Yesterday afternoon, Diggory and I joined our friend Christina at the manor house at Green Spring Gardens to view an oil painting and watercolor exhibition entitled Beauty in All Seasons. One of the women from our painting class had many beautiful paintings in the show, and we wanted to see them! I've got my eye on one or two if my husband needs some ideas for a Christmas gift. The exhibition was presented in two rooms in the historic manor house, originally built by John Moss in 1784 and privately owned until 1970 when the current owners deeded the home to the Fairfax County Park Authority. There are not formal tours on a daily basis, which is actually a good thing if you have a toddler, so you can browse the current exhibition and the first floor of the house at your own pace. There's a gift shop too, and the attendant will gladly share her knowledge about the construction and history of the house. There's a spacious restroom too (though no changing table). Pick up a calendar of events before you leave, as there is a variety of public programs and teas offered throughout the year.
Diggory was pretty enthralled by the "open" sign, and I couldn't get him to look at the camera!
After we saw the exhibition, we walked through the gardens to the horticulture center. There's a library, gift shop, exhibition space, public restrooms, and an information desk here, so make sure to pick up a map of the grounds. The gardens fill 28-acres and there are paths that lead all over to more than twenty separate gardens including a children's garden, a greenhouse, a vegetable garden, a native plants garden, and two ponds filled with ducks and geese. It's really lovely, and we'll definitely be back to explore more often...it literally took me three minutes to drive to Green Spring from my house, so I'm feeling extra guilty for not visiting until now.
Diggory, what do ducks say? "Ack, ack, ack."
Christina checking out the photography exhibition in the horticulture center.
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