Saturday the 12th was a lazy day for (some of) us here at the Watermelons Grow household. For some reason, having a lazy day actually makes a harder day to shoot than a busy one. Nonetheless, we'll take it (especially since we're having a busy week this week -- a flu-y cold and a lot of home reno stuff will do that to you).

Don't forget to stop by and visit our friends at No Monsters in My Bed and Not-So-SAHM to see how their 12ths went!




9:00 AM: Anne collects neighborhood intel while I make breakfast. She gives me a full report over pancakes (seems like the neighbors across the street have a new truck. She also saw a doggy. Things are afoot here in Ocean View.)



10:00 AM: Speaking of home reno stuff, here is a photo of James up on the roof. We've got a few repairs going on now. I can't wait to see how it all comes together (mostly because I'm tired of it raining in my house). Don't you love his snazzy hat?



11:15 AM: I head to the gym (pics or it didn't happen, right?). Have I mentioned how much we love our membership to the new Y on Granby? (We do -- thanks D. and S. for SUCH a wonderful present!) It took me approximately 20 minutes to get my locker open at the end -- made me feel like I was in high school all over again. A woman drying her hair finally took pity on me and helped pop it open.

1:00 PM: A. and I head off to the mall, ostensibly to get her picture taken with the Easter Bunny but once she sees him in all his life-size, creepy glory, she balks. It's not happening. Instead, we have lunch and hit the Loft 50% off sale, yippee.


2:45 PM: It's such a nice day that we make a detour to Lafayette Park on the way home. Anne has lost interest in the toddler-sized play structures and wants to play on the big-kid ones, which means I spend a lot of time with my heart hammering in my throat as she dangles on the edge of precipices. But she had fun, and that's what counts.



3:30 PM: The dogwoods are in bloom all over the city. I think I love dogwood season even more than azalea season.



5:00 PM: We head out to a fundraiser BBQ at the Knights of Pythian -- my aunt bought tickets from her neighbor and took the whole family as a treat. Is there anything better than home-cooked pork barbecue and giant slabs of red velvet cake in the name of diabetes research? Or anything more random than a suit of armor in a banquet hall?



8:00 PM: Anne tells Dada all about all of the day's adventures before bed. The Makka cat is not impressed.

We dyed eggs this week, of course. And by "we" I mean that the adults dyed eggs -- the kids didn't seem interested beyond a first few dunks but get together a couple of Pinteresting mamas and you have the perfect way to while away an afternoon while the small ones dump toys out downstairs. My favorites were the pretty dip-dyed ones, I love the way they turned out.


Speaking of Easter eggs, I love this article, posted on Practically Perfect Travel's FB page, about the fabulous works of art in Walt Disney World's Grand Floridian Resort Easter Egg display. Tell the truth, how loud would your kid wail for that Elsa egg?

Here are some kids who have never seen a Walkman before and have no idea ON EARTH what it is used for. I feel old.

Selfies for science! NASA is asking everybody on Earth to take a photo of themselves on April 22 and help them create an image of what our world looks like through this different lens.

I know New York is considered a lot safer and more convenient now, but these pictures of NYC storefronts taken 10 years apart make me a little sad (especially the one of CBGB) (does it seem like Subway might be taking over the world?)

Over at AltDaily, local readers are talking about ways to make Virginia Beach cooler. Am I helplessly uncool if I think it's already pretty cool as it is?

A chef writes about cooking Passover seder for the First Family (I want that recipe for coconut quinoa!)


Over at Fun and Free Hampton Roads, I'm posting today about guided walking tours at Forest Lawn and also some free Easter egg hunts around town, sort of a part II to last Friday's post. Check it out! And have a happy weekend.

The Cavalier Hotel in Virginia Beach is in the process of being renovated -- completely renovated, which means every single thing in the hotel is being replaced. Which also means that every single thing in the hotel had to go -- so the new ownership threw open the doors in an unprecidented move and hosted probably the poshest, most exciting rummage sale that Virginia Beach has ever known. All of the furniture, fixtures, artwork, EVERYTHING in the hotel, all up for grabs.

For those of you who don't know, the Cavalier is kind of like Virginia Beach's version of the Plaza, or the Greenbrier. It hails from the '20s, from the time when Virginia Beach was just beginning to be known as the fabulous resort town it would become. Over the past 80 years, the 350-acre hotel and grounds have hosted a wide range of celebrity guests (Bette Davis! Judy Garland!) and presidents, and even the US Navy when it was taken over as a training ground during WWII. The hotel has gotten a little worn around the edges in recent years, but still serves as a sign of the kind of Jazz Age glamor that you usually only get to read about in books.

The first day of the sale, the line stretched out of the hotel doors, past the name CAVALIER etched into the green lawn. We waited a week to miss the crowds -- which also meant we missed most of the truly great deals. The place was eerily empty when Molly and I and our three kids showed up, the ballroom echoing and the gorgeous, iconic wallpaper torn from the wall in big patches. Even the staff running the sale seemed over it already. But there was still enough to keep us looking. We passed stacks of headboards and mattresses and groups of TVs, even a towering Christmas tree or two.



We ended up leaving with not much more than we went in with -- M. scored a mirror for something like $5 and we both left with pieces of the heavy red wallpaper embossed with the Cavalier logo. But I'm still glad we went, even if we weren't among the ones who walked away with great finds (we did have a vicarious thrill watching others leave with rolls of the beautiful aqua, magnolia-printed wallpaper and antique furniture). Molly and I had both been to events at the Cavalier in the past, and it was interesting to see another side of the place, to have the chance to roam the halls and really have a look at things (the famous deco swimming pool -- empty -- was a sight to see).

The kids enjoyed their time there, too, running around peering at everything and making friends with the kids of the other shoppers. It's not every day you get to roam around a real-life "castle," is it? We're excited to see what's next for this grand old Oceanfront landmark and we appreciated the chance to say goodbye to a place that holds so much local history. 

The Cavalier sale will run through the end of April, if you want a behind-the-scenes glimpse of this local landmark (or maybe an industrial icemaker of your very own?)

t Darcy of No Monsters in My Bed posted last summer about sandcasting with plaster of Paris and I knew right away we had to try it, where had this idea been all my life? We finally got around to trying it last week, probably because during the summertime, we're too bogged down with towels and drinks and snacks and floaties to feel like lugging a box of plaster of Paris to the beach. This time of year, though, it's still too cold for swimming and there's only so much you can do with sand toys, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity. We ended up having a lot of fun and taking home some pretty souvenirs. And finding a new way to spend time in one of our favorite places.

Here's how to do it: mix up a batch of plaster according to the directions on the package -- we used a beach bucket and driftwood stick. Dig a shallow hole in the wet sand, and fill it with shells, sea glass, and all of the treasures you find. Pour in the plaster (make sure it's a few inches deep), wait, and then dig it out and ooh and ahh over your new treasure. (The digging it out is strangely satisfying, I loved how it just seemed to emerge from the sand like magic).



Some tips: the plaster dries incredibly quickly -- it was starting to set by the time we filled our final hole, about five minutes after we mixed it. So keep that in mind. Also, the best designs were the organically shaped ones -- the ones we tried to shape into letters or stars or hearts broke apart easily.

It was a lot simpler and low maintenance than I expected, and the results were pretty cool -- our new plaster objet sits on our coffee table at home and everybody who comes in comments on it. There was something so intriguing about bringing home a piece of the beach, almost like making a sandcastle you can keep. How cool would it be to do one of these at every beach you visit, a sort of memento of the trip?

Forest Lawn is the newest of Norfolk's public cemeteries, established in 1906, and is known for its beautiful art deco architecture (the community mausoleum features stained glass by Frank Lloyd Wright). Points of interest in the cemetery include the 111th Field Artillery Batallion and the 29th Infantry Division Memorial, erected in honor of fallen WWII soldiers in Europe, and the Seaman's Friend Lot, which serves as a final resting place for foreign soldiers who passed away at sea or upon arrival in Norfolk. Forest Lawn is also a natural arboreturm featuring dogwoods, crape myrtles, magnolias and holly trees and is absolutely meticulously cared for by staff.

As for the egg hunt -- it was the first year this event was held and it ended up being a little crazier than the organizers expected, with hundreds more people showing up than registered online. The result was that there were vastly more kids hunting for eggs than there were eggs to find. Anouk and her friends ended up scoring two or three each but that may have been largely due to parental involvement (I will say nothing further on this point for fear of incrimination -- but let's just say that I was pleasantly surprised to find that I can still outrun a gaggle of six-year-olds). Nonetheless, they had a blast just being there (except when the Easter Bunny popped up -- Anouk was having none of that and I'm not sure I blame her).

Before we left we walked around the graves (wouldn't these ones with Chinese calligraphy make AWESOME grave rubbings?) and found some amazing names (I think Iola was my favorite, never come across that one before) and even visited some of our family that was buried there.

All in all, it was definitely the most interesting egg hunt we've been to yet, and despite the kinks, we hope it will become an annual thing. To read more about how to donate to the Norfolk Society for Cemetery Conservation, which the hunt today benefitted, click here.

Have you hit up any egg hunts yet this season? How'd you make out?

#HRVA schools are on spring break next week, and it seems my friends with school-aged children are of mixed feelings about it -- it looks to depend on whether they've got any out of town time planned. Those who do are very much looking forward to spending time together as a family after that long, hard winter we had. Those who don't are wondering how on earth they're going to entertain kids for another five days after those long, hard snow days we had.

Enter the spring break staycation -- the perfect way to see some new sights and visit new destinations in your own backyard. There are some great day-trip destinations within an hour or two of Hampton Roads that are sure to break up the monotony and to keep everybody happy during the week off. Here are some of our favorite close-by (but not too close) destinations. (Pro-Tip: check out one of my favorite local websites, The Traveling Suitcase, for more trips and tips for traveling with kids).


1. Richmond: There is so much to do in Richmond that you could indeed make a whole longer vacation out of visiting. The museums, the restaurants, the parks. If we had to plan our ideal trip, we'd do a picnic lunch at Byrd Park on the banks of Boat Lake followed by a day at the Metro Richmond Zoo or Children's Museum of Richmond and maybe an early dinnertime at Can Can Brasserie or Strawberry Cafe if everybody was well-behaved. Older kids might enjoy exploring the James River Park System or the Virginia State Capitol, which was designed by Thomas Jefferson and features free tours every hour or so.

2. Manteo, NC: Manteo is overlooked by Outer-Banks goers because it doesn't feature so much beach, but it's not beach season quite yet and this little town on Roanoke island actually has a lot to offer and is less than two hours' drive from Norfolk. Start with a tour of the Elizabethan Gardens and Fort Raleigh or the North Carolina Aquarium and then walk the main street to window shop and find lunch.

3. Surry: Surry is full of stuff to do, which surprised me when I first started researching it. You can visit Bacon's Castle, ride the (free) Jamestown-Scotland ferry, step back in history at Smith's Fort Plantation, or marvel at the nature in the Big Woods State Forest and Chippokes State Park (which also features a pretty interested historic house and farm museum). The best part? Not a whole lot of other people seem to have discovered it yet, so you won't have to deal with many crowds.

4. Williamsburg/Jamestown/Yorktown: Everybody knows the Historic Triangle as a nearby day trip destination and frankly, it can feel a little tired after doing the same things over and over. So why not take this chance to look up some of the lesser-known attractions? Stop by the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum or take in a show at the Kimball Theatre. Colonial Williamsburg's newest attraction, a working blacksmith shop, just opened in November and looks pretty cool and the Williamsburg Farmer's Market just reopened  for the season and is held every Tuesday and Saturday. And then there's the Colonial National Historic Park, which features 23 miles of scenic byways and some gorgeous local flora this time of year. (You could still get lunch at the Cheese Shop. That never gets old).

5. Cape Charles: We're big fans of pretty much everything Cape Charles has to offer, from beach to woods, and in every season! Check out the beach at Kiptopeke State Park, explore the little historic town, or maybe do some antiquing nearby if your kids will go for it? There are treasures to be found.

This week I also wrote about some FREE Easter egg hunts happening around town on Saturday and Sunday over at Fun and Free Hampton Roads. You know you want to check it out!


Happy weekend!

When I was a little girl, my mom used to let me pick out a brand new Easter outfit every year, and they almost always came with hats. I still remember how fancy it felt to go to Easter dinner with my new frilly bonnet on, the elastic tucked firmly under my chin.

Kids' clothiers don't really do Easter hats as much anymore as they did when I was small, so I thought it would be fun to make DIY Easter bonnets with Anne, inspired by our tissue paper bowl craft from last year (which I'm also planning on using to make A.'s Easter basket this year). The technique is similar, with only a few tweaks, and the results are pretty fun and surprisingly wearable.

You'll need: balloons, a large bowl, tissue paper in at least two colors, Elmer's glue, a paintbrush, and trimmings (if you want them).

Here's how to do it: Blow up the balloon until it's roughly the same circumference as your child's head. Place the balloon in the bowl, knotted side down, so that it stands up on its own.

Place a sheet of tissue paper over the balloon (this will be the innermost layer of your hat). You can cover the balloon in Saran-Wrap to make removal easier later (we didn't and it still came off pretty easily). With the paintbrush, cover the top half of the tissue that touches the balloon with watered down glue until you have the basic hat shape (you'll want to leave a good-sized "brim" untouched).







Place another layer of tissue on top of the first layer, and cover with glue. Repeat this step until you have your desired thickness (we used four sheets of tissue per bonnet, varying colors by layer).

Wait a few hours. When the top of the bonnet is dry and hard to the touch, pop the balloon and peel it gently away from the tissue. Fold back/fluff the brim of the bonnet to show all of the colors underneath. Trim with all kinds of festive decorations! We used tissue paper flowers, pom-poms, and crepe paper for ribbon.



Voila! Now you're ready to be the grandest lady in the Easter parade.

Anouk is pretty much officially potty-trained now (hooray!) which means that I finally got to pack up the very last of our cloth diaper stash over the past weekend. As I was folding them away, I thought way back to the beginning of our cloth diaper experience and the steep learning curve that it entailed. Even though I read everything on the subject and talked to a ton of people who had done it before, there still was a moment at the very start when I stood there with a dirty bundle of cloth diaper in my hand and thought: now what? 

In the beginning, I used to scour the internet for how-to posts. So I thought here, at the end, I'd share some of the things we learned in case any of you out there are thinking of cloth diapering but aren't sure how to start/if you can make it work.

Note: there are affiliate links in this post which may result in a small commission for the blog. 

Diapers: We used Bum Genius 4.0 and FuzziBuns Elite, both of which are one-size-fits-all cloth diaps. The design is a waterproof shell with microfiber inserts that slip inside an inside pocket. The great thing about these diapers was that they are adjustable, and could grow along with Anne from baby to toddler. We had a mix of the diapers with snaps and a couple with Velcro closures at the top and quickly discarded the latter because the Velcro really doesn't hold up over repeated washings. We got a total of 24 diapers in all (we registered for them for our shower from Target plus received some hand-me-downs from a friend), which meant I needed to wash every other day in the beginning, and every second or third day once A. hit 6 months or so.

Storing: We used a wet bag instead of a pail to put our dirties in until it was time to wash. It hung on the back of our bathroom door and zipped tight (we never had a problem with odors leaking out). We also had a smaller wet bag to keep in the diaper bag and the car for on-the-go changes.

Washing/drying: Our washing routine looked something like this. First, we did a soak of the dirty diapers in cold water and 1/4 cup of BioKleen Bac-Out, an enzymatic cleaner that eats away at organic waste and odors. Then we rinsed in cold water, and did a very hot wash cycle with Rockin' Green detergent, which is specially formulated for cloth diapers. We found it was important to line dry -- if you toss the diapers in the dryer, they will eventually start to repel water, which leads to leaks and blowouts (we loved these Ikea Pressa drying racks, which looked like little adorable octupuses and took up virtually no space in the tiny apartment we lived in when A. was born).

Speaking of repelling, this can happen anyway, over time, because of detergent build up. Whenever I noticed our diaps weren't as absorbent as they should be, I "stripped" them by soaking them for an hour or so with a capful of bleach and then rinsing and washing as normal (the Blue Dawn stripping trick never did anything for me, though some swear by it).

Other things to have on hand: A diaper sprayer to get gunk off before tossing your diapers in the bag. We used the BumGenius one, which hooked easily up to our toilet tank (and provided hours of fun for me and J. ambushing each other with it). Also, something to treat diaper rash that WON'T harm your diapers (traditional creams like Desitin or Lansinoh are virtually impossible to get out). We liked California Baby's cream and also regular coconut oil. Invest in a few extra liners for emergencies.

One last piece of advice: Don't be too strict with yourself! We used disposables when we traveled, (see photo above, no shame) or when A. was sick, or we were, and I think it made a big difference on keeping us committed to using cloth all the other times.

Did you cloth diaper your kids? Are you considering it? I was pleasantly surprised to read that #HRVA offers some pretty great diaper services (see Diaper Junction and Eco-Existence delivery service). Williamsburg Mothering also has a great cloth diapering resource page if you are interested in learning more.

Do you have any advice for new cloth diapering parents?

You know how sometimes they say truth is stranger than fiction? That's definitely true of The Fabulous Flying Machines of Alberto Santos-Dumont, which we received this past week. Most people think of the Wright brothers as having invented the airplane, but there's a lot of evidence to show that Santos-Dumont was actually the first (the Wright brothers used a track to launch their airplane; Dumont's had wheels and was capable of taking off on its own power, which is an important distinction with some experts).

Santos-Dumont is also associated with the dirigible -- he didn't invent these lighter-than-air vessels, but he did love them so much that he spent much of his time in one, floating above the streets of 19th century Paris, only descending for lunch at an outdoor cafe or to buy a new hat. (He's also associated with the wristwatch -- apparently, S-D popularized them, they were easier to check than a pocketwatch while steering his flying machines).

I really appreciate it that author Victoria Griffith has written a book that is enjoyable for both parents and kids, and I appreciate it too that she's shown us another layer of a familiar story. I also love Eva Montanari's oil pastel drawings of Belle Epoque Paris, especially the ones done from a bird's eye view, with here and there in the crowd a face looking up in wonder at the sight overhead. Put the story and illustrations together, and you have a dreamy, whimsical story that A. and I keep coming back to.

What are you and your kids reading lately?

Disclaimer: I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher. The opinions in this post are my own. 

I I wrote before about how we were all excited for Anouk's first family AND friends birthday party the Saturday before last. Probably a little over-the-top excited jugding by the sheer amount of food and decorations that went into it. But then alas! Friday night A. came down with 104-degree fever and we had to cancel. We still had a small get-together with her grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and we had her playgroup over for cupcakes later in the week. But I still felt bad that everything didn't go as planned.

So on Anne's actually birthday last Tuesday, we planned a special day. Anouk's love of mermaids has been somewhat replaced by all things Frozen lately but she's still definitely into them, so we met up with Cousin KK and Auntie C. and hit up  Norfolk's premier paint-your-own mermaid establishment, the Mermaid Factory on 21st Street in Ghent.

You can choose to paint either a large plaster mermaid on a stand or a smaller wooden mermaid ornament or magnet -- they look just like the larger mermaid sculptures that are scattered around Norfolk. Paint and glitter are included in the price ($25 for the large mermaid; $10/$12 for the smaller ones), and for a little extra you can add beads, sequins, shells, and other goodies (you can also buy pre-painted mermaids -- the Mermaid Factory's Disney princess line, pictured above, was too adorable). Anouk and I made magnets while Aunt C. and KK started on plaster mermaid masterpieces. We took it very seriously, especially Anouk, who made it her mission to try out every single paint color that was offered.

We loved visiting this sweet and friendly new local spot -- it was a really fun way to spend the afternoon with some of my favorite people doing something to celebrate our little Norfolk birthday girl.