Category Archives: Family

Baltimore in 2 days with 3 kids

  • We were thoroughly charmed by the two days we spent in Charm City. Here’s our itinerary…

Wednesday

We left C’ville for Baltimore at 9 am.

We drove straight to Fort McHenry, arriving around noon (after one impromptu stop to visit Yoder’s and the petting farm). My 13 year old history buff was especially anxious to visit the star-shaped fort, the scene of the epic battle during the War of 1812, which inspired Francis Scott Key to write The Star Spangled Banner.

Inside the Visitors Center you watch a short movie in which the battle is reenacted. At the conclusion of the movie, the screen dramatically flies up to reveal a huge window overlooking the fort over whose ramparts flies the American flag. Everyone stands up and, hands over hearts, sings The Star Spangled Banner. I have to admit, I got caught up in the moment. There just may have been a tear welling in the corner of my eye. And then I heard my 16 year old say, “This is so cheesy.” And it totally was. But stirring nevertheless.

Oh, say can you see?
Sheltering from the bombs bursting in air…

We drove to the Homewood Suites by Hilton Baltimore, where we would spend the next couple of days. The hotel is in an excellent location, not quite overlooking the water, (at least from our suite), but a very short walk away from the Harbor. They serve a complimentary breakfast every day and a complimentary dinner with wine and beer Monday through Thursday. The food was not spectacular, but decent. There always seemed to be at least one standout item at every meal that was actually delicious: buttery croissants, hash browns, super fresh caesar salad, etc.

After checking out our room and having a brief rest, we headed out to walk around the neighborhood:

The last surviving ship of Pearl Harbor

We walked over to the World Trade Center and went up to the Observation Deck to get 360 degree views of the city:


We walked back to the hotel for dinner and then headed to Little Italy for dessert  at Vaccaro’s:

We may have gotten a little carried away:

Oreo Sundae
Death by Chocolate!
Tiramisu Gelato

Despite our valiant efforts, we had to bring almost all of it back to the hotel to stash in the freezer.

We watched a movie and then headed to bed. We had two double beds and a sleeper sofa, but my silly girl insisted that she wanted to sleep here:

(She eventually did crawl into bed with me in the middle of the night)!

Day One: DONE!

Country Markets

Last Wednesday we left for a two day trip to Baltimore.

IMG_5301.jpgThe kids’ backseat banter set the tone for the trip.

Caesar v. Shaka Zulu. Who would win?

Me from the driver’s seat – What’s Shaka Zulu?

There was an uncomfortable silence and then I heard: You mean who is Shaka Zulu?

Uh, yeah, ok: who is Shaka Zulu?

I could sense the pity and disbelief as the boys explained to their shockingly ignorant mother who Shaka Zulu was.

Kids v. Me. Kids, obviously.

We didn’t get too far up 29 before we spotted Yoder’s Country Market. Despite the fact that it’s not too far from where we live AND has a petting farm, we’d never been.

IMG_5334.jpgWe’ve been missing out!

The aisles are full of interesting things such as baking supplies like this. I’m pretty sure you can’t find “Pure as Snow Cake Flour” at Harris Teeter.

IMG_5302There were lots of baked homemade goods made by Mennonites in their own kitchens, as well as other groceries like local organic meat, dairy products, and vegetables.

The next time we go, we’ll try out the café. We were sorely tempted to try the hand dipped ice cream, but thought it would be too decadent to have it at 9:30 am.

Decadence v. Restraint. Restraint. This time.

Our greatest discovery was this:

IMG_5340It’s almost scary how addictive these are.

After stashing our purchases in the car, we strolled over to the petting farm:

Peacock v. Turkey:

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The turkey definitely came out on top. But just wait till November.

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Ruffled feathers

My birds v. the Rhea birds:

IMG_5321IMG_5327A draw!

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Ready for my close up.

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“I can’t decide if that duck is having a really bad hair day, or a really awesome hair day!”

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Pig v. pig

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ALL MINE!

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You lookin’ at me?

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Girl v. baby goat. Baby goat. No contest. She’s smitten.

We had such a good time at Yoder’s that on our way back home after our trip to Baltimore, we decided to check out another country store we’d always driven past, but had also never visited:

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Yoder’s v. The Ole Country Store & Bakery? Yoder’s for the win.

The Ole Country Store didn’t have a petting farm or the crazy good Mediterranean Cocktail Snacks.

Yoder’s v. Us.

Yoder’s!

We crossed four busy lanes of traffic to go back to Yoder’s on the opposite side of the highway for one last visit…and to buy two more bags of Mediterranean Snacks!

Decadence v. Restraint. Decadence, baby.

Tomorrow: Baltimore in 2 days with 3 kids.

A birthday wish for my son

IMG_8244May your life be filled with music, and may your light always shine bright and true.

Hair Bribery

March 4, 2016

After months of tiresome nagging, I strike a deal with this girl:

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(Sadly, the goat’s hair is more kempt than hers).

If you promise to leave a barrette in your hair all day long, I won’t bug you about getting your hair cut for a whole month.

Her eyes light up. It’s a deal!

To my amazement…she succeeds! It’s the first time in her entire life that she manages to keep a barrette in her hair all day long. Turns out, it will probably also be the last day she ever manages the feat.

April 5, 2016

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A Better Way

We took a field trip with a caravan of friends to visit the wonderful A Better Way Farm and Goat Dairy in Waynesboro, Virginia. Ever since we moved to a house with a paddock and barn in the backyard, my daughter has been pleading for a baby goat. As my friend said, a visit to a goat farm truly was “a better way” to indulge her.

The goat farm is a one woman operation. Just a few years ago, Kathy was working at home as a computer programmer. She said she never dreamed she would end up being a goat farmer when she bought her house and land ten years ago. It all started when her youngest daughter asked for some chicks. (At this my friend and I eyed each other. The story sounded ominously familiar). “Chicks,” she said, “are a ‘gateway drug’ for other farm animals.” Soon all she wanted to do was be outside playing with the animals. She quit her job and started building her goat herd. Now all her children have grown and left home, and she runs the farm all by herself. Even though she has 70+ goats she milks by hand, chickens, a newly planted orchard, and bees, she says she’s having so much fun it doesn’t feel like a job at all! On the weekends she gives tours of her farm and from time to time gives workshops on things like goatkeeping, beekeeping, and soap making.

It was a delight to see someone so in her element. She knows each of her goats by name. “Hi, Magpie!” she says as she gives a black and white goat an affectionate head scratch. “My babies!” she cries to triplets, furiously wagging their little tails and clamoring for her attention:

We inquired about one goat who looked rather largish around the middle.

“Is she about to give birth?” my friend asked.

“Oh, that’s my very first goat. She’s not pregnant; she just never regained her figure after having her babies. She forgives you.”

I could definitely relate.

The tour concluded with a taste of creamy, sweet goat’s milk, which one of the visitors described as tasting like “melted ice cream.” We bought some chèvre, feta, and soap – all made from goats’ milk.

And though it was incredibly difficult to resist, we did not buy a baby goat.

Now the girl wants ducklings.

Rogue’s Gallery

I stomped downstairs this morning to confront my husband.

“YOU PUNCHED ME IN THE BACK LAST NIGHT. REALLY HARD.”

“Oh,” he said looking sheepish, “I know.”

I raised an eyebrow so high I almost got a muscle cramp.

“Let me explain.”

“There’s no explanation for domestic abuse.”

“I was having a dream that I was playing frisbee with the kids,” he hastened to say, “And I was doing that move I like to do,

IMG_5242and I guess I actually made the movement with my arm. It woke me up immediately,  (Ummm…ME TOO!!!!!) and I realized what had happened.”

“Well, it still hurts! Really bad. And the psychic wound hurts maybe even more!”

At that moment my son came down the stairs.

“Did you know your dad punched me in the back last night?”

“WHAT?” he gasped with gratifying horror.

“Yes, that’s right, your father punched the woman who gave birth to you and your siblings. In the back. While she was fast asleep.”

The perpetrator of the nefarious crime leapt to his own defense.

“ACTUALLY!” he said, pointing to his son, “It was YOUR fault!

IMG_5237 (1)“How is this MY fault?” the poor boy asked, with perfectly understandable indignation.

“YOU’RE the one who wanted me to play frisbee with you.”

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reliving the shame

Sad. Very sad.

 

Easter Weekend

We played outside…

And discovered a sweet surprise in our bluebird box:

Three perfect little eggs!

It would be impossible to improve upon those adorable little eggs, but we dyed a set of ceramic ones:

Goooldfinger!
Our gilded eggs
Ready for Easter!

We helped “flower” a bare cross covered with wire between Easter services:

You’re never too old for an Easter Egg hunt!

My husband and his new friend…

My friend Victoria came to spend the night with us. I made a salad with the carrot flowers my mom taught me how to make:

After dinner we chatted while my friend worked on some teaching projects:

Creating her pedagogical drawing illustrating Passover.
Beeswax kitty!

She brought me some beautiful eggs dyed with natural plant dyes:

And shared some photos of the process:

Weekend Snapshots 36

Friday

For some reason I hadn’t realized I didn’t have to work on Friday. When I was reminded of the fact that it was UVA’s “Spring Break Day,” it was like a gift that fell out of the sky and right into my lap.

My friend and I met for breakfast at Bluegrass Grill & Bakery. Afterward, we popped into Paradox Pastry right next door. I stashed a pain au chocolat  in my purse, and had it later for an extra-decadent lunch for my extra-bonus day.

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I went to all my favorite spots on the Downtown Mall.

Roxie Daisy:

IMG_5075 …always has beautiful, and unusual things. Sometimes I have no idea what these things are, but don’t they look like they would enhance the quality of one’s life somehow?

Caspari is always beautifully styled too:

IMG_5080…but the real reason I go there is to admire the zebra finches. I love that their cage is always lined with pretty wrapping paper:

IMG_5081One couldn’t really consider a pain au chocolat a proper lunch. So I made a pit stop at Timberlake’s Drug Store for a vanilla milkshake to round it off! IMG_5085 O’Suzannah is another favorite:

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I can’t sew a stitch, but for some reason, I love to wander through the color coded rooms at the Second Yard, a fabric store in a creaky old house on Market Street. You can buy furniture and home decor there too:

I still had time before it was time to pick up my daughter from school, so I stopped off at Ivy Nursery. It’s always a pleasure to see the gorgeous displays there:

IMG_5097In the greenhouse there are always friendly women chatting with each other in Spanish as they create lovely arrangements:

IMG_5104Even the pot display is pretty:

IMG_5098I got some plants to fill out the urns we finally transported from our old house to our new house a couple weekends ago:

And a few more, just because I was helpless to resist their charms:

The boys couldn’t stop picking at the pot full of lettuces I brought home. They popped the leaves straight into their mouths!

IMG_5111We capped off the day with our new favorite evening pastime – a game of badminton, using our fence as a net:

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I love the pace of the game – the shuttlecock travels so slowly, I could take photos and return the volley!

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Saturday

My son has been doing rocketry after school. On Saturday we drove a couple of hours to Great Meadow Park in Fauquier County, Virginia to watch his team test the rockets they’ve been working on for months:

IMG_5138 (1)IMG_8298IMG_8275IMG_8308IMG_8329IMG_8316All three flights were clean and the payload of two (raw)! eggs remained undamaged!

That night my daughter followed an online play by play of the UVA/UNC game. I had no interest in the game. My entertainment was watching her reactions:

IMG_8343IMG_8344IMG_8353Yup. Our guys lost.

Sunday

The next morning my very tall ten-year-old daughter wore my dress to church. We can wear the same clothes, but I’m still a little bit taller than her…when she’s not standing on her tippy toes! IMG_5144

 

 

 

More Old Photos

Scan 8

Scan 2

My mother is the third girl with long braids.

Scan 5 (1)Scan 6

Scan 4

Newlyweds

Weekend Snapshots 35

Saturday

Pippin Hill Vineyard. It was a beautiful evening for my beautiful friend’s “Celebration of Life.” We arrived just as the sun was setting…

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My friend is gone, but her spirit remains. After listening to moving remembrances of an extraordinary woman and a life well-lived, we stepped out into the night under a big gorgeous canopy of a million twinkling stars. As we looked up at the heavens to admire the spectacular sight, my husband said, “That’s Carla.”

Sunday

We spotted the first crocus of spring…At our old house, I knew exactly what to look for, because I had planted everything. I dug up some of my favorite plants to move to our new house, but there are so many other beloved plants I left behind. I’m going to miss my blue and purple crocus lawn, the Virginia bluebells, and my grand old tree peony, but I’m looking forward to seeing what pops up this spring at our new house.

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