When Work Leads to a Back to School Celebration in Inner Harbor

One beautiful Saturday morning, I had the privilege of driving one of my Penn State students to Baltimore to visit her family. Once dropping her off, I continued on to Inner Harbor with Tyler to enjoy the Back to School Fest including a visit to the Baltimore Aquarium, dancing to live music and exploring Port Discovery.

If you have not been to Baltimore with your family, you should check it out, it is a great place for kids. Remember to get your parking ticket validated if you visit one of the major attractions so you get a discount. You'll want to choose the garage that corresponds with the attraction you're visiting. Pier V parking garage is my preference. It's right off East Pratt Street only a short walk away from the Harbor and easy to spot when you're ready to head back with a giant V at the top of a glass lit tower. Power Plant, the National Aquarium and the Maryland Science Center will validate tickets. If you're only visiting Port Discovery be sure to park at Harbor Park Garage. It is just up the sidewalk from the entrance and that's the garage they validate.

Our morning began with a nice walk around the Harbor. It was a bright clear day with a warm breeze coming off the water. Food trucks, a stage and decorations were being set up along the main street that had been closed in preparation for the weekend event. We took time to enjoy the views, the battleship, boats and artwork along the way. It was nice having a completely open day to just enjoy being with my little guy. Having adult children I understand all too well how quickly this time goes and so I try to slow down and enjoy the moments we have together. I remember a time when day trips and vacations were all about getting our money's worth but what I discovered was that it robbed us of quality time and created stress and contention around something that was meant to be enjoyable and bring us closer together. These days it's all about quality time, staying open to whatever the day brings, being responsive to the needs and wants of my family and whatever is bringing us joy in the experiences and that is worth every penny spent.

Our next stop was the National Aquarium to explore and unwind. Inside the entrance we were greeted with a towering waterfall and fish. Tyler and I love waterfalls and enjoyed listening to the crashing water and admiring the fish. Whoever was behind this concept had the right idea. It immediately ignites your senses and leaves you anticipating what's to come. One of the secrets I've discovered to living a joy filled life is taking time to experience things like it's the first time all over again or like you may never see or experience it again. Really soak life in, never take anything for granted and you will always feel grateful and fulfilled.

Heading up the escalator, Tyler was thrilled to find a megalodon jaw filled with teeth. He is so in to dinosaurs and sharks. This was like a finding the holy grail for him. We captured a photo and tried, unsuccessfully, to count the giant teeth. From there, we headed straight to the dolphins to watch their morning feeding and training session. They are such friendly and graceful creatures. You can't help but feel calm and happy around them. Tyler enjoyed listening to their clicks and squeaks and tried to mimic them. After a bit we made our way down to the bottom on the exhibit where a giant glass wall allows you to watch them glide through the water. Tyler commented on how it made him feel like he was under the ocean with the dolphins.

Back up the steps we found a cozy reading nook with lots of picture books about ocean animals and a giant sea turtle shell we could touch. We never pass up an opportunity to read a good book together so we sat down and picked out a few. Tyler's enthusiasm for learning and exploring is contagious. He makes me want to learn more everywhere we go.

Crossing back over the huge cat walk that spans about the length of a blue whale, we headed into the main aquarium. It begins by looking down into the ocean exhibit filled with colorful coral, stingrays, tiger sharks, leopard sharks and tropical fish. Tyler could have stayed right there for hours. Every time one swam by he would excitedly point it out to me. The floors to come would delight us with a variety of fresh water and salt water fish of various sizes and colors and patterns. Each new window into a tank was like unboxing a surprise. It was so fun watching Tyler go from tank to tank discovering each new underwater creature. He would want to know the names and have me read the signs with descriptions. Then, he would reiterate it back to make sure I understood. I love that about him.

Last but not least were the shark tanks. Tyler loves sharks and enjoyed watching them cruise around in the water. Hammerheads, black tip, saw fish and bull sharks thrilled him as we walked along the path down to the bottom of the exhibit. Once we turn the corner to leave there is a glass wall that allows you to get a view of coral, fish and even scuba divers keeping the tank sparkling clean.

We really worked up an appetite and headed out for lobster at Mason's Famous Lobster Rolls. Tyler had picked out some sea animal figures from the gift shop and enjoyed playing with them while he was waiting for the food to come out. Tyler had the lobster mac and cheese and I tried the lobster roll. It's not often I find a lobster roll done up as good as what we had in Maine. Both dishes had big lumps of claw meat and the lobster roll was done up right with a toasted butter roll and not over sauced. Tyler had picked out some sea animal figures from the gift shop and enjoyed playing with them while he was waiting for the food to come out.

After lunch, we spent a little more time with the dolphins before heading over to the street fair. People lined the street with lawn chairs as hip hop played on the huge stage. I took Tyler right up to the front row and let him dance and see himself of the screens. It was nice to see everyone out having a good time. From there we headed to the ice cream truck to cool off and then over to Port Discovery. This place was so cool. I think it was four floors of imaginative play and science activities. For the back to school celebration they were giving out school supplies and had a pencil case making craft. Tyler's favorite areas were the diner where he took my order and served up some delicious dishes, the market where we shopped and he checked us out at the registers and the bridge of a steam ship. This could have easily been an all day visit.

Our day ended with a walk back to the parking garage popping bubbles being blown by a mermaid along the way. We headed over to pick up our Penn State student and Tyler napped as I drove her back to school and reminisced the day's activities. This was a win/win day. It's so nice when things come together so well.