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Oct. 19th, 2006 10:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rivkaWe went to the National Aquarium last night, courtesy of Free Fall Baltimore - which refers not to plummeting real estate prices or continued white flight, but the Office of Promotion and the Arts' latest efforts to attract the "creative class" to Baltimore. Throughout the fall, almost every museum and cultural institution in Baltimore will be hosting a free event, from Mega Truck Day at the Public Works Museum to classical guitar masterclasses. The Aquarium opened up after hours, exclusively for families who are involved in programs at the public library.
This was our first opportunity to see their new Australia exhibit. Unfortunately, it was only open for the first hour of the three-hour evening event, so everyone else was crowded into that exhibit too. We took a more cursory tour than I would have liked. All three of us were wowed by the massive four-story waterfall - we'll have to go back during the school day sometime, when the Aquarium is less crowded, to really spend time staring into the tanks. We also missed out on the new frog exhibit, because I didn't really realize that it was there until afterward.
What the National Aquarium does best is big mixed habitats combining plants, animals, and marine life, like their huge rooftop greenhouse reconstruction of a rainforest. We spent a lot of time at some of the floor-to-ceiling habitat tanks, which put Alex at perfect fish-viewing height - she wasn't much in a mood to be carried, even if it meant that she missed some of the coolest displays of brightly colored tropical fish. The rainforest was positively eerie, at night. It's mostly lit by its massive glass roof - they had a few lamps, but not enough to conterfeit daylight. Obviously we didn't see much in the way of wildlife - just some of the fish and a scarlet ibis, no sloth or tamarinds or parrots - but the experience was still very cool.
Our free tickets had come with free one-day transit passes as well, so we took the subway to the Aquarium. We hadn't really thought about the perils of the return trip, when buses and trains would be less frequent and yet bedtime would be perilously close. We decided to walk to the bus via an Afghan Kebob place, and then wound up walking home when we realized that it would probably be quicker than waiting for the bus. Long walk.
Alex's bedtime had slipped well behind us by the time we got home and ate our kebobs, but she was in a surprisingly good mood as she shoveled in chicken, lamb, and rice pilaf. Suddenly she held up a piece of pita bread. "Triangle," she said slowly, and then with triumph: "Triangle! Triangle!"
Michael and I looked at each other. "Did you teach her shapes?" I asked him. He shook his head. We stared at each other in silence for a moment, and then he took his knife and carefully cut some more bread into triangles for her.
This afternoon, Michael and Alex are planning to go to a Ben Cardin for Senate rally featuring Bill Clinton.
"So, I think it's traditional for politicians to kiss babies at these things," I said to Michael.
"If Bill Clinton tries to kiss my daughter," Michael said, "I'm going to pop him one."
"Heh. Fair enough."
This was our first opportunity to see their new Australia exhibit. Unfortunately, it was only open for the first hour of the three-hour evening event, so everyone else was crowded into that exhibit too. We took a more cursory tour than I would have liked. All three of us were wowed by the massive four-story waterfall - we'll have to go back during the school day sometime, when the Aquarium is less crowded, to really spend time staring into the tanks. We also missed out on the new frog exhibit, because I didn't really realize that it was there until afterward.
What the National Aquarium does best is big mixed habitats combining plants, animals, and marine life, like their huge rooftop greenhouse reconstruction of a rainforest. We spent a lot of time at some of the floor-to-ceiling habitat tanks, which put Alex at perfect fish-viewing height - she wasn't much in a mood to be carried, even if it meant that she missed some of the coolest displays of brightly colored tropical fish. The rainforest was positively eerie, at night. It's mostly lit by its massive glass roof - they had a few lamps, but not enough to conterfeit daylight. Obviously we didn't see much in the way of wildlife - just some of the fish and a scarlet ibis, no sloth or tamarinds or parrots - but the experience was still very cool.
Our free tickets had come with free one-day transit passes as well, so we took the subway to the Aquarium. We hadn't really thought about the perils of the return trip, when buses and trains would be less frequent and yet bedtime would be perilously close. We decided to walk to the bus via an Afghan Kebob place, and then wound up walking home when we realized that it would probably be quicker than waiting for the bus. Long walk.
Alex's bedtime had slipped well behind us by the time we got home and ate our kebobs, but she was in a surprisingly good mood as she shoveled in chicken, lamb, and rice pilaf. Suddenly she held up a piece of pita bread. "Triangle," she said slowly, and then with triumph: "Triangle! Triangle!"
Michael and I looked at each other. "Did you teach her shapes?" I asked him. He shook his head. We stared at each other in silence for a moment, and then he took his knife and carefully cut some more bread into triangles for her.
This afternoon, Michael and Alex are planning to go to a Ben Cardin for Senate rally featuring Bill Clinton.
"So, I think it's traditional for politicians to kiss babies at these things," I said to Michael.
"If Bill Clinton tries to kiss my daughter," Michael said, "I'm going to pop him one."
"Heh. Fair enough."
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no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 03:05 pm (UTC)Must be the parent in me -- every time you mention her figuring out something like that, I try to think of a time when Sarah did something similar. Gotta compete! She knew all the Supreme Court Justices at 14 months! (Okay, maybe not, but she knew the word White, so there's one.)
Anyway, I love hearing about her progress, and I hope we'll get to see her again before too long. (Sorry, but we won't be at CapClave -- I mean, really sorry.)
no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 03:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 05:04 pm (UTC)Isn't it AMAZING when you realise how much she's learning that you have had no input into? All by herself she learns things!
no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 06:27 pm (UTC)He obviously needs to plant a few more bits of toddler vocabulary.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 06:54 pm (UTC)Clinton
Date: 2006-10-19 07:38 pm (UTC)B
no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 07:38 pm (UTC)Oh, dear. Am I being obnoxious? It's so hard to know where the line is between "sharing my innocent delight in my daughter" and "being a braggy, competitive jerk."
(And Alex doesn't know a single Supreme Court Justice, plus, even when Sarah is fourteen Alex will still be younger! So no worries.)
Re: Clinton
Date: 2006-10-19 07:39 pm (UTC)Re: Clinton
Date: 2006-10-19 07:44 pm (UTC)B
no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 07:52 pm (UTC)We didn't get to see Sarah at all until she was 13 months old, so after that there was a bit of a crash course. The thing is, I like hearing about Alex's journey through life from the first step onwards, and would hate to hear less of it.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-19 08:29 pm (UTC)Re: Clinton
Date: 2006-10-19 09:37 pm (UTC)Re: Clinton
Date: 2006-10-20 12:16 am (UTC)The point wound up being moot, anyway. I called the Cardin campaign HQ, and they said they would stop admitting people to the event at 3:30 (with a strong recommendation to be there earlier), and Alex napped until 3, so by the time we got some food into the baby and could have traveled down there, we'd have been too late to be admitted. It's hard to plan things around a hard-and-fast schedule when you're also caring for a toddler. The degree of standing around that goes with political rallies would have been hard to deal with, too, especially given that the place was likely to have been packed and not exactly toddler-friendly.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-20 03:31 am (UTC)No. Keep writing, please.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-20 04:12 am (UTC)Triangle!
no subject
Date: 2006-10-20 09:08 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-10-21 04:28 am (UTC)Further investigation indicates that in addition to triangles, she can identify circles, squares, ovals, hearts, stars (I knew about that one, though), and, um, crescents. Crescents?
Not rectangles, though, so obviously it's time to get out the flash cards.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-21 08:59 am (UTC)