Whirlwind Look at Mom and Claudia's Visit
Recently, my Mom and goddaughter came and stayed with us for a little over a week. We were very excited to have them...my only regret was that we weren't able to spend more time together. In addition to having a very sick kitty (which necessitated two more trips to the vet during their visit), I also had a couple of prior obligations I couldn't break and D still had to work a portion of the week. All in all, though, I think they had a good time. We certainly enjoyed having them here.
This post will give you a small glimpse at their eight day visit. My goddaughter adores animals, so we tried to do activities centered around that. We also rented a movie (see previous post), tended to vegetables at the PAR gardens, scouted possible future neighborhoods for my mom and stepdad (moving may be a consideration in a few years), and swang by a nearby mom-and-pop nursery where my mom was able to snag some plants. In addition to that, we played board games almost nightly (which Claudia loved). Everything from Life to Scrabble to Scattegories and even an introduction to 500 Rummy. Perhaps the most competitive was Monopoly, where my sweetheart of a mother quickly became a land baroness and financially slayed us, leaving all remaining players destitute.
On Sunday afternoon, we ventured out to Carolina Tiger Rescue in Pittsboro. You can see a previous visit with the Kidlets and learn more about the facility by clicking here and here. It's a 55-acre complex that was begun by a geneticist to help with breeding and creating a registry for endangered keystone and umbrella species. In recent years, it has transitioned to a rescue, primarily for big cats. All of the animals on the property have a story. A few were abandoned when they became too big or aggressive to be manageable. Others were altered or abused in order to temper their natural inclinations. Still others arrived on the property as a result of zoo closures or for other reasons. Many required immediate medical care. None of them are candidates for being returned back to the wild, so they have their forever home in the park. The special thing about Carolina Tiger Rescue is that you have an opportunity to stand up to 3-feet away from many of these majestic beasts....with only a tall metal fence separating you. I wish their enclosures were larger, but they are working on that.
By Wednesday, encouraged by Conner's seemingly increased appetite and with an arsenal of nausea- and inflammation-managing drugs for him, we were given the go ahead by our vet to leave our sweet kitty and venture out on a day trip. We went to the town of Scotland Neck, a bird sanctuary called Sylvan Heights. It's one we have been to before....by ourselves and also with the Kidlets. Click here and here (includes video) to see a previous trip and read more about the sanctuary. Oh, and there is also a nearby restaurant recommendation.
Essentially Scotland Neck is a massive walk-through aviary focused on conservation. It is the largest breeding facility of its kind in all of North America and features hundreds of birds from around the world. Exotic species can be seen from South America, North America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. One of our favorite kid-friendly spots on all of the property is the budgie/parakeet enclosure, called The Landing Zone. You can have these sweet little birds perch on you and nibble feed from seed sticks, let flamingoes gently pluck kibble from your open palm or squabble with some of the larger species sauntering around.
I tried to make it a habit of cooking with Claudia a lot while she was here, but we also ate out a few times (thanks, Mom!). On this particular day, after Sylvan, we made a second trip to Charlie's BBQ and Grille in Clayton. I need to do a full write-up on the restaurant, but until then, know that the Black Oak Smoked Sausages are divine. They are first cured in whiskey barrels and have a distinctive, rich taste, incomparable to anything I've ever had.
Oh, in case you are looking for recipes....well, you saw our dinner menu links in the last Whichard Weekly, right? I also made the very decadent White Chocolate Banana Pudding (a special request) while my family was here, and my goddaughter was very capable to whip up Bowties and Sausage with Tomato Cream, which she served with a simple salad on their final night here.
Our last major outing was on Friday to Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium. Click here and here to see some cropped pictures way back from our 2009 visit. We've visited three of the four aquariums in North Carolina and Pine Knoll is, by far, the largest and nicest.
On the property is an indoor two-story waterfall, a river otters exhibit, various touch tanks, a snake enclosure, interactive displays (including a hurricane simulator), a sea turtle nursery, a living shipwreck, the mesmerizing jellyfish and thousands of aquatic animals. Click here to see a great, short video.
On our way back from the aquarium, we stopped for prime rib (yum!). A front began to move in and the weather started to really disintegrate. Glad it was mostly mild while they were here.
Okay, that's all I've got time for this morning. Hope ya'll enjoyed the snapshots!
This post will give you a small glimpse at their eight day visit. My goddaughter adores animals, so we tried to do activities centered around that. We also rented a movie (see previous post), tended to vegetables at the PAR gardens, scouted possible future neighborhoods for my mom and stepdad (moving may be a consideration in a few years), and swang by a nearby mom-and-pop nursery where my mom was able to snag some plants. In addition to that, we played board games almost nightly (which Claudia loved). Everything from Life to Scrabble to Scattegories and even an introduction to 500 Rummy. Perhaps the most competitive was Monopoly, where my sweetheart of a mother quickly became a land baroness and financially slayed us, leaving all remaining players destitute.
On Sunday afternoon, we ventured out to Carolina Tiger Rescue in Pittsboro. You can see a previous visit with the Kidlets and learn more about the facility by clicking here and here. It's a 55-acre complex that was begun by a geneticist to help with breeding and creating a registry for endangered keystone and umbrella species. In recent years, it has transitioned to a rescue, primarily for big cats. All of the animals on the property have a story. A few were abandoned when they became too big or aggressive to be manageable. Others were altered or abused in order to temper their natural inclinations. Still others arrived on the property as a result of zoo closures or for other reasons. Many required immediate medical care. None of them are candidates for being returned back to the wild, so they have their forever home in the park. The special thing about Carolina Tiger Rescue is that you have an opportunity to stand up to 3-feet away from many of these majestic beasts....with only a tall metal fence separating you. I wish their enclosures were larger, but they are working on that.
By Wednesday, encouraged by Conner's seemingly increased appetite and with an arsenal of nausea- and inflammation-managing drugs for him, we were given the go ahead by our vet to leave our sweet kitty and venture out on a day trip. We went to the town of Scotland Neck, a bird sanctuary called Sylvan Heights. It's one we have been to before....by ourselves and also with the Kidlets. Click here and here (includes video) to see a previous trip and read more about the sanctuary. Oh, and there is also a nearby restaurant recommendation.
Essentially Scotland Neck is a massive walk-through aviary focused on conservation. It is the largest breeding facility of its kind in all of North America and features hundreds of birds from around the world. Exotic species can be seen from South America, North America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. One of our favorite kid-friendly spots on all of the property is the budgie/parakeet enclosure, called The Landing Zone. You can have these sweet little birds perch on you and nibble feed from seed sticks, let flamingoes gently pluck kibble from your open palm or squabble with some of the larger species sauntering around.
I tried to make it a habit of cooking with Claudia a lot while she was here, but we also ate out a few times (thanks, Mom!). On this particular day, after Sylvan, we made a second trip to Charlie's BBQ and Grille in Clayton. I need to do a full write-up on the restaurant, but until then, know that the Black Oak Smoked Sausages are divine. They are first cured in whiskey barrels and have a distinctive, rich taste, incomparable to anything I've ever had.
Oh, in case you are looking for recipes....well, you saw our dinner menu links in the last Whichard Weekly, right? I also made the very decadent White Chocolate Banana Pudding (a special request) while my family was here, and my goddaughter was very capable to whip up Bowties and Sausage with Tomato Cream, which she served with a simple salad on their final night here.
Our last major outing was on Friday to Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium. Click here and here to see some cropped pictures way back from our 2009 visit. We've visited three of the four aquariums in North Carolina and Pine Knoll is, by far, the largest and nicest.
On the property is an indoor two-story waterfall, a river otters exhibit, various touch tanks, a snake enclosure, interactive displays (including a hurricane simulator), a sea turtle nursery, a living shipwreck, the mesmerizing jellyfish and thousands of aquatic animals. Click here to see a great, short video.
On our way back from the aquarium, we stopped for prime rib (yum!). A front began to move in and the weather started to really disintegrate. Glad it was mostly mild while they were here.
Okay, that's all I've got time for this morning. Hope ya'll enjoyed the snapshots!