Glee Kids

As I said earlier, last week we took a tour of Franklin St. in Chapel Hill.  As I already wrote about, our first stop was The Yogurt Pump.  It was the perfect sweet treat, and after that stop we headed down the street to University Square.  I had never been to University Square and was curious to check it out as it will be the temporary home of Kidzu. 

What it is: Glee Kids is a children's clothing and gift store located in University Square.  The majority of the store was unique kids' clothing and hats.  However, they did have some neat gifts and toys interspersed.  While we were there we picked up a great little car as a gift for a baby birthday party we were attending later.


What we liked: We loved the different items that we saw there.  It was a boutique where you could find items that you couldn't find elsewhere.  They also had a train table located in the back of the small store which is always a nice touch.  The train table gave me a chance to look at the goodies in the store while my boys happily played in the back.


What we would change: As I stated earlier, the store was small.  I felt that there was not a large selection of boys clothing to choose from, but what they had was adorable.


Website and other important information:

Website: http://www.gleekids.com/

Address: 133-C west franklin street | university square | chapel hill, nc 27516

Hours: 10:00am–5:30pm monday through saturday and by appointment

Photos:

 1. A view from the back of the store

 2. One of the displays of gifts

 3. More gifts

 4. The train table and gifts at the back of the store

And the Winner is...

We are happy to announce that the winner of our fabulous October giveaway-two tickets to a cooking class at The Cookery is...Pam! 

So, if you are Pam and you said, "This would be great! Love to eat and love to cook."  If this is you, please e-mail us at scmomsgroup@gmail.com to claim your prize.  You will have a week to claim your prize before we draw a new winner. 

If you didn't win, please stay tuned.  November's giveaway is shaping up to be very exciting!

The Yogurt Pump

Last week we had the opportunity to do a little roaming on Franklin St. in Chapel Hill.  Up to this point, we hadn't really checked much of the street with kids just the old Kidzu location (can't wait for it to open back up), Locopops, Ben and Jerry's, and Sugarland.  We changed all that last week.  While we probably still didn't find every great kids' spot on the street, we got a start, and here was our first stop.


What it is: The Yogurt Pump has been a Franklin St. institution since 1982. It's stuck back on the side of a building just past the intersection with Columbia St.  I just tried to explain where it's located and failed miserably.  So, what I will do is refer you to their website which has a lovely map to their somewhat hidden location.  Once there, you can enjoy some frozen yogurt deliciousness.  The atmosphere looked a little older and less fancy than some of the other frozen yogurt spots that have been popping up all over town, but the yogurt was fabulous.  They had several flavors and you could add on toppings for 50 cents a topping.  My oldest son chose the chocolate with UNC colored M&M's while my youngest got the crushed Andes mints on chocolate (a brilliant topping choice).  It was a great stop to start our tour of Franklin St.


What we liked:  We loved the prices with the treats for my boys being $1.50 plus the 50 cents per topping.  The yogurt was thick and tasty and we especially liked the Andes mints!


What we would change: The location is a bit tricky to find, and of course, parking on Franklin St. can be tricky.  However, the lot on Rosemary St. is not far at all from the Yogurt Pump and you can find their location on their helpful map on their website.


Website and other important information:

Website: http://yogurtpump.com/index.htm

Address: 106 W. Franklin St. (Next to NY Pizza)

Hours: Mon-Thurs  11:30am-11:30pm, Fri-Sat  11:30am-Midnight, Sun  Noon-11:30pm
  
Photos:

 (Yummy toppings)

 (Yogurt tribute to UNC)

 (our table)

(The Yogurt Pump in its hidden alley)

 **Just to be fair...if you would like to vote for The Yogurt Pump for your favorite frozen yogurt in town, just comment on this post and I will keep that in mind on our current poll for favorite frozen yogurt shops.

Old Chapel Hill Road Park

Yay!  I'm thrilled to report a new park in Durham!  That's right, shiny new playground equipment for you to explore, and this equipment is so much fun that even adults will want to join in the fun!  Thanks so much to Christie for telling us about this one!

What it is:  Old Chapel Hill Road Park's official parking lot is located off of SW Durham Dr. in South Durham near Githens Middle School.  Up until recently this park contained soccer fields and some great hiking trails.  However, now, it also has a fabulous new playground.  Strangely enough, this playground is not located near the parking lot of the park, in fact it's quite a toddler walk from that point.  Instead, we accessed the park from Old Chapel Hill Rd. where there is a new dirt access point directly next to the playground.  There's no official parking lot but there is room for a few cars to park near the construction dumpster.  Other parking might be available at Githens Middle School, but I'm not sure how far that is from the playground.

Now on to the fun stuff, the actual playground.  It was great!  Someone made the comment that it was like a playground that Ikea had built, and I can see that comparison.  The equipment was different and interesting.  It seemed that there was one half that was geared more toward younger children and then one for older.  However, I think that ANY age could enjoy this playground.  In fact, while we were there with my one year old and three year old some middle schoolers arrived and had just as good of a time.  There were swings, a structure with a slide and a small cargo net, and a model car.  There were also some great spinning buckets to sit in and a circle that you could sit on and spin around that reminded me of a newer version of the old metal merry-go-rounds that we used to play on when we were younger.  They also had a contraption that looked like a skateboard on metal rails.  You could grab on to some handles and swing the skateboards from side to side.  There was a huge climbing structure with rock climbing grips.  Then there was a HUGE rope structure that would even be fun for adults to climb around on!

After we played on the play equipment for a long time, we wandered down the trail toward the rest of the park.  It was a nice trail.  Our little group of toddlers only made it as far as the first soccer field we saw which was a fabulous place for them to just run.

What we liked:  We loved the different, new playground equipment.  It's always nice to head to a park with new equipment that the kids have never seen before.  Plus, the playground is fun for all different ages.  It is also nice that the trails and fields are near the playground in case the kids need a little more to do.


What we would change:  Right now, it definitely seems like the areas around the play area aren't quite finished.  While the surface of the playground itself is great, around the playground is dirt, or (if it rains) mud.  So, you have to watch out if you have some mud-loving toddlers that they don't find some puddles.  In addition, the parking situation right now is not ideal, but there is room for some cars in the dirt area off Old Chapel Hill Rd.  Hopefully, they will build a parking area at that side of the park soon.


Website and other important information: 

Website: http://www.ci.durham.nc.us/gis_apps/parkapp/park.cfm?selVal=park&ParkNam=Old+Chapel+Hill+Road

Address: 3751 SW Durham Dr. 27707

Photos:  

 1. A view of some of the bigger equipment

 2. The climbing structure

 3. The smaller side of the playground (notice the spinning tulip seat in the foreground)

4. The soccer field

October Giveaway-The Cookery's Culinary Workshops!

It's finally time for another fabulous giveaway from a new local business, and this one sounds like great fun!  This time you could win two tickets for your choice of cooking class at Durham's own The Cookery!  If you haven't heard about The Cookery before...it's a commercial kitchen that rents by the hour in Durham and offers their kitchen facility to food entrepreneurs.  They also offer a variety of hands-on culinary workshops to the public.  In these workshops, professional chefs such as Tanya Catalos of Daisy Cakes, the Chirba Chirba Dumpling food truck team, or Aaron Benjamin of Rue Cler teach on a variety of yummy topics.  They also do private classes and parties if you're interested.  To find out more, you can head to www.DurhamCookery.com.

So, what could be better than a mom's night out or date night learning from Durham's best chefs?  You could even combine the class with a night out at one of the fabulous restaurants downtown or even a trip to the nearby West End Wine Bar.  Sounds like fun to me! (You can redeem the gift certificate until January 31st, 2012. Tickets valid for workshop prices for $40 or under if space is available.)

To enter and win two tickets to a cooking class of your choice at The Cookery, all you have to do is comment on this post either on facebook or the blog by next Friday, October 28 at midnight.  To earn extra entries simply follow us on facebook, blogger, or twitter and let us know that you do.  Once everyone has entered we will randomly select a winner and let everyone know the good news.

So, enter now, thanks to The Cookery, and Happy Entering!

Hank Anderson Community Park

What it is:  So, this week, we ventured down to Carrboro to check out Hank Anderson Communuty Park.  It was the first morning this year that we've really had a taste of fall chill in the air.  The kids had to put on their gloves but seemed to have an added bit of energy with the crispness in the air.  (Unfortunately, I had forgotten my fleece, so I had an extra bit of shiver!)

Hank Anderson Park was a great place to take the kiddos for some outdoor fun.  The unique feature was that there were two playgrounds right next to each other.  That way, the kids could run in between the two when they got tired of one.  It seemed that the playgrounds were geared toward older and younger kids respectively, but my kids enjoyed both of them.  One of the playgrounds was taller and had a rockwall feature and climbing tube that were unique.  Our older boys had fun playing in the "volcano tube".  The smaller one my son called the "music playground"  it had a smaller play structure with slides and tubes.  In addition, they had some neat plastic drums and bells that the kids could explore.  The two playgrounds were bridged by a swing set that included regular swings, bucket swings, and a swing for children with special needs. The park was much larger than just the playgrounds.  There was a lake with a nice trail for bike riding around, a dog park for puppy watching, a picnic shelter, and fields for baseball, etc. 

What we liked: We liked the fact that the two playgrounds were right next to each other.  They also had nice large trees for some shade cover at the playground and picnic area.  In addition, the park was large enough so we had some room to get some toddler energy out with bike riding to visit the various park components.

What we would change:  The park was a bit of a hike from Durham, even more so because of the traffic that we encountered when passing UNC hospital on 15-501.

Website and other important information: 

Website: http://www.carrboro.com/parks.html

Address: Highway 54 West (Old Greensboro Road), Carrboro, NC 27510

Photos: 

 1. The larger playground

2. The "music" playground

North Carolina Wine Country

What it is: Every once and a while every parent needs a break from things and needs to have a little fun.  This post is devoted to that and devoted to one of our favorite North Carolina diversions, the North Carolina Wine Country.  When people think of places with wineries and vineyards, the first place that comes to mind is usually not North Carolina.  However, over the past decade, hundreds of vineyards have opened in the state and are creating really good wine.  So, what could be better than to drive through the beautiful NC scenery heading into the mountains and stopping along the way to sample wine?

We have traveled to the NC wine country several times.  There are several different ways to experience it coming from Durham.  If you feel like sampling NC wine without leaving town.  Don't worry, we've got you covered.  There are several wineries actually in the Triangle!  We have been to both Southpoint Vineyards and Chatham Hill in Morrisville, and they both make lovely wine, even though Chatham Hill is located in a warehouse-type building in the middle of RTP.

If you feel like heading a little further afield but still not being in the car all day, you can do that as well.  While we've never been on it ourselves, there's actually a Haw River wine trail featuring several great wineries near the Pittsboro area.  We can wait to take a day and check them out!

Most of our experience with the NC wine experience lies with the wineries that are a little further afield.  We frequently make the drive along I-40 heading west whether we are headed to my grandmothers house in TN or to Asheville.  I-40 conveniently passes directly through portions of NC wine country.  So, you can actually plan out a winery tour only traveling several miles off of the freeway.  My husband and I did that a few months ago on our way up to Asheville and visited 4 lovely wineries with great, award winning wines and still made it to Asheville in plenty of time for dinner.

If your really ready to check out all that NC wine has to offer, we suggest heading to Yadkin Valley and taking time to check out all the wineries there.  That's truly where NC winemaking is at its most abundant with more wineries than you could ever want clustered in that general area.  It is located north and a little west of Winston-Salem so you would probably want to find someplace to stay the night if you wanted to visit Yadkin Valley.

What we liked:  We love how many great wines there are in NC! There are reds and whites to rival any in California.  In addition, it's nice to have some nearby as well as conveniently located on near the freeway.  You can cater your wine tasting trip to your needs, and the NC Wine website has great maps and even trail suggestions to make your planning easier.  Visiting the wineries would be perfect for a moms' vacation weekend with the girls or a couples getaway from the kids.


What we would change: The heart of NC wine country is a bit of a drive away, so it takes a bit of a trip to reach some of the best wineries.  However, there are some options that are close by.  In addition, it can be a bit problematic to bring kids to wine tastings. (It's not particularly relaxing.)  So you might want to wait until you have some time off from the kids to check them out.


Websites: http://www.visitncwine.com/ (official site), http://www.visitnc.com/itineraries/index/all/1/100029/ (wine trails)

Photos: 

 (Westbend Vineyards)

 (Raylen Vineyards)

 (More of Raylen)

 (Grapes and Lake James Cellars)

(Views from Lake James Cellars)

Fresh Market

It was definitely a Monday today, but before our usual Harris Teeter grocery trip, we decided to take a little detour.  We headed to Fresh Market, and it definitely brightened my day!

What it is: Fresh Market is a specialty grocery store located off of Hwy. 54 in Chapel Hill near its intersection with 15-501.  We have passed by this store many times on the way from Durham into Chapel Hill and never stopped by, so we decided to check it out.  When we walked in the first thing I noticed was the lovely, wonderful smell of fresh, mulled apple cider, one of my absolute favorite fall smells (and they had little cups for you to sample!) 

Then we took a look into the rest of the store.  It looked much more like an open market than most of your typical grocery stores with high ceilings and low shelves.  It was a pleasant place to walk around.  Their produce was beautiful but expensive.  They had all sorts of yummy gourmet treats from a huge deli with beautiful pasta salad, dips, pimento cheeses, and other delicious treats.  They had a coffee section, a great wine section, cheeses, meats, gourmet spices and oils, and bins upon bins of trails mixes, nuts, chocolate covered goodies, and dried fruits.  My overall impression of this grocery store was that it was a wonderful place to shop that could be so much fun if I had all the money to spend on groceries that I wanted.  Until I reach that point, it could be a very dangerous habit. 

What we liked:  I loved the feel of the store and the gourmet inventory.  However, what really made me walk out of the store smiling was the customer service.  One of the employees made a point of coming up to me and my son while we were perusing the trail mixes and told us that we could sample any that we wanted.  That was music to my toddler's ears.  In addition, when I was debating whether I would splurge on pimento cheese from the deli for lunch, one of the deli employees walked up and offered me a free sample so I could make my decision more easily.  Then, when my son was fussing because we finished our free sample, she gave us a bit more.  Plus, every other employee we passed smiled and waved and my son and fussed over him in a way that made him feel like the center of attention.  It's always nice to go to a store where they go above and beyond like that.


What we would change:  Of course, we would make all of their delicious fresh food a little more inexpensive.  However, our one purchase was some dried apples and bananas which turned out to be cheaper than we would have gotten in our typical grocery stores.  So, hopefully there are more deals like that to be had.  I'm willing to go back and scope it out!


Website and other important information:

Website: http://freshmarket.com/

Address: 1200 Raleigh Rd., Chapel Hill

Phone Number: (919) 932-7501

Photos:

1. Our view as we entered the store

Science Safari

What it is: Science Safari is a toy store in Cary that specializes in scientific toys... from chemistry sets and microscopes to stuffed animals and games. It's a small store jam-packed with all manner of toys for inquisitive kids.

What we liked: It was hard not to like all the toys - if we didn't have kids and had the time, they would be wonderful toys for our inner children. Every toy in the store does something and makes you wonder what it is and how it works. Tickle-me-you-know-who has his place, but in Science Safari the toys make the real world a wonderful fascinating place. Other than loving (and appreciating) the science toys, they have a small collection of live animals to see, and they host birthdays in their back room. Even though the store is geared for kids older than our toddler (no chemistry sets, yet), she had a great time playing with what she could get her hands on, like the little wooden train set and things that light up when you shake them (OK, not science, but she's small). This is the store we wish was around when we were young.

What we would change: First off, we would move the store closer to South Durham :-). We've got Learning Express, and it has more for toddlers for Science Safari, but in a few years I think we'll be making pilgrimage to Cary to shop for toys. Also, we would toddler-proof the store a bit more so that we could relax and explore a little more easily.

Website and other important information:

Website: http://www.scisafari.com/

Address: 1255 Kildaire Farm Road, Cary, NC  27511

Phone: 919-460-6051

Lego Kids Fest

My son has recently really gotten in to building "rockets" and "towers" and anything else he can think of with his Lego Duplo blocks.  So, we were thrilled when we found out that Lego Kids Fest was coming to Raleigh and excited that we had the opportunity to check it out. 


What it is:  Lego Kids Fest is a traveling tour that comes to several cities each year.  They set up in a convention center for a weekend and fill it with Lego fun.  There were huge piles of both larger Duplos and smaller regular sized Legos where kids could create anything they wanted with more Legos than they would ever need.  There were displays of fantastic Lego sculptures like models of Hogwarts and the Harry Potter characters, human-sized models of the toy story characters, dragons, sharks, and even a car-sized Lightnin' McQueen.  There were stations to build Lego race cars, building stations of Legos of the same color, building competitions, a gift shop, booths from several local businesses (like Marbles and NCMLS), and more.

What we liked: I can tell that children between the ages of 7 and 10 would have a fabulous time for hours exploring everything that Lego fest has to offer.  My children, being a little younger, did not quite have that attention span.  Their favorite was definitely the Duplo pit.  We spent quite a long time digging and creating whatever they wanted to. My boys were in awe of the Lego models and wandered around all of them just staring. They also spent quite while building race cars and racing them down the ramps. 

What we would change:  The biggest drawback of Lego Kids Fest is definitely the price.  It is $18 for kids and $20 for adults.  While there is so much to see, that is a lot of money to spend for a family outing.  In addition, there were several things at Lego fest that were a bit difficult to navigate with really young kids (under 3).  There were lots of escalators to get to the festival and we had to find alternate ways to get the stroller down each time.  In addition, I had to watch my little one like a hawk to make sure he didn't get ahold of any Lego pieces that were too small.  However, he did have a great time in the Duplo area.


Website and other important information:

Website: http://www.legokidsfest.com/

Locations and Dates vary, just check website.


Photos:

 1. a view from above

 2. My son's favorite-Woody and Buzz

 3. Lightnin' McQueen in Legos

 4. A Lego map of the US

 5. Model Darth Vader

6. The pile of Legos for building

Pirates, Princesses, and Triangle Boat Tours

*Thanks so much to Southern Part of Heaven for sending this information over!  If you haven't already, you definitely need to check out the blog for great area info. and events.

I've always wanted to try out Triangle Boat Tours, and now seems like the perfect chance!  Next weekend, they are hosting a Pirates and Princesses Festival!  With arts, crafts, pirate music, and a 20 minute boat ride with Captain Don, it sounds like a great time for the whole family--your little ones get to channel their inner pirates and princesses, and you get a great boat tour on Jordan Lake with your little ones!   For tickets and more information, please go to www.TriangleBoatTours.com.

Here's what you need to know:

Triangle Boat Tours
Pirates and Princesses Festival
Friday, Oct 14 & Sunday, Oct 16 (9am - 2pm)
Jordan Lake State Park - Ebenezer Church Recreation Area, Apex NC  (no park entrance fee!)
www.TriangleBoatTours.com.

*For our take on our last Triangle Boat tour outing, check out or post from when they first got started several years ago:  http://stircrazymomsofdurham.blogspot.com/2010/05/triangle-boat-tours.html

Woodcroft Soccer

As this fall Saturday morning rolls around, so does another soccer game.  So, I thought it was a perfect time to tell everyone about our latest toddler sports adventure!


What it is: Triangle United Soccer at Woodcroft is a soccer league that has teams for ages 3 and up.  However, since my oldest son just turned 3 not too long ago, the younger end of that spectrum is really all that I can speak about at this point.  Please add your comments if you have anything to add about the other ages. 

As the summer came to a close, soccer registration started.  So, we headed online to their website, and registering was fairly easy.  We signed up for the co-ed under 4 division.  You simply fill out some information online and then mail them a check as well as a registration form you can fill out and a copy of their birth certificate.  When registering online you can also request other children who you want to be on your team, and all of our requests were granted.  After they have all of your information, they take a few weeks to come up with the teams.  The organization and the coaches will e-mail you your information and the season is off and running.

For the littlest players they have practices one evening a week and games on the weekends.  I was a little wary about how soccer practice would go for a bunch of 3 year olds, but our coach was wonderful.  The kids were a little apprehensive, but it is definitely okay if your child wants to hang out on the sideline for a while or needs a parents to participate with them.  The coach leads them through some game and skill activities while teaching them about the basics of soccer.  While my son wanders off at time or gets sidetracked by something, he is able to follow the directions and is actually learning some soccer skills! 

The first game was equally as low key.  We were divided up into groups that were 4 on 4.  There were no goalies and the kids tried to kick the ball into the goals for 4 time periods divided up with breaks for drinks and snacks (every toddler's favorite).  While I can safely say that my son is not an immediate soccer star (he's an expert flower picker though), it has been a good experience for him, and as the season progresses he's gradually getting the hang of teamwork and the rules of the game.

What we liked: The cost of the season is pretty low at $75 for registration and uniforms.  In addition, the games for the little children don't have any pressure and just focus on helping them have a good time.  In addition, I'm pretty sure that watching under 4 soccer is one of the cutest things I've ever seen!

What we would change:  I think that the nature of the league means that your experience can be very coach dependent.  We have a great coach that is good with the kids, but I can see how a different coach might really change your experience.  In addition, on some weeks they have two games in a weekend.  That can be a lot for the little guys. 


Website and other important information:

Website: http://www.triangleunited.org/Woodcroft/index_E.html

Address: All games and practices for us took place at the Woodcroft clubhouse at 1203 West Woodcroft Parkway, Durham, NC 27713


Season: Our soccer season runs from early September to early November


Photos: 

Drum Lessons with Russell Lacy

What it is: Durham Drum Lessons w/ Russell Lacy- perfect for all ages. Russell has two studios- one in Carrboro and one in Durham. My son is only three, but enjoys banging on his drum set at home. We were excited for the opportunity to work with a professional!

What we liked: Russell is a talented musician and is great with children. He works with a variety of ages, but he knew how to make things simple and positive and FUN for my little guy. Step by step, patiently using repetition (as well as high fives;), Russell was able to teach my three year old how to: properly hold drum sticks, drum using alternating arms, include counts- 1, 2, 3, 4 as well as 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and, repeat rhythms, learn names of various drums, and even jam a bit on an adult sized drum set! All within 30 minutes- an impressive accomplishment with any toddler!

What we would change: Honestly, I was completely happy with his lesson! If you have lots of questions (like I always do:) I would encourage asking before (if you can arrive early or call/email ahead) or after session. I found myself taking up a few minutes of my son’s lesson...oops!!

Website and other important information:

Website: http://russelllacymusic.com/

Address: For Durham drum lessons his studio is located by Duke’s east campus very close to the corner of Markham and Broad Streets (1805 W.Markham Street, 27705).
               For Carrboro drum lessons my studio is right next to the Music Loft on Main Street.

Phone: 919-491-0911

Cost: $25 for 30 minutes, $37.50 for 45 minutes, and $50 for 60 minutes.

Photos:

 

1. Russell poses for a picture

 2. Russell instructs his young pupil

3. Drums are fun!

Duke Homestead

We lived in Durham for six years before we had kids.  We always saw the signs for the Duke Homestead but never visited.  We thought it was about time to check it out, so we loaded the kids in the car and headed on over.


What it is: Located just North of I-85 off of Guess Rd., the Duke Homestead site is where the Duke family lived and produced tobacco as well as the site of a small tobacco museum.  I was a little wary about taking the kids for a morning there, but we actually had a great time.  We started with a walking tour of the historical buildings where the Duke family lived and worked.  I wouldn't recommend taking the guided tour with children under 3, but they had a great time touring the buildings at their own pace.  The guided tour would be interesting, however, without the young kids.  My 3 year old was mildly interested in the historical tobacco shed and homestead complete with antique furniture.  Fortunately, the grounds are filled with lots of grassy areas to run so it's an excellent place for kids to just run around and explore while taking in a bit of history.

After our outdoor adventure, we did head in to check out the museum briefly.  It's pretty dated and there wasn't a whole lot to interest the kids, but there were a few buttons to press.  It was also a topic that was fairly hard to explain to toddlers.  We did pick up a Moon Pie in their small gift area on the way out which was a fun treat.  Then, we headed back out to eat our picnic lunch at a lovely collection of picnic tables overlooking the homestead in a field under a large tree.  This was the best part of our outing.  The table we found was perfectly toddler size and shaded and the field was nicely contained.  The kids happily played under the tree for quite a while after we ate.  We had a lovely morning.  It wasn't a typical outing for us, but it was fun, and I think the kids always get some good out of going someplace historic.

What we liked:  We loved the grounds, and it was fun to run around in the grassy fields past the zig-zagging wooden fences.  The picnic area was a great place for a toddler lunch.


What we would change: The museum wasn't particularly interesting for our crowd and some of the exhibits weren't working, so we felt the grounds were the more interesting part of the trip.

Website and other important information:

Website: http://www.nchistoricsites.org/duke/

Address: 2828 Duke Homestead Road, Durham, N.C. 27705

Phone: (919) 477-5498

Hours: Tuesday - Saturday 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Sunday and Monday

Photos: 

 1. One of the tobacco buildings

 2. A view of the actual Duke homestead

 3. Their kitchen

 4. One of the museum displays

 5. A Liberty Bell made entirely out of tobacco

  

6. Our picnic area with a view

Top Malls in the Area

We've headed out to all of the local malls in the area and found all kinds of fun things to do at each one.  So, we posted a poll where you, our wonderful readers, could select your favorite mall in the area.  Here are your results:

1. With 88% of the vote your clear favorite mall in the area (and ours too) is Southpoint Mall in South Durham with large indoor play area, outdoor fountains and shops to explore, lots of room for kids to roam, and great shopping.

2. In second place with 7% of the vote is Crabtree Valley mall in Raleigh with smaller play area, lots of kids shops like Disney Store and the Lego Store, and coin operated vehicles to play on.

3. In third place with 4% of the vote is University Mall in Chapel Hill with a variety of unique store like A Southern Season, several kids stores, and kid-friendly places to eat.

Stay tuned for another poll posted soon.  Stir Crazy Moms wouldn't be the same without your opinions...keep them coming!