Night at the Museum

Owen used to be really into dinosaurs, and as such, we used to spend a lot of our time at the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum's Dinosaur Hall. But back in 2014, when Owen was seven, they closed the hall for renovations. We've tried to fill the gap in the meantime, but as time marched on, it looked like his obsession with dinosaurs was headed towards extinction.

But this month, the David H. Koch Hall of Fossils -- Deep Time (we're still trying to resolve our feelings about that) opened. The crowds have been insane (there's a lot of pent-up dinosaur fever here in the District) and so we weren't sure when we'd get to fully take-in the renovation. But then Allen snagged tickets to Natural History's Sleepover, which meant we were going to get an after-hours tour of the exhibit (with our regular partners in camping, the Telfair-Chas).

It was pretty amazing. Grandpa dropped us off at the museum at 7 pm with our sleeping bags and toothbrushes in tow, and after dropping our bags off at the Ocean Hall (where the actual sleepover was to occur), we briefly headed to the 2nd floor (which was off limit for the actual sleepover) to see the Hope Diamond and other geological items (Nora's always been into rocks, but Owen's love of Minecraft means he now knows a lot about minerals). At 7:30 we headed to orientation where we had snacks, met up with the Telfair-Chas, and got our instructions for the night.

Assigned to the green team, we headed to the Mammal Hall where we solved trivia, identified pollinators, and raced like Pronghorns (Dr. Cha won). We then moved on to evolution where we tried to insure avocados continue to thrive despite the extinction of the giant sloth (by planting radishes -- I'm still a little fuzzy on that one), created a timeline on human tools, practiced hunting and gathering (we would have finished that one quickly if Allen hadn't added a pig which instead of being eaten apparently killed us), built a human spine, did spirographs, and undulated like a lizard. After that, we headed to the Ocean Hall where we learned how many Washington Monuments could be stacked in the ocean (15 in the midnight zone alone), that whales used to have ankles (and that they love a good ankle bracelet), and that we don't really know how big a giant squid can get.

Once we completed the marine life section, we headed to the renovated Hall of Fossils, which was really what started this whole adventure. We ate like a T-Rex, produced origami birds, put together a dinosaur puzzle, learned all about "Number 2" and once we finally had checked off all of our Sleepover stops, got to partake in the battle of Prey vs Predators.

By this time it was 10:30 pm and everyone was a little over hyped and a lot over-tired, so we split into two groups of four: prey (the parents) and predators (the kids). The prey had to hide "eggs" which the predators then had to find and if they found the majority, then the predators won. Both groups were subject to some adaptations which could inhibit their ability -- the predators apparently couldn't deal with water (which turned out to be critical) and the prey got to use a 3-1 ratio in the count. While the predators were feeling pretty good about themselves, the adaptations proved hard to overcome and in the end, the prey one by a single Ikea ball egg (Side note, the organizers didn't know how many eggs there actually were because no one before the parents had ever hidden all the eggs. Additional side note, the kids would have won except Gabriel dropped two eggs which rolled into the water feature and since he couldn't swim, had to forfeit the eggs that would have secured their victory).

The adults might have celebrated their victory a little too much which might have resulted in a few tears and threats to leave, but eventually we corralled everyone by the Megalodon for bed (though Nora kept rolling away, and Elaine eventually moved because while it's never really "night" in a museum, it's really never dark where the Megalodon and the Ocean Terrace Cafe meet -- good thing The Telfair-Chas brought character inspired sleep masks for everyone ). At 7 am the next morning, the lights came on, we decamped, got dressed (except Nora), had a quick breakfast and then headed home (after a brief stop by the gift shop).

The experience seems to have seems to have reignited Owen's love of dinosaurs and I wouldn't mind repeating, provided I have a very long nap first.


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(Click here for a highlights video.)

Sweet Sixteen

After our 10th Anniversary, we decided that every five years we'd celebrate our marriage at the Inn at Little Washington. But when our 15th came around, we'd already planned a trip to Glacier for the same time. So new rule: every time our anniversary is on a Friday, we spend it at the Inn. Which meant while the kids were at camp (and our friends generously picked them up for us and were then coerced into keeping them overnight), we headed back to Washington, VA.

We got there a little early and briefly walked around the grounds before checking in (the weather was glorious as it finally stopped raining in the DC Metro area). But our room wasn't quite ready, so we enjoyed a welcome cocktail on a veranda looking out on the Shenandoahs while we waited. Once we got to our room, we understood why it took so long: Allen had booked the Julia Child suite complete with two balconies and an enormous bathroom with a soaking tub. It was a lot to take in, so we skipped afternoon tea (we had an early dinner reservation, anyway) in order to enjoy it thoroughly.

Since the last time we'd been there, The Inn now has a three star Michelin rating, and while the food before was delicious, they've definitely taken it up a notch. For dinner, Allen chose the "Gastronaut's Menu" with the pairing, while I opted for the "Here and Now" and a lovely Sancerre (sadly, while I love a good pairing, I think I've gotten too old). It was amazing -- the "Petals of Maine Diver Scallops Poached in Olive Oil with Artichokes, Lemon and Sicilian Olives" is the best thing I've eaten in recent memory though Allen would argue that the Carpaccio of Herb-Crusted Elysian Fields Baby Lamb Loin with Caeser Salad Ice Cream was even better (though maybe because the accompanying Salwey, 2017 Pinot Noir, Rose from Baden, Germany really enhanced the flavor).

After completing all seven courses and a night cap, we retired for the night. And after a lovely breakfast (including rhubarb-ginger lemonade) and another brief stroll, we checked out and headed out to the Skyline Drive where we did a little site seeing before returning home to our awaiting brood.

We can't wait for a redo on Friday June 21, 2024...



(click here for all the pictures)

Notes on Camp

After the less than successful initial inaugural sleep-away camp experience Owen had with his friend Gabriel a few years ago (those Quaker camps are pretty hardcore and very adamant that you will eat your ration of cheesy grits), we had largely given up on our children participating in that summer ritual. But then Gabriel's mom discovered a YMCA camp that served chicken tenders and had sailing and horseback riding and non-mandated overnight hikes, that Nora was old enough to attend, we were able to convince Owen (and Gabriel) that given Nora (and Mirabel) would be there too, they should give this whole sleep-away camp thing another try (once Nora found out we could sign her up for horseback riding, no convincing was necessary).

Drop off didn't go exactly as planned. Despite numerous uploading of documents to insure that Owen could have his Advil on site, we were informed they had no record and so if we needed any he'd need to go to the infirmary (which was a pretty far hike from the "rustics" where Owen was staying and pretty much insured he would never go and just deal the pain, so we smuggled it in his backpack and told him to self-medicate as needed). And the horses were quarantined due to some health concerns which meant horseback riding might be cancelled. And there was no record of the credits for the camp store we'd been promised since they neglected to give us a sibling discount) which meant they kids couldn't buy ice cream or snacks or souvenirs. Also, we forgot shampoo and/or soap (well, I forgot, Allen maintains he thought of it but as it wasn't listed explicitly in the packing list toiletries he assumed they didn't need them). And the forecast was for rain every day. But still we wished them well and dropped them off, hoping for the best and thinking we might get a Camp Granada like note.

But we didn't (in part because despite both us us sending them emails every day to be shared with them at lunch, neither child ever wrote us). The horses recovered from a bad reaction to the their worm medicine, and Nora happily rode "Cookie" all week. Nora was able to borrow all the necessary toiletries and apparently, none of the boys bothered showering since there weren't any bathrooms in the "Rustics" (so Allen was correct in his assumption that they didn't "need" them, though for very different reasons). After an email and a couple of phone calls, the kids accounts were reconciled and they were able to buy all the Goldfish, ice cream and "stuffies" their hearts desired. And while it did indeed rain every day but the last, the rain consistently held off until the afternoon so that Nora got in all her horseback riding and Owen was able to sail every day but Friday (and that was because of too much wind).

In fact the week was so successful that both kids want to return next year (possibly even for two weeks) although Owen's friend Gabriel maintains that the personal hygiene issues were a little much for him and he's done with camp (though I think his parents are still working on him).

(To see all the pictures, click here.)

Girls Running

Last year, I was out of town for last years Girls on the Run's Spring 5k, which meant that Aunt Katherine had to sub-in as Nora's running partner. Despite some inclement weather, the race itself went swimmingly and Nora deemed Aunt Katherine a far superior running partner then dear old mom (which one might attribute it to Katherine's regular marathon training, but I think it's just because she has a fancy Garmin). And so when given the choice of whom to run with for this year's 5k, Nora opted for Aunt Katherine again, leaving Allen and myself to simply cheer from the sidelines .

There was a lot to cheer about. The weather was glorious; Nora got a cool tattoo and Katherine and Nora kept their splits under 13 minutes (they made 12:56), beat their goal time of 40 minutes (39:37 -- more than three minutes faster than last year) and ran the last mile of the race faster than the first (which might have been due to Allen and I intercepting them prior to when they intended to start their final sprint, though we couldn't manage to actually beat them). Nora and Katherine were sweaty but happy at the finish and after a brief stop at Allen's office, we Ubered home, showered and then had a lovely brunch to celebrate.


(To see all the pictures from the race, click here.)

Shrek

Owen made his debut on the Stuart-Hobson stage in the Fall of 2017 as Grandpa Joe in Willie Wonka. But despite rave reviews, he's since opted for the stage crew over the cast, working the sound board for Alice in Wonderland and Beauty and the Beast. It seemed an odd choice given we would watch him sing and act out every song during the shows while adjusting levels and cuing the music but he was adamant that he enjoyed doing sound (and besides, he didn't want to do a Disney musical).

But then they announced that for the Spring of 2019 Stuart-Hobson's players would be putting on Shrek, Jr. and since Pixar is different than Disney, Owen was on it. We perused the cast descriptions and discovered that Pinocchio called for a, "male with good falsetto voice or Soprano/Alto," at which point, it all seemed fated. Owen nailed his audition, and embraced the role of a puppet with an attitude.

Stuart-Hobson musicals are not your average middle school production. I'm not sure exactly what Ms. Perguson does to exact such performances out of a bunch of 11-14 year olds, but it's a pretty amazing sight to behold. Owen embodied Pinocchio and stole all his scenes. But it was also amazing to see Owen's best friend Adam as Lord Farquaad who's comic timing and delivery was incredible; Han, who Owen met at SWS and is the least ogre-ie kid you can imagine, made a fantastic Shrek; Alice, who was in Pre-K 4 with Owen but seems so grown up now, sang her heart out as Fiona; and Donkey, an eighth grader that had never been in a play but wanted to do one before graduating, emoted so much charisma and managed to do the splits twice while singing.

It was truly and amazing performance and we can't wait for you all to see the DVD.



(To see all the pictures, click here.)
(For video clips, click here.)