St. Augustine
November 11, 2011 at 9:10 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: Florida, museums, photos, restaurants, video
James had Veteran’s Day off, so we headed to St. Augustine for a day trip. While there we saw the Castillo de San Marcos, a 17th century Spanish fort with the distinction of being the oldest one of its kind. Liam had a great time climbing around on the battlements, and we made it there just in time to see the re-enactment guys shoot off a cannon. Sweet!
After a walk through the old historic district, we grabbed a quick bite to eat at Crazy Dogs (yum!), then we hiked to Whetstone Chocolates for some dessert and a tour. We ended up skipping the tour – we just missed one, and we’d have to wait around awhile for the next one – but we did partake in some pralines and fudge. Liam had a marshmallow dipped in chocolate and sprinkles on a stick. He enjoyed it very much. What’s not to love?
Bellies full, we trekked back to the new Pirate and Treasure Museum, which was totally awesome! Liam could steer the ship and light a cannon (complete with sound-effects. Boom!). They had a bunch of genuine artifacts recently found right in St. Augustine. And a lot of cool animatronic pirates fashioned by the guys at Disney. We had quite a shipping spree in the gift shop. Liam’s been into wearing hats at home, so we bought him a pirate hat for his collection. And a pirate ship bath toy, which is amusing him as I write this.
Here are some more photos from our trip. Enjoy!
Geckos!
October 12, 2010 at 2:40 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 2 CommentsTags: baby, museums, photos, restaurants, washington dc
Liam and I took our own little field trip to the National Geographic Museum to see their new Gecko exhibit this morning. Unsurprisingly, Liam sat enrapt for the train ride to Farragut North, and rode happily on my back to the museum. Inside we found several glass cases with sluggish geckos inside. We found most of them nocturnal and sleeping the day away. Some of them were very hard to spot, and I found Liam staring at the wrong spot on more than one occasion. But we found some other more interactive activities to partake in – Liam’s favorite was the touch screen game where you had to pick out the gecko hidden in camouflage, and if you touched it correctly, it would play a sloppy chomping and swallowing sound that just cracked him up every time.
We had even more fun at the next exhibit, Wild Music: Sounds & Songs of Life. At the entrance we found a giant wooden xylophone, which of course we had to bang on. And inside a special room we found a cornucopia of percussion instruments, both natural and electronic, that set Liam off in fits and giggles at every new strange sound his mallet produced. The 
rest of the exhibit was geared toward adults and older kids, so Liam just set off running back and forth across the fairly empty room. He’s easy to please.
For lunch we took the train to Union Station for burgers and fries at Johnny Rockets, where he learned an essential skill: dipping his fries in ketchup. He liked that. A lot.
A Wonderful (and exhausting) Visit
March 25, 2010 at 10:14 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 2 CommentsTags: alexandria, baby, museums, restaurants, washington dc
Charissa arrived on Monday, and we hit the ground running. We took a rainy tour of Old Town Alexandria, popped into the Torpedo Factory to admire local artwork and dry off, then spent the afternoon indoors admiring big ol’ airplanes (and a space shuttle!) at the Air & Space Annex at Dulles. Tuesday, up bright and early, we took the train down to the White House, and were rudely escorted off the premises right as Charissa was taking her shot from the front lawn. We’re still not sure why…The photo might not turn out, but the caption should be amusing. We hit the highlights: Washington Monument, WWII Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Natural History and Modern Art Smithsonians. On a lark we stopped in at the National Building Museum gift shop, and they had some really great baby and kids toys there. Who knew? Liam had just about had it by 3:30, so we headed home for some much-needed rest for our aching feet. After kiddo’s bedtime, Charissa and I went to The General Store for dinner, a tiny little home-cookin’ place by my house that my yoga teacher recommended. Best. Fried. Chicken. Ever. And the mac n’ cheese and corn bread hit the spot, too. We finished with a chocolate pecan pie that I’m still having dreams about. Next time I go (and, believe me, there will be a next time), I’m going to give the highly-recommended shrimp tacos a go.
On Wednesday, up brighter and earlier, we secured Liam in my new Boba and took the Metro down to the Newseum, a new museum all about journalism that I’ve been wanting to visit. They had some really cool exhibits that appealed to us J-schoolers. (Charissa went to KU, and I went to MU, but we still manage to be civil) We saw a giant hunk of one of the Twin Towers, another giant hunk of the Berlin Wall, and Ted Kazinski’s actual cabin. We even got mistaken for high school students. I’m guessing the teacher thought Liam was a backpack, lol. Liam snacked most of the time, then fell asleep and drooled all down my back. But he woke up in a cheery mood just in time for burgers at Matchbox, my #1 burger place. Charissa and I enjoyed our sliders and onion straws, and Liam chowed on garlic mashed potatoes and corn puree, then smiled and waved at every single person in the restaurant. We took a quick stroll through the Portrait Gallery (where Liam instead screamed at everyone), and popped into the Spy Museum gift shop. Then we headed down to the Mall for some dessert at the Native American Museum, Charissa tried motherhood for awhile with Liam in the Boba (ha ha), and we took a refreshing stroll through the Botanical Garden to admire the Orchid display. Again, Liam made his opinion known at 3:30, and we made it home before the evening rush. We ended the night with some sushi in downtown Silver Spring, and Charissa boarded her flight first thing Thursday morning. She’s got a long trek home, and I’m glad she took all the trouble to come visit us. We had a stupendous time!
I’m resting up as best I can this weekend, and then I’m off to KC on Monday. In the meantime, Liam is enjoying his new rocking chair, a gift from Ma-Ma and Pa-Pa Texas (Kentucky?) that arrived this week. Our shorty’s still a little small for it, but that doesn’t stop him from playing with it. Thanks, guys!
Best museum ever
August 21, 2009 at 11:42 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 1 CommentTags: family, museums, washington dc
I’ve always been a fan of the Air & Space Museum down on the mall, but it’s always crawling with tourists. I’ve been several times, and had heard there was an annex out by the airport that housed the really big aircraft. I’ve been wanting to go for years now, but thought it best to wait for my dad (remember, space nut) to come to town. Little did I know that the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center was about the awesomest museum ever! In the biggest hanger I’ve ever seen in my life, the whole family and I saw the first Boeing 707, the now decommissioned Concord, the B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, and the Space Shuttle Enterprise. Yes, the real space shuttle. Whoa. We also saw a plethora of early aircraft, German WWII fighters, bombers, and spy craft, satallites and rockets, and so many other aviation artifacts, it would take us days to see the whole thing. We spent a few hours and probably only saw half of the museum. My dad would have spent two hours in the space portion alone, but we had a cranky baby and rush hour traffic to contend with, so we had to cut it short. No worries, though — I’m sure I’ll be recommending this museum to all of my friends coming to visit, so we’ll be back again soon. (My airforce friend Tori would LOVE this place!) And I know my dad will want to go again when he comes back.
Some grandson bonding time
August 21, 2009 at 9:04 am | Posted in Uncategorized | 2 CommentsTags: baby, family, museums, restaurants, washington dc
My parents arrived Monday night, driving up from Lexington, KY, in the second leg of their long drive from Kansas City. They caught Liam right at bathtime, at his cutest. Splashing, blowing raspberries, giggling, mouthing all the toys, and slapping that washcloth on every available surface. I think he’d live in the bathtub if we let him. He was a little perturbed by all of the visitors standing around his room while I put him in jammies. “Who are all these people in my room?!” But by Tuesday morning Liam and Grandpa were fast friends. He still wasn’t sure about Grandma. While in Grandpa’s arms, he’d give him this look like, “She came with you, right?”
Alice and Cam came over Tuesday morning, so my parents got to meet them. I had to work, regretfully, but the boys had fun with all of the extra attention. Cameron, being the friendly baby he is, just came right on up to say hello. Liam sat in his usually spot amongst his toys, eyeing Grandma suspiciously. I took my parents to lunch at Eggspectations in downtown Silver Spring — as the name implies, they’re known for their egg dishes. I think I finally found a good egg salad sandwich. I dropped off my parents at the metro with a map and some careful instructions, and while I went back to work, they went down to the Holocaust Museum, a new addition since their last trip here in 1993. They had a great, although sobering, time, and successfully navigated back to our house without event.
Wednesday James took off the day to do some sightseeing while I worked some more. They made the obligatory trip to Matchbox for burgers and pizzas, then off to the Spy Museum, another must-see for all our guests. Such a fun museum! Dad got a kick out of the spy gadgets, and Mom loved the gift shop. Then they perused the Presidential wing of the Portrait Gallery, and took a tour of Ford’s Theater, which was open to the public for once. I guess they only open the theater part during the off-season in the late summer. I might have to make a trip there myself soon. After my long day at work, we were off to the Ikea for dinner and shopping extravaganza! yes, I said dinner. They have a full-service cafeteria. I highly recommend the swedish meatballs, served with mashed potatoes and lindenberries. Delish. It’s a very kid-friendly place, so we were even able to feed the baby some Ikea babyfood, lol. Then we toured the ginormous showroom, and my mom got her second wind. We were disappointed to see they were out of some of our choice items, but James and I managed to pick up a whole new set of pots and pans, which we were in desperate need of. Nothing like flaked teflon to season your hamburger helper. Mmmm.
Thursday James had to work, but I managed to take a half day, so dad and I went to the Goddard Space Center while mom watched Liam. My dad is a real space nut, so he was super excited. Goddard is where they build and monitor all of the satellites launched by NASA. The exhibit was pretty disappointing — more like a neglected kid’s discovery museum, with only some of the machines even working. You could tell they had funneled all of their funds into their snazzy new video exhibit, Science on a Sphere. Four projectors displayed a seamless presentation on a globe-shaped screen in the round. I kind of wish we’d just stayed and watched that the whole time. They even had a weather feed from a couple of weeks ago, and we got to see Hurricane Bill. We stopped by the gift shop on the way out and picked up a few things. I even saw the most adorable astronaut halloween costume for babies. May have to go back and pick it up.
Grandma got some bonding time while we were away, and by the time we got back, Liam was over his grandma qualms. She even gave him a bath that night, and they were both in a fit of giggles by the end. James and I thought about seeing a movie, but he was late coming home from work, so we watch our Bluray version of Indiana Jones downstairs on the big screen instead. I have a feeling we’ll be doing that a lot in the coming years.
Aaaa, must finish, hungry baby. More later.
Holiday weekend
July 6, 2009 at 9:34 am | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: baby, museums, photos, video, washington dc
Liam got to meet his “uncle” Travis this weekend — James’s best friend from KC who came for a visit. Travis hadn’t been to DC since he was a kid, so we took him to some of our favorites eating spots (Matchbox, of course), and the Smithsonians and Spy Museum. Liam was not the best at sight-seeing — we had a breakdown in the Air & Space cafeteria (cured by bottle), and another in the Natural History Museum (cured by diaper change and 2nd bottle). The Bjorn still works great — he even managed a couple of cat naps in it, amazingly enough. But with the summer weather we were both getting pretty sweaty. Even with the seasonable weather we had yesterday. Still, worth it not to have to navigate the Smithsonian with a stroller.
Liam’s favorite game this weekend was babbling his “Ba’s” and blowing raspberries. Feeding him baby food has become hilariously annoying — if I hesitate for even a moment, he thinks that’s the perfect opportunity to practice spitting…even with his mouth full. Needless to say, things have gotten much messier at the dinner table. Inevitable, I’m sure.
I just uploaded some new photos and video at the baby site, so be sure to check it out.
Chicago
November 13, 2007 at 9:59 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: family, museums, photos, restaurants, vacation
James and I discovered that nine hours in the car goes by so much faster when you’ve got Harry Potter on the ipod. Aside from some highway loopiness, we made it to my Aunt and Uncle’s house in Lake Villa, IL, by Thursday evening. To say Lake Villa is in Chicago is a bit of an overstatement — it’s really just a stone’s throw to Wisconsin. But free room and board and a great time with family made the hour and a half train ride into the city well worth it.
We spent a brisk Friday morning exploring South Loop, checking out some lofts and highrises we’d seen on Craigslist and getting a feel for the neighborhood. I was a bit disappointed in Printer’s Row, touted as a quaint street lined with bookstores and coffee shops, but really just a short, unimpressive block. We preferred some areas south on State Street and Michigan Avenue, though the whole place was under construction, which I found annoyingly frustrating. Not ideal to live amongst the jack-hammering, but James was quick to remind me to see “the potential.” We’ll see. We took a detour along the shore, stopping at Millennium Park to check out the “Jellybean” (at right). Check out more photos here.
Saturday we walked ourselves to death sight-seeing, hitting the Field Museum (highlight: the Tsavo Lions, the Aquarium (highlight: baby Baluga whale, preeecious!!), the River West and River North neighborhoods (with a disappointing trip to the Blommer Chocolate Factory, which makes the whole neighborhood smell like chocolate 24 hours a day/7 days a week, but is only open for business from 9am – 1pm on Saturdays, d’oh!), and a fabulous dinner at Mirabell, a german place I found online that was just as good as the food we ate in Austria. We had an hour to kill until the next train back to the suburbs, so we took the elevator up 103 stories to the top of the Sears Tower for some awesome nighttime views of the city.
Sunday we were beat, so Jenny and Kim took us to this great Whistle Stop cafe for brunch, and we spent the rest of the day visiting with my cousin Shelly, her hubby Don, and their adorable little girls Taylor and Julia. James really hit it off with this side of the family, and we’re excited at the possibility of moving up there and getting to see them more often. We made the long trek back home Monday, and now we’re back counting the days until this weekend. A busy week of volunteering at Harvesters, working on Urban Times, and getting my fat butt back to yoga class will hopefully make the week pass faster.
Dinner with Art, The Darjeeling Limited, Death by Bike Ride, and the New Space Bed
October 21, 2007 at 11:41 am | Posted in Uncategorized | 2 CommentsTags: biking, kansas city, movies, museums, nights out, restaurants
Dinner with Toast Friday at Pangea was outstanding. I had the house salad with garlic balsamic vinaigrette dressing and a small plate of gnocchi, shrimp and artichokes that, while small and little pricey, really hit the spot. I couldn’t resist dessert–I had the flourless chocolate torte, and Toast had the mango spongecake. Mine was a bit heavy, so Toast graciously shared hers, which was definitely the better of the two. Afterward we headed to the new Bloch building at the Nelson, ethereal at dusk in a modren sort of way. Will have to come back with my camera sometime. Then we headed to the Tivoli to see The Darjeeling Limited. Surreal in the usual Wes Anderson style, I preferred it his past works (though, Rushmore was pretty damn funny, this movie spoke to me more). The trio of misfit brothers (played by Owen Wilson, Adrian Brody, and Jason Schwartzman) find themselves on a soul-searching train ride through India, and hilarity ensues. But not your average-everyday-slapstick variety. A little more dark, a little more quirky. I heard on NPR that you either “get” Andereson’s comedy, or you don’t. I’m not sure I “got” Steve Zizzou, but I got this one.
I went for my own soul-searching ride on Saturday via bicycle on the Mill Creek trail, a few miles west of my house in Olathe. I’m not in the best of shape right now, having slacked on the bike riding and yoga in favor of freelance work and dinners out, but I thought I could handle a 20-mile ride, which usually takes a couple hours on the trail by my house. Instead, it took me almost 3 hours to complete 14 miles of treacherous hills with a 30 MPH headwind–gusts of 50, I’m sure. Around mile 11 I ran out of water. At mile 12, my cracked, chapped lips felt like two blistered, swollen bubbles, and I cursed myself for leaving my chapstick at home. I had to stop several times those last 5 miles to rest and attempt to conserve energy and water. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so thankful when I finally saw my car up ahead. Man, that sucked. Note to self: Mill Creek Trail is not for the faint of heart.
Our new bed arrived shortly after I stumbled my way into a shower, and I gratefully spread out on it’s memory-foam goodness. I’m a little disappointed with the motion transfer aspect–although it cuts down quite a bit, there’s still some jiggle. We took it off the frame, which helped quite a bit. But it’s still not perfect. There’s probably a way to further stabilize it, but I’m an artist, not an engineer. As for sleeping on it, James and I both woke up with achy backs this morning. But we were warned that this type of mattress takes some getting used to, and we’ve got 30 days to test it out. I have a bad habit of crossing my feet and laying my arms over my head as I sleep, and I think if I can train myself to just lie flat, it’ll feel better. Just like the seats on my Honda, I’m sure I’ll get used to it. Let’s hope.
LBJ, hamburgers, and random Austin exploring
August 20, 2007 at 5:13 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 4 CommentsTags: james, museums, vacation
Right now I’m sitting in a park…somewhere in Austin. I really only have a vague idea where I am, but I’m ok with that. There’s a jogging trail to my right, a neighborhood of upscale houses on my left, and a copse of trees all around me. I shouldn’t be surprised by all the green space in Austin–this seems like a very eco-friendly town.
I started my morning at the LBJ library and museum while Marisa stayed home to work. This museum was especially poignant to me because of this awesome class I took at MU, History of the 1960s, where a biography by Doris Goodwin Kearns on Lyndon Johnson was required reading. He’s responsible for some of the landmark civil rights and welfare acts signed into law in the ’60s, and I’ve always admired his vision of the “Great Society”. The museum took me back to everything I learned in that class, and taught me a few new things. For instance, I saw a letter from Lady Bird to Lyndon before they were married, where she avidly hopes that he doesn’t get into politics. They also had this kinda creepy animatronic Lyndon Johnson telling some of his more famous jokes. And a scale model of the oval office during his time there. I highly recommend this museum if you’re in Austin and you’re a big 60s nerd like me.
Then Marisa and I had lunch at Hut’s Hamburgers, where I think I might have to bump something off my top 10 hamburgers of all-time list to make room for the Keller burger–1000 island dressing, lettuce, tomato + giant onion ring. Mmmmmm….
I spent the rest of my afternoon perusing the art galleries and antique/vintage shops along Congress Avenue. I stopped in at The Yard Dog to see a series called “Wet Dogs,” photographs by a local artist of the cutest, albeit wet, canines. At one of the art shops I was compelled to buy a print for Marisa–can’t wait to get home to show it to her. I so wish we lived in the same city. Maybe someday.
This whole trip has got me thinking about the direction my life has taken. Austin makes me feel young, like I’m at school again. (heh heh, mostly because people keep asking me if I go to UT) I feel youthfully idealistic as I rummage through vintage t-shirts, and it’s caused me to take stock of my priorities. I’ve been really focused on settling down and getting a house in KC, but James seems really intent on moving us overseas for awhile. I’ve been a bit resistant, but now I’m feeling like I’d enjoy living somewhere different, experiencing something different. I could get back into my artwork and photography, and maybe even some writing. Marisa’s got this whole bohemian lifestyle going, and it’s made me yearn for the simplicity of just observing life, and letting it take me where it may. I suppose I could do all of these things in Kansas City, but living in Olathe just doesn’t foster there urges. I guess we’ll just see what happens in the coming year, but I’m feeling better about deviating from The Plan (ie: house, dog, kids).
Some intellectual stimulation…and good dinner
February 17, 2007 at 10:59 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a commentTags: books, cooking, museums, washington dc
Today I spent a brisk afternoon at The Mall perusing the various free exhibits. First stop, a fun little exhibit at the Library of Congress called Cartoon America, which featured a cartoonist’s collection of classic animation, comic strips, political cartoons and illustrations. A fascinating look at American history told through humor. I’ve always been a fan of the funnies–I own every Calvin & Hobbes publication, along with quite a few Fox Trots and Get Fuzzys. So I found this exhibit interesting–especially how cultural attitudes are reflected in comics and political cartoons.
Next stop, a reprieve from winter at the Botanical Garden. I was able to shed my coat and chill out on a bench next to some pretty flowers. Nice 
On my way to Air and Space, I saw that the pond in front of the Capitol was frozen over–except for a little part in the middle where the ducks were huddled en masse. I’d never seen The Mall with a blanket of snow, and it seemed to make the whole place a little more serene. It also made the normally gleaming marble facades a little duller, heh.
Air and Space was absolutely packed, so I walked right back out and opted for the Natural History museum instead. There I took in the Orchid exhibit (more pretty flowers, ahhhh. Orchids are my fav.), and stumbled into a very cool photography exhibit featuring some absolutely stunning scenes.
Tonight I cooked a very simple, fab meal I got from one of those online recipe exchanges. It was so good, i want to share:
Pasta with Ricotta, Herbs and Lemon
Hands on Time: 10 min
total time: 20 min
makes 4 servings
1 1-lbs box of penne pasta
2 tbsp unsalted butter cut into pieces
1 cup fresh ricotta
1/3 cup roughly chopped mixed fresh herbs (such as chervil, tarragon, flat leaf parsley, basil, oregano)
3/4 tsp kosher salt
zest of one lemon, grate (i substituted lemon pepper here)
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
cook pasta according to package directions. Reserving 1/3 cup of the water, drain the pasta, then return it to the pot. In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter, ricotta, and pasta water until a rich, creamy sauce forms. Pour the sauce over the hot pasta. Add the herbs, zest, salt and pepper, and toss.
Tip: Ricotta can vary dramatically in taste and texture. Depending on the brand you use, you may need to add extra pasta water and butter to create a sauce that’s sufficiently creamy.
Books for this week:
I just finished I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It reminded me a bit of Jane Austin, except it took place in the ’30s, and the story was told in journal form. Next on my reading list is Marley and Me, a book about a very bad dog that’s been recommended to me by several people.
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