Glow and Snow at the Gardens

Marina and I have attended Glow at the Gardens from the first year it began. Our tickets were for this evening. The temperature dropped dramatically today and we had snow flurries. But that didn’t dampen our spirits. We both wore our Halloween costumes, but you couldn’t really see them under our heavy coats.

It took a while to get to the Botanic Gardens and when we arrived it was already busy. We found a parking sport not too far way and quickly went inside.

We stopped to buy chai lattes. We also saw a woman dressed like Glinda on stilts. We took pictures and then bundled up to go through the garden. This year there were more trick or treat stations and since this was the last night of the event, they encouraged to take as much candy as they wanted. Marina was actually fairly reserved in her selections.

The carved pumpkins were extraordinary as usual. We loved a pile of flame carved pumpkins with a smoke machine inside and horse created from pumpkins. Marina wasn’t as fond of the haunted forest which she thought was too creepy. She enjoyed the ghostly apparitions at one of the administrative buildings. Although, when a pair of giant eyes appeared she was obviously startled.

We went into the Memorial Building where Marina tried out the crafts. She made a wand, colored a vampire picture and decorated a cat mask. On our way out, we saw a room with music playing and acrobats performing. Marina started up a conversation with a woman using lighted hula hoops. We also talked to another woman dancing around in beautiful lighted wings.

We bundled up again and walked to the car. Fortunately it never got too cold and we enjoyed the evening.

Winter Garden

Marina had the day off from school today. It was unseasonably warm so it seemed ideal to find something to do outside. We haven't been to the botanic gardens in a while, so we decided to see what was going on there.

Much of the grounds was covered with recent snowfall, but it was still very pretty. The Chihuly exhibit was no longer there, but a new piece has been installed on a permanent basis since we last visited. So we went to see that first.

We walked through some the other gardens we have been to many times. But they all looked very different in the snow. We paid more attention to the artwork and structures than we normally do.

Next we went into the new Science Pyramid. It opened after our last visit and Marina was excited to finally see inside. When we walked in, she spoke with a scientist who showed her slides of plant leaves under a huge magnifying glass. She also enjoyed exploring many exhibits which allowed her to view different ecosystems.

Her favorite part was a huge globe where she could choose to look at anything from flight patterns to hurricane activity. One had weather patterns from the year she was born. It took her a while, but she was able to get the dial to land on the day she was born.

After we explored the Science Pyramid, we looked at the Japanese garden. She was surprised to see fish in the icy water. She also started drawing happy faces in the snow banks she saw.

We went into the greenhouse and found many spring flowers already in bloom. Marina wasn't able to smell as many as she wanted because there were bees all over them. I'm sure the bees don't have many other options right now! We went on to the tropical conservatory. We were both shocked by the heat and humidity. But the tropical plants were clearly thriving.

After a couple hours we decided to leave. We'd had a nice walk, even if we hadn't seen many flowers. But we know we'll be back for the spring flowers.

Swimming on a Snowy Day

Since Marina got a mermaid fin before Christmas last year, she has wanted to try it out. Since she had the day off today for President’s Day, I decided to take her swimming. We invited Ainsley to join us.

Today was cold and snowy. We decided to try out a new pool with a huge slide and a lazy river. But clearly many other people decided to go swimming today because the pool was much more crowded than we had expected.

The girls immediately started off by taking turns trying out the mermaid fin. The both discovered it was much more difficult than it looked. After the novelty had worn off, they spent quite a while on the lazy river. Near the end of our time there, Ainsley tried the water slide – both had been too scared to try it before then. When Ainsley came down, Marina met her at the bottom and Ainsley gave her a thumbs up. Then they went together to ride it. Clearly they both loved the slide because they went down it again and again.

Neither girl wanted to leave, but Ainsley had a piano lesson. So we headed out into the snow.

Frozen on the First

Since I had the day off, Marina and I decided to see the movie Frozen again. We invited her cousin Michelle who is in town for Christmas break and Uncle Mike. Their friend Jessica joined us as well.

Marina spent most of the day on her new tablet, so it took come convincing to get her dressed. She immediately decided to wear her Elsa costume. She also dressed Kailey in the Merry and Bright outfit so they looked alike.

We decided on a theater that also had a restaurant. So we arrived early and to have lunch. Apparently we were very early because we had to wait in line for the theater to open. When we went into the theater and found our seats, we were approached by a man who worked there. He was so excited by how she dressed that he offered to buy her dessert. Marina was thrilled!

Marina and I split a sampler platter and we were pretty full by the time the movie started. I think we both enjoyed it more the second time around. Michelle and Jessica, who hadn't seen it before, liked it as well.

As we left the theater, it was snowing outside. I asked Marina if she was making it snow, just as Elsa did in the movie. She thought that was silly. It seemed fitting.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Pictures

Okay, so I know it's too early to be discussing Christmas, but since I am ever the planner, I had her Christmas pictures taken today. We had three outfits: her Christmas dress, her Christmas day outfit (which is reminiscent of her family's Scottish tartan) and her Halloween costume. So here are the highlights:

Boo!

We went to the annual Boo at the Zoo today. It was a little strange that it fell after Halloween, but we were all still in a festive mood. Marina decided to be a snow princess this year. And as luck would have it, an identical snow queen costume was also available. When Marina asked me what I would be for Halloween (I haven't dressed up in years!) she decided we should match.

As per tradition, we went to the zoo with Cameron and Aunt Ann. Cam was dressed in a Special Forces costume. How cure they looked with him in black and Marina in white! It was a beautiful day, although it was a bit muddy after last week's snow and subsequent melt down.

Today's focus wasn't about the animals (Marina did insist on seeing the zebras and giraffes), it was about the candy. Since it was the last day of Boo at the Zoo festivities, many of the vendors were obviously wanting to rid themselves of as much candy as possible. Some of them put huge handfuls into the kids' bags. The result was Marina had a bag of candy she could barely lift!

Snow Day

We had a snow day today - sort of.

Marina's school is on Fall Break this week. (Where was Fall break when I was in school?) So when we got the snowstorm this week, she was already out of school. I had decided in advance to take today off to spend with her. We had more than 8 inches where I live. Today the great melt down began. So it was warm outside and the gutters were filled with rivers of melted snow. Marina had a ball!


While we were outside, I snapped a few pictures of her in her Halloween costume. After all, she is going to be a snow princess. What better backdrop could I ask for?