Our next outing was to the National Botanical Gardens. Anyone in DC who hasn't been here, I think it is definitely worth a trip. It is right next to the Capitol Building, but in the summer it almost seemed like a world away.
With no Capitol Building visible, one could almost imagine being out in a field.
They have a children's garden. It is nothing compared to the Childrens Gardens at the Huntington Library and Gardens in Pasadena, but it still was a fun time for the kids where they can water the plants and even do a little gardening.
Christopher has been into photography for a while, so it was fun to watch him try to get some good closeups of the flowers and plants.
We then embarked on our first road trip to a dear friend's who lives in New Hampshire. It was the kids and I going it alone and I was a little worried that the drive might be a little crazy, but we loaded up on Italian lesson courses, books on CD, a few DVD's all from the library and headed off. This was at the first rest stop and the kids were energized. I had tried to leave really early in the morning in hopes that they would fall back asleep on the drive, but no such luck. They were a little sedate for the first hour or so and it was only about a 10 1/2 hour drive!
This was at the Gulf of Maine and it was a warm summer day and the scenary was breathtaking, but the water was like ice! Here is Jen and a bunch of the kids on the rocks.
We did a small hike (no small feat with 7 kids and a crowded touristy trail) but were rewarded with some very yummy ice cream!
And, of course we had to do a lot of exploring. Thankfully the water that got stuck in the rocks was warmed a bit by the sun and the kids loved finding these snails.
It was a race to see who could collect the most. Don't worry, we released them all.
The kids even went in the water. I don't know how they did it but they didn't even really complain.
We went to a fun museum and got to learn about whales and play with starfish.
And one day we went to Lake Pawtuckaway (am I spelling that right, Jen?) which was decidedly much more pleasant water to swim in. It was clear and wonderfully refreshing. Jen's husband, Mark, was kind enough to take the kids out in shifts for a Kayak ride.
Jen's husband also would take the kids around the yard on the mower trailer and they thought that was great. It was a fantastic summer trip and I would do it again anytime! Here is the day we left with the kids piled on the tractor.
About a week after we got back from New Hampshire, Christopher had scout camp which just so happened to be one of the hottest weeks of the summer. He endured it well and was proud of himself when he shot a few bullseyes.
Alex volunteered one day and caught some of the fun.
Then we tried to wind down a bit and made some paper mache creatures.
Our last trip was to Cape Cod which was the week before school started. Cape Cod had been in a drought summer and the week we were there it decided to rain for 4 days straight. We had purposely rented a place with a private beach so that we could maximize the water, but that plan got a little waylayed, so we found some other things to do. We went to a glass museum and took a train ride.
Mark was really tired of the rain!
This is a view of the private beach that we had.
Anytime the rain stopped we were out there trying to make the most of it.
And doing what they love most, exploring.
And finding crabs. They did pinch but it didn't hurt as they were too small to get much.
The sun eventually did come out and we were out there for 3 days straight, all day until we had to go home.
It was a fantastic vacation and a wonderful end to a very fun summer!
1 comment:
What great trips! I envy you -- being in that part of the country!
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