target family fun at the shakespeare theatre company

target always seems to sponsor fun stuff in its neighborhoods,
and this was no exception.
the target family fun fair
— as a part of the shakespeare theatre company‘s annual free for all event —
was chock full of, well, fun!
we were greeted by a magician who made dollar coins disappear, reappear and grow.
once inside we went through several stations:
at station 1 they took head shots.



at station 2 they designed costumes with markers, stickers, puff-balls, colored paper and glitter glue.
at station 3 they viewed a model of a stage and then designed their own on paper.

at station 4 they practiced a few lines with coaching in different emotions.
(oh, the drama! i wish i’d pulled out the video camera.)
at station 5 they designed their advertising posters.
at station 6 they were interviewed, live, on camera about their experiences.

finally (whew!), they took a break from all that hard work
and decorated fans and their own kid-sized messenger bags
featuring bullseye, the target dog, driving a school bus.

i needed that fan afterward.

discovery room at the natural history museum

the discovery room at the national museum of natural history
is museum-going for kids at its best.
from the moment we entered, the girls were busy with hands on exploration.
we’ve been to the natural history museum several times,
and each time we really enjoy ourselves,
but if you only can make one visit,
this is what the kids will enjoy and remember.
we easily spent an hour and change in here…

dressing up in clothes from around the globe...

measuring and examining the human-scale skeleton...

viewing tiny animals under the microscope...

playing with ancient toys...

examining bones from various animals...

…and much more!

afterwards, on our way to see the hope diamond
the girl’s curiosity was piqued by the period-dressed manikins of the western cultures exhibit,
so we took a stroll through there and watched a few videos on archeology and life in the fertile crescent.
after we viewed the hope diamond,
we finished our visit at the hall of geology, gems and minerals.

before we headed home after a full and fun day at the natural history museum,
i let the girls eat a snack and then chase the birds among the shadows of the trees along the national mall
while i sat, reflected and recuperated.

farafina kan at the museum of african art

we met up with some friends at the national museum of african art to experience farafina kan live. they always get the blood flowing and body moving wherever they bless.

they offer dance and drum classes for adults and children in mt. rainier, maryland, if you’re interested. if you come on thursday night, that’s probably when you’ll see me and, on occasion, my girls.

lego architecture

we were all a-WOW when we first stepped into
the national building museum‘s lego architecture exhibit titled: towering ambition.

architectural icons in lego form

each lego building included the amount of legos and hours that went into planning and executing each amazing replica.

then we got to try our hand at building our own buildings...

...and make our contribution to the lego-neighborhood.

the exhibit ends on september 5th, so check it out before it’s too late.

science days: electrical charges and sound waves

continuing with janice vanCleave’s play and find out about science:

i wonder…

…why does my hair stick to my comb?
well…ahem…our hair — thick and beautiful as it is — doesn’t usually stick to our comb,
so, part 1 of this experiment where you rub a balloon to your hair
and then watch it lift when you pull the balloon a short distance away
didn’t do diddly-squat on our tresses.
however, part two allowed us to see how an electric charge can make confetti dance!

…how does a telephone work?
even though we don’t have a land-line telephone
— we’re one of those types of families that have internet and mobiles only —
this was FUN FUN FUN!
especially during part two when we had to take the “phones” outside.
we crossed two lines on 8-meters of string each
and took turns broadcasting our message!

frederick douglass family festival

we visited frederick douglass’ home on cedar hill in southeast DC
during the frederick douglass family festival.

we watched a short video presentation on his life,
then proceeded to the top of the hill to view his house.

there were several smartly dressed reenactors making history come alive on his porch,

including elizabeth keckley, mary todd lincoln’s dressmaker.

we took a house tour,

the growlery: where mr. douglass went to get away from the house and its visitors and growl, i.e. a 19th century man cave.

took a few turns on the ice cream maker,
then headed back down the hill with a ticket for some fresh ice cream.

samba and capoeira in anacostia

we learned some samba steps and capoeira moves
at the smithsonian anacostia community museum.
it was an easy, intimate and free way to get acquainted with a bit of brazilian culture.

the girls try a capoeira move across the floor

there will be another brazilian dance community arts workshop on aug 15, from 1 – 3pm. check out their other events about brazilian, mexican and gullah culture on their calendar.