Life With Wee People: Of Chocolate Houses And Ostrich Egg Hunts

Life With Wee People: Of Chocolate Houses And Ostrich Egg Hunts

I bet you thought taking your wee ones on an Easter Egg Hunt was the bomb diggety (LOL). Being quirky, I figured my wee people need help finding their Easter eggs so why settle for little colored ones when you can send your kids looking for a huge Ostrich egg (LOL). If you're going to have kids doing Localism then you might as well make their day trips worth their while. Westminster, Maryland is a lovely spot (LOL). I myself have a thing for eye candy. It's an addiction. I have to have it so it doesn't take much to get me out on the road between assignments to see something beautiful.

My kids have discovered photography so I also have to find something interesting for them to experience and explore. It's a game we love to play so welcome to our latest hunt for eye candy excursion... I now have to add an educational twist to them so here it is... :-)

According to Wikipedia, "The Ostrich is the largest living species of bird and lays the largest egg of any living bird (extinct elephant birds of Madagascar and giant moa of New Zealand laid larger eggs)." Wikipedia also states, "...on average they are 15 centimeters (5.9 in) long, 13 centimeters (5.1 in) wide, and weigh 1.4 kilograms (3.1 lb), over 20 times the weight of a chicken egg. They are glossy cream-colored, with thick shells marked by small pits." With stats like these I was sure Mr. PDD-NOS would have no problem distinguishing them from rocks (LOL). Being a wee bit quirky, these birds pick and choose which eggs to keep and discard, so if you go visit what used to be an Ostrich Farm you are bound to find them hidden just about anywhere.

Since Stephen, the Minion Blur is about to turn four at the end of the month, I figured our usual habit of celebrating the whole month for us both being April babies could use some really cool eye candy moments for our "workbooks." My kids are hands on learners so my gal pals and I are frequently cooking up interesting stuff for them to do so they can get the punch line to the wee people agenda. Mr. Autistic decided to stay home with his Daddy, so Mr. PDD-NOS and I packed a bag and took off the the country.

If you have really cool friends with access to unique properties you can make all sorts of learning experiences and mini-vacationing dreams come true simply by sending off a text message or, in my case, habitually picking up the phone to ask the infamous Twitter question of: "Whatcha doing?"

Ask enough talented friends "Wassup?" and you'll discover all sorts of great opportunities waiting for you to take hold of and explore. Like Cindy Tsui"s girlfriend's hubby opening a new restaurant in Boston (which I will review when we wander off to invade Mass) and Margaret Rome working on her Open House schedule while looking to do something wonderful for a Graphic Designer named Lucy who happens to be a valued client of hers. I rarely pass up opportunities to meet artists or chefs, so after chatting it up we decided to cook up an impromptu Open House so shorty could get his MD eye candy hunt on and we could spend the day working together at a gorgeous home, exploring the Maryland countryside.

You can check out http://www.beebecomm.com/services.htm if you want to see an example of her work. She designs websites besides creating graphic art. :-)

The cool thing about having stellar mentors is hanging out while learning something new. What makes a visit a real treat is when a seller doesn't mind you making yourself at home inclusive of helping out with the yard work. I happen to love yard work and gardening so it is always a treat if I get to play in the dirt (with or without the shorties in tow - LOL). I have a lot of relocation projects to do so I frequently mix pleasure with business. It was a pleasure spending the day with Margaret and Lucy. I am looking forward to spending more time with them.

I can't visit with everyone but when I do get out and about I am infamous for snapping off shots and sending them to my clients. I learned from Elizabeth Weintraub that nothing beats previewing a property so you don't waste time sending people somewhere they really don't belong. The cool thing about Lucy's house is I can't imagine anyone NOT wanting to belong there (LOL).

Stephen wasn't inside two minutes before he was demanding I take his shoes off. Shorty only does that when he is home or in a house that feels like home. When Stephen chirps "shoes off" that is a pretty high compliment from Mr. PDD-NOS. My kids only do that when they are comfortable with people and places. That's another reason I like to have them tag along with me at work. If they don't like a house I will not take the listing. I will refer you to an agent who does not have quirky kids in tow that happen to be the boss (LOL).

The anticipation of seeing this place was further fueled by the lovely farms and country homes littering the hill sides. The fields are turning green and Stephen and I pulled over several times to enjoy the sunshine highlighting the long and winding country roads. I'm thinking I should pack a picnic basket for our next visit to Lucy's because the flowers are starting to bloom and we love eating outside. I've been talking to everyone I know about coming along to hang out and view it and if I had to pick a place where I wanted to hold an ActiveRain Open, this would definitely be it...

I know, I know, this from the Native New Yorker, eh? (LOL) Oh well... gorgeous is gorgeous. I am an equal opportunity lover of beauty. Doesn't have to be in my state for me to enjoy it. Why limit yourself if you don't have to? Besides, there isn't a bad view from a single window. How often do I get to say that? Not very (LOL). Check out some of shorty's fave spots to wax poetic about as only a three year old can. Anything that gets my speech delayed kid talking always captures my attention.

Call Margret if you are interested, tell her I sent you and take the drive down.

I like to stay at the Hilton Pikesville when I am not staying with my friends. It's located at 1726 Reisterstown Road, Pikesville, Maryland, United States 21208 Tel: 1-410-653-1100 Fax: 1-410-415-6232. You can stay where ever you want, however, if you're hanging out with me, my pals and the shorties then that's our spot. If I have a client in tow that is where we are staying. I am already plotting and planning our next drive down so if you are a serious buyer you can call me if you want to. The property shows by appointment only.

We are cooking up another open house and I might even throw my B-day party down south because I have two pals I may be bringing with me to check out where I've been sneaking off to without warning (LOL). My brick and mortars get way more information than my blog readers. I do share a lot but I don't tell you everything (LOL). ;-)

Did I mention Lucy's house has a couple of fireplaces and several balconies? Hmm... There is a lot I haven't mentioned (LOL). I shall blog about it later when I go back... You should see this place for yourself because there are spots I didn't get to yet. Seriously... There are watering holes for the animals to enjoy and great spots to spin off and get your zen on with a mountain bike. The Ostrich pens are empty but if you have dogs and/or horses (or not) you are going to love this place.

Got crazy kids like I do? Stick 'em in the pens (LOL). Stephen made a bee line for them several times but I had to distract him because I was too busy wanting to go the other way. To shorty fence = yard to play in (LOL). Think of it as fencing in your fave little lunatics within wide open spaces (LOL). Bring your GPS to tag the house and then go hiking. I would hate to have you get lost in the woods while exploring 28 acres of beauty. If you are citified, stick within eye distance of the house (LOL).

Wait until you see the stream out back... Way back... I have soooo gotta take pictures of it (LOL) :-)