Cute Kid Pix July 2018

More photos that didn't make their own blog post...

We started going back to the library after our Florida vacation. We went to a pajama time. The older kids did not want to join in, which was appropriate since all the children there were under five. Our youngest loved it. Later in the week, I took him to Picture Book Parade where we made a craft. The word of the week was "Imagine" and we made a very imaginative craft--an ice-cream cone puppet!

Opening the glue, always tricky

Coloring the cone

Mint chocolate chip is a new favorite flavor

We went to my old stomping ground, Silver Spring, for the Saturday morning famers' market. We had fun walking around, looking at displays, and admiring street performers.

Silver Spring's farmers' market

We bought a snack at the Greek bakery stand. We had a honey cake called Ravani and a walnut honey cake called Karidopita. The guys at the booth liked our kids and gave us an almond cookie as a bonus!

Greek artisan bakery

Super yummy snacks!

We meant to buy pita breads from them later, but our route back to the car did not bring us by their stand. We had our snack at the splash fountain, which wasn't on at 10 in the morning.

Splash fountain

We saw a mobile outdoor office space that looked cool.

The most "open" cubicle farm ever!

Even more cool was a juggler we stopped to admire along the way.

Dotting the "i" in Chipotle

Savage Mill hosted a "Where's Waldo?" scavenger hunt through most of July. We found him in several stores and went to the big party at the end of the month. The used book store hosted the party, which featured a trivia contest, the grand prize drawing (we won one of the secondary prizes), and a visit from Waldo himself!

Meeting Waldo

Drawing for the grand prize

Mom had a business trip which meant we had to drop her off at the airport. Near the airport is a playground which is just across the street from the end of a runway. The kids got to play on the equipment and occasionally see a plane taking off overhead.

Ready to slide

Done sliding

Climbing up for another slide?

Ready to swing

Swinging from a branch

One of a half-dozen planes to fly by

Ellicott City Farmers' Market

We visited the Farmers' Market in Ellicott City, Maryland, partly because we love farmers' markets, partly because a craft activity was supposed to happen next door, and partly because we'd get an activity credit on the Howard County Public Library System's Summer Reading Program. The market is located on the high end of Main Street so we didn't see any flood damage from last year's disaster. The market wasn't very big but we found it quite respectable.

Walking in to the Ellicott City Farmers' Market

One of the first booths was serving fresh squeezed lemonade. My two older children were fascinated and wanted their own. We compromised and bought two that they had to share with mommy, daddy, and little brother. My daughter wore a fine bonnet with matching shades and looked very much like a celebrity visitor.

A glamorous lemonade drinker

At the back of the market was a band covering various popular tunes. They were quite friendly and gave my daughter a kazoo so she could play along. They had a whole bucketful of kazoos so we assumed it was ours to keep.

Band

We bought some cookies from one of the stands and enjoyed a snack while we listened. Once we were ready to move on, the toddler put a tip in the band's box and we headed off to the craft.

Tipping

Another view on the market

Next door to the market is the Thomas Isaac Log Cabin, which was supposed to have a "Crafts with a Past" event starting as we walked over.

Thomas Isaac Log Cabin

The cabin was reconstructed in the late 1900s from the 1780 structure named after one of the owners (who apparently doesn't have any other historical significance).

View from the other side (sort of)

The door was locked and no one was inside and the lights were not on. We thought we'd explore some more then come back to see if anything had changed. Behind the cabin is a stone building that looked good for investigating.

Behind the log cabin

The building turned out to be the original courthouse for Howard County. The county rented it in 1840 and used it for two years while the regular courthouse was under construction. Originally it was on a road but the urban renewal in the 1960s resulted in an isolated structure.

An other side of the courthouse

The courthouse does have some displays, including a cornerstone from another building.

You don't think they'd display their own cornerstone, do you?

Info about the first courthouse

Info about the underground railroad

A pre-1960 map

By this time, the lemonade had worked its way through my daughter's system and she needed the toilet. After a quick check on the log cabin (still no one there) we went down the street to public bathrooms. We saw plenty of cool, old-time buildings which we took pictures of on the way back.

The current courthouse

A residence on the same hill as the courthouse

That's some extension on the brick building

I love an upstairs porch

The local brewery

The cabin still didn't have a craft going on, so we headed off on other adventures.

Laurel Farmers Market

We visited the Laurel Farmers Market on a Thursday in June. They are open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. from June to the end of October. It's been running for many years and is nestled into an empty lot on the 300 block of Main Street.

Laurel Farmers Market

Our first stop was Dolce, the Italian Ice stand. L had a choice between mango, cherry, and rainbow flavor. She loves mango pops at home, so naturally she chose rainbow flavor. She'll try different things if they are ice-cream-like desserts, especially if they are colorful. She loved it a lot and shared one spoonful with me and one little taste for N.

By the sign

By the stand

Granny was with us and took advantage of the massage stand for a quick adjustment.

A refreshing massage

We finally hit a farm stand. We bought some squash, green beans, and cherries.

A farmer's market stand!

The farm from which our veg came

The market also had a food vendor, but since we were there at 10 a.m. we didn't eat anything.

Food vendor

As a bonus, I took a picture of a cool looking bank nearby.

Cool bank

A Saturday Visit to Ellicott City, MD

Back in the summer, we went to the Ellicott City Old Town Farmers Market. Parking is better earlier--since we are early risers we were able to park in the shade. The market is located at Tonge Row, a row of houses built in the early 1800s by Ann Tonge for the mill workers in the area.

Tonge Row sign

Farmers Market

More row houses and market

L tips a busker

We didn't buy much at the market but we did some extra walking around to get the lay of the land. Main Street is a busy street with plenty of shops, restaurants, bars, and some historic buildings along the way.

View from the parking lot

View down Main Street

Cool building built into the side of the hill

Phoenix Emporium

The Phoenix Emporium was originally built in 1858. The land has a long commercial history, having been home to several saloons and restaurants as well as the emporium.

Across the street from the emporium is the Ellicott City B&O Museum, the oldest standing railroad station in Maryland and the first stop outside of Baltimore on the old Baltimore to Ohio line. We haven't been to the train museum yet but it is only a matter of time.

B&O Museum

On the way back to the car we saw a mural that looks just like the city it's in!

Ellicott City mural