Last Sunday, we made a date to meet up with old friends and check out the Flying Circus Air Show in Bealetown, VA.  Since our group is scattered across Northern Va, Fredericksburg and Culpeper, the aerodrome, which is 14 miles south of Warrenton, was the perfect location for a rendez-vous.  It took us a little over an hour to get there from Annandale, VA.

Prices are quite reasonable – $10/adult, $3/kid (3-12), and under 3 is free.  If you visit their website, you can also get a coupon for $2 off the adult admission, so that saved us even more.  They only accept cash at the gate, so be prepared for that.

We were the first to arrive, nearly two hours before the 2:30 show started, so we had plenty of time to snag our seats and check the place out.   There’s no such thing as a bad seat — it’s all bench seating and wasn’t crowded the day we went.  However, the only shade provided is from the select umbrellas that set up along the back row, so we made sure to snag one.  We also set up a sunshade over our back row seats, which came in handy as it was a hot and sunny day.

The kids were immediately awed by the presence of the planes, especially the two-year old.   I was pleased that it  never got too loud, as he is noise sensitive.

Some planes were in the field in front of the bench seating, and some were in the air, as you can purchase rides before and after the show.  We did not spend the extra money on this (ranging from $40 to $130 for an 8-15 minute ride), which left my kids bummed, but they got over it.

I was looking forward to enjoying the picnic lunch I had carefully packed, but when we got there, I asked Mike where he put the cooler.  He looked at me and said, “Where did *you* put the cooler?”  Doh, apparently I put it on the floor of the kitchen and that is where it stayed.

Fortunately, they have a small snack bar with reasonably priced food.  The kids got hot dogs for $2.50 each and Mike & I had a cheeseburger and pork BBQ sandwich for $3.50 each.

While waiting for the show to begin, we enjoyed the old timey music piped through the speakers.  Frisbees and wiffle balls from home, plus a birthday celebration, and just catching up with old friends made the time pass quickly.

The Flying Circus performs on Sundays from May through October.  Check out their schedule page, they frequently have special events, like a Hot Air Balloon Festival the weekend of 8/21-8/22.  It’s a great way to get out and enjoy your day!

The Flying Circus
5114 Ritchie Rd.
Bealeton, VA 22728
(540) 439-8661
http://www.flyingcircusairshow.com

Hayes Park
1516 North Lincoln Street
Arlington, VA 22201
Arlington website ~ Google Map

What I Love: wonderful sprayground, soft surface, some shade, paved path, fenced, variety of play options, bathrooms

Worth Noting: parking can be difficult on a hot day,  New sprayground hours were implemented as of July 1st, in accordance with budget cuts: Mon/Tue/Thurs: 12-5; Fri/Sat/Sun: 12-8; closed Wednesdays

UPDATE: Arlington has responded to the many complaints about the hours and has revised the schedule so that there will be at least one spray park open at 10am and one until 8pm on each weekday — these new hours go into effect July 17th.  Check their website for the specific hours for each site (scroll to the bottom to see a chart with all the hours).  They are also exploring other options for keeping the water on at the parks on for longer periods, for example, possibly using a 15 on/15 off cycle.

The Review:

It was the last day of school, and so I took my boys (5, and 2) to hit the sprayground.  Parking was terrible, but we lucked out and found street parking across from the park, in front of the Arlington Science Focus school.  This day, I think parking was impacted by end of school activities, but I know when the park is popular on hot summer days, the street parking gets filled up too.  You can always find a spot, you just may have to be prepared to walk a few blocks.

The sprayground at Hayes is wonderful.  The area is mostly shady and has a solar system theme.  The center of the sprayground has a sun design in the concrete and “planets” extend from the sun and can be seen around the park.

Usually, my kids say they love the sprayground, but after a few minutes of splashing, they are done.  To my surprise, my 5 year old had a blast this time – repeatedly running through the spray and having a grand time getting wet.  My 2 year old also loved it.  It’s a good idea to bring a few buckets or balls to play with.  I always forget and then my kids try to borrow other kids toys, which doesn’t always go over well with the other 2 year olds.   Nonetheless, the kids had a great time playing.

After a snack, we hit the rest of the park.

The main play structure is fun, but gets full sun.

Adjacent to the play structure are some other simple fun things.  A caterpillar-like tunnel, and 3 person teeter-totter. A slow spinning ship-like thingee, and a spinning bucket.  (Click to zoom in on picture detail).

Adam enjoyed riding his glider through the park – I had to rein him in to keep him from running down the other tots.

Hayes Park also has a nice sand area.  It gets a little bit of shade on one side.

There are two sets of swings, one with 4 bucket swings and one with 4 regular swings.  These are set back under the trees so they are nice and shady.

In addition to all the play features, there is a nice paved path that runs around the perimeter of the park.  It’s mostly in the shade and great for young riders.  There are also water fountains and bathrooms on site.

All in all, Hayes park is a great destination park — I know many of my non-Arlington friends make the trip to come visit it.  I just hope the County can find a way to keep the water on during this hot summer.

It’s not too late to get your cow on!

Today is “Cow Appreciation Day” and if  you show up to your local Chick-Fil-A dressed up as a cow, you get a free meal!

We went for lunch and met up with Aunt M & Cousin O.  We used the free starter kit, provided by CFA to fashion our outfits and enjoyed 4 complete children’s meals and 2 adult meals all for zero dollars!  A little public silliness is a small price to pay for a free meal, especially at our fav Chick-Fil-A.

Thanks Chick-Fil-A!

NATIONAL BUILDING MUSEUM
401 F Street NW Washington, DC 20001
202.272.2448 | Red Line Metro, Judiciary Square
Free admission | Hours: Mon – Sat 10 am – 5 pm, Sun 11 am – 5 pm
http://www.nbm.org

What I Loved: interesting architecture, fun place to explore, great (enclosed) kids play room,

Worth Noting: free, but $5 donation requested (via box in lobby), no on site parking – use either Metro or a parking garage (2-3 blocks walk)

Last week, the kids and I went into DC, where we met Cousin O at the National Building Museum.  It’s been on my “to do” list for a while because I heard it has a fabulous play room for kids aged 2-6.  Since my kids ages currently ages 2-6, this was the ideal time to go.  Cousin O and Aunt M rode the Metro – the Judiciary Square stop lets out right in front of the museum.  I opted to drive and found a reasonably priced parking garage only a few blocks away using this site: http://washingtondc.bestparking.com (enter your address, date and time and it shows prices for nearby garages).

We arrived shortly after it opened at 10am on a lovely, low-humidity summer day.   The building, itself is quite dramatic.  Their website describes it well:

The interior of the building is dominated not by offices and storage facilities, but by a grand central space, the Great Hall. Measuring 116 x 316 feet, the Great Hall features a central fountain and is divided into three courts by two screens of four colossal Corinthian columns—among the tallest classical columns in the world.

After gawking for a  bit, we made our way towards the play area, the Building Zone.  But first, we stopped at an activity center called “Amazing Arches”  A bunch of numbered blocks were in a bin and it was our job to stack them and create a 7′ arch, complete with keystone.

Unfortunately, we were unable to complete the arch (seven feet is really high!) but we had fun trying.  The two and three year old especially liked when they had permission to knock it down.  Then we went into the Building Zone.  This is a large playroom with all kinds of opportunity to play, build and create.  The playroom is limited to 40 people (adults and children), so there could be a wait at times, but it was not crowded when we went.

The three foot high parking garage was a hit with all our kids.

There was also a fun dress-up corner.

Wendy thought it was fun to pose in front of the big (little) playhouse in the middle of the room.

There were many other fun features in this area – things like Tinker Toys, soft blocks, giant Lego-esque bricks, even a book corner.  After we played for a while, we decided to check out a “real” exhibit before taking a break for lunch.   Most of the exhibits are too grown-up for kids, but we did have fun checking out the “House of Cars” exhibit.  It was all about the advent of the parking garage in modern culture.  Most of it was lost on the kids, of course, but they did enjoy the model replica of a parking garage – it had circular ramps that you could send Matchbox cars down.  Hurry if you want to check out this particular exhibit – it runs through July 11th.

After that, we enjoyed our picnic lunch in the grand hall, then went over to check out a Family Toolkit.  These are toolboxes that you check out for $5 (free for members of the NBM).  They have different age ranges — we took the one geared for ages 3-7.  It was about patterns and shapes and had fun activities for the kids do.

After this, we did a little more playing and running around before heading out.

The space is open and visually interesting and in the eyes of preschoolers — perfect for running amuck.  The carpeted space seemed to muffle the noise and no one told us to knock it off, though Mel and I did feel like we were violating some sort of museum code of conduct.  All in all, it was a really fun visit and definitely a place to keep in mind on a hot summer day or even a rainy day.

Usually, we do a big backyard party for Sam’s birthday each June.  I tend to go all out (see the Race Car, Frog, and Construction parties for example) and this year, I just wasn’t feeling it.  I didn’t have the energy to do the big birthday ‘do so I decided to make a deal with Sam.  I said, “What if, instead of a big party, we go to Dutch Wonderland instead?”  At first, he wasn’t sure, but once he saw some pictures, he was on board.

So, finally I made good on my promise and we went this past Sunday-Monday.  We left Sunday after church and got up to the Lancaster area around 3pm.

We stayed at the Amish Country Motel, which is part of the Bird-In-Hand properties.

The motel is very budget –  no frills.  It was clean, but there is nothing special about it — except that we were able to stay in a 2 room suite, which worked out perfect for our family.

After settling in, we went over to the BIH Family Inn and made use of their pool.  That place is great!  It had a nice outside pool with a beach entry, along with 2 indoor pools and a hot tub.

After swimming for a bit  we had dinner at the Plain & Fancy Farm Restaurant — it is an overpriced tourist stop, but it was decent enough and one of the  few options available on a Sunday evening in Amish Country.

I have to say, it was really interesting being in this area.  While there is plenty of development in and around Lancaster, the Bird-in-Hand area is quaint.  Everything looks like your typical bucolic farming area – regular houses, surrounded by farmland.   But then you pass a buggy.

And then another and another.  Later, when driving home at night, I noticed many of the homes were lit by candles.   It’s in sharp contrast to the area 5 minutes away.  Once we got on Rte 30, it was bustling with development and enterprise.  It’s really interesting to consider how the two cultures intersect and overlap.  It’s also amazing to consider how simply the Amish live, even in 2010.  No iPhones, WiFi, or any of the electronic nonsense that we consider “essential”.  Like Mike observed, the Amish have been living “green” long before eco-friendly was hip or cool.

After dinner, the plan was to head over the Dutch Wonderland and do the preview deal.  In case you didn’t know – if you arrive at the park within 3 hours of closing, you can pay for a full price ticket for the *next* day and get to enter the park for the remainder of the current day.

By dinnertime, it was clear that Adam wasn’t going to be up for another outing that evening, so we dropped him and Mike at the motel and I took Wendy & Sam over to the park.  We didn’t get there til 7pm (park closes at 8:30) but had a great time checking out as many rides as we could.  There were hardly any lines – it was wonderful to not have to wait to ride.

See the pictures after the jump.

Sunday night fun:

Our version of Sir Patrick & Princess Brooke

We stayed til the park closed at 8:30pm, excited to come back and ride more in the morning.

Monday dawned hot and humid. I worried about the forecast of possible thundershowers, but it turned out fine.  Even in the heat, we had a great time.  Before entering the park, we got to meet the “real” Sir Patrick and Princess Brooke.

At the entrance — they check your bag (mostly for contraband food, I think) and then make you walk through their giftshop before entering the park.  Smart marketing.  Fortunately, our kids didn’t beg for any trinkets (I think they knew better than to ask).

We headed to the “space” area first — we missed this part the night before.  The kids liked the Space Shuttle (like the Berserker at Kings Dominion).  Wendy’s favorite ride was in this area.  It was called VR Voyager.  It was a space flight simulator and the theme was “Star Warriors”.  Similar to Star Wars, without the licensing.  Her love of Star Wars made this her top pick.

Adam had a hard time finding stuff he liked, initially.  Many of the rides allow young riders his size to participate, but they weren’t to his liking.  I made the mistake of taking him on the Astroliner, which was very tame, but enclosed you in a dark space and simulated a rocket ship ride.  He was unhappy, until he and Daddy discovered these hand crank Choo Choos.  Daddy was able to walk around and give him a push and he was in heaven.

We also saw the “big” train pass through, which made us decide it was time for a ride on it.

After that, we rode the Sky Rider over the park (like a chair lift – I wish I had gotten a pic!) then checked out some rides like Bumper Cars, Panda Party and Duke’s Dozers (below).

Then a break for lunch.  The Wiggle Racers were fun for both boys.

While they were riding those, Wendy was flying solo on the park’s other coaster, the Joust.

Then we caught one of the diving shows at the Aqua Stadium.  The storyline was cute and silly and the diving tricks were quite impressive.

The highlight was watching one diver dive from the tippiest top of a  high platform – I think someone said it was 80 feet up.

Afterwards, Wen wanted her pictures with the divers.  Aren’t they cute?

Then we hit the Turnpike for some old fashioned car driving.

Of course we had to stop and take a picture on this symbol of Lancaster County.

Then we decided we were ready for some cooling off in Duke’s Lagoon.  The water area is not quite what I expected.  There is no “swimming” just a “multi-level waterplay platform, [with] kid-sized slides, a variety of spray nozzles, jets, tipping cones, and a large tipping bucket”.   In other words, lots of ways to play and get sprayed, but no lounging in the water, like a lazy river.  This was a little disappointing to Mike & I, but the kids had fun.

The other neat feature is a giant waterslide, enclosed in tube, that you ride on raft.  Wendy, Sam, Mike & I all had fun on it.

At this point, it was after 4pm and the meltdowns were starting.  We changed out of our swim clothes and made our way out of the park, stopping a few places along the way.

Our last stop was for some good ole fashioned Turkey Hill ice cream.  A sweet treat that can’t be beat, especially when siblings share.

As we drove home, we saw a huge rainbow spanning across the sky.  It was a great reminder of God’s goodness to us and a great way to close out our day.

So, we truly had a Dutch Wonderful time in Lancaster County and look forward to returning to Dutch Wonderland again someday.

Bon Air Park
850 North Lexington St.
Arlington, VA 22205
Arlington website ~  Google Map

What I Loved: Nice play structure, shady in the morning, great path for biking, bathrooms

Worth Noting: No swings*, no fences, creek nearby.  Bathrooms are a short walk down a paved path

*Swings available on a second playground along the Custis Trail

The Review:

I took my boys to visit Bon Air Park last week on a nice not too hot kind of day.   We had been here a long time ago (pre-Adam) and I remembered the play structure being cute and shady.  It also looked to have a good biking option for Sam.

We were not disappointed. We decided to check out the bike path first.   It runs from the parking lot down to the Custis Trail and is almost entirely shaded.

My plan was to do a one mile loop with the boys – Adam on the glider and Sam on his bike.  The loop would take us down to Custis Trail (which runs along I-66) and then, after a short distance, veer left onto the W&OD trail, which runs along the west side of Bon Air Park, on the other side of the creek.   We closed the loop by coming up to Wilson Blvd and taking it back to the parking lot.

It was the perfect biking loop — for Sam.  Not so much for Adam.  He would glide for a bit, but then want help, or decide he was done.   This meant I had to scoop him up and throw him in my jog stroller, along with the glider.   Then I would walk/jog to catch up to Sam, who was patiently waiting a little ways down the path.

At the junction of the Bon Air Trail and the Custis Trail, there is another playground.  It has a simple play structure and two swings, but is entirely in the sun.  There’s nothing special about this playground, but we stopped and played for a few minutes before continuing on our ride.

When we got back to the park, we checked out the main playground.   The play structure is shaped like a boat and in the morning, is fairly shady.  The surface is what I would term “dirty sand”.

The boys enjoyed playing on and under the structure and Sam did some more riding.  I’d let him bike down to the bathrooms and back – maybe 100 yards away but still in view.

In addition to the play structure there is a nice grassy field to run around in.   The creek also runs through the park, but it is far enough away from the playground that kids won’t notice it or be drawn to it unless you point it out.  Bon Air also has beautiful gardens – a rose garden, a sun”garden, and a shade garden.  The kids weren’t interested in any of that, so we didn’t check them out, aside from me snapping a few pics on our way out.

After playing for a while, we were ready for lunch.   We snagged one of the many picnic tables and had a nice lunch next to the creek.

Afterwards, I let the boys explore it a little bit.

Amazingly, no one got soaked!  At the end of our stay, Adam was melting down and ready for a nap, so we got out of dodge as fast as a cranky toddler would allow.

But the park was quite nice and I’m sure we will be back.  I recommend it for toddlers and bike riders especially.

Parkhurst Park
5820 20th Rd. N.
Arlington, VA 22205
Arlington website ~ Google Map
Conceptual Drawing of the Park (PDF)

What I Loved: Everything!  Brand new, modern equipment, special touches that show the park was well designed with features for all ages.

Worth Noting: No shade, no bathrooms, street parking can be limited.

The Review:

Woodlawn Park
1400 N. Buchanan St.
Arlington, VA 22207
Arlington website ~ Google Map

What I Loved: Super Shady!  A variety of options to keep kids of all ages busy.

Worth Noting: no bathroom, no fences.  The walk from the car to the park is just far enough that if you have a lot of gear or a runaway toddler, you might want your stroller.  There is a creek that runs through the park that is not entirely fenced off.

The Review:

After visiting Woodmont Park, the boys and I headed over to check out another Arlington park.  Woodlawn is tucked in the Woodlawn-Waycroft neighborhood, one block west of N. Glebe Rd. and one block north of Washington Blvd, adjacent to Capital Hospice. I had driven through this area before but never noticed any playground or park.  That’s because it doesn’t have a well-defined entrance  and is not visible from any of the bigger roads.  There is a sign on Buchanan Street at N. 14th St.  There is no parking lot, but I found ample street parking on my visit.  The park can also be accessed from a few other side streets (e.g. N. 14th St and Abingdon St.), but street parking seemed more problematic.

From the street, we followed a paved path that led us back to an oasis of green hidden behind the rows of houses.  To our left was a half basketball court and sunny green field.

To our right lay a wonderfully shady and pleasant playground area.

There are two play structures, two sets of swings — 2 baby swings and 2 regular swings, a sandlot, and a water fountain (that wasn’t working).  My 2 year old and nearly 5 year old were not bored and had fun on the various equipment.  The fact that the park was well used was a plus – it meant new friends to play with, even if we did have to wait for a turn on the swings.

Play structure #1:

Play structure #2:

Big Kid Swings:

Sandbox:

Overall, I thought this park was a wonderful find and will be a great place to visit on hot summer days.   The paths around the park all seem to be paved, but I would not recommend this park for bike riding, because the paths would take bikers out of your line of sight pretty quick.   The park is open green space, without any enclosed fences, so if you have a runner, this might not be the spot for you.

But for us, this was a wonderful find that I look forward to returning to.

Woodmont Center & Park
2422 N. Fillmore St.
Arlington, VA 22207
Arlington County website ~ YMCA website

What I Loved: nice looped paved path (completely in view from the playground).  Nice playground equipment suitable for toddlers, preschoolers and early elementary. Gazebo with picnic benches adjacent to playground provided shade

Worth Noting: the park is not enclosed by a fence (3 sides of the playground are fenced), a water fountain and restroom available in the center, if it’s open.  No swings, and gets sunny by mid-day.

The Review:

Last week, the boys and I headed out to check out some local parks.   Woodmont was listed on several sites as a top playground so I was curious to see what the buzz about.  I was a little confused about the nature of the park.  It’s listed on the Arlington County website as a county park and center.  However, the “center” is really a YMCA Gymnastics Center.  It was unclear to me what the relationship between the YMCA and Arl Co was/is.

It’s a nice little park with new looking playground equipment on mulch.    It has a gazebo adjacent to the playground with picnic benches that provided a bit of shade.  There are two play structures — one seems more geared for toddlers and the other more older preschoolers/elementary.  When we got there at 9am, there was some shade on some of the equipment, but I imagine it gets pretty sunny and hot on a typical summer day.

It also has a nice paved path that goes around a small community field adjacent to the playground — just right for the learning-to-ride crowd.  My nearly 5 year old, who is a proficient rider, got bored after a few laps – I suspect if he had a friend with him, he would have had more fun.  It was a perfect practice spot for his 2 year old brother on his glider.

Overall, it’s a nice little park.  We only saw one other family there when we were there – we might have stayed longer if we had brought a friend with us.  I wouldn’t call this a “destination” park, but it was certainly a nice change of pace for us.

I think the key to not only surviving summer, but enjoying it is to have a plan.  Before summer arrives, I think of all these fun things I want to do with the kids during the summer, but if I don’t sit down and plan them out, they will never happen.  Even worse, on a day when I have nothing planned, the kids will whine, “Whatarewegonnadotodaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay?”  and I’ll have no ideas.

So, I’ve compiled a list of things I hope to do this summer.  This is an abridged version of the fuller list I put together for my MOPS group.  These are just my personal picks for “must do” this summer.  A lot of great places aren’t on my list simply because we’ve done them before and I want to hit some other spots.  As we visit these places, I will check them off () and link up to the related blog post.

Explore Local Parks, Playgrounds, and Green Spaces

• Check out Arlington Playgrounds — I’ve compiled a big list on my blog
• Find good places to bike ride (refer to list above)
• Look beyond Arlington, specifically:
  • Burke Lake, Burke — reviewed 6/6/10
  • Huntley Meadows, Alexandria — reviewed 6/10/10
  • Lake Accotink, Springfield
  • Potomac Overlook, Arlington
  • Teddy Roosevelt Island, GWP
  • Wheaton Regional Park, Wheaton, MD
  • Great Falls Grange Park, Great Falls, VA – reviewed 7/16/10
• Gardens:
  • Green Springs Gardens, Alexandria — reviewed 5/26/10
  • National Arboretum, DC
  • River Farm, Alexandria

Check Out DC

• Ride the Metro downtown and visit:
  • Natural History and/or
  • American History and/or
  • Air & Space and /or
  • an art museum ?
  • National Building Museum — reviewed 7/6/10

See Some Animals

• The Zoo (S. wants to go, I’m dreading it in the summer heat)
• National Aquarium, Baltimore or DC
• Frying Pan Park, Herndon or Oxon Hill Farm, Oxon Hill, MD

Check out some Planes and/or Trains

• Picnic Dinner at Gravelly Point
• National Museum of Air & Space (DC) or Udvar-Hazy (Dulles)
• See the Flying Circus — an old fashioned air show; reviewed 7/15/10

Rainy Day / Indoor Fun

• Cook with the kids:
  • Bake cookies (or other dessert)
  • Let the kids have a turn planning a meal and help cook it. (the older 2)
  • Make Your Own Pizza Party
• Catch a Movie
• Go Bowling — Kids Bowl Free
• Visit a Nature Center (Potomac Overlook, Long Branch or Hidden Oaks)
• Get Arty — Explore More Program at the Greater Reston Arts Center ($)
• Read — get rewarded via Borders, Barnes & Nobles, Arlington Co., Fairfax Co, Falls Church.
• Visit the Library — storytimes programs at Arlington, Falls Church, etc.

See a Performance

• Go to Fairfax Corner -  water fountains + Tiny Tots  Summer Series on Wednesday & Saturday
• Go to Wolf Trap’s Theatre-in-the-Woods:  Robbie Shaefer 7/6 – 7/10,  Steve Songs 7/13 – 7/17

Get Wet

• Swim! — we have passes to Upton Hill and will do swim lessons
• Local spraygrounds – Hayes Park — reviewed 7/10/10
• Fairfax Corner water fountain

Visit an Amusement Park (or two)

• Dutch Wonderland — reviewed 6/29/10
• Kings Dominion

Have Fun without Mom!

• Vacation Bible School
• Summer Camp

Take a Trip

• Visit the Grands
• Camp — we love Buggs Island,  Burke Lake, and Big Meadow are other good options
  
• Go to the Beach — we love the Outer Banks, but this year we’re going to check out Rehobeth, DE

Family Fun

• Have a picnic lunch with Daddy at work
• Go out on Grandad’s Boat
• Plan and execute a some sort of service project (I’d love to hear your ideas!)
• Give kids a chance to pick the activity for the day
• Have a picnic in the back yard in a box

Having a plan for summer fun works for me.   What’s on your summer to do list?