Swamps get a bad rap for being hot, humid, and stinky and a terrible place to be in summer. But don't believe it! Swamp Stomp at First Landing State Park this summer has been a blast. For those who aren't familiar with the concept: the program involves a short hike through the woods, under trees laden with Spanish moss. The park ranger hauls up big netfuls of muck from the bottom of the swamp and spreads it on the boardwalks. Then you root through it to search for the water bugs, amphibians, and invertebrates that live there.

This event is super hands on, and kids are encouraged to touch and explore, to gently hold and examine the things they find and compare them to pictures and information provided by the ranger, who does her best to make sure that everybody finds something! Anouk found a tadpole (with legs, halfway through metamorphosis!) and a couple of water scorpions and man, you would have thought she'd found gold nuggets. I love to see her getting less squeamish with bugs and squiggly things and to learn about the landscape that she lives in.




Besides learning about swamp life, we also heard, as we hiked, some fun facts about the dune ecosystem of the park, the variety of trees and vegetation (did you know this is the farthest north Spanish moss can grow?), and water quality (did you also know that the tannins in leaves make the swamp water super pure to drink? -- but I'm not going to try it any time soon).

Swamp Stomp is held at the park every Tuesday and Friday throughout the summer and is only one of the fantastic programs that First Landing puts on. Check out the full roster of offerings here.

PS: BUG SPRAY. We've found picaridin to be the best against mosquitoes, ticks, and those awful biting flies.

Woof! That's Gus's latest word. And Woof to Wolf is the latest of the changing exhibits at the Virginia Living Museum. So of course we had to spend some time there when we stopped in last week.

Wolf to Woof is based on a book of the same name, which explores why dogs of all the animals became man's best friend? The exhibit follows the evolution of the wolf from wild animal into man's best friend, and gives information on other canines (foxes, coyotes), as well as dogs depictions throughout history, from ancient times to modern pop culture. There are stations in which you can explore the way a dog's senses are different from a humans by seeing an image sharpen when seen through a dogs eye, or tracing scent molecules as they make their way through a human nose versus a dog's nose.







Part of the exhibit features dog skeletons and taxidermy animals, which lead to some interesting conversations with the three-year-old in our group ("Why aren't those dogs...MOVING?") But it didn't seem to matter to our just walking toddlers who loved testing out their dog-spotting skills. They also enjoyed climbing around the "avalanche" like a search and rescue dog.

Admission to the VLM is pricey, at $20 per adult and $15 per child. Considering this, is Wolf to Woof worth a visit for its own sake? After some thought I'd say no -- unless you really have a dog-loving little one or a budding scientist on your hands. But if you're already a member, or if you already have a visit planned, I'd be sure to stop in.

Wolf to Woof runs through May 14. On April 8, the VLM will feature an Extraordinary Dogs day, with service animals and K9 units on hand to give demonstrations. Read more about that here!

So in case you hadn't heard: there are BABY TIGERS at the Virginia Zoo! The zoo's breeding program for this critically endangered species has prospered and been fruitful and now little 000 and 001 (temporary names for the tiger cubs) have taken up residence in our fair city. Every day at 1:00 PM the almost 10-week-old cubs are on display at the Animal Wellness Campus and put on a display they really do, at least the three times we've visited, rolling and tumbling and biting each other and playing with toys. Just generally being adorable. So exciting!

For those of you not in the area (or those of you who are but can't make it to the zoo on any given day), you can see our precious cubs on the Malayan Tiger Cub webcam here. As a general note, be sure to check the time that the tigers will be on display before you visit -- it changes as the cubs grow and their schedule changes.

Speaking of cubs, how big are these ones getting?


We love our zoo now more than ever!

With all of these beautiful mild days this winter we've had to really search for new places to go for family "hikes" (I use quotes because it's virtually impossible to actually hike in the Hampton Roads area, the best you can hope for is a nice flat pretty walk). But one of the prettiest nice flat walking places we've found on our travels is Hoffler Creek Wildlife Preserve, in the Western Branch area of Portsmouth.

Right in the middle of Hoffler Creek revolves is Lake Ballard. A trail that winds around the lake, with littler trails peek off from the main one like spokes. To explore each one would take the better part of an afternoon. During our last visit, we visited the kids trail, where A. had fun looking out for the yellow blazes that marked the path, a bird blind overlooking the river, and the Oyster Pier, where we saw baby oysters resting in protective baskets as part of a restoration project. There's also the homestead trail, leading to the site where the Ballard family used to live, and a Bluebird Trail, which is popular with birders.



Hoffler Creek is set up to get kids excited about nature, offering guides that point out native plants and giving kids the chance to look out for wildlife and mark them on a wildlife sighting map. An interactive play area is in the works. For bigger kids (with adult supervision), kayaks can be rented for a fee.

There are some exciting events coming up at Hoffler Creek this spring, including a volunteer work day (keep our area beautiful!) and a Spring Tasting Tour which will teach you to identify and cook with edible plants around the preserve. Read more and register here.

A few weeks ago, James's parents came to visit and we spent an afternoon at Bluebird Gap Farm, one of our favorite weekend spots. That October day the Hampton Master Gardener's display garden was in bloom with fall pretties and we spent some extra time exploring it. A lot of time, actually -- there was a lot to see.

The garden is bigger than it looks from a distance, divided into beds for flowering plants, veggies and fruits, bulbs, grasses, and evergreens. There's a scent garden and rain garden and spots to showcase things like bog plants and compost and xeriscaping (A. and I loved poking around the Bug House and I think we might end up making one for our own yard?). Oh, and there's also a little free library full of books on nature and gardening manuals. Don't forget that. (We brought home Manfish, which has started us on a journey of all things Jacques Cousteau).

Most people head to Bluebird Gap for the animals but the garden is worth a trip in itself. And if you're thinking of visiting, make sure to stop in for the Bluebird Gap fall festival this Saturday (Nov. 21). More info about that here.




If you're looking to enjoy this fair fall weather and get outside a little more before it gets cold, check out our #HRVA Garden Guide here. 

Just a quick midweek note to say...we know everybody loves to play in the zoo fountains up front by the entrance, but don't forget the smaller ones over by the tigers/otters. We spent some time there on a hot day last week with friends and had an absolute blast (and it was much less crowded).



There's a lot going on at the zoo these days, some highlights: a new Masai giraffe has arrived (Noelly) and we heard from a keeper that Imana, the resident female, is expecting her second calf? foal? in late summer. Speaking of baby animals, the baby zebra (Emilie!) is out and about in the enclosure and on our most recent visits, we've spied her running and jumping like crazy. There's also the new cassowary exhibit, over by the binturongs, worth a look. Oh, and the goats are back for the season.

We love our zoo!

We've been to the Virginia Aquarium approximately a million times, but somehow, we never quite make it over to the Marsh Pavilion. It's not in the same complex as the main building, it doesn't have seals (mine and Anne's favorite) or sharks (James's favorite). But by not visiting, we were making a big mistake. The Marsh Pavilion is pretty cool, and worthy of a visit in itself, and here are a few reasons why.

1. OTTERS. They roll, they tumble, they dive and play, they are just as cute as seals (maybe more?) Watching these little fellows glide through the water is entrancing, I could have watched all day.

2. Snakes! Lately, Anouk's big obsession is with snakes (don't ask me!) She swears she is going to be a herpetologist when she grows up, and thus needs to go look at and "study" snakes whenever possible. Turns out it is kind of hard to find a place to see lots of snakes in the HRVA region -- except at the Marsh Pavilion, where there were just enough slitery friends to keep her happy.

3. Aviary. The half-acre aviary features a raised path that allows you to walk through and get a close look at the 55 bird species that reside there. Including the great horned owl, Owlex, who is a popular aquarium resident and always fun to watch.

4. Adventure Park. The new adventure park (zip lines!) is located along Owl Creek at the Marsh Pavilion. It's only for ages 5 and up (and definitely not for preggos) so we didn't visit it on our last visit, but boy, does it look fun.

Speaking of Owl Creek, did you know that you can take the Owls Creek path from the Bay and Ocean Pavilion to the Marsh Pavilion? It's a 10 minute walk along the marsh and woods preserves that border the creek, with a 30-foot observation tower to climb for an aerial view. During the summer, activity carts are stationed along the trail for a more interactive experience.

Have you been to the Marsh Pavilion? What's your favorite thing to see there?

Anne's fourth birthday was her first "real" birthday party -- the first three were just close friends and family -- and she wanted to go all out for it. We looked at several venues around the area, and then cheered when A. chose the Virginia Zoo -- besides being one of our favorite places, it's a reasonable price, especially for members, and it allows a ton of guests (up to 45, which is necessary when you have a big family like ours). Other than that, general plusses were that a zoo party really cuts down on planning to be done, as it includes food (pizza!) and activities (animal visits!) in the package. All you have to provide is the cake and a dozen excited toddlers, hooray for minimal fuss.

The zoo staff was really great, helping us with setup and logistics and providing toys and hands on activities, but the animal presentation was really the highlight of the party. Our handler was really knowledgeable, and the variety of animals was really cool and varied, from tarantulas to tenrecs. The end of the party, cake and presents, felt a bit rushed -- it would be great if the zoo allotted two hours instead of one-and-a-half for the whole shebang -- but other than that, Anne's big 4 was a big success and it was a real treat to be able to experience the zoo with all of our favorite people at once.

What are your favorite birthday venues around #HRVA? I'd like to put together a master list or regular feature on birthdays around town, if you have any ideas or would like to feature your child's party, let me know!