Museum Week (Day 4): Mt. Cuba Center Inc, Wilmington, Delaware

Welcome to Thursday my friends!

Today I am introducing you to Mt. Cuba Center Inc in Wilmington, Delaware.
Mt. Cuba is well known for their native Delaware plants. The tour starts at the Main House. The architecture is breath taking and gardens surround the perimeter of the home and land everywhere. 

When I went we did a guided tour of the gardens only. I was so excited because we met in a room in the Main House and were advised of what we would be doing during the tour. 
We went during the summer time and it was pretty warm outside. Though there were a few offerings of shade during the tour, I would dress lightly with a good hat (walking through many wooded areas), sunscreen and carry water with you. 

There are certain times where you can attend a non guided tour. Definitely check Mt. Cuba's main website for more tour and admission information. This is definitely one of the museums you want to stop by if you love architecture, Du Pont history, gardens, and arts. 
 I also signed up for a booklet that comes once or twice a year for classes and continuing education classes held at Mt. Cuba. I definitely want to participate in one soon. Learning about nature and preserving it is important to me, but being able to do this locally in your home state is a wonderful thing.

 We were able to take many photographs and it was very relaxing. It's great to come as a family or as a couple.  Please enjoy some photographs I have selected. I normally take a hundred or more photographs but these are some of my favorite!

I hope you enjoyed the post today for #MuseumWeek. Mt. Cuba is another beautiful, whimsical place in Delaware. I hope you plan to visit if you are planning a trip, of if this is the first time you have heard of it if you are local. Or if you have been wanting to but haven't made the trip yet, I hope this has given you that final nudge to go! If you are local and have been here, you know one trip cannot satisfy looking at ever wonderful garden. 

If you have any questions about my trip or experience or if there is anything you would like to see please let me know in the comments below. I have linked Mt. Cuba's main page above but will also link here.

Thank you so much and let's celebrate that it is only one more day left until the weekend and to start exploring Delaware's offerings!

Museum Week (Day 3): Rockwood Museum

Hello friends!

I am writing with a different color today to introduce today's museum for #MuseumWeek. Drum roll please... today's museum will  be... Rockwood Museum and Park in Wilmington, Delaware.

Rockwood to me, is a whimsical place. It's nestled in Wilmington Delaware and is surrounded by nature everywhere. You enter Rockwood Park which has a nice walking trail and main road that both go up to the Rockwood Mansion.In the park is Edward Bringhurst III's playhouse.He was the only boy out of three siblings who lived in Rockwood Mansion.

There is a Gardener's Cottage. It is in older shape than the Mansion and I have only taken a few photographs of parts of it, but you can see it in full when visiting. It is not opened for tours. 

There is also the Carriage House at Rockwood that hosts events including weddings. Right now I do not have a direct picture of the Carriage House but I have some pictures of the surrounding rose garden (secret garden to me)! Either side of the Carriage House will lead to the mansion, but I like going to the left of it through the rose wall garden because it's ethereal. 

These two pictures don't even begin to do justice or show the whole rose garden walk way and wall. During spring time my fiance Todd and I have seen bunnies frolicking in the rose garden. And just imagine during an early summer morning the sunlight catching drops of water on the roses and never wanting to leave this dewy, dreamy garden.

The Rockwood Mansion itself has such exquisite architecture. It reminds me of a Gothic design. I am obsessed with the green/teal color used throughout the outside of the house. Below is the front of the house.

 The next images are from the left side of the house (looking at the front, the side that overlooks the park as you drive up)and the back of the home.

There are also many events that take place at Rockwood including the Old Fashioned Ice Cream Festival (last year Anthony Anderson was there filming his show for Food Network!!) and also the Delaware Shakespeare Festival (which I still need to attend)! I love both events here because it's like a dream with the gardens and park surrounding you. The ice cream festival I have attended the last two years. It is great because it hosts all local Delaware vendors. There is ice cream, water ice, liquor, all sorts of good food, coffee, and tons of shopping! There is tons of fun for everyone young and old. This does take place the last weekend in June normally. Make sure to dress very light, but also wear tons of sunscreen and wear a hat and sunglasses. It gets very hot being directly in the sun but there is plenty to keep you cool here!

There is also a ghost tour and investigation. I went to it one year with Todd and it was spooky. I had never been to Rockwood after dark and it really changes my view of it. It was very interactive and I was able to hold dowsing rods and a thermal reader. The thermal reader did get extremely cold in some areas, including the main bedrooms. Do check their website around this time. We went to an evening ghost tour, but there was one that went into early morning or even over night I believe.

Another amazing event is Sleep Under the Stars. It is done both at Rockwood Park and Glasgow Park. I may just participate in the upcoming event at Rockwood Museum & Park on May 2nd (May 9th for rain day).

My fiance and I have also done appraisals here twice. I have liked Rockwood on Facebook to follow their events and see when the appraisals are coming up.

Make sure to check out Rockwood's website. I linked above but will link here as well for upcoming events, free admission days, directions, and any other needs for your day(s) there!

Like Old New Castle this is one of the many gems you will find in Delaware. It is close to bed and breakfasts', gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, and other local museums. You really can't go to just one place when you come to Delaware because once those little diamonds of places catch your eye you want to see the rest!

Also, I am an avid collector of books,specifically getting one to each new museum, garden, local historical place that I go to in Delaware or our surrounding tri-states. Make sure to visit their gift shop when you come in to visit or before leaving!

So that is my post for Museum Week Day 3 (my Day 2). If you have any questions please let me know. I am always happy to share my experiences from here. Please leave any questions or comments in the comments section below. Also make sure to follow over to my google plus and youtube channel and subscribe. I will be doing video blogs in the very near future!

Thank you so much and hope you are doing well on this hump day. We are almost to the end of the week!

Museum Week (Day 2): Old New Castle, Delaware

Hi Friends!

Today I am doing a post in honor of #MuseumWeek! Today is day 2 and I did my first entry yesterday and didn't include a museum!

So what better of a way for me to start introducing you to Delaware than to participate in showing some pictures of Delaware's museums?!



A great place to start is Old New Castle, Delaware.

Above is the Court House in Old New Castle, Delaware.
I was born in Delaware and lived a few streets over from the Court House. I used to go here for field trips when I was in elementary school. I remember we came in and were able to write with a quill pen and ink. I loved this. I have learned so much each time coming about the foundation, trials that took place here, famous icons in history who stepped foot here. This is hands down one of your stops when you visit Old New Castle, Delaware.

Another two museums that I love to visit often are:

The first picture is The Dutch House and the bottom picture is of the Amstel House.
The pictures are of the museums separate, but they are a few steps away from each other. The Dutch House  is small but still shows a great example of what Old New Castle was like in the 17th century.
The Amstel House is a larger home, a great example of architecture, and also is one of the places on the Ghost Tours and here. Please be advised per the visitors site that the museums re open starting April 1st.

Speaking of April 1st, this is the day that The New Castle Historical Society will be opening their museum store in their new home, the newly updated The Arsenal. I am so excited for all the fun events that have taken place and are to come at The Arsenal. I attended one of the Lecture Series this past February and was able to meet with people alike who love history and supporting Old New Castle. It is important for me because unfortunately I have not been able to finish my college education and thrive going to our local museums. Also important is many of the events in Old New Castle are very affordable of free admission. This is the direct link for visitor and admission information for Museum tours and events in Old New Castle.

There are a few other museums such as The Read House, The Old Library Museum, and many landmarks. **Update** Below are some pictures I found from our prior trips of the Old Library Museum**

 

 There are also a few churches, my favorite being The Immanuel Episcopal Church on the Green (pictured above). I love visiting here because of the history of both the church and the cemetery.When visiting The Arsenal to get tickets and visitor information, you will see the church and cemetery right next door.

I love visiting here because it has been with me such a long time, since childhood. As an adult I love that it's close to where I live, the fact that it has such a rich history in a small town. That's how Delaware is though, it's small, but has such rich historical attributes and treasures. When I go down either by myself or with my fiance we go to walk and enjoy the cobble stones streets, historical homes, local stores (to support small business and find unique gifts or items for us), great eats, like Jessops Tavern & Colonial Restaurant (colonial food) Penn's Place (coffee, breakfast, baked goods, entertainment, and even wine tasting), and  Nora Lees French Quarter (it makes me feel like I'm eating in New Orleans when I am here)! There is also Bed and Breakfasts', a New Castle Public Library, Oak Knoll Books (which is now where an Opera house once was), is beautiful to walk in and see and go through the many old and new volumes of books.
Battery Park is also a huge part of Old New Castle. It is a great park which has a walking trail which gives you a view of the park and houses on one side, and the Delaware River on the other. There is also a great view of the Delaware Memorial Bridge from here, and you can wave and say hi to New Jersey! It's great to be in a tri-state area because you are not too far from anywhere.

There is so much I could say about Old New Castle and I hope I have given you a good start and overview of where to visit and why. Please use the links to see the different museums and obtain prices and visiting information.

If there is anything you would like to know or any questions you have, please let me know in the comments and I will reply :)

I get excited talking about my experiences in Old New Castle and what I plan to still do, including getting married this September at The Arsenal!!!

These are pictures from 2011-2012. I do have more pictures and will post them in future blogs or as requested. If you are planning to visit from out of town, the local New Castle Air Port is only a few miles away from Old New Castle and very convenient to get to and from.

**Also please visit their Facebook page and their Blogger spot!

Welcome to FirstStateGirl302!

Hi there!

I'm glad you have found my page, FirstStateGirl302. Just like one of Delaware's many nicknames, "The Small Wonder", my page is a small wonder among many in a sea of infinite blogs.
I have been so inspired by bloggers, and YouTube bloggers, and all sorts of social media...

So I wanted to start my own Blog!

I want this blog to be inspired by my beautiful State's small wonders (or treasures). I will take photos, post videos, and write to show that small towns can be the host to diamonds in the rough.


Please follow me as I travel to local Delaware places like museums, gardens, local and retail shops, beaches, hidden roads, and much more.
I like to say there is a little something for each person if you give it a try.

If you have any suggestions for where you would like me to go as I blog, please let me know in the comments below.

Hope you are having a beautiful Monday.

If you are anything like me you were drinking coffee, decaf or not, while wishing you were curled up in bed or the day was half way over. On the bright side here in Delaware, it is warming up little-by-little!

I also feel good because a local cafe @GovCafe (Govenor's Cafe in Dover, Delaware) is trying to help their bartender Todd who is very shortly getting bilateral hip replacements. I went ahead and sent a donation his way on his go fund me page since I won't be able to make the drive to Dover in the next few weeks. I hope all goes well for Todd and that he has a speedy recovery!

I do plan on taking a trip down to Dover in the next few months.

I think tonight will earn me a glass of wine that I purchased over the weekend.

This is a new wine I am trying for the first time so I will let you know how I like it.