhibit, it went to the top of our "must do" list for the summer.

We got up on Saturday morning (after our sleep-over) and caravan-ed (since neither of us has a car big enough for 2 adults and 3 car seats) up to Newport News to check it out. 

Kaylie, telling Aunt Bekah what dinosaurs say---without prompting

corythosaurus with nest

triceratops with babies

skinless dinosaur robot, with a panel to control its movements

the t-rex

I think this one was Kaylie's favorite

triceratops photo-op.  I should have taken the photos from straight-on, but I didn't think about it until I was going through my photos at home.

Naturally, the dinosaurs were a major hit, but there was a lot more to see there then just the dinosaurs.  We didn't venture outside, because it was just too hot, but we did look at all of the inside exhibits, which focus on the local ecology.  

Appalachian Cove exhibit, upper level

There were lots of hands-on and interactive things to see, do, and climb on.

Cypress Swamp and  Appalachian Cove exhibits, lower level.

I'd say we saw about half of what the VLM has to offer, and it was great.  I'm thinking that we'll have to go back.  The dinosaurs will be exchanged for something new in September; maybe we'll go back then?  

Gager Visit 2012

Have I ever mentioned before that I have been blessed with exceptional in-laws?  Especially the women.  My husband's mother is one of my best friends, and my husband's brother had the good sense to marry Carrie, who is just as wonderful as she could possibly be.  And if I didn't already love all 4 of them for their own merits, which I did, they all love my children to distraction.  How could I not love them even more, for that?  So it was with GREAT anticipation that I looked forward to my in-laws friends coming up for a visit.

They came up the Thursday before the party, and stayed through the weekend.  Friday, there was baking and cake-decorating and playing and exploring and dinner at Abuelo's.

Saturday was the party, and in the morning everyone chipped in to get everything ready.  Carrie in particular was a God-send.  She did ALL of the food prep while I ran around like an idiot frosting cupcakes, sewing ruffles, and I forget what else.  And everyone else helped out with everything else.  

Sunday was a relaxed day.  We stacked all the new toys and clothes off to one side, because I just wasn't ready to tackle finding homes for everything.  Then Papa and Gigi put together the girls' new easel, and Elora got to spend the morning painting. 

In the afternoon, the guys went for burgers and beer while Carrie, Staria, and I took the girls to see their first in-the-theater movie: the Lorax.  It was awesome.  Kaylie got a bit restless during the movie, so I spent part of the time standing with her at the back of the theater, but Elora was riveted the entire time.  And at the end, when the truffula tree started to grow, Elora jumped from Gigi's lap, bounced up and down, and said over and over, "It's growing, it's growing! Look, mama, look!  It's growing!" loud enough for everyone in the entire theater to hear her.  It was the cutest thing I have ever seen.   

James and Carrie had to head back Monday morning, but Staria and Jimmy stayed with us another day.  Brandon was able to get off from work early, so we all loaded up and headed to Virginia Beach to see the Aquarium.  

 

 

 

It was really neat.  They had animals from all over, but they really focused on the local ecosystem and natural history. They had exhibits on everything from local geology to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.  Did you know that Chesapeake Bay was formed in part by a large impact crater?  Or that the Chesapeake Bay watershed includes 6 states, ranging all the way up to New York?  Neither did I, until we visited the Aquarium.  Too cool.

Ritter Sport, Neuschwanstein, Stuttgart and Schwarzwald: The TL;DR Version

Thursday, we went to the RitterSport shop to buy chocolate.  Sara bought roughly 17 pounds of chocolate to take back for various friends and coworkers.  I only bought a few squares of it, though Elora would have had me taking home half the shop.

Friday we went to Neuschwanstein, and got to see Hohenschwangau into the bargain. The down side was that it was wet and nasty all day, but we bought ponchos and made the best of it. We didn't get home until 11:00 that night; what a day!

Saturday, we went in to Stuttgart to have lunch with my friend Sarah.  It was a bit odd, hanging out with a Sara and a Sarah.  I didn't get a picture with all 3 of us, but Sara and I did get this one on the train.

Sunday we went for a walk and a picnic in the Schwarzwald.  It was overcast again, but thankfully, it didn't rain on us this time.  The forest was gorgeous, and we had a wonderful time.

PS:  Has anyone else noticed the new photo uploader?  You can select multiple photos at once now.  It's so much better, I love it!

Smileys and Pottys and Snails

Brandon's nephew has begun a new business venture making incense, and I volunteered to make a smiley face logo for him.  It's really simple, and nothing like what Jess can do, but he's really happy with it and so I am too.  I think I am going to go back and put "Chef" across the front of the hat, since that's his nickname.  Heck, that's the reason for the hat in the first place.

Last night, I ordered a potty for Elora, so we can start on the road to potty training.  I looked at a couple, but in the end it came down to the BabyBjorn Potty Chair, or the Fisher Price Pink Princess Potty Chair.  The first takes a simple, minimalist approach, while the second tries to make it fun.  I went for the fun one.

photo from fisher-price.com

It has 4 different little songs that it can play when she does her business, the seat comes off and can be used on the big toilet when she gets older, the bowl is removable for easy cleaning, and the back folds down to make it a step stool so she can reach to wash her hands.  Seriously, how cute is that?? 

We had a nice thunderstorm early this evening.  Thunderstorms are one of those things that I took for granted in Florida, and that I've missed terribly since coming here.  I wish I could have been at home to sit and enjoy it, butI was thankful that the angry looking sky didn't open up on me as I was running around Patch trying to get dinner, get cash for the babysitter, and get Elora.  I got to hear a bit of thunder, see a bit of lightening, and felt a few cool sprinkles before I drove out from under it one the way home.  

When I got there, I saw this guy cruising around the drive in front of my house.  I thought he was cool, so I ran upstairs and deposited Elora with her dad so I could run back down with the camera.  These are straight out of the camera, I didn't even crop them.

He obliged me by continuing to cruise,and I even caught him sticking out his tongue (I assume it's a tongue, I'm not really sure) to sample the tastes/textures/smells around him.  I always feel so special when I get to see things like this.  Maybe I would get to see these things more if I paid more attention, but then, perhaps they wouldn't be so special to me?  He's really neat, and I sincerely hope that some oblivious person didn't step on him before he could make his way back to the (relative) safety of the garden.