Charlotte's for the Birds

My flock and I headed out to the Charlotte Nature Museum this weekend to take part in the “Great Backyard Bird Count.” Kids of all ages tramped around Freedom Park to count Canadian geese, mallards and hawks.  The outing provided a plausible excuse to climb a tree for a close-up look, an opportunity that our older son didn’t pass up.  We also learned that if you go near bushes and make a “shhh…shhhh….shhh” sound, it might entice a few thru...

Charlotte's for the Birds

Fairy House Fun

Despite dire predictions of rain and chilly weather, the kids and I headed up to the Latta Plantation Nature Center on Saturday for the 4th Annual Fairy House Festival for what turned out to be one of our more magical adventures yet.  Our 7-year old son is a big fan of fairy houses, as it combines many of his loves – construction, creativity, and environmentalism.   Our 5-year old daughter spent days laying out the “perfect” fairy costume.  Just before ...

At Peace with Monkey Joe's

A few weeks ago, we received an invite to a party at one of my least favorite place in the world: Monkey Joe’s.   It’s been years since we’ve been there.  At one point, it seemed like we were there on a weekly basis as it's THE “go-to” place for the preschool birthday scene.  I’m really not so un-fun that I have a problem with the concept of an indoor bouncy house of questionable cleanliness.  It’s just that when you are six...

Charmed, I'm Sure

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A Little "Borrowers" Adventure

“The Borrowers” description – a resourceful little family living under the floorboards – was enough to hook my 5 and 7-year-olds, even though they were not familiar with the book series that has stood the test of time.  This was the first time that we’ve seen a performance recommended for ages 7+.  While my younger daughter certainly enjoyed it, I could definitely see a difference in the vocabulary, length (there was an intermission) and subject matter,...

Bikini Weather

It’s bikini weather. For my 5-year old, anyway.  At the indoor pools at Leroy Springs Rec Center in Fort Mill, SC.  Tis the season when the kiddies start getting cooped up day after day.  Today, we got going early with a chilly dip into one of the center’s three indoor pools.  While our 2-year old was suited up and ready for action, he opted to stomp his bare feet in the puddles and hurl dive toys at his siblings.  Our 5-year old – yes, wearing a bik...

Starry, Starry Night

We checked out the McDowell Nature Center’s Astronomy night on Friday and were not disappointed.  The evening kicked off with a folk tale about the Pleiades (technically a star cluster, we learned) by the campfire, followed by requisite roasted marshmallows.  The nature guide, Chris, pointed out Jupiter and Venus in the sky, which was cool. As he went to set up the “big gun” telescope, the kids had time to run around inside the black-lit nature center.  The ...

Family Fun Favorites - 2011

It’s that time of year again to look back and post a completely non-scientific and highly-biased reflection on our fun highlights from the past year. In retrospect, the events that I think were the most fun for our kids were usually mother-son or mother-daughter outings, which was a bit of a revelation for me. Like all moms, I’m usually running around like a chicken with my head cut off, and tend to forget what a precious gift alone time can be. And so, along with losing that ...

Charlotte Children’s Choir “Songs of the Season”

A number of parents and grandparents asked us which child was ours when my family checked out the Charlotte Children’s Choir “Songs of the Season” at Park Road Baptist Church on Saturday. They seemed a little surprised that people with no connection to the choir would attend a performance, but I was so intrigued by this group who had been selected to head up to Washington D.C. today to perform at the White House. The particular event that we attended did have a bit of a fo...