Throughout all of the festivities, I have had many opportunities to reflect on what a great city and state I live in and how fortunate I am to be raising my kids in the U.S.A.
Thursday
Tonight we went to The National Aquarium in Baltimore. It was Grade A Student Night which meant that kids who got at least 3 As on their report card could go for free along with one adult. We had gone to this once before and it was super, super crowded but I was told that this year they were requiring pre-registration and capping the number allowed it. I can honestly say that it was the least we have ever paid to go to the aquarium (FREE!) and it was the least crowded it has ever been. AWESOME! It was great to be able to take advantage of this offer. Regular admission for the aquarium, dolphin show and 4D Immersion Theater is $30 per person. YIKES! The only negative was that there was no dolphin show due to the recent deaths of two dolphin calves. In hindsight, however, not having a dolphin show to attend gave us time to see everything else. The 4D Immersion Theater was very neat. Reminds me a lot of Mickey's Philharmagic in Disney World. We saw a mini Wizard of Oz movie and also Dora and Diego's Butterfly Adventure. The two and 1/2 hours we had to tour the aquarium perfectly fit my limited attention span, too!
This turtle was rescued from frigid water and had to have his front left flipper amputated due to frostbite
I thought this pic was cool. It looks like Carter is in the tank with the turtle :-)
Jellies!
Friday night found Doug and I headed back downtown to dinner and a concert. A few months ago, Ariel and I had gone to see an ABBA tribute band at Pier 6. Through a FACEBOOK contest from the ABBA concert I won tickets to any other concert of my choice. I picked Trace Adkins. For years I have overlooked Pier 6 as a worthy concert spot and I do not know why. It is a smaller venue which makes for a more intimate concert setting. It has a nice lawn for bringing chairs and blankets and laying out under the stars listening to music. It is on the water so there is a good breeze and it has great views of downtown Baltimore.
The concert was great............the views from Pier 6 were great...
the company (my awesome husband) was great..........and the dinner beforehand at the Cheesecake Factory was great.
Saturday -- Taking my American Girl to the American Girl Store
Ariel has been diligently saving her money for the last few months with one goal in mind -- to buy the American Girl Doll of the year, Kanani.
On June 18th, an American Girl Store opened in Tyson's Corner, Virginia. Ariel and I were both anxious to check out the new store since the only other one we have ever been to is in New York City. We talked Aunt Amy into going with us and lured Pierce and Carter along with the promise of a trip to the Lego Store.
We ended Saturday night by watching fireworks at the Eastern Yacht Club.
Sunday
What says America more than a day spent doing laundry, clothes shopping, visiting with family and capping off the night by visiting Daddy at his fire house?
Monday
Cookout at the pool then Independence Day Fireworks!
This is her Martha Washington Look
Happy 4th of July!!
