1/5/11

Places to Go - The Garden of Lights at Brookside Gardens (Wheaton, MD)

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Welcome to Day 3 of GROWN UP WEEK on the blog. We're only two days in and I'm already cheating a little bit. First of all, let me say that I think Brookside Gardens would make a wonderful date night; think about it - breathtakingly beautiful lights, a night sky, a cup of cocoa, holding hands (albeit gloved hands) - how romantic is that? Sort of like a night by the fire, but with electric lights instead. But, we didn't go to Brookside on a romantic date, rather we went on New Years' Eve as a family and that was pretty cool as well. Brookside hosts the most beautiful and extensive light display that I've ever seen (way better than zoolights), unlike most displays where you usually walk, see some lights, walk some more, THEN see some more lights, Brookside's displays are all encompassing (i.e. you don't have to seek them out), I especially loved the lighted flowers lining several walkways and the rainbow with electric rain (and thunderstorm sound effects). Due to the displays' vastness no bottlenecking occurs, hence you really do stroll through the gardens (rather than push your way through). Vendors offer hot drinks and snacks. Plus, the observatory hosts a train garden (I missed this part as I was standing in the bathroom line with F). The display ends on Sunday, so if you want to catch it, hurry up and go soon; luckily temperatures in the forties are predicted through Thursday evening making this the perfect time to visit. Admission is $25 per car on weekends, $20 on weekdays. The gates open at 5:30. For more info, click here.

If you're looking for another family-friendly night out, THE ARLINGTON PLANETARIUM has shows on Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30 (not recommended for children under 4). A few weeks ago, I took the girls and they loved it. Click here for info on the shows. Further on the first Monday of every month, the planetarium hosts a nightly sky viewing platform through its "Stars Tonight" program, which looks awesome. Click here for more info.

And if you want to ditch the kids entirely, SECOND CITY is performing their production of "A Girl's Guide to Washington Politics" at Wooly Mammoth Theatre through January 9th. (We're going tonight - I'm so excited!!).

Have a great Wednesday everyone!!

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