So after a FANTASTIC start to the trip, we really enjoyed the rest of our stay.

The Hotel Monaco Baltimore was amazing!  While we were checking in they had a treasure box full of all sorts of things kids would like.  Each of the kids got to pick something out!  Tonchi picked an art kit from [amazon_link id=”B00005JNS0″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Disney’s Cars movie[/amazon_link], Koa picked a flashlight (not surprising if you know him at all!), and Aisling picked a pack of 1000 stickers.  These kept them occupied during any spare moment we had and they didn’t even play with the few matchbox cars or books that we brought with us!

When we first pulled up to the front of the hotel, one of the parking attendants took our car to park and the bellhop took our luggage to our room, hung our coats and neatly organized our bags about the room. Talk about feeling like royalty!  There is a free wine hour from 5-6pm and we were soon back down in the posh lobby to enjoyed a glass of wine after an eventful day!

We went for a walk for a few blocks to let the kids burn off some energy after being in the car all day and then came back to the room for dinner. We were all soon in bed and sleeping!  Aisling was up a lot through the night for some reason which didn’t make it too relaxing, but at least she didn’t wake up the boys!

 

 

The next morning Brian was out the door to his conference after getting free coffee down in the lobby for us both.  I had brought some fruit and yogurt and homemade granola which the kids and I had for breakfast before heading out for the day.

We packed up the room and got ready to walk the city for the day.  We left our bags at the front desk bag check so that we didn’t have to worry about carting it all about the city.  I also didn’t want to have them bring up the car only to pay for them to park it again.

Anyway… the main purpose for this post was to let you know of some of the free stuff we found around the Inner Harbor, Baltimore in case you are ever in the area.

First off we walked a few blocks from the hotel and went to the Walters Art Museum.  On the lower level they had a family art room.  It was almost like a mini children’s museum.  There were books to read with cushions to sit on, dress ups and a full length mirror.  Also a castle play house with a theater opening complete with curtains and two huge bins of puppets.  We all took turns putting on shows for each other!

In another corner there were a few shelves of artifacts that the kids could touch and handle. There were plastic cubes with scorpions, beetles, butterflies, fish skeletons, and more.  There were starfish, sponges, shells, coral and so much more.  They could explore and touch and re-arrange to their hearts content!

After an hour or two they were ready to move on and we went upstairs and spend a short time wandering around.  We saw some medieval armor  swords, early guns and all things boy!  We also briefly went into the Egyptian room and saw some mummies!  In the Room of Wonders we saw a HUGE stuffed alligator, jaguar skin, stuffed moose head, stuffed sea life and so much more.  They were enthralled.

It was starting to get late and close to lunch to we hiked the 30 minutes to the Baltimore Convention Center and met Brian for lunch.

After lunch we wandered around the Inner Harbor for a bit, chased some birds and spent some time reading [amazon_link id=”006020186X” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Amelia Bedelia[/amazon_link], [amazon_link id=”0375825924″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Thomas the Train[/amazon_link] and a few others in the children’s section at the Barnes and Nobles.

When Brian finished he met us and we had a free tour of the Norwegian tall ship Statsraad Lehmkuhl docked in the harbor.  It was impressive and the crew was so kind to talk to us and answer many questions!

From there we headed back to the hotel to pick up our car and bags and head home.  Since we arrived at the hotel after 5pm we enjoyed another free wine hour and relaxed for a few.

Soon we were en route home and safely in our own beds.  Quite a few days, but very memorable!  Hope you enjoyed the saga!