Dirthead

Yesterday was a pretty typical day for us. I think the end result was that Paul will never have kids. They're loud, messy, and a lot of work. In the afternoon, while I was cleaning the kitchen Bohdin and Nyla went onto the patio to play. Since Nyla is just one she thinks it's great fun to pull the soil out of the plant out there. Bohdin was ready to join in. It started by throwing dirt off the balcony but ended in a surprise for me. Bohdin ran in to get me to show me the surprise. I went outside and he showed me a dirthead. I'm not sure I need to describe it. Nyla was completely covered in dirt. Her hair, face, clothes, everything. I brought them both inside to the bathtub. It took much longer than anticipated to get the pile of dirt out of head. Even though they both had fun, I think it would be best if they don't play that game again.

Today we took the commuter train down to DC. We live less than 2 miles from the station so once we found a parking spot it was pretty easy. We were dropped off at Union Station. I had Nyla on my back. In Union Station, Bohdin found the candy store and wanted to stop there. We didn't. He was pretty sad and wanted to go home as we walked down Capitol Hill. We finally made it to the National Archives. Bohdin was eating a muffin as we entered. We knew we had to wait to enter until he was done but thought we would wait just outside the security lines since it was still just a little chilly out. A security guard approached us and we explained the situation. He told us to stay off to the side to avoid the crowd that was coming in behind us. Paul and I looked back out the door. There was construction going on so it was a long tunnel created by tarps and scaffolds. The tunnel was completely empty. It was just us and the security guards inside. Both Paul and I were wondering when exactly this crush of people were expected. In the time that Bohdin stood there finishing his muffin not one person entered. Nobody even exited.

There is probably no museum more boring to a child than one filled with old papers. We went through rather quickly. Bohdin wasn't having a great time. At the end we stopped at the bathroom so we wouldn't be caught off guard later with Bohdin. We went outside and had another little snack. While we were still out there Bohdin decided he needed to poop this time. We were still outside the Archives so I thought it would be quick to duck back in but the entrance was backed up with a crowd of people who had just exited two tour buses. They finally arrived. We ran across to the art musuem. Since we were inside we looked around a bit. Art must be the second most boring thing for a small child. There was nothing to touch.

Bohdin had a hot dog and a popsicle from the vendor after we left. I decided there wasn't enough time to catch the next train so we headed to the Natural History museum for a little while. Bohdin finally found something a bit more interesting. Nyla fell asleep on my back. We were actually having a good time in there and didn't realize how late it was getting. Paul carried Bohdin to the subway stop but we were about 30 seconds too late. We watched our subway train depart. The next one was running late so we wouldn't make it to our commuter train in time. After a lot of hassle I'm too tired to mention right now we made it home after 5:30. I was exhausted. Paul came in on a later train and said he was exhausted. He's going back tomorrow but this time he'll go alone.


Outside the National Archives
 

Trying to push down the column in the art museum. Nyla just wanted to climb it.
 

Nyla laying on the floor because she is mad that I wouldn't let her climb the stairs. Later she realized how slippery the floors were and started rolling around. Bohdin was trying to slide across the floor.
 

Bohdin's favorite exhibit. There was a seismograph that would record your earthquakes. The harder you jumped on the ground the stronger the wave recorded. He jumped and jumped and jumped. It was perfect for him.
 

Bohdin said his favorite thing was chasing the pigeons. He was also pretty excited to go on a double decker train. It was really full so I had to stand. Somebody offered a seat so Bohdin was able to sit. Somebody did later offer another seat but I declined. It's easier to keep Nyla strapped in as long as possible. I'm surprised that it took so long for the second person to offer a seat to a lady carrying a baby on her back. I know this wouldn't have happened in other parts of the country.

One interesting thing that we saw was the construction for the inaguration in 2009. The whole area around the Capitol was closed. I'm considering taking the kids to it. This could be my only chance. We'll see.

Stranger Danger

Paul is here to visit for a few days. We picked him up from Reagan National airport which is really close to all of the sites in DC. We swung through there and actually found a parking spot. The Air and Space museum seemed like the best choice for two small children so we briefly checked it out. Bohdin had even less patience for exhibits yesterday and just went from one to the other quickly. The aircraft carrier exhibit was the biggest hit for him. Nyla decided to walk in that exhibit and sat next to a man on a seat (he helped her up). Afterwards she walked up to a teenager, grabbed his legs, and started hopping up and down. She didn't care that this just some random kid. Later she tripped up an older gentleman by walking right between his moving legs. She sure is a friendly girl.

Paul and Bohdin had a "Row Your Boat" sing off on the way home. I'm not sure who won with the silliest lyrics but it did keep Bohdin and even Nyla occupied. She was tired from an interrupted nap on the ride down. Bohdin talked Paul's ear off later. I put Bohdin in the bathtub just so he could change gears a bit. He was so worked up. Visitor Bohdin is different than regular Bohdin. He ended up falling asleep watching "How Things are Made" which is one of his favorite shows.

Introvert

Another of the books I read discussed the difference between extroverts and introverts. Everybody needs to recharge somehow throughout the day. Extroverts do it by talking to others while introverts do it with quiet alone time. I had never looked at it that way. Buddy and I are both introverts. This is what makes traveling with two kids a hassle for me. I don't get any breaks. At home, sometimes I can escape for 5 minutes by myself (like now). When we're traveling that's not possible because there isn't a room between me and Bohdin ever. Whenever Nyla falls asleep in the car and wakes up before getting home I feel ripped off because that is the time I need to take for myself. Nothing in the book really helped with the kids but it did shed some light on me and my needs. I think Bohdin may be an introvert and Nyla an extrovert but I'm not sure yet.

I was talking to Bohdin the other day about people having food preferences. I said I didn't really like the strawberry milk that he likes to drink. I also don't like chocolate milk unless it's hot. Bohdin said he doesn't like hot chocolate because it makes his body too warm. Bohdin frequently asks for cold drinks to cool his stomach. He's the warmest person I know. It's actually getting better. He used to be way too hot and now he's just a bit too hot. I don't know if he'll ever wear a jacket though. I didn't even bother buying him one for this winter. I'm not sure he ever wore one last winter although I certainly felt jackets were justified on occasion.

Bohdin also used to have a hard time dealing with the change from shorts and short sleeve shirts to long things. He didn't like the feel of the transition. He would tug at his shirts to make them longer for instance. We didn't have that problem this season.

Last night I was reading to Bohdin. Our last book was interrupted to Buddy took over. Bohdin told Buddy over and over to "read it the right way". That means you have to follow the words. I don't know why he doesn't trust Buddy's reading.

Play

It's been a long time since I downloaded personal videos and as a result I haven't recorded many since the memory was full. I cleared up a little space yesterday so I can record more soon. Here is Nyla playing in the pillow house Bohdin is building. She would hide under the pillows and then pop up. She has so much fun playing with him.



I know this is a lame post but Buddy is outside with the kids and I don't want to waste my free time on the computer.

Professional Development

Buddy has been going to a lot of conferences lately. I'm not quite sure what he's learning but apparently it's necessary. Lots of jobs include some kind of professional development. One day it occurred to me that I was not doing any professional development for my most important job - being a parent. I checked out tons of books from the library and have been working my way through them. Some I liked better than others. Three of the books that I am enjoying I'm still reading. One that I finished is Siblings Without Rivalry.

Buddy thinks it is impossible to have siblings without rivalry. There are certainly going to be times that Bohdin and Nyla disagree. Lots and lots of times. I thought the book had many good points about making kids work as a team as opposed to competing against each other or comparing them. They book also stressed that small disagreements should be worked out between themselves. Sibling relationships are so powerful and can shape who you are. Reading the book made me think of my childhood with Paul. We had some tremendous fights but we also did great things together.

One of my favorite memories of childhood was when I had a friend over in 5th grade. Paul was in 3rd. I spent time playing with my friend and not Paul. When she left Paul said he felt left out (not those exact words but that was the gist). Together we decided that if we had a friend over they would have to play with the sibling also or they would have to go home. I'm so glad that we worked this out without a parent. That solution, in my opinion, helped define our relationship for many years. In a way, we decided that we were more important to each other than our friends. That's not something a parent could have decided for us. Well they could have made us do it but it would have led to resentment instead of closeness.

I would like to hear comments from more than Paul about your sibling relationships. It's not difficult to make a comment. Try it.

Peace

The end of last week was a crummy time. Everybody was grouchy. This week everything is so quiet and calm. I wish it could be like this always. The kids are playing together nicely and quietly for long periods of time. Long for their ages. I'm not talking 6 hours. I hope I didn't just jinx myself by mentioning the calm.

Yesterday we went with N- to the nature preserve that is a short walk from here. He and N- play best together outside in nature. They had a great time and did a ton of fun things. They're both young so there was some frustration in there as well. Bohdin found a very long stick and they decided they would carry it together. That was great until Bohdin wanted to put the stick down. They threw rocks and sticks in the pond, looked through binoculars at each other, played with Bohdin's cars in the soil. Nyla did several of these things as well. Bohdin's anger came when N- found a large dinosaur bone (rock) and Bohdin wanted one also. There were many small rocks around but only the one big one. Eventually he found 3 smaller dinosaur bones and was happy that he had more. Walking back, they found small branches with lots of leaves and used them as weapons against each other. They had a blast until Bohdin was done but N- wasn't. They later climbed trees. I loved seeing how they worked together to find fun things to do. They leaned against trees together and slid down a hill after each other.

Nyla continues to watch and copy the things we do. The other day she tried to wipe Bohdin's butt. She was mad one day when I wouldn't let her brush Bohdin's teeth while he was sleeping. She sat on my lap when I was getting a cavity filled the other day and was mesmerized with what they were doing. When I saw her watching so intently I realized this was not a good thing. Someday she is going to come after me in my sleep with a sharp utensil.

Playing with the cash register
 

Rocking together
 

In the wagon together
 

While the mommy is away

Nyla was clinging to me in the afternoon so she watched me make the bread. She was particualarly interested in me shaping the dough into dinner rolls. I covered them up and let them rise on the table. Nyla went on to play with styrofoam peanuts. I checked on Bohdin who was watching a video in the other room. He had fallen asleep. It was 5:30 and a terrible time for a nap so I woke him up. When I came back into the kitchen Nyla wasn't sitting on the floor playing quietly anymore. She had climbed up to play with the dough and make a prettier dinner roll. She also opened the herbs I put in the rolls and dumped the entire container. Despite the new shape and interference with the rising process they still turned out fine.

 

Buddy's next two trips have been cancelled. The kids like it when he's around so I'm sure they will be glad. When Buddy came home last night Nyla went over the greet him first as usual but this time she ran over and said "da da da da" while running. It sure was cute.

Bohdin likes parking garages. Whenever possible he wants me to park in one. They built a new Target in Annapolis with a parking garage as the first two floors so I headed out there. I thought it would be a neater store but it really was just a Target above a parking garage. It was nice not to see a huge parking lot outside I guess.

Change and a really long tongue

 
 

Nyla is close to 2 weeks old in the first picture. None of us knew how our lives could change in 14 months. Bohdin bears the brunt of it since she has to have everything he has.

We were reading a book and at the end Bohdin mentioned a frog he saw that had a really long tongue that could catch bugs. This led to us trying to touch our noses with our tongues and then a collaborative story...

Once upon a time there was a boy named Bohdin who had many long tongues. He used these long tongues to complete many tasks. While laying in bed he could stretch his tongue out to the kitchen and grab an apple. A tongue would wrap around a cup and take it to the kitchen. Another tongue would turn on the faucet to fill the cup with water. That's not all that the tongue could do. Bohdin would be able to hold a towel with his long strong tongue and dry his mommy after a bath or shower. His tongue could hold a blow dryer and dry her hair. All of his tongues would be able to do lots of things for him. The end.

Nyla has had a runny nose now for two days and this will be the third night. I hope she improves soon not so much for her sake but ours. It sounds like a chainsaw at night. She and Bohdin sleep through it but it sure bugs Buddy and I. I hope Bohdin doesn't get it but it seems unlikely. They share drinks and food. Nyla insists on eating the things off of Bohdin's plate. She will no longer sit in her high chair. I'll put it away as soon as I come to terms with her no longer being a little baby. I'm still holding out a little hope that I can corral her for at least a few minutes of the day. When I write that I can see how ridiculous my hope is. This is not a child that can be held back. She has more determination than anybody I know.

Brown stuff everywhere

When I talked to Buddy on the phone tonight he said I hadn't done a blog post for several days. After some thought I realized this wasn't true. I did write a post yesterday it just didn't post. We have spotty internet service.

Yesterday Bohdin and I had a dentist appointment. I was surprised to find out that Bohdin was scared. He has been to the dentist before and everything seemed fine. It could just be an age thing. He thinks I left him home all by himself to go to the grocery store one time. That is nowhere near true. Anyway, I talked to Bohdin about the dentist. When we went in he didn't seem too frightened. The dentist was really nice and gentle. I ended up holding Bohdin in my arms while she checked him out. Nyla climbed up behind me into the dentist's chair. My appointment was a bit longer since they did xrays and non gentle cleaning. We had the same lady but my mouth felt assaulted at the end. Bohdin picked out a pink and yellow Dora toothbrush for himself. He spent a lot of time looking through the small prizes but never chose one. The office staff ended up holding Nyla for a while. She was not as cooperative as Bohdin.

Nothing else has been going on here. We've all been hot and grumpy and hungry. Our building was power washed yesterday so we had to have the windows closed. It felt really hot inside today and we were all sweating. It should cool down a bit soon. We might need to go grocery shopping as well.

I had a sweet tooth at the store today so we decided to make cookies. We went to play at N-'s house first and Bohdin was exhausted on the way home and nearly fell asleep. Despite being tired he wanted to make the dough anyway. We made a sugar cookie dough to roll out tomorrow and a chocolate drop cookie with chocolate chips, walnuts, and marshmallows. I put them in the oven after Bohdin had fallen asleep. Nyla was still awake and playing without a diaper on. She ended up pooping right next to me. Of course Nyla had to point out her achievement. It excites her to see her own poop. As I was cleaning it she would point repeatedly to it and say "heh heh heh". It almost sounded like she was laughing at me. As soon as I was done I had to take out the brown chocolate cookies from the oven. It seemed like cruel timing to go from a brown mess on the floor to a brown lumpy cookie.

Babyproofing

Nyla has been getting into things I wish she wouldn't so I've been thinking about baby proofing lately. We have the kind of latches that you push down to open a cabinet but Nyla has figured those out. Bohdin didn't require any special measures because he was good at staying out of things once told not to touch. (Paul might disagree here but he has a very very low tolerance of mess) Upon reflection, I realized that Nyla is trying to get the same things that Bohdin touches regularly. She wants the plastic bags, the dishwasher detergent, the straws, etc. I've moved the saran wrap and stuff but I didn't know if I should get something stronger. As long as she contains herself to her current items I'll leave it the way it is. I will probably rearrange the bathroom though. I don't need her eating my contact lenses.

Nyla's novelty with the potty has worn off. I think she may have thought she wouldn't need her butt wiped if she pooped on the potty. Since that is not the case, she lost interest. Someday it will happen.

We went to the playground last night and there were quite a few little boys there. They invented a funny slide game that had them and me laughing. It was good to see Bohdin have so much fun. I wish fall could last forever. It's unlikely we'll see so many people when the weather turns cold. It will actually be hard when the days get shorter too. Almost everybody works around here. It will be too dark after work to take their kids to the playground. We'll enjoy it while it lasts.

hrrmm

Bohdin makes a low throaty growl when he's mad in addition to crossing his arms. Nyla has picked up on the sound and now does the same sound to express her anger. It's hard not to laugh when Nyla does it. She seems so young to be doing something like that. Buddy thinks it is detrimental to her talking. She doesn't talk yet or really sign. She is expressive though and does manage to get her point across often. She understands so much though. She follows simple commands when she wishes. She doesn't like to let go of the knife when we ask her but she will put her shoes by the door.

A few weeks ago we went to post to drop off a lunch for Buddy. There was a man walking out wearing a uniform and Bohdin asked if that was daddy. I didn't even have to look twice since he was black. When I said no Bohdin asked "What does daddy look like?" A few days later I was wondering if he knew what I looked like. I was laying on the bed in the fetal position so Bohdin couldn't see me. We called him in and asked him what I looked like. He said "a turtle?".

Bohdin wants to look at toys online together so I have to end this now. He's really looking forward to his birthday now.

Forgot to include the funny story

On Sunday, I was lying in bed with Buddy and Nyla. I told Nyla that she, Bohdin, daddy, and me were going to go on the train the next day. She started shaking her head no. Buddy said "I hope you're not saying no to daddy coming". She put on her pouty face. Here is an example:

 

The perfect trip....for Bohdin

You would think that staying at a hotel that charges many many hundreds of dollars per night would offer free internet access but that is not the case. They charge over $17 per day. When we came back from our trip our internet access wasn't working. Buddy has a magic touch so it works when he touches it. So finally at 8:34 pm I can write a post.

If I could have planned a dream trip for Bohdin to NYC I would have done it almost exactly as we did. We went to three different playgrounds. We ate french fries, popsicles, hamburgers, and pizza. He went to toy stores on 3 different occasions. He rode on the subway numerous times. He could watch an m&m ad on a gigantic screen. Unfortunately a great trip for Bohdin does not make a great one for me. I spent half of my time in NYC in transit. That means keeping track of a 3 year old and carrying a 25 pound wiggly toddler on my back for hours. I spent a quarter of the time in playgrounds or toy stores. I spent the other time getting food. I was able to do one thing for myself which is buying new bras. That took less than one hour. I'm just a bit disappointed because I was expecting more time for myself this trip. My birthday was on Sunday and Buddy said we would do my birthday in NYC (He had forgotten my birthday until I mentioned it at noon). I can't figure out which part was the celebratory part. Every meal was takeout. Many were eaten while standing. Buddy said I had time to myself on Thursday before the train left. I used that time to get the kids food for the train ride. They were starving during the trip so it was completely necessary.

Paul wanted to know what the best meal I had. That's hard to pick. Our first day there we walked to a middle eastern restaurant. I didn't really get to try much of that because I told Buddy to take it with him since he had to rush back to a meeting. That might have been good. The Shake Shack burger was good. Part of mine was a little underdone (I forgot to ask for it well done) but the part that I did eat was tasty. Every meal seemed so rushed it was hard to take the time to enjoy anything. It wasn't the pizza that Nyla mistook for poop.

Nyla had her diaper off at the hotel and ended up pooping on the floor. (We contributed to the filthiness of hotel rooms. Sorry) She pointed out her poop on the carpet. I picked it up with some toilet paper. She then pointed to the pizza she had been eating. I will admit that it also looked like poop to me. It was quite funny. Buddy picked out that meal.

Bohdin really enjoyed the toy stores and found numerous things to add to his birthday wish list. Prior to the trip there was only one thing on there. He liked a lot of the new Playmobil toys. They did look like a lot of fun. He thought the conveyor belt was great. He has been talking about building a conveyor belt from his room to the living room and into his toy box so he wouldn't have to deliver each toy himself. This toy conveyor belt wasn't big enough for that but he still liked the play possibilities of it. He also liked the recycling truck and some of the other trucks.

I saw my first NYC rat. It was in the subway on a platform across from us. Bohdin didn't see it. He was on a litter kick this week and pointed out a lot of the litter we saw. In the subway stations there was a lot that was on the track so over and over I heard about litter. He also thought the peeling paint made it look dirty.

Tuesday morning was a little brisk. Bohdin runs really hot so he went out with a short sleeve shirt and pants. He was also carrying a bag of ice. He likes to eat ice. He was the only person on the streets that wasn't wearing long sleeves. Almost everybody was wearing a jacket. I thought everybody looked kind of drab wearing their dark colors. After a day in khaki pants I realized that it was out of necessity. My pants looked like I had been camping in the woods wearing those same pants every day for two weeks. I'm surprised they came out clean.

Bohdin thinks I've been typing long enough now. It's time to read a book.

Bohdin's favorite part: "Everything"
Bohdin's favorite food: "The popcorn and all of it. The tuna fish."

Bodhin: "There are two different kinds subways. Some are colored and some are not colored. Some are numbers and some are letters." "Limousines are stretched cars" "The circle elevators have some windows. I can look out the window and see how high we are going. When we go up and down it makes my body feel a little bit funny." "I saw those doors that go round and round by themselves that are like spinning doors." "I saw one sign that said don't hold the doors open and one that said no leaning on doors." "One m&m was being a statue. One was climbing on top of a building and going like this [pounding chest]. A red one was on the ground being nothing and he was being with a yellow one. There is supposed to be an orange one also. I saw lots of m&ms like on an m&m tunnel." "We need more tickets to get to the other coaches. I don't like it as much." We walked through the train and had to turn around at business class. Bohdin didn't like that. "I like chasing the birds. I was sneaking up on them and they would fly up on the trees. The ones on the grass, I would try to make them fly but they would fly back on the ground." "I saw a machine that had some pipes up there and it was connected to the big pipe." This was inside the Hershey store. "I remember the cards you use to get through those tolls. The ones at the subway stations."

He's insisting I read again. I'm glad I got his perspective though.

NYC

Buddy was supposed to do a blog post on Sunday but claimed he didn't know how. I couldn't do one yesterday because I didn't have internet. We took the train up with Buddy to NYC yesterday. He is attending some sort of conference. To have a conference at a hotel in Times Square seems like a waste of taxpayer dollars. Since they don't share rooms we tagged along.

I had told Bohdin about the train trip last week and he was so excited. He woke up before dawn on Monday morning ready to go. Our train didn't leave quite that early. The train trip was okay from my perspective. It was really bumpy. Sort of like being on a really turbulent airplane for almost 4 hours. It's no surprise that train travel isn't more popular.

By the time we made it to the hotel it was almost 2. Buddy had a meeting at 3. We went out to get some lunch really quick but it took so long. Bohdin was fascinated with everything he saw and could not walk quickly. He wanted to talk about and see everything. It was nearly 3 by the time we got our food and I sent Buddy back with the one dish (we only had enough cash for one meal). I walked with Bohdin and Nyla to Whole Foods to pick up a snack there. Nyla likes munching on raw broccoli so I picked up a few things at the salad bar. That store is so so busy. It was a bit of a frustrating experience.

Buddy wasn't done by the time we came back so we waited in the room. When he was finished it was getting dark outside and we decided to go to Shake Shack for a burger. This is Paul's favorite place so we had to try it. Buddy didn't get an unlimited subway card like I did so he decided to walk the 1.2 miles there while Bohdin and I took the subway. Despite going to the wrong subway station at first we made it there much much faster than him. Nyla fell asleep on the way there so Bohdin played at the playground near there by himself while Buddy waited on our food. It was a good burger.

By the time we came back it was time to get the kids ready for bed. Bohdin is taking a nap right now so we'll be able to stay out a bit later. I'm glad because my shoulders could use a break from carrying Nyla. Bending down to hear what Bohdin has to say while she's on my back is quite a workout. I'm earning these high calorie meals.

Schlepping two kids around is slow hard work so we haven't done much today either. I bought some bras and then we went to FAO Schwarz. That took over 3 hours. Both Bohdin and Nyla are enjoying looking around, especially Bohdin so it's okay that we spend 5 minutes inspecting grates and another 5 minutes watching a guy load bricks in a bucket.

Unfair

I was planning to write today's post about the unfair traffic ticket I received yesterday but then I found out my friend's father was diagnosed with melanoma that metasticized into his brain. It is inoperable. This same friend lost her best friend to cancer a few years ago. That is unfair. I am so saddened that she has had to endure so much. This is a difficult time for her entire family. I'm not up to describing the bland events of my life today.

Gettysburg

We left for Gettysburg early Tuesday afternoon after a morning of struggling to get ready. The drive was faster than expected. It took maybe an hour and a half to get there. We made it there before Buddy so we drove around town a bit and stopped at the Gettysburg visitor center. We met Buddy at the hotel later but he had work to do. I took the kids to a grocery store to get some stuff for dinner. They were so hungry they ate in the car on the way back to the hotel. We went for a walk afterwards even though it was dark. There is a miniature golf course and go cart track next to the hotel but they weren't open. There was also a housing development which was unlike anything we had ever seen. It was a no maintenance property of small connected dwellings in a castle theme. They also threw in some ancient Roman ruins into the mix. Every house facade was different. It was certainly a strange site.

Buddy had to do some more work after that so I put the kids into the bathtub after cleaning out the copious amounts of hair. Housekeeping was a tad lax. The bathtub drain didn't work so I had to put my hand over the hole so the water would accumulate. After getting ready for bed, I turned out the lights so Nyla and Bohdin could go to sleep and Nyla freaked out. She started crying and clawing at me like I was her last chance for survival. It didn't turn out the way I thought it would. There was a bit of hallway noise and we could hear some people in the room next to us.

The bed was uncomfortable and the next morning I woke up to the sound of a cricket. I was sleeping on a terrible bed in a dirty room. Bugs were the last straw. It took me a minute to realize the chirping sound was very regular and was actually Buddy's alarm. The kids slept another hour. After awaking we had some breakfast and then went out. We stopped for donuts and then went to the site of the first day of battle. I've been to a few Civil War sites previously and I don't really care for them. Gettysburg was no different. The countryside was pretty though.

Bohdin watching the train. Soldiers tried to get across this railroad track during the war. Some troops were stationed on the other side. There were also troops in the treeline in the back at some point.
 

We went back to the room for Nyla's nap. The hotel had unbelievably slow and unreliable internet access. I expected more from a conference center. Bohdin ended up waking Nyla early from her nap. The whole situation wasn't working for me so I decided to leave. On the way home we stopped at Cunningham Falls state park in Maryland. We hiked to the waterfall on the easier .5 mile trail. On the way back, Bohdin wanted to do the steeper and longer trail. He did a really good job. The area was really pretty. We'll have to go back again sometime. There was some highway noise which was unfortunate but there were very few people around.
 

There is also a lake and a playground at the park so we stopped there. They had nicer sand there than the crap beach in Annapolis. The water is probably much less polluted also. Nyla loves slides.
 

I just like this picture of Bohdin.
 

Because of our stop and the fact that I took the wrong road for a while, it took us almost 5 hours to get back. I've never been so happy to be back home after a trip. It felt like I had been gone forever instead of just overnight. Me and the kids practically by ourselves on a trip is not that fun. I think and hope NYC next week will be better. At least I won't have to apologize to the kids for strapping them into their carseats yet again. I think I would have enjoyed the area better if I could have done a guided tour. Neither of the kids was up for a 3 hour car tour though. They'll be gone soon enough and then I can go back.