Month: April 2013

Easter Adventures & Chatham Manor in Fredericksburg

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Easter was an especially exciting time this year because my lil’ brother and sis-in-law welcomed their new baby girl, Emma Caroline, on March 27!  I drove up to Virginia with Ashley to help in anyway I could and to steal some newborn kisses and snuggle time.  Here are some fun photos of baby Emma and Easter:

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While we were visiting VA, we found some time to head into downtown Fredericksburg and explore Chatham Manor, which is part of the National Park Service and served as a Union headquarters and hospital during the Battle of Fredericksburg in the Civil War.  Chatham Manor is a gorgeous Georgian mansion located at 120 Chatham Ln that overlooks the Rappahannock River.  It was built in 1771 by William Pitzhugh and named after William Pitt, the Earl of Chatham.  Chatham Manor was a thriving plantation and home to several owners and famous guests (Washington, Lee, Lincoln, Clara Barton, Walt Whitman) over the years.  Unfortunately, wartime caused much destruction to the house and grounds and it sat in much disrepair until Helen and Daniel Devore began restoration in the 1920s.  In 1931, John Lee Pratt purchased the home and willed it to the National Park Service in 1975.  Read more about the history of Chatham Manor here.

img_2900Today, Chatham Manor and its grounds are still beautiful and a symbol of the South.  The entrance through the gardens is surrounded by a large brick wall.  We visited at the beginning of Virginia’s spring season so the gardens were popping with daffodils.  Other than the main house, there is a fish pond, kitchen, dairy barn, and greenhouse.  The main house has exhibits that are open to visitors (our little visitor was not interested in walking through the house that day) but the other structures on the property are not open to the public.  The back of the property overlooks the river, providing gorgeous views of downtown Fredericksburg.  You can also see a replica cannon and pontoon bridge, similar to what General Burnside’s Union army used to cross the river in 1862.

Having not visited a Fredericksburg-area historical site since an elementary school field trip to Ferry Farm, I can’t wait to return and explore the other nearby battlefield areas with Baby Emma, Ashley and other future little ones.

Thumbs up: rich history in Fredericksburg, gorgeous views, gardens

Thumbs down: nothing to report

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Historic Oak View County Park Egg Hunt & More

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About a month ago we visited Historic Oak View County Park for an Easter Egg Hunt with our Stroller Strides friends.  Lucky for the group, the weather held off until after our event and we had a great morning of eating breakfast treats, hunting eggs, feeding goats, and running around like maniacs.  Renting the Bluebird Shelter was a great idea and such a great spot for nearby egg hunting and visiting with the goats.

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After the egg hunt, we quickly explored some of the areas that we hadn’t seen much of during our last visit: the large barn, Carya shelter, restoration of the Tenant House, the pecan grove, and the Farm History Center.  The barn has several interactive exhibits for little ones to learn about farm animals and is the home to the Nubian goats.  The Carya shelter has four picnic tables and a nearby charcoal grill.  The Tenant House restoration project began in September 2012 to help tell the history of tenancy and its role in North Carolina’s agricultural past.  The pecan grove was planted in the early 1900s to diversify the crops on the farm and even though it has suffered major damage over the years due to weather it is a beautiful site.  The Farm History Center is a non-historic building at the park that has several NC agricultural exhibits, restrooms, a place to rest, and the super interactive Farmer’s Corner for kids.

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Oak View County Park also has a temporary exhibit, “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War” that will be on display until May 26 that I hope to check out.  To see our previous post about Oak View County Park, visit here.  For more information about programs and visiting Oak View County Park, visit the Wake County website.

Thumbs up: rotating exhibits, Farmer’s Corner, visiting with the goats

Thumbs down: lots of geese (and geese poop) near the pond (don’t feed the geese!)

 

Shelley Lake Playground

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img_2656With our weekly trips (if not more frequent) to Shelley Lake for Stroller Strides classes, I finally took pictures of the playground area.  Shelley Park is conveniently located in central North Raleigh at 1400 W Millbrook Rd.  There are two entrances on Millbrook Road – one large parking lot near the Sertoma Arts Center/playground and the other just down the street with a smaller parking lot for jumping right on the walking trail around Shelley Lake.  To reach the playground, park in the Sertoma Arts Center parking lot and walk down the paved trail where you’ll see the playground on the right.

The playground area is rather large with separate jungle gyms for ages 2-5 and 5-12 that are covered with wood chips.  The tot playground has several slides, a few climbing structures, and nearby teeter totters in the sandy area.  The youth playground has a climbing wall, steeper slides, a suspension bridge, an enclosed slide, and several climbing structures.  There are also four tot swings and four regular swings in the large sandy areas.

Other than the playground the park has picnic tables, basketball courts, a walking/running trail around the lake, and an arts center with lots of programs for people of all ages.  Ashley took a Mini Monet art class when she was about 18 months old and had a great time – while there wasn’t a lot of painting, it was a great introductory class to colors, shapes, sensory objects and following directions!

As most parks indicate, please lock and hide all valuables or take them with you – I have a friend whose car was broken into at this park.

Thumbs up: tons of picnic tables, suspension bridge on large jungle gym, shady, variety of slides

Thumbs down: not much for non-walking kids to play on, frequent trash around basketball courts (c’mon folks, throw your trash away in the nearby trashcans)

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Buffaloe Rd Aquatic Center

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img_3259A few months ago we headed to the Buffaloe Road Aquatic Center for a birthday party of one of Ashley’s friends.  I’ve been wanting to take Ashley here all winter and couldn’t wait to take her and celebrate with friends.  Having not been in an indoor pool much this winter, I knew Ashley would act like a maniac and she did not disappoint!

The aquatic center is located near the back of the Buffaloe Road Athletic Park at 5908 Buffaloe Rd in northeast Raleigh.  There was plenty of parking on this cold January day with several oversized spots for large buses.  After arriving in the lobby area, we went to the new changing rooms, which had plenty of space for getting littles one changed.  The family bathrooms (two of them!) were also very spacious with showers and oversized benches, perfect for keeping bags and clothes from getting wet.  Lockers are located outside the changing room areas on the pool deck.

The pool contains several different areas with something for everyone: zero-depth entry tot area with slide, water buckets and sprayers; open play area with water basketball; lazy river with water vortex; three-story water slide (height req = 42 in); lap swimming/water volleyball area.  For a 22 month old, Ashley’s favorite places to play were on the tot slide, walking along the bench in the open play area, and playing with the water basketball (even though she was way too short to make the basket).  Being a maniac on outdoor playground slides, she easily transitioned her “no fear” mentality to the water tot slide and even screamed to try the big slide.  The big slide does not allow children to ride with parents and all riders must be at least 42 inches high.  Feeling the need to experience the big slide, I rode it and was surprised at how fast I went.  I realized how it justified the height requirement and was secretly glad Ashley couldn’t ride it yet.

After some water play time, all the kids gathered in the party room area to celebrate Kennedy’s 3rd birthday.  The private party area has several tables, chairs, and a sink for use.  As you can see in the pictures, all the kids had a great time scarfing down the cupcakes.

Thumbs up: unique water play areas, tot area, lazy river

Thumbs down: trying to reason with your 22 month old why she can’t go down the big slide 🙁

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Garner Groundhog Day 2013 @ White Deer Park

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img_2612A few months ago we ventured south to Garner, NC to take in our first Groundhog Day celebration!  And, what a unique celebration it was!  I don’t think I’d ever seen so many different and unusual things to do at one town park at the same time.  We did everything from visit with rescued birds, pet reptiles and amphibians, play on the natural playground, watch local mascots compete in a dance competition, and cheer on the release of rehabilitated hawks.  Due to a hungry and restless child and husband we left before Mortimer the Groundhog made his prediction about the spring weather.  Based on the actual weather from the past several weeks, we all know the winter weather stuck around far too long this year!

White Deer Park is located at 2400 Aversboro Rd in Garner.  This park features a nature center, playground, pavilions, large open field, and paved walking trails.  Visit the Town of Garner website for more information about this park.

Thumbs up: unique community event, variety of animals on display, family-friendly event, natural playground area, dancing mascots (best part)

Thumbs down: lack of food/drink vendors

Here are some pictures from our adventures that morning at White Deer Park:

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