At the Shore.

Ah, the New Jersey Shore.  Booboo, Gma Lala and I spent the day at Brigantine Beach, just on the north side of Atlantic City.  Booboo loved the sand, the water "big big water!" and the small lagoons up shore, where she could wade all the way in and splash about.  We hope to be spending a lot more time there this summer.  Beautiful.

Here seagull, have a cookie!

New buddy-for-the-day Joey is nice to share his crab and turtle.

Sand in the mouth.

Boo seems to love the sand almost as much as mud!

Happy Father's Day

We went exploring at Forbidden Drive for Father's Day.  Mr. Tea had never actually been, so it seemed like a perfect time to check it out further.  The place is so cool--you just can't believe that you're minutes from a very busy part of town--it feels like upstate New York, almost.  With beautiful bridges, and those amazing rock formations.  Also lots of rocks.  For throwing in the water.  Booboo's rock-throwing skills need some work, but when all your energy goes into talking, some things get a little left behind.  We're working on it.

Can you imagine??? Brrrrr! 

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!  (Note the purple garden shoes.)

Our Wee Native.

The New Kitchen.

The Zoo

A lovely sunday trip to the zoo.  Thanks to Gammy and Gpa B, we now have a zoo membership, and can go anytime.  We spent most of the time with the primates, and at the children's zoo, which Booboo now quite enjoys.

Booboo and the Gorilla.

At the newly opened McNeil Aviary Center

Booboo and Daddy.

Caught by paparazzi!

Victorian Crowned Pigeon

Doin' the Pigeon.  (Actually, they're sunning themselves.)

Cutest Duck Family Ever.

My Pet Goat.

An Old Fashioned Picnic

Booboo and I happened on a local event just down the street at the Ebenezer Maxwell Mansion.  I pass the mansion every day on my walk to work.  Apparently, it is the only authentically restored victorian house and museum in Philadelphia, and is celebrating 150 years this year.

Well, Booboo couldn't be more thrilled, because there was a duck pond.  What is better, I tell you, than ducks for this child??  We spent most of our time at the duck pond game, with a short break for hotdogs and lemonade, and ice cream!  We met some new neighbors we hope to become better acquainted with, and Booboo left with 4 new duckies for her collection!  Score.

Serious Duck Hunter.

4 New Baby Ducks!

Those who were not consumed with duck hunting, were able to take in other pursuits--like croquet.

A view of the mansion.  (there was a house tour, but we neglected to go on it, figuring that one old house tour a weekend is plenty for a toddler!)

Muffin Saturdays.

Booboo and I have started kind of a tradition of making muffins on Saturdays.  This recipe we were first introduced to at W's shower a few months ago.  I found the same recipe at epicurious, check it out!  Delicious!

Just getting started.

adding the brown sugar, oh so carefully.

Here go the sugar sprinkles, yum!

Mercer Tiles.

Fonthill, home of Henry Chapin Mercer.  Built in 1910.

Fonthill, Henry Chapin Mercer's wacky home in Bucks County, has been on Gma Lala's and my list of places to visit for awhile.   

Henry Mercer was of particular interest because our very own kitchen counter is made of Mercer tiles, from this guy's Tile Works.  His home itself is very cool, totally eccentric.  It's made entirely of concrete.  There are artifacts built into the walls everywhere, tiles from his own Tile Works, as well as foreign tiles from his travels.  All the foreign tiles are numbered and catalogued.  Gorgeous specimens from Persia, Morocco, as well as ancient babylonian script of receipt books and things.  (The guy went to law school at Penn, but never was a lawyer, and got into archeology instead.  Go figure.) 

Booboo did extremely well on the tour.  Our tour guide was a earnest young intern who seemed nervous and new to the job, and didn't really have a way of catering her tour to her particular audience, (including the toddler in the house) but I'm sure she'll get better as the summer progresses.  It was a long tour, and quite a script to master, I'm sure!

They wouldn't let us take any indoor pictures, but here's a couple from the website:

 Columbus Room (Mercer had a thing for Columbus, as well as for the Ladies, apparently.)   

Detail of tile in the Library.

   

Just happy to be out of the car, in the grass.

Ok, so maybe I have a thing for kids and grass.

Chilling outside the museum.

 

Booboo and Mama.

 

View from the terrace.

 

Another shot from the terrace.

Our very own Mercer Tiles on the Kitchen Counter.

(And Gma Lala's home baked bread!  Yum!)

Afterward, we realized we were just a hop/skip and a jump to New Hope, so we had lunch there at a delicious mexican place.  We've been enjoying Uncle D's visit.  He came from the west by train, pretty adventurous.

 

Gma Lala and Uncle D...we worked up an appetite on all those stairs, and this food was the best mexican I've had in a long time!!  The Blue Tortilla.  If you head out to New Hope, don't miss it!!

 

Booboo really gets into her food, just like mama.

Feeding the Ducks on the Delaware River.

 

Here, Duckies!