Faeries Stold My Shoes!

This weekend we took a stroll through the historic district in Olde City Philadelphia.  It was the first really nice summer day that we have had around here and we enjoyed it by spending some time with  grass between our toes in the parks around Carpenter's Hall and Independence Hall.  There is one little nook that is a fairly large patch of grass but hidden away from the beaten path that Finn, maria and I explored.  I explained to Finn that it is in areas like that that the Faeries lived.  We looked through some of the craggy old trees to see if we could find any but the crafty little buggers kept evading our prying eyes.  I showed Finn the strawberry flowers that the faeries like to eat, and explained that they are poison to us humans.  It was fantastic to see the magic in his eyes.  As we moved on throughout the day we eventually noticed that one of his little green adidas shoes was missing.  He immediately turned to me and said, "Daddy, the faeries stold my shoes!".  Playing along, I agreed with him and offered that maybe they took his shoes because they wanted to be friends with him and needed something to remember him by.  He emphatically agreed...

Merit Badges

I was reading an article over at Make: where this guy's 9-year old was thrilled at the prospect of earning badges for various feats of technological wonder.  The good folks at Adafruit have created a series of patches in the spirit of Scouting Merit Badges, where kids are tasked with expressing proficiency of a particular skill and in return earning a badge to display on their uniform.  I plan on stealing this idea for the Junior Adventurer Society.  In fact, I see the Junior Adventurer Society becoming the next evolution of the Scouts.  Scouting has endured some black eyes in the past few decades as any organization of such size would.  The Junior Adventurer Society is open to both boys and girls and could function as viable alternative to both the boy and girl scouts.

Opening Day

Here we are again.  Another year has gone by.  Holidays have come and gone, miserable winter months have passed safely to the rear-view mirror, and mint green sprigs have begun to tip the trees.

Baseball has returned.  Early April ushers in a new season where anything is possible.  All teams hold the promise of a new day; a clean slate.  The early spring crowds will soon shuffle through the turnstiles and resume their chants and hollers, echoing centuries past.  Hotdogs will be slathered in mustard and onions, beer will flow and ice cream cones will melt and drip onto young children's fingers.

For one day in April, the nation will turn its eyes to this age old tradition that welcomes in the new spring.  And then we will go about our day, confident in the fact that the seasons have changed.  We'll come back in May or June when records have been established and hot-streaks are being ridden, but for now we will be content with a chill in the air, the smell of roasting peanuts from the stands and two words...."Play Ball!!!"

Dinosaurs!!!

This past weekend was St. Patrick's Day and what a better way to commemorate the sacred holiday than with a good old fashioned Dinosaur hunt!

Dinosaurs have been HUGE in our house this year.  Finn is now three years old and a budding paleontologist.  He can name many different kinds of dinosaurs and describe which ones eat trees and which ones eat other dinosaurs (yikes!)

This Saturday was a particularly beautiful early spring day;  sunny and brisk with warm breezes.  We headed out to brave the St. Patrick's Day madness on the streets of Philadelphia armed with a secret pocket full of tiny, dollar-store dinosaurs.  We wandered the cobble-stone streets and alleys of our beloved, historic city and ended up on Old St Peter's Church graveyard.  There are many grave markers dating back to the 18th Century and this is the final resting place of many Revolutionary War veterans.

As we wandered through the limestone markers I hid these tiny dinosaurs in the soft wet turf and Finn found each one with the surprise and conviction of a true adventurer.  This was the first Saturday Morning Adventure that we actually have done.  Now that he is at an age where he can understand the concept, I think we are on the precipice of something great!!

Speaking of great things, I must mention how lucky we are to have The Academy of Natural Science right in our backyard.  We have spent many a rainy (and sunny) afternoon in Dinosaur Hall and wandering thru the halls of dioramas that transport us from the African Serengeti to the Polar Tundra.

The best part is that for the better part of a year all of our visits were free.  As a part of the Philadelphia RecycleBank program you can earn a free admission per month and children 2 and under are free