The Air and Space Museum

The Smithsonian has two Air and Space Museums in the DC area. We took the boys to the one downtown off the National Mall. They enjoyed the Metro bus ride from the airport which dropped us off almost at the museum steps. And both boys (aged 4 and almost 2) had a blast at the museum proper.

There were tons of things to do. The airplane model that they could fly sparked toddler tantrums. Spencer, 23 months, was like Fred and Barney from the Flintstones. His little feet would start working before we put him down. Delighted, he would dart from here to there. The space shuttle replica and the rovers were his favorites. He thoroughly enjoyed the interactive room that had lots of experiences (as Edmund calls them) to try.

Edmund was thrilled to find that he could read some of the placards on the exhibits. He and bunny nearly danced a jig over the Wright brothers room. There was a life sized replica of the glider complete with navigation sticks that children of all ages could try. He had studied lift and thrust at school. So, to find them at the museum was fascinating. The astronomy section sparked a little kid commentary about the difference between asteroids and comets. We made a module to go on a virtual international space station. Robert took him to see the flight simulators. He enjoyed the ones at WonderWorks, but they had nothing on the ones at the Smithsonian!

Neither child was old enough to enjoy the National Mall. But the hustle and bustle of the capital seemed to interest them. Both children wanted to ride the train. Both children enjoyed watching the airplanes at the airport. And both boys loved the Air and Space Museum.

Sailing

The Free Spirit is sinking.
Her lines are all frayed.
Her waterline is under.
There is water in her galley.
She hasn’t been used forever.
She is grounded at the dock.
For her, winter last forever.
The free spirit is not.

The Wood House

Edmund informed me that he wanted to go back to the wood house. I agreed that the wood house was fun. He solemnly nodded from his perch on the back of the sofa. Spencer looked up hopefully..."Dog?", he asked.

Both of the boys loved their visit to Vermont.

We drove up for the memorial service for my husband's Uncle Grove. Uncle Grove had come to our wedding. I liked him. He was a character. A product of the three martini lunch and an avid smoker, he died has he lived...full of life, wit and prepared. He had fully orchestrated his exit making his wishes known in tons of details for the days ahead. It made the service a true celebration of the man. You could feel his presence in the quaint New England church that was straight out of some postcard.

Robert's cousin, Nancy, had put us up in a small house down the road courtesy of some friends from New Jersey. It was open and airy. There was plenty of room for the boys to unwind during down time. There were a couple of frozen ponds on the property, plenty of crisp snow for sledding, local hunters coming through on four wheelers, and a small backhoe in the back. We were told not to lock the doors. It was little boy paradise. The cottage reminded the boys of one of the houses featured on Nick Jr.'s Noggin (high praise from the preschool set). Edmund dubbed it 'the wood house'.

Our stay in Vermont seemed to fly by...Nancy hosted fabulous extended family meals complete with a 90 year old grand-uncle, family friends, and hopeful dogs sniffing under Spencer's highchair. Fresh flowers, candles, and snow globes adorned the table. We would sit a dozen strong in a cozy dining room in front of a fireplace and a picture window giving thanks for the food and each other. It reminded me of my grandmother's former Sunday dinners. My heart was gladdened that the bays were able to experience this multi-generational expression of love.

Cousin Dan showed Edmund how to construct a Lego building. Edmund spent the better part of his days at Nancy's trying to complete his 'police station'. Spencer occupied his time chasing Nancy and Graham's lab-hound mix, Jack. Poor 'Jack-Jack' as he was called was just the right size for Spencer to mount as a pony. At any give time, one could locate Spencer by listening to his call of "Dog, dog, dog,dog..." And both boys loved playing with the wooden marble run made by Uncle Gill.

The boys loved their time at their cousins' house. Even the excitement of the week before Christmas couldn't overshadow the small trinket that will be saved 'for 'Ancy and Gramp' or the excited babble about some detail revisited.

"We might go back in the summer. Would you like that?,"I ask.

"Nama, I want to go back to the wood house., " Edmund states. Spencer places his middle two fingers in his mouth and nods.