What better way to spend the last day of May than checking out treehouses at Cheekwood. We had been waiting for this exhibit and I can tell you it didn't disappoint and we will be back! The treehouses are all literay based. The first we visited was called "The Giver". It was abstract and multi colored. It was vibrant and had a fun slide to go down.
Next up was "The Walden". It was an adorable wooden crafted house with lots of nostalgic toys inside. It also had a loft you could climb up to and a perfect swing underneath. This would have most definitely been the playhouse of my childhood dreams. It possible still is.
The "Jolly Roger" was a pretty big hit with the kiddos. It had a flag to wave, a wheel to steer and what boy doesn't dream of being a pirate at some point. It was really well done, I liked the apple basket they had cut and secured to the tree like it was the bucket on the mast. Clever folks built these treehouses, no doubt about that!
After the pirates came down from the high seas, we decided to eat our lunch. We looked around intently to find the perfect picnic spot. It's been a thing for Jackson and I to find the perfect picnic spot after reading "The Bernstein Bears Picnic" many times over. That was always one of my favorite books as a child. We did actually find the perfect picnic spot, right along the creek, under a tree with a waterfall nearby. It couldn't get much more perfect if you'd had truffle cheese on your ham sandwich (and I did!).
Next the boys took off running down the hill to this masterpiece. The ropes for this were tied high up in the surrounding trees and were made of beautiful pastels. Much thought went into this design to have children safely suspended over the water!
And now for our FAVORITE treehouse. I think this was an overall favorite for almost everyone. It was breathtaking. Shinning from the reflection of thousands of CD's, "Rainbow Fish" made a big impact on everyone! It just glimmered in the sunlight and the colors shone like a real rainbow. Inside, you could walk around for hours perusing the recycled CD's used in making this majestic creature come to life. The boys loved playing inside this one. It was the only one we visited twice.
This was inside the rainbow fish. I may or may not have threatened to leave to get this adorable pic of them. It's not that uncommon to use threats though and apparently it works so power on!
The fish had plastic bubble eyes perfect for checking the outside from within.
Next, we visited "The Hobbit". I have never read this book. I was intimidated by it's length when I was younger and now it's probably just not my genre but I'd read it to the kids. Jackson likes long books. This treehouse had a long, fast slide but it was pretty warm in the 1pm sun!
Lastly, we visitied the Conch. It was in a part of the gardens we'd never explored. It was a newly renovated area since we were last there. The Conch was a neat treehouse. We were getting a little tired since it was our last one so we didn't stay too long here.
Silly Lincoln stopped for a rest. He flashed his best smile for me (and the promise of water).
This is one of our favorite parts of the permanent gardens. It's the Japanese Garden. You walk down a trail and through a bamboo forest until you come upon a large overhang where you can see the trees and rocks. A sign tells you about the garden and how it is only supposed to be viewed from this one vantage point and it's suggests that the rocks are the water and the trees are clouds. Jackson loved imagining what the elements really were and the mystery in that it was only visible from this one point. Determined to prove them wrong (he's a literal kid) he wandered out onto the hill and proclaimed that he could see the zen garden from here too. He's all right brain, all the time.
After a long HOT stroll around the back side of the garden and past some creepy man/rabbit statue that Lincoln was terrified of, we finally got to the glass bridge. While visiting the restroom, Jackson saw the flyer for the glass bridge that we'd never seen before. He's a conquer also and we just HAD to see the bridge. We had to walk a pretty long way and all of us were beginning to question the decision when we finally arrived! It was a really cool bridge.
The boys and I had a great time at Cheekwood Gardens. It was a great way to kick off the summer of FUN! We've got to get it in while we can with Jackson beginning back August 1. Botanical Gardens and picnics...that's what summers are made of!
I hope these are the days they remember, the ones I'll never forget!
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