Science Museum of Virginia

When we were on our trip to Virginia, we spent a day in Richmond where my Mom had her conference. We went to Maymont (see garden pictures below) and to the Science Museum of Virginia (may be named the Virginia Museum of Science, I just don't remember). It was on a Tuesday morning, so it wasn't very busy. We have a COSI (science museum in Columbus) pass , so we were actually able to get in for free. I thought it was great fun, the kids had a great time and were able basically to play with a lot of REALLY cool toys. So, just want to pass on a tip to families that are traveling, if you have a zoo pass or a museum pass, check the affiliates, because you may be able to get into a lot of places free wherever you are going.

What we were doing during the wind storm in Ohio...

Earlier this Summer we had made plans to take a trip to Virginia Beach in early September. My Mom had a business trip in Virginia and had invited us to tag along, extend the trip, and enjoy some time at the beach. When the hurricane started to look worse and worse, we were concerned that we would have to cancel the trip because it might come up the coast. As it got closer it looked fairly safe, and we decided to risk it. So, during our trip we experienced gorgeous weather, sunshine and blue skies on the coast. Meanwhile we were shocked to hear that a huge wind storm had hit home in Ohio while we were gone, knocking out power for nearly everyone in Columbus for days, blowing down trees, and even causing serious damage in some places. Do we know how to time a trip or what?




Yes, I want to point out that I am the crazy Mom who covered her kids with all kinds of clothes, hats, etc.. on the beach and slathered sun block on all day. I just did NOT want to deal with sun burn, and I'm happy to say we didn't have any, despite clear skies, reflective water, and temperatures in the 90s.






Juliet was not a big fan of swimming in the ocean and being knocked over by waves, but she loved swimming in the pool, and playing in the sand.


A big thank you to Grandma Kathryn who made this trip possible, and who is just fun to hang out with.






Do you ever wonder if you are in the background of total stranger's photographs...in your swimming suit. I sincerely hope not. I left out a picture of one guy who was in one of our photos with about half a cheek hanging out.

Maymont

click to enlarge

Hi Everyone, it's Charles here.

During our four day vacation (to Virginia Beach) we actually spent our final day in Richmond so Kathryn could attend a work-related function. Meanwhile, the rest of us explored the area and took the opportunity to check out a place I remembered visiting a couple of times as a child 22 years ago. (I used to live in the Richmond area) This place is known as Maymont, a historic estate that has been transformed into a park, museum, and nature/wildlife preserve. Apparently I'm the only person in my family to remember this place, but honestly, how could you forget paradise?!?! Jessica was quick to call it one of the most beautiful places she's ever been. The pictures below are shots of us strolling through the japanese garden as well as the italian garden located there. The japanese garden is located in a ravine below the rest of the estate. When you descend into it you really feel like you've left America. As you can tell by the photos, Juliet was quite fond of the trees there. Click to enlarge...

Also there is a brief video at the end of an annoyed Juliet telling mommy that she can cross the bridge by herself. Enjoy!

Julietisms

Sometimes it is so cute to hear kids mispronounce words that it makes me sad when they finally get them right. Juliet has a couple of cute ones right now.

One thing she can't quite get right is the "x" sound. So, she says things like, I'm so "epxited," or "epcuse me, can you pass the peas." So, yeah, I hope she gets it right by the time she's say, seven or so, but right now it is just so dang cute.

Another thing she says is a phrase when she doesn't want something to be forgotten. Instead of saying, "Mommy don't forget me" she says, "You don't forgot me, you don't forgot me." Or she'll say, "You don't forgot to turn the lights off." Anyway, the way she says it is so adorable.

Right now Juliet's favorite thing is to have us cut out things from paper and then playing with them. A favorite thing is the cut out a baby, then a teddy bear for the baby, then a blanket for the baby, then a pillow...you get the idea. She does not allow the adult who is doing the cutting to trace the drawing out before hand, so we've had some really deformed looking paper babies floating around the house, but she doesn't mind. She coos over them, cuddles them, and tucks them into bed. We have a lot of toys floating around here but right now she would be pretty happy with the paper and scissors and few crayons.

Cole's birthday

Fourth of July

So, due to the fact that I have not really updated my blog properly for awhile, I have a really random assortment of pictures. Until I get up to date, I have a feeling that the blogs will skip around a lot. Here are some pictures of the Fourth of July; we were sitting on the lawn at the Dublin chapel where we had a very nice view of the Dublin fireworks. It was nice to see several other families from the ward who had the same idea. We actually had a lot of fun playing frisbee and running around while we waited. We also had gotten some glow sticks and glow necklaces earlier that week at the dollar store and we broke those out as it got dark.

All it needs is a little love...

Juliet found these fake flowers and found a vase to put them in. She told me she needed a blanket and when I brought it to her she wrapped it around the vase and said, "All it needs is a little love." Hopefully everyone catches the reference to the Charlie Brown Christmas special where Linus wraps his special blankie around the base of a tiny Christmas tree with about three branches, all the other peanuts characters wave there hands around the tree, and suddenly the tree is twice as tall and completely covered in beautifully decorated branches. Unfortunately, the magic did not work on our vase of flowers. Perhaps we did not add the proper hand waving element.