Tag Archives: Week 48

     The delight of art in an unexpected place

1.  For an art fix while the museums are closed, take a tour of DC murals. You can find works by local artists all over the city on sides of buildings, temporarily boarded-up storefronts, even right on the street. MuralsDC, an initiative from the DC Department of Public Works, is an excellent resource for locating, learning about, and touring local murals. You can refer to the digital map and find tours of collections, including the 51 Murals for DC Statehood and U Street Corridor Walking Tour.  You might also happen upon murals in unexpected places — snap a pic and start a collection of them with the kids!  (PS: Find more ideas for activities during the Covid winter here.)

2. Ring in the Year of the Ox by sending a digital card through the the National Museum of Asian Art’s website.  (Btw, this is how the Freer|Sackler refers to the museum now.)

3. Watson Adventures has a virtual Wizard School Virtual Scavenger Hunt coming up this Saturday.  These often sell out, so snag spots while you can.  You can read about the IRL version of this hunt here, and we’ve also participated in one of their online events and had a blast.

4. I’m taking advantage of these wet and slushy winter days to do some organizing and purging at home, so it’s helpful to know where to to donate everything.  And this list specific to DC is especially helpful.

5.  Omg, this is hilarious!  Has anyone else had a mishap like this?

             A view from within the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden

1. No more gazing in through the wrought iron bars of the fence…  The National Gallery of Art announced that it will reopen the  Sculpture Garden this Sunday, February 14 — just in time for a Valentine’s Day stroll.  Hours will be 11am -4pm daily. (FYI: For more Valentine’s Day activities, check out the round-up of local ways to celebrate, both in person and virtually.)

2.  A new IG to follow: Kid Safe DC,  launched by a group of DC-area pediatricians who are passionate about injury prevention. They are also hosting free virtual car seat safety checks this Saturday. You can schedule an appointment to meet one-on-one with a Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician via Zoom.

3. Washingtonian has a round-up of restaurants with specials to celebrate the Lunar New Year, which is on Friday.

4. Rep. Jamie Raskin’s emotional speech yesterday is worth a watch.  This piece from The Atlantic nails why it resonates.

5. How awesome is Maketto?  (PS:  The restaurant is included in the round-up above, and I highly recommend it, whether you opt for the special meal now or their regular menu anytime — the food is amazing!)

Brookside Gardens is a wonderful place to wander any time of year

1. In case you missed it in the Weekend Round-Up, Brookside Nature Center is keeping their Maple Sugar tradition going during the pandemic with a self-guided interpretive Maple Trail Walk. This trail is available onsite during the month of February, and it’s free and open from dusk to dawn (note that only outdoor areas are open). They advise wearing boots as Sugaring Season is also Mud Season! Start the Maple trail walk at the 1400 Glenallan Avenue (Wheaton, MD) parking lot location – just look for the sugar maple leaf signs.  Plan for time to visit the lovely Brookside Gardens while you’re there, too!

2.  The Noyes Children’s Library Foundation is hosting another Noyes StoryWalk in Kensington, MD.  Through February, take a self-guided, socially distanced stroll through the grounds of Warner Circle, adjacent to the Noyes Children’s Library (10237 Carroll Place), to read The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. Both English and Spanish versions of the book are posted on spaced-apart signs, and the walk includes interactive suggestions tied into the book to encourage families to get some exercise on their outing. Craft kits based on the book will also be available in front of the library on Saturdays and Sundays while supplies last.

3. A new post on the blog takes a little detour from the usual KFDC content, but hopefully the ideas for Creating a Perfect Outdoor Set-Up for the Covid Winter will help elevate your hangouts this season!

4. Highlights from last night.  What was your fave?

5. Hahaha… SNL nailed it.