Out and About

We've been partying like it's 1999 this spring break. That is, if "partying" means not getting out of our pjs/yoga pants, lying around reading and eating sugar cereal. I'm kind of a food nazi on school days-no sugar, power smoothies and homemade breakfasts and whole grain lunches every day, blahblahblah-aren't you jealous of my kids? On vacations and holidays, though, I usually buy about five boxes of forbidden cereal and let the kids eat it all day until it's gone. That way, they don't feel deprived, but more importantly, I feel like I'm on vacation, too, because they never ask me to make them a sandwich or oatmeal. It's a win-win, even for the dentist!

We did go to FSI to meet daddy and do a little research (my God, why is the Overseas Briefing Center always so frigging hot?) . We also went to the National Aquarium in DC, but the kids were rather underwhelmed, aside from enjoying the feeding frenzy in the piranha tank. They were more interested in the brown, stinky, flooded Potomac.

Yesterday, I braved Tyson's Corner Mall (that's like Bellevue Square on steroids and doubled for you Seattle friends) with the kids to buy summer clothes. Now, historically I'm cheap when it comes to summer clothes. It never got very warm in the Pacific Northwest and when it did, it was only for  a small period of time. The kids have only ever needed one swimsuit and a few pairs of shorts. But we're looking down the barrel of at least two years of summer weather and I needed to get a lot of stuff for my money. I handed Jack $150 in cash and told him to come back with a few pairs of shorts, swim trunks and some t-shirts while I shopped with the younger kids. After about an hour, Jack called and said he needed more money. The swim trunks he bought were $50 and all the other shorts were that much, too. What the what?  I told him to get his ass to Old Navy or I would come and shop with him, and stand outside the dressing room talking really loud about how CUTE THOSE SHORTS LOOK ON HIM AND OH MY GOSH DON'T YOU LOOK HANDSOME! So, yes, he now has a pair of $50 swim trunks but also several pairs of cheap Old Navy shorts and a t-shirt with the Guinness logo on the front. Sigh.

Last night was date night. The kids had Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Apple Jacks for dinner while Mitch and I went to a dinner show called  Medieval Madness. Let it be said that this is not, nor has ever been, my scene. But I love my dorky husband who has a deep appreciation for all things medieval (more of a historical interest, not in a play-in-the-woods-dressed-up-like-a-knight-going-to-medieval-fairs kind of way), so when a Groupon came up for half price tickets, I bought them as a surprise, hoping he'd take me to a drag show in return (I loves me some drag queens). The seating was side-by-side at room-length tables, so we got to know our neighbors quickly and intimately. There were little bowls of nibbles all along the table. Which we were meant to share. With bare hands. This is the point at which I learned we would be enjoying the ENTIRE meal with no eating implements of any kind. A germophobe's dream come true. I quickly downed two glasses of wine, hoping to kill any bugs that might be swirling around in my gut as a result of this unsavory practice. They began the performance, which involved a King and Queen and swords and fake accents and whatnot. I couldn't watch the show because I had to keep my eye on everyone's dirty hands and the food. Yes, I am a most excellent date. The food was three courses of meat (sausages, giant hunks of very tender beef, and chicken drumsticks), giant raviolis (ravioli? raviolii?), some kind of cinnamon carrot stick things, and cake for dessert. All with bare hands. There was also a never-ending supply of ale and singing wenches. Am I glad we went? Sure. Would I do it again? My belly, head, and nerves vote no. The woman sitting to my right, near the end of the show said, "My mom and I have bets on whether or not you guys are newlyweds because you're so cozy with each other".  She was surprised to know that we've been married for 16 years. What I didn't tell her was that I was an agoraphobic germaphobe and had been attempting to hide in my husband's pocket.

TJ, FDR, and Nike

We took the youngest kids to a few monuments this morning. The teenager stayed home to mow the lawn with the lawnmower we bought him as a gift for getting good grades (no need to tell me how lucky he is, I'm pretty sure he knows). First stop was the Jefferson Memorial. But first, I need to make a confession.

I did something I'm not proud of. Something I've never even considered doing before, but it was Sunday morning and I didn't think anyone would be out and about. My knee was really bugging me. I knew it was a long walk to the memorials. I was sure no one would notice. I made Mitch swear not to take any photos of me.

I wore....Nikes. Ugly ones that I use for exercise. And you know, my feet were really comfortable, if incredibly unattractive.  I'm not saying I'd do it again, and I still fell off the sidewalk (it wasn't my fault-someone left a big pile of air right in the middle of the path). I am aware that it's a slippery slope from wearing athletic shoes in public to matching husband and wife jackets from Costco, but what can I say? Maybe I just need a new pair of shoes.

The next stop was the FDR Memorial. This was my favorite memorial that we've been to in DC.  Here are the kids with Eleanor. Henry appears to be irreverently picking her pocket.

Listening to a Fireside chat.

                                                  Doing time in the bread line.

The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little

I have seen war. I have seen war on land and sea. I have seen blood running from the wounded. I have seen the dead in the mud. I have seen cities destroyed. I have seen children starving. I have seen the agony of mothers and wives. I hate war.

National Aquarium

The images coming out of Japan are terrible. Americans who want to help can go to www.redcross.org and donate to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami. You can also text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific.

To take a break from the horrible news of the earthquake, we took the kids to the National Aquarium in Baltimore today.  Now, I confess, I generally compare everything to Seattle, because Seattle rules, the end. And the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle kicks the National Zoo's ass around the block and back, while wearing shorts in the rain with sunglasses but no umbrella. Ahem.

Anyway, the National Aquarium is beautiful.  The Seattle Aquarium is basically a dump in comparison. Although I'm not sure if we'll be back before we get sent overseas (NO, WE DON'T KNOW YET), we bought the annual family membership. You know you've been breeding too heavily if it's cheaper to buy a membership than pay for one day's admission for your family.  Who would have thought a full moon and a little champagne would double our number of kids and require us to buy memberships to everything and two hotel rooms wherever we go?


There was a pretty great dolphin show. We were one row away from getting splashed, but I had Grace sit on my lap to protect myself just in case, because I'm an awesome mom. Hey, my hair is hard enough to deal with on the east coast without a bunch of damn dolphins messing it up.

It would have been a perfect day but for one incident. On our way into the exhibits, we saw a sweet little boy who had obviously had some serious facial and head trauma. After seeing this little guy, Henry was ruined for the rest of the day. He was wiping tears on his sleeve for about an hour, until the dolphin show. He cheered up during the show, but unfortunately, he ran into the kid on our way out. This caused him to just lose it and I had to take him out of the Aquarium. We hung out in a nearby restaurant while Mitch took the other kids to finish looking at the exhibits. I should have swapped with him because Mitch is the philosopher in the family and generally always says the right thing. Henry wanted to know why life is so unfair and why a little kid should have to endure so much. I told him the best thing he could do for that little boy is treat him the way he would want to be treated, and likely, that is just like he was everybody else. My words didn't help much. We hung out and snacked a little while we waited, but Henry was pretty much ruined for the day, and when we got back home he had a total meltdown. One of the posts that is a very high possibility for us is in India. Thank Gah, because my sensitive little guy won't have any problems dealing with inhumanity there.

Crime, punishment, and Legos

We had Mitch's brother and son visiting from Seattle this week. We took the kids to the National Museum of Crime and Punishment. I would say it was one of my kids' favorite outings in DC so far. The museum had fairly dim lighting and there was no flash photography allowed, which is why the pics are dark.

I need one of these in my house.

No, wait, I need one of these in my house.

And I wouldn't mind having one of these, either.

The perpetrator was five feet tall and wore a striped cap.

After the kids had their fill of criminal activity, we went out for lunch and then hit up the National Building Museum.  We were unaware that there was some kind of kids' engineering convention there that day.  The look of panic on Mitch and Jack's faces was priceless when they took in the scene, knowing how well I handle crowds. It turned out okay.  Not really, it sucked, but I kept it together for the most part.  Except for the hives.

We went to the Lego exhibit, which was much calmer and more relaxing. The buildings were stunning.

Frank Lloyd Wright wannabe (this week, anyway).

Spotted: The elusive American teenager skulking about the museum.

Cool! We can play Legos! We never get to do that at home. Where we have three giant bins full of them.

Our excellent barf record was jinxed, as seen in (and probably because of) my previous post. Olivia had chicken strips at the restaurant we ate at and got a migraine that night. Probably MSG in the batter or something, but she's feeling all better, and the earth seems to be spinning back on it's axis now that we have barf  in our lives again.

Snowshoeing

Yesterday, after being stuck in the house for days on end, we loaded up the car and headed to Sky Meadows State Park for some fresh air. We brought our snowshoes and poles in case there was enough snow.  For the record, I would like to say that it wasn't my idea. I enjoy snowshoeing, but not so much with a bunch of whiny kids, and the last time we went we spent the whole time hauling Grace in the sled (it was cold, she was tired, a snowflake got inside her boot, her sock seams were bothering her, etc.).  Plus, the girls were really too small to get the hang of it. We tried again several times last winter, but there was never enough snow.  I figured we would just have to write off the hundreds of dollars we had spent on snowshoeing gear for the entire family. 

I'm happy to say everyone did a great job and we hiked for three hours with nary a complaint. Okay, I lie.  There was some complaining by yours truly. It turns out the trails were rather hilly.  I made us turn around after a while because my  bad knee was donedonedone.  I had really been counting on the kids to complain so I could turn back while still saving face, but the little punks were having too much fun. 

 Spotted:

The elusive American teenager, gracing us with his presence and impressing us with his ability to down his siblings with a single snowball:

The poor kids waiting for their gimpy mother to fish some Aleve out of the backpack.

Everyone collapsed into bed after dinner and slept in this morning. The girls have already asked when we can go again. Henry claims he'll only go if we promise him a Philly cheesesteak afterwards. We still have two days to go before school is back in (can you hear the whimpering in my typing?).

Luray Caverns

Yesterday nobody had school or work (thanks, MLK!), so we drove to Shenendoah Valley to the Luray Caverns.  The Luray Caverns are enormous underground caves, sometimes as high as ten stories.  The tour was about an hour long, and our kids loved it.  They brought along the new digital cameras they had gotten for Christmas and took five bazillion photos.  In addition to the guide who led us through the caves, they all got headphones for additional information especially geared for kids.  Henry got bored with the kids' version and switched to the adult version, and Jack stayed home to do homework and have some alone time. 

This is the wishing well:

It is important because Henry made a wish that it would snow and he would get another day off of school.  Apparently, the wishing well has magical properties, because it snowed, then rained, then froze, and guess what?  No school today.  Stupid wishing well.

I would definitely recommend the caves.  There's a lot of walking up and down steep stairs and slopes, so if you have knee problems, suck it up like I did.  There was also a pretty sweet hedge maze at the Luray Caverns, so they could make an extra $35 off of us.  I kept thinking I'd find a frozen Jack Nicholson from The Shining at the end, but no such luck, just a dumb gift shop. 




This photo was lifted from the website so you can see how big the maze was.



After all that walking, we were starved, so went out to eat at a great little cafe nearby and then took the kids through their first ever car wash.  I know, it's crazy that they've never been through a car wash, but there it is.  They loved it. So, all in all, the day was a total win.  We even came home to three loads of laundry washed and folded by a teenager who was grateful to have a day to himself.  And now, no school.  All you DC and Virginia residents can thank my ten year-old for his most excellent wish.

Car wash



The Obamas' Crib

Yesterday we woke up at the crack of dawn to go on a tour of the White House.  No cameras allowed, so no photos to show you.  It was interesting and cool to see the state rooms, and just to be in the White House, but I have to admit, the kids were a little disappointed we didn't see the bowling alley, swimming pool, or movie theater. I would have loved to have seen the kitchens.  They have a chocolate shop!   Henry was hoping he'd see the President in his robe, taking Bo out for his morning, uh, business.  Alas, it was not to be.  We went home and ate Nutella and banana paninis with hot cocoa, though, so I would say the morning was a win.

It's always a little lame going to landmarks and museums with four kids, because they bulldoze through everything without stopping to read any information about what they are seeing.  Hopefully, they'll remember at least the fact that they went to all these cool places.  I know Henry and Jack will remember the naked lady statues in the National Portrait Gallery, anyway.

Here is a  link if you want to explore the White House online.

Ice cream and donuts. It's what's for dinner.

Since everyone was too sick to go to the National Tree Lighting, we took them into DC to see the tree on Saturday.   Jack stayed home to have the house to himself, but we brought the three youngest and it was rather, uh, underwhelming.  They did have a close-up view of the White House, but were much more excited to see a bunch of Santas on their way to Santarchy.

We took them to Zoolights next, and I totally recommend it if you're in the area.  We went before it got dark so we could see all the animals, then we ate at the zoo cafe, and by the time we were done at the eating, it was nighttime and all the lights were twinkling in the darkness.  The kids have been dying to see the pandas, and not only did they get to see them, they also got to see their giant piles of poop, which pleased Henry.  The zoo cafe is recommended only if you aren't a fan of real food.  I took one look at the menu, and since nothing on it seemed remotely healthy, I told the kids they could get whatever they wanted and I'd feed them cereal something healthy when we got home.  Henry had a giant soft serve ice cream cone with a donut chaser.  Olivia just had two orders of mini donuts, and Grace had chicken fingers with mini donuts.  

You're going to regret that, kid!

After we ate, the girls wanted to go to the reptile house, but Henry was doubled over and clutching his stomach, so he and I waited outside on a bench.  We entertained ourselves by taking photos of the inside of our mouths and nostrils, but somehow this semi-normal one came out.

Taking pictures of lights at night with a point and shoot camera does not produce great pictures, but it does produce pretty good booger shots. I am going to refrain from posting those pics as well as the panda poop pics.  You're welcome.

Holiday Weekend, Part II

We realized yesterday that our children have never had the time-honored tradition of raking leaves.  Sure, we were surrounded by trees when we lived on the island, but we had a tractor that decimated and sucked them up for composting.  Those sure were the good old days.  Luckily, Virginia is currently blanketed in leaves, and our yard is no exception, so we put everyone to work.








Even houseguests aren't exempt from my slavedriving.

Some people worked more than others.

Finding the right music was the key for one.

I'd like to say it was a blast, but it was raking leaves, which is fun for about ten minutes.  The three youngest spent most of the time diving into the piles.  I was busy chronicling the event for all of you, because I'm a giver.  So basically, Mitch, Jack, and Peter did all the work.  Thanks, guys!  I did make them a cake, though.

After we stuffed our faces we went to Mount Vernon for their Candlelight Christmas tour.  I didn't get too many pictures, because it was dark out, and you're not allowed to take photos inside the house.  They had a large cast of people dressed in period costumes giving little talks in all the rooms and buildings, from slaves to Martha Washington, to blacksmiths doing actual smithing. 

Taking a walk with George and Martha.

The girls were digging the miniature replica of Mount Vernon.

There was 18th century carols and dancing, cider and cookies, and a, uh, Christmas camel.  This is Aladdin, and apparently George Washington rented a camel at Christmastime to entertain his guests. 

Random shot of musicians with Christmas trees and stained glass.



Gunston Hall

I was lucky enough to chaperone another one of Henry's cool field trips on Friday.  This time it was to Gunston Hall, which was a plantation owned by Virginia founding father George Mason.  I almost didn't go because Olivia woke up with tummy pain, but Henry pulled out the sad clown face and Mitch called in sick to work so I could go.  No one is immune to that face!

The field trip was really interesting.  They had docents dressed in period clothing and the fourth graders got to spend part of the day working as slave children, and the other part as wealthy tobacco children.  They also learned about tobacco and it's role in the south back in the day. 




The kids  got to cook and eat Apples Charlotte over an open flame.

They learned how the laundry was done (and you'd better believe I came home and kissed my high efficiency washer and dryer),
 and they all had to carry heavy buckets of water the way slave children would have had to.

The view from the back lawn.  Not too shabby.  This is where George Washington
would arrive by boat to come visit.



Learning to roll a hoop on the lawn of the main house.

The kids also made little scented sachets from the herb gardens and set off an alarm in the house.  Luckily, it wasn't anyone in my group.  Oh, wait, it was.  Gah! Dumb kids.  There was a little school house on the property for George Mason's nine children, and our modern-day fourth graders got to try their hand at writing on slates.  They thought it was fun because they knew they were going home at the end of the day to their video games, electricity, and other modern conveniences, such as toilets. 

One thing about Virginia that I've found interesting is the way the whole slavery issue is presented.  It's always completely matter of fact, no apologies or cautionary tales.  In Seattle, there would be the tsk tsking, the politically correct lectures, the added paragraph about how wrong it was at the end of the presentation.  It was Virginia-style at Gunston Hall, "This is how the slave children washed the linens for the Mason family.  Slaves lived in shacks along the river near the tobacco fields. Slave girls would do most of the tending of fires in the kitchen, but their brothers would gather the wood". Period.   I was itching to shout from the back of the group, "YEAH, AND ISN'T THAT TERRIBLE?!"  But I didn't, because I want to keep going on these cool field trips.