Dutch Wonderland and a Visit from the Mottas

We have done a lot of fun things this summer and I am a bit disappointed that I haven't done better with blogging.  However, my choice is generally to blog or to sleep.  Sleep has been winning.

Luke recently turned 4-months and I would like to do a dedicated blog for him, but just in case I don't get to it, here is a summary:  He is kind of a high-maintenance baby.  He really likes to be a part of things (who can blame him?).  So, he gets mad if you try and put him down to tend to other tasks.  He cries whenever he is unhappy, which is pretty often.  He also cries when he is overtired, but since he doesn't like to take naps (again, doesn't want to miss anything), this is also pretty often.  Those are the negatives, of course, there are plenty of positives: he sleeps well at night, generally going down at 8 and waking at 5:30, with one feeding in between.  He LOVES being out and about. This is why others can't believe it when I describe him as fussy. For example, when we went to Dutch Wonderland, he didn't cry once the entire day.  He was so thrilled to be outside with so much to look at.  He likes going just about anywhere and seeing new things, so he is very easy to do things with.  He is still super strong; the doctor told me I needed to hurry up and baby proof, because she suspects he'll be crawling soon.  Finally, he is absolutely adorable.  Everywhere we go, someone comments on how cute he is, particularly when he throws them that toothless grin. That concludes the Luke summary, more about our favorite baby another day (I hope!).  

So, summer fun.  What have we done?  Besides regular day stuff, like trips to the pool and library, the two biggest adventures have been our overnight mini-vacation to Dutch Wonderland and the super-fun visit from my sister's family, the Mottas.

This year marked our third annual trip to Dutch Wonderland.  It has not lost any of its appeal.  The kids are still firmly in the age group that can appreciate the "Kingdom for Kids." We drove up on a Friday morning, went to some Lancaster outlets, swam in the hotel pool and then went to the park for the evening preview. When you buy a ticket, you can get in for 3-hours the day before to "preview" the park.  We love this, because it is generally very empty and we can accomplish a lot in those 3 hours.  Like, pretty much every ride.  As is typical, the kids (except Luke, whose bed is transportable) did not sleep well in the hotel.  I am guessing that Jack and Anna got less than 5 hours sleep.  Fortunately, Kara did a bit better.  Thomas and I feared the worst, but they all did really well on Saturday.  In the morning, we took them one at a time to the hotel lobby for breakfast (more because that was how they woke up, then for any particular strategic reason).  Then, we went back to Dutch Wonderland and let everyone choose their favorite rides again. Jack's must-do was the large roller coaster.  I had gone on with him the day before, so Thomas did the honors, while the girls went on the large slide.  Anna chose the "Superman" ride as her favorite.  You lay down and they close this cage-like thing over you and you fly around in a circle.  Kara's favorite is a mini-whip (she calls it the bumper cars). This has been her favorite ride 3-years running!  We did all the favorites a couple of times, and several others and decided to call it a day.  The drive home was relatively uneventful, although Luke was not as content in the car as he had been the day before (two 3-hour drives in two days is a lot to ask!).  

The "Bumper Cars"

A new addition this year

Kara was the only one who was still small enough to enjoy this "ride"

Luke's first ride!!!  A boat ride in the back of the park.  He was thoroughly thrilled.

"Superman"  Yes, it's true--we have no idea on the real names for any of the rides.

I didn't get a shot of him on the roller coaster, so this one on the slide will have to suffice.

The next big thing to happen this summer was a visit from my sister and her family.  We hadn't seen them in over a year, so everyone was very excited.  They arrived late on a Saturday night, so we took it easy on Sunday.  Monday, we went out Geocaching.  The kids loved finding "treasure".  I am not sure I am ready to take on the hobby, but it was pretty fun.  If you aren't familiar with it (I wasn't), people hide boxes or papers someplace and then put the coordinates and clues on a website or app.  Then, you get to find it.  If it is a box, many will contain toys and the kids can exchange one of their small items for one in the box.  The parents fill out a paper log that is kept with the box, and mark it off online as well.  We only did easy boxes that had toys to exchange, but from my (limited) understanding there are some that are much more challenging to find.  

Tuesday, we went to St. Mary's City.  It was fantastic!  We have been there a few times and really enjoy it, so it was fun to share the experience with our extended family.  The kids always love going on the Dove (replica ship). And this time, we went down to the tobacco plantation of Godiah Spray.  Unlike the other living history characters, the people on that plantation stay in character.  So, we met Master Spray and two of his servants and got to ask lots of question.  We also saw a musket firing demonstration, which was thrilling for Jack. Thomas and I went out to dinner Tuesday night to celebrate our birthdays while Kim and Dave watched the kids.  It was nice to leave the kids with them and not worry about a thing.  Even though I completely trust our babysitter, family is just different. 

With their cousins on the Dove

Wednesday, we went to the pool at Solomon's Rec Center.  Jack wasn't quite able to pass their swim test, so he couldn't do the diving board, but was able to use one of their slides.  Luke enjoyed being carted around in the pool and the girls loved swimming with JD and Amanda.  I know that JD said this was his favorite day of their visit and my kids would probably agree.  After the pool, we went to Rita's.  It was a fun-filled day!

Luke loves being in a pool (no sarcasm here, he really, really loves being in the water)

Thursday, the Mottas went Geocaching in Virginia.  They wanted to check another state off their list. My kids were a bit bummed that we didn't go along, but I didn't want to make the longish drive with Luke without Thomas.  I appeased them by letting them paint on some canvases I got on sale at Michael's.  The girls took the process very seriously and spent over an hour planning and painting,  Jack was done in about 15 minutes.

Friday was our DC day.  We left the house around 9:30 and went to the metro station.  We first visited the Archives and then headed to the Capitol building for our scheduled tour.  It was very crowded, so it was a bit difficult to hear our guide, even with the headphones they gave us, but it was still amazing to see inside the dome.  We saw the spot where a young Abraham Lincoln's desk sat and got to experience the eavesdropping effect.  If you haven't been--go.  One highlight for Thomas was that the Rotunda contains 6 original Trumbull paintings.  Thomas has one of the pictures as the backdrop on his work computer and was thrilled to see the real thing in person (I had never heard of Trumbull, although the paintings were familiar and impressive).  From there, we had lunch in the cafe and then went to the Library of Congress.  Visiting the library had been on my to-do list for some time, so I was very excited to go.  The kids were good, but getting tired.  At this point, we separated from the others and made our way back to the metro.  At the end of the day, according to my Fitbit, we had walked over 6 miles.  I was really proud of the kids for their good attitudes and stamina.  We got home right around dinner time and picked up some Chinese take-out.  The Mottas arrived a couple of hours later and began the long process of packing their truck for the journey home.

Racing up the steps at the Archives to join Thomas in a picture.  The day was young and everyone was bursting with energy.

Look how fascinated they are.  I think the only time any of mine perked up was when our guide mentioned a painting that contained Pocahontas.

Thomas and the kids in front of the "Surrender at Yorktown", his work computer's background.

The final shot of the kids and their Motta cousins.  Once again, I do not have a single picture of the adults.  A picture of me with my sister would have been nice.  Next trip I suppose.

Thomas took this awesome shot of the reading room.

They left early Saturday morning and it was a sad day in our house.  We had really enjoyed their visit and weren't ready for them to go!

The Art of Appreciation

Like most parents, Thomas and I want the best for our children.  We will consider ourselves successful if they grow up to be happy, contributing members of society.  Sometimes, that feels like a pretty tall order.

About two months ago we instituted a toy ban in our house.  There are no new toys allowed until our kids show us that they can take care of the toys that they have.  This stems from the frustration of seeing how irresponsibly they treat their belongings. Recently, I saw an article that showed kids with their most valued possession(s).  The photographer had pictures from around the world.  You can imagine what the children in the poorest of areas looked like, kids who were smiling into the camera from a dirt floor holding a single item.  Then, at the other end of the extreme was a child whose room resembled an FAO Schwartz showroom.  I am sure that neither can imagine the life of the other.  Somewhere in that wide middle-range lies our family. We are in a position to fulfill some of our kids' desires.  In fact, on many occasions we have walked into a store and left with items that were not on any list.  Although relatively commonplace (before the ban) this is something that was rare in our own childhoods.  We have given in to our children's requests because we can.  It is fun to buy things for them, it is nice to see them happy. However, it often seems that the more we give, the less they appreciate what they already have.  (Just to be clear, I do not think our children have an extreme amount, my guess is that we are pretty average for their age-bracket.)

I am glad that our children do not have to experience abject poverty, but I still want them to know it exists.  I want to teach them to value what they have. When they carelessly break a toy, their first thought is that Mommy or Daddy will buy me another one and if not, then it doesn't matter, because there are others just like it (I know this is their first thought, because they guilelessly express it to me).

Recently, we told Anna and Kara to clean their room.  This is obviously a regularly requested task, but on this occasion, they fought and cried and made each other and us miserable with their inability to complete the simple task.  Two long hours passed and very little was accomplished.  Finally, we told them that we were going to set a timer for 10 minutes and when the timer went off, anything still on the floor would go into a trash bag.  Ten minutes later, they had made zero progress.  So, we went in with a trash bag and threw everything away.  Amazingly enough, they were happy. After a few initial tears, they expressed genuine relief at not having to worry about those toys anymore.  They liked having a clutter-free space to enjoy.  Of course, the majority of their toys are in the basement, so while we did fill a 13-gallon trash bag  (including all the trash that accumulates-- like some "priceless pictures" and random shoe boxes), it did not put much of a dent in their overall supply.

This clean-up was step one.  We also took them into the basement and put toys into keep, trash and sell/donate piles (this was around the time of the community yard sale).  Step two was the toy ban. We will make exceptions for birthdays and Christmas (but, we have already told them that if they have a party with friends, the invitation will specifically request no presents).  Step 3 will be buying them less when those special days do come around.  Step 4 will be trying to teach them to be charitable.  Wish us luck!