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.

Do you LOVE Norfolk Botanical Garden but find yourself visiting the Children's Garden, Butterfly House, and Airport Overlook over and over again? If you haven't had the chance to ramble, and making your way through the map seems a little daunting here is a quick list of five of our favorite kid-friendly places at NBG.

Baker Overlook: The coolest place in the whole of NBG, in my humble opinion. Literally and figuratively -- it's always five degrees cooler there than anywhere else. There's a two-tier deck/tree platform in a giant oak that makes you feel like Swiss Family Robinson, comfy padded porch swings, and a view of the waterway, to watch the tour boats go by. (The photos in this post were taken at Baker Overlook on a Sunday Pokemon hunt a few weeks ago.)

Hunter Savage Colonial Garden: Part ornamental garden of the 18th century, part medicinal and culinary garden. The walkways are paved in oyster stones, and each herb and plant is marked with tiny handmade markers. We love to run our hands over the herbs and name each smell. Speaking of scents...

Fragrance Garden: Located next to the main building, each plant in this garden was selected because of its scent. Each season has something to stop and smell, from Allspice in summer to Bayberry in winter. We like to do a sensory tour of the garden and find as many different things to touch, smell, and see in this spot as we can.

Tropical Display House: the Tropical Display House is a riot of color year round. It's a steamy spot (going in there always makes Anouk's hair extra curly), which is nicer in winter than in summer. BUT there is so much to see in there, palm trees, birds of paradise, strangler figs, and even that kid-friendly fave: BANANAS. A good place to practice your monkey sounds. Be careful of wet floors.

Enchanted Forest: Two easy trails wend through this secluded spot (one is paved for strollers). Among the tall trees, it's almost possible to pretend that you're somewhere else entirely. There's a picturesque footbridge, whimsical tree-stump benches, and a magnificent fountain spiraling up into the middle of Lake Whitehurts! One of the best places in the Garden to look for turtles.

Honorable mention (Anouk told me to add this, so it's straight from the horse's mouth): Fern Glade, which can be found adjacent to Baker Overlook. "It looks like there are elfs there, Mom."

We were on our way home from a weekend in Farmville when we saw a sign for the Crewe Railroad Museum off the highway. The little town of Crewe is in south-central Virginia, about two-and-a-half hours away from the Hampton Roads region, maybe a little far for a day trip but worth it for the look of joy on your tiny train lover's face when you arrive. And it's definitely worth a pit stop if you find yourself traveling out that way. 

The tour of the place starts with a look at old fashioned artifacts from the town's railroad days. Anouk had NO idea what the typewriter was, which was hilarious. Also hilarious: watching her try to dial an old school rotary phone. (The telegraph machine seemed completely obvious to her, "It's how people sent texts in the olden days.") From there, you move into the model train room, which was Gus's dream come true.

But the real amazing thing about the place are the train cars outside. You can climb up and go in them, sit in old passenger car seats, pretend to shovel coal in the engine, tour the caboose. The kids had so much fun looking at and touching everything and I have to admit that J. and I did, too.





It doesn't take long to see everything but after we had finished the official tour we found a shady place and let the kids play. I wish we'd had a picnic basket and maybe a stack of train books to complete the trip. I also kind of wish that I'd gotten a Norfolk & Western coffee mug from the tiny but well-stocked gift shop.

Did I mention that admission to the Crewe Railroad Museum is FREE? And that they do a huge holiday display every December?

Picking the perfect peach is not as easy as you might think. When we arrived at Greenbrier Farms ready to pick, we were given a handout listing all the things to look for: perfect color, firmness, smell, and how easy it will be to pick from the branch. Our big kids took it pretty seriously. On the hayride out to the orchard they studied their notes like they were cramming for a test and each peach they pulled off the tree had to be JUST. RIGHT.

Even given this level of perfectionism, it didn't take too long to fill our bags. But luckily there is more to do at Greenbrier Farms than pick peaches, which justified the long drive from Norfolk. The kids visited the petting zoo, fed cheerios to a pair of puddle ducks and a hen named Oprah, swung on giant tire swings, jumped off the stairs at the old farmhouse, and played on the playground in the middle of it all. By the time we got back to the cars, tired and sweaty, they were more than ready to nap the whole way back, which left me free to daydream about all the goodies I'd bake with our haul.

Greenbrier Farms has something to look forward to year round. After peaches come nectarines, then pumpkins in the fall, and cut-your-own Christmas trees in December. In the spring, there will be strawberries, then peaches again.

The staff at Greenbrier are super accommodating and want to do everything they can to make your visit enjoyable (the handout should be a tip-off). They encouraged us and our littles to look around at everything, let them roam through the still-producing strawberry patch, told us about all the different plants growing around their greenhouses. If you're too busy to come and pick your own peaches, they will even pick them for you and have them ready to go when you come and pick them up!

As for those peaches ... we made cobbler. YUM.

Pro-tip: Bring sunscreen (there's not much shade at the play area) and bug spray (mosquitoes are terrible this year).

Ever since Darcy blogged about Philadelphia's Magic Gardens yeaaaaars ago I knew that I wanted to go there. A few weeks ago during a girls' weekend in the city, I got the opportunity to do just that and to take Gus along.

The Magic Gardens is an outdoor art installation featuring sprawling mosaics made by artist Isaiah Zagar. The mosaics are made up of bits of broken plates and tile, mirror, and ceramic cast by Zagar himself. At first it seems like total chaos, but after a while you realize that the flow of the mosaics highlight different aspects of the artist's life, his marriage and friendships, his feelings about himself. Altogether the space spans several different levels and is twisty turny. We went through the exhibit several times and saw something new on each turn. NOTE: there is a lot of nudity to see, as Zagar seemed to enjoy depicting it very much! Something to keep in mind based on your comfort level with this subject matter.

I especially liked the Magic Gardens because the little ones could enjoy it even without knowing all this backstory. They loved creeping up and down the stairs and popping into the little cubbies and hideyholes all over the place. For older kids, the staff has arranged a scavenger hunt, and I wished so hard Anouk was there to help me find each little bitty shard.








Besides the outdoor space there was an interior gallery with more examples of Zagar's (non-mosaic) work and a small but awesome gift store.

The Magic Gardens has a ton of family friendly events including mosaic workshops, twilight events, and hands on family fun. If you're local or planning a trip, click here for more info.

 Play Me, I'm Yours! In the last few days, pianos with this written on them have started popping up all over downtown Norfolk. Each one decorated and painted in a different way. The piano in the food court of MacArthur Center is done in bold blocks of color. The one in front of the Moses Myers House is decorated to look like a small replica of the house, complete with a mirrored fanlight in the roof.

Play Me, I'm Yours is also the name of Luke Jerram's public art project. This traveling exhibit has visited 55 other cities around the world, including London, Paris, Boston, and Munich. The purpose of the project is to encourage people to "take ownership of their urban environment" and encourage people to connect with each other.

We took the kids downtown this weekend to hunt out a few of the pianos. By parking at MacArthur Center we could walk and visit the ones at Slover Library, Moses Myers House, and MacArthur Square. The kids enjoyed picking out melodies and making up their own songs, and also listening to the talented other pianists waiting to perform. Some people had brought guitars to play along and some were singing along. Others were lifting up the lid of the piano to see the inner strings and hammers. Even the babies enjoyed taking their turn at the keys.

I think this was a wonderful project. Not only did it get us out and about on a beautiful day, chatting to strangers, but it got our older kids interested in piano. Anouk has asked for lessons and ever since we have been listening to a lot of piano music and talking about it. Being able to sit and play whatever you want in a special space is empowering -- not only for kids but for anybody!

The pianos will be in their spots through June 4. Click here for a map of where to find them all.

The Atlantic Coast Kite Festival is one of the things that makes the Virginia Beach area so special! It's a two-day event in early May each year (for 13 years running), the first day at the Oceanfront being the one that appeals to most of the professionals and the biggest crowds. But the second day, at Portsmouth City Park, is the one we like as it's smaller and more kid-friendly (and easier to find parking, which is a big factor with kids, let's be honest.) We went last weekend with friends and the kids in our group are still talking about it almost two weeks later.

There are several different areas at the Portsmouth festival: one for amateurs with their homemade and store-bought kites, and one for the pros, with their giant sky-dancing creations. There's a judging ring: for the kite competition, with prizes for beginners all the way up, and a spot for kids to compete in the parachute race. There's a kiosk where you can learn to make your own kite from master kite-builder Archie Stewart. And in between there's all the fun that Portsmouth City Park has to offer.

But you don't need to wait for May to fly a kite in Hampton Roads! We love any beach or Mt. Trashmore for flying ours. Where are your favorite kite-flying spaces?