Category Archives: Ongoing

August 10, 2023 · 4:52 pm

Now Open (and Amazing!): The LEGO Discovery Center Washington, DC

[Note: This post was written by KFDC Contributor Emily Moise, a local writer and mom of ~~two~~ three young children. She always has excellent recommendations for kids’ activities around the DC area. See some of them here, here, here, and here.]

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LEGO is, of course, a master at building the ultimate kids space. The brand new LEGO Discovery Center Washington, DC is officially open in Virginia’s Springfield Town Center – just 30 minutes outside of the DC Metro area – and it may be the area’s coolest attraction yet. It targets ages 2-12, but regardless of your age or level of LEGO obsession, it is a must-see.

The LEGO Discovery Center features 12 zones with literally something for everyone. Your adventure begins with the Minifigure Creator zone., where you build your own LEGO figure that will be used throughout the experience, like for a photo-op in the LEGO Oval Office. (Fun tip: ask any staff member to trade minifigures and they have to, no questions asked!)

When you enter the main space, centered around the most incredible LEGO Tree of Togetherness, you may be overwhelmed with where to begin. Head straight for the Imagination Express to avoid any lines. I imagine this quick, interactive ride to be a small sampling of LEGOLAND rides, and, warning, your kids will want to do it more than once.

Before you head to the building zones, get inspired — and blown away — by the Mini World. No words can describe the extent of this exhibit built with over 1.5 million LEGO bricks, that includes DC’s most famous monuments, the National Mall, Nationals Park, and my kids’ favorite: an underground Metro train. Buttons and levers activate moving parts throughout.

You can do your own building at the Build Adventures zone and Spaceship Build & Scan zone. Construct vehicles to race on a volcanic, looped track, zip through a pyramid, or jump over an alligator. Then take your skills to the next out-of-this-world level. Build a rocket ship, scan it, set your mission settings, and launch it into cyber space.

If your kids have physical energy to burn after exercising their minds, head to the Hero Zone. Here you’ll find a small climbing gym and my family’s favorite feature, the Laser Maze, a “bank robbery” set up in LEGO City. Sneak through the laser beams at easy, medium, hard, and expert levels – fastest times are recorded for all to see!

Your littlest ones can bounce around DUPLO Park, where you’ll find a triceratops carousel, duck pond “fishing,” and more. After play time, it’s snack time. Head to the LEGO Café for treats and beverages. (Alternatively, the LEGO Discovery Center is located within a mall and surrounded by dining options—though re-entry is not permitted.)

Do NOT bypass the 4D Cinema during your visit, which offers a variety of LEGO short films (less than 15 minutes each) shown at scheduled intervals throughout the day. Put on your 3D glasses and prepare for light “snow,” water, and smoke to create that extra dimension. My son’s only complaint: the show was too short!

The Workshop is another zone with scheduled times where you can build along, step-by-step, with a Master Lego Builder. And if you haven’t exhausted your kids at this point, the Creative Club is yet another stop for open-ended designing and building.

And after what will easily be a half-day visit, exit through the Shop offering options to continue the creativity at home.

LEGO Discovery Center Washington DC
Where: Springfield Town Center | Springfield, VA 22150
When: 10AM – 6PM daily; last entry at 4:30PM
Admission: Starts at $28.99; free/age 2 & under | Purchase tickets in advance

Take Your T(w)eens — or Enjoy a KidFree Visit — to Glenstone

You have to be on the ball to score tickets to Glenstone, the modern art museum sprawling gloriously over 300 acres in Potomac, MD. Even pre-Covid, passes were hard to get. They are released on the first of every month for timed-entry admission for the following two months. So, tickets that are released tomorrow, April 1, will be for visits in May and June. This takes some patience and planning, but I promise it’s worth it. [Update: They now offer Guaranteed Admission for students age 12+, active-duty military personnel, and staff from other museums — and one guest can join them.]

Glenstone is more than just a museum; it’s a whole experience. One that transports you to what feels like a destination far, far away from the city. Both indoor galleries (that should start to reopen April 8) and expansive grounds showcase a remarkable collection and traveling exhibits that are interesting, evocative, and beautiful. Design and architectural features are practically works of art themselves, and you will likely find yourself studying lines of the buildings and the pool of aquatic plants in the courtyard as much as the paintings and sculptures.

Exploring all of it on foot in the galleries and along paved paths spanning through open grassy areas, trails winding through woods, and boardwalks that zigzag over thick brush (or straw during cold months) add some recreation to the outing. It’s like an art-filled hike or an active art adventure. There’s also a cafe to make it a lunch date or to enjoy a snack in a very scenic setting.

Pick up a paper map on your way in or scan a QR code for one. You definitely want to know where you’re going as some of the outdoor installations are a bit hidden, and you don’t want to miss them. Inside, the galleries are numbered, so make sure you count them all off, too. There’s at least one that is easy to miss, and we had to search a bit to find it (though that also added some extra fun).

With its 12-and-older age policy for visitors, Glenstone is automatically a spot for the T(w)een Scene. And while this may be a bummer to parents with younger kids, I get why they do it. It’s not just that the art might be considered sophisticated for little ones. (In the “eye of the beholder” vein, I think all art could be enjoyed and appreciated on some level by every age.) Part of the Glenstone experience is the peaceful, “contemplative environment,” as they call it. I could see it being tough to keep kiddos from wanting to bolt through wide open spaces outside and use inside voices in the echoing galleries. I’ve been a few times sans kids, with friends, and on my own — a different season each visit — and I highly recommend it for a grown-up outing, whether a day date, a visit with friends, or solo.

That said, both of my kids are finally old enough to go, and I’m looking forward to bringing them. I had tickets for all us to visit when they had a day off from school recently, but a crazy downpour that day thwarted those plans. Thus, I’ll be online tomorrow trying to score those elusive tickets again.

Glenstone is located at 12100 Glen Road in Potomac, MD. It’s currently open Thursday – Sunday, 10am – 5pm. You must have a ticket to visit. As mentioned, free tickets are released the first day of every month at 10am for the following two months. Photography is not permitted indoors, hence all the outdoor images here.

Hiking, Beaching, & a Little Fossil Hunting at Calvert Cliffs State Park

One might hear Calvert Cliffs State Park and immediately think awesome shark tooth hunting. After all, the features for which the locale is named are well known as the source of millions-of-years-old fossils along Chesapeake shores. However, in our experience, fossil finds are not what make the park an excellent day trip destination; whenever we have visited, we’ve found just a few small shark teeth at most. [Note: The pics here are from a visit this past summer… ’cause I have to keep the theme going of posting months after our visits. 😉]

What is more appealing about Calvert Cliffs State Park are its other main recreational activities: Hiking, beaching, and swimming. There are 13 miles of trails total within the park, including one that is the direct route to the beach. It’s pretty evident where to catch the Red Trail from the parking lot, then it’s a two-mile ramble to reach the sand and surf, but a fairly easy and very scenic one.

The route is flat and mellow for the most part, so little ones can tackle it, and stretches through woods and along edges of marshes. Part of the trail is a wide dirt path shaded by tall leafy trees and part is a boardwalk that extends along wetlands. You can walk and take in expansive views of the marsh areas filled with lily pads and aquatic plants. In a few places, the boardwalk extends out into them for a closer look, and there are a couple of benches on the way to sit and enjoy the scenes.

When you come to the one fork in the trail, there’s a sign that points the way to the beach. Follow that and you’ll eventually hit the stretch of sand where you can find a place to park your stuff and hang out awhile. It’s not a huge area as barriers are in place to keep people from accessing the actual cliff areas. Expect to share the space with a good amount of other people on nice days, especially weekends, though not too many that it’s crowded. The park limits capacity, even more during Covid, so it’s not overwhelming.

Swimming is permitted, and the water is shallow and calm, but look out for jellyfish. If you’re into fossil hunting, definitely do some searching for relics — like I said, I have found some small pieces there — but don’t be disappointed if you don’t find much. And what you don’t find fossil-wise, you’ll make up for with a nice little hike and beach fun.

Calvert Cliffs State Park is located at 10540 H. G. Trueman Road in Lusby, MD, about a one-hour drive from DC. Entry to the park is $7/vehicle, and it’s open sunrise to sunset. Bring along a picnic as there are no concessions in the park, just keep in mind that whatever you pack you’ll be carrying two miles. And make a stop at the bathroom near the parking lot since there isn’t one at the beach area.

As mentioned, the park limits capacity, so have a Plan B in mind in case you get there and it’s full. Annmarie Sculpture Garden is just a few minutes down the road and just a bit further is the Calvert Marine Museum.