9 S Summit Avenue (map it)
Gaithersburg, MD 20877
301–258-6160

The Gaithersburg Community Museum is neither big nor fancy — it is just a one room affair with a model train set up,  gift items for sale, historical displays, and a friendly docent — but it is worth stopping by if you are in the neighborhood!

Gaithersburg Community Museum

Old train outside (for looking, not climbing)

Please ignore the glare!

View from the back of the museum

There is a ramp for strollers and wheelchairs, but the place is small enough that you might find bigger strollers difficult to maneuver.  The museum does not have bathrooms, but there are bathrooms in the building next door shared by the MARC train station and a small cafe.

Woodend Sanctuary
8940 Jones Mill Road
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
301–652-9188

We love the Audubon Nature Fair, and look forward to attending each year. We picnic with friends, shop for gifts for upcoming events, meet bee keepers, learn about invasive species, find little creatures in the pond, make cardboard binoculars, enjoy performances geared at both kids and all ages and bask in being surrounded by such a wonderful crowd of folks.

This year’s fair will be held on Sunday, May 3, 2009 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the details are all online.

Happy belated Thanksgiving!

We snagged a great book from the library recently! In A Plump and Perky Turkey (written by Teresa Bateman and illustrated by Jeff Shelley) the turkeys all skip town before Thanksgiving and the town-folks try to trick them back, but (after pages of engaging illustrations and rhymes that please me) they end up eating shredded wheat on Thanksgiving. Luckily for us meat eaters, our Loudoun turkeys weren’t quite as savvy as those in the book. I know Thanksgiving has passed, but if you feel like embracing your inner locavore the rest of this holiday season, the folks at Buy Fresh Buy Local Virginia have put together a list of local turkey providers by county.

Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary

Our family kicked off Thanksgiving week with a trip across White’s Ferry to visit the Poplar Spring Animal Sanctuary in Poolesville, MD, where we spent an afternoon celebrating an early Thanksgiving with the Turkeys and participating in a vegan potluck with hundreds of people. The animals at the sanctuary were spread out with plenty of room and the atmosphere was peaceful and inviting despite the freezing temps and the surprisingly large crowd. The sanctuary does not have any upcoming events or visiting hours listed on their website now, but I definitely recommend visiting it.

Turkeys feasting at Poplar Spring Sanctuary

More on White’s Ferry

If you are looking for a change of scenery on a day home with sick kids, a drive through the county and ride across the river on the only ferry still operating on the Potomac River might fit the bill. You can keep your kids and their germs in the car the whole time, but share a special adventure and most importantly get out of the house! A round trip ticket costs $6 ($4 one-way) and the ferry runs from 5am to 11pm year-round.

View from the car on White’s Ferry

I know I rave about most of the places my kids and I explore, but this is one of the coolest places around here.  If you are looking for a fun summer day with your kids, Greenbrier State Park (map) will not disappoint. It is worth every mile of the drive, even at the current gas prices. My friend in Baltimore agrees, and her drive is even longer.

What’s so great about this place? Clean white sand, calm clean (as far as I can tell) water sans riptides, waves, sharks, and jellyfish, lifeguards on duty, perfectly placed lines denoting swimming area for little ones, sand castles, the sound of happy summer laughter.… Plus there’s more:

• camping

• boat launch

• visitor center
• hiking
• proximity to the Appalachian trail (where my children met a through hiker!)
• fishing
• and store full of junk food.

I feel so far away from my to do list here that it is easy to be completely present with my kids and enjoy a one day holiday.

As with any place that draws crowds, there as issues with litter that make me sad and mad, but Greenbrier is no worse than plenty of parks here in Loudoun in that department.

Tips for your visit

• There is a walk from the parking lot to the beach, so when you toss everything in your car make sure to consider how you will carry it all.
• The beach bathrooms are wet, busy, a bit grimy, and usually in need of a cleaning. If you decide to camp, however, the bathrooms there are incredibly well maintained.
• If you plan to camp, call and ask which loop is closer to the beach.
• Call ahead to find out lifeguard hours. The lifeguards are off duty for the 2008 season already but, according to the website, swimming at your own risk is allowed until the end of September so it is not too late to squeeze in an afternoon at the beach.

A local mom shared a site with me that could prove useful given all the upcoming summer movie screenings. kids-in-mind.com reviews movies and rates their appropriateness for children. I have looked over the reviews of a few movies we have seen recently and they seem to be accurate and thorough.

Summer Family Movie Screenings:

Regal (throughout the US including Ashburn, Alexandria, Fairfax, Fredericksburg, Manassas, Sterling and many other VA locations) See free movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 10am. Show up early to get a seat! Click here for Maryland locations, including Frederick.

Tally Ho (Leesburg, VA) $1 Family Classics on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 11am

Please drop us a line if you are aware of other theaters that have similar programs.

ETA: You can also check your local library for summer movie showings. I know LCPL has some scheduled. 

Audubon Nature Preschool

I have seen the folks at the Audubon Nature Society’s Woodend Santuary in action during their spring fair the last two years and would send my kids there in a heartbeat if it were closer and cheaper. You can get all the details on their website… just wanted to put the name out there for folks who live closer in. The space is beautiful, and the organization has my respect.

Natural Baby & Child Fair
Special Beginnings Birth Center
1454 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd
Arnold, MD 21012
naturalbabyfair@yahoo.com

This looks like a small fair and is a bit of a trek from my usual haunts in Loudoun County, but I know how hard it can be to find cloth diapers and a variety of baby carriers in local stores so I thought I’d give folks a heads up.

Beans in the Belfry
122 West Potomac Street
Brunswick, MD 21716
(301) 834‑7178

I may have raved about other cafes, but Beans in the Belfry is my favorite in the Tri-State area. They have a doll house. They have dress up clothes. They have books. They have toys. They have so much to look at. They put mangoes in their couscous. Beans in the Belfry is cool.

Mr. Don visits Beans in the Belfry twice a month (first Thursday 10:30 to 11:30am, third Monday 3 to 4pm), and during his performances the place is packed to an overwhelming degree.

Tips for your visit

• The service is slow. I won’t be a problem if you keep your expectations low.
• If you are hoping for a quiet cup of coffee and conversation you might want to check the calendar first to make sure you won’t be surrounded by a loud event.
• If you plan to attend a Mr. Don show you might want to arrive early.
• Brunwick may be a sleepy little town, but there’s lots of other cool stuff near by: train tracks, train museum (very limited hours), Book Crossing (locally owned independent book store), Potomac River access, very well fenced playground just across the river in Lovettsville and more.