From all of us at Best Upstate Ever, here's wishing the spirits of those who have fallen in the defense of our country are resting peacefully, and that those whose hearts still beat in their battered chests are made stronger by our support for our troops.
Whether we are made different by race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or preference in Pringles flavors (Barbeque!), or our political affiliation let it be known that we support the good fight in the hearts of our soldiers and in the hearts of their wives and family here on our soil.
God bless those families for being so strong, God bless the soldiers, pilots, sailors, submariners alike for having the strength to give SO MUCH of themselves for our country so that WE can have a normal family life, a normal American existence. Remember that should you ever doubt a war, the politicians made the war, our soldiers FIGHT IT. Support your troops, standing, fallen, or struggling to wave the American flag from their wheelchairs.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
The Schiele Museum of Natural History
The Pirates exhibits will thrill young boys and girls alike, and the lifelike historic villages outside are a treat to walk through. But a simple blog post won't be enough to tell you all the Schiele Museum of Natural history has to offer!
When you arrive in Gastonia, and park at the museum, from the parking lot a walking trail and historic village area will be to your right if the museum is straight ahead. There is also a nice area for picnicing (which is precisely what we did to enjoy a family meal!).
Tickets for adults are $7 a pop, and kids under 4 are FREE. Kids 4-18 are $6, as are seniors and students.
You will be greeted by a huge fossil of a T-rex in the front lobby.
There is always a temporary special exhibit on hand, and for the summer of 2010, it is "Pirates!", featuring some lifelike and education activities, such as tying knots for the ship, hoisiting the jolly roger, and donning pirate costumes and manning the helm. Be careful of the squeamish kids, there are some rather "gory" exhibits geared towards kids, but might scare the preschool crowd (or, in the case of my son, make him loudly exclaim about the dead body and how cool it looked, go figure!).
There is also an activity room with blocks, a reading tent, coloring sheets, puzzles, and finding treasure in the sand. This is not part of the "Pirates!" exhibit and is a permanent fixture of the museum.
Further on down inside the museum are lots of different exhibits chronicling the diverse species on our planet and detailing the evolution of man. While the exhibits, which mostly consist of a fair amount of taxidermy, are nice to look at, there is a LOT of reading in these areas, so don't expect your little ones to pause at each plaque and wait patiently as you attempt to "educate" them. They are kids, not dictation machines, just make some general statements about each exhibit, and elaborate on topics your child seems interested in :)
Outside the museum you will find not only an "authentic" reproduction of a historic American village, you will also find a Native American village on a .7 mile walking trail, complete with lots of photo opportunities at the Grist Mill with real working water-powered mill, and a teepee. That's right, you can do what I did with my husband and make out in a teepee. Because that's what Christian marriage is all about :)
Sarcasm and playfulness aside, the Schiele museum provided us with 5 hours of entertainment and family bonding time, for a low price, and only an hour outside of Greenville/Spartanburg makes it an affordable day trip.
Oh, and here is a shameless plug for this new site I'm addicted to. If you make it your default search engine (and I do computers and networks for a living so I'm assuring you now this isn't a gimmick) and search you earn points for free prizes.... click the button now and you can refer my awesome self and I'll get like, an extra point or something. Who knows, but I just do it because you don't even have to THINK about earning points!
When you arrive in Gastonia, and park at the museum, from the parking lot a walking trail and historic village area will be to your right if the museum is straight ahead. There is also a nice area for picnicing (which is precisely what we did to enjoy a family meal!).
Tickets for adults are $7 a pop, and kids under 4 are FREE. Kids 4-18 are $6, as are seniors and students.
You will be greeted by a huge fossil of a T-rex in the front lobby.
There is always a temporary special exhibit on hand, and for the summer of 2010, it is "Pirates!", featuring some lifelike and education activities, such as tying knots for the ship, hoisiting the jolly roger, and donning pirate costumes and manning the helm. Be careful of the squeamish kids, there are some rather "gory" exhibits geared towards kids, but might scare the preschool crowd (or, in the case of my son, make him loudly exclaim about the dead body and how cool it looked, go figure!).There is also an activity room with blocks, a reading tent, coloring sheets, puzzles, and finding treasure in the sand. This is not part of the "Pirates!" exhibit and is a permanent fixture of the museum.
Further on down inside the museum are lots of different exhibits chronicling the diverse species on our planet and detailing the evolution of man. While the exhibits, which mostly consist of a fair amount of taxidermy, are nice to look at, there is a LOT of reading in these areas, so don't expect your little ones to pause at each plaque and wait patiently as you attempt to "educate" them. They are kids, not dictation machines, just make some general statements about each exhibit, and elaborate on topics your child seems interested in :)
Outside the museum you will find not only an "authentic" reproduction of a historic American village, you will also find a Native American village on a .7 mile walking trail, complete with lots of photo opportunities at the Grist Mill with real working water-powered mill, and a teepee. That's right, you can do what I did with my husband and make out in a teepee. Because that's what Christian marriage is all about :)
Sarcasm and playfulness aside, the Schiele museum provided us with 5 hours of entertainment and family bonding time, for a low price, and only an hour outside of Greenville/Spartanburg makes it an affordable day trip.
Oh, and here is a shameless plug for this new site I'm addicted to. If you make it your default search engine (and I do computers and networks for a living so I'm assuring you now this isn't a gimmick) and search you earn points for free prizes.... click the button now and you can refer my awesome self and I'll get like, an extra point or something. Who knows, but I just do it because you don't even have to THINK about earning points!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Walnut Grove Plantation
Pack up some sandwiches and bottle some water and head on out to Moore, SC, and the famous Walnut Grove Plantation. The 18th century plantation built in 1765 for Charles and Mary Moore is furnished and features a kitchen with 18th century utensils. Other buildings include a blacksmith's shop, school, doctor's office, smokehouse and barns.
Open Tuesday through Saturday from April to October from 11-5 PM (Sun 2-5). Tours of the property are given by the hour.
Admission is $6, seniors are $5.50, and kids 6-18 are $3, meaning the under six crowd is free.
http://www.spartanburghistory.org/walnutgrove.php
Open Tuesday through Saturday from April to October from 11-5 PM (Sun 2-5). Tours of the property are given by the hour.
Admission is $6, seniors are $5.50, and kids 6-18 are $3, meaning the under six crowd is free.
http://www.spartanburghistory.org/walnutgrove.php
Enjoying parenthood in the Upstate on a budget!
Hello everybody!
My name is Lindsey, and I'm a quirky mom living in Greer of a rambunctious "almost four years old" boy and have another little boy on the way. I also have a gorgeous five year old niece and two year old nephew.
I love to expose the kids to all the wonderful things to see and do in our area, especially on a budget (kids admission tickets DO add up!).
By keeping my ear to the ground (and monitoring the internet) I've found lots of "hidden gems" and try to keep apprised of events in the area that are great for the kids, families, and parents alike (all parents need a night out once in a while!)
I'll try to post some wonderful places to visit often during the week, along with events, tickets, and discount information, as well as ideas for "mini" road trips for families to enjoy on the weekend!
Life doesn't have to be expensive, we can all get out and see all the world (and the Upstate and surrounding areas!) has to offer on a budget, and I'm going to help to show you how!
All ideas and suggestions are appreciated, and feel free to friend me on Facebook!
Thanks for stopping by and feel free to bookmark this page for more updates!
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