Museum Memberships: Worth Every Penny

In May, my Mom and Step-Dad (Grandma and Grandpa Z) came visiting us for the weekend.  My Mom is a "let's go out and DO something" type, so I found a list of several things going on in the area.  The one we chose was a visit to miSci - The Museum of Innovation and Science, which is about two miles from here.  

My littlest exploring a powerful magnet...

...while standing on my lap.  He's small.

The boys loved it!  Which is good, because my Mom bought us a family membership while I wasn't looking.  (She's good like that.)

The membership gives free admission for my husband, both boys, and me.  All year.  It payed for itself in less than two months.

Membership (1 year): $80
Usual entry fee (1 day for all 4 of us): $32  ($9.50 per adult; $6.50 per child)
Amount we would have had to pay so far WITHOUT membership: Around $140.

This magnet is officially the most fascinating thing in the WORLD.

It's interactive, interesting, and educational.  The kids love it, and we go about every other week.  Now, every time we go there (it's especially wonderful when it's too hot or rainy outside for comfort) I feel like I'm pocketing 32 bucks.  Much better than walking around the mall, or sitting in the living room watching Wonder Pets.

My eldest posing with the electric car.

But wait!  There's more!  This museum does events for the kids!  For example, we have TWICE gone to a program for 3-5 year olds where our boys get treated to reading a science themed book, singing, playing a game, making a craft, and GET A FREE BOOK!  You can't beat that!  And it's free with the cost of admission which, thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Z, is free to us for this whooooole year!

Oh, and did I mention that there are big, robotic dinosaurs there now?  They're very impressive.  And they move.  And growl.  (My littlest didn't like that last part).  You can see awesome pictures of them here.

Oh, and did I mention that they have a huge Van de Graff generator?

Static.  It's fun.

So, take the plunge.  Support your local museums and science centers.  Buy a membership.  Use the membership.  You will get a lot of great days of family fun thrown in free of charge.

Sick Day

Yesterday the boys and I were stuck home. All three of us were sick. All three of us had fevers.

I blame the toddler.

Either way, you know how when you're sick all you want to do is sleep? Yeah. My kids apparently don't believe in that. So, how to entertain a 2 year old and a 5 year old while wanting to crawl under my covers and never come out? Hmmm.

We started with a schedule:

I had really hoped that TV time would last an hour or so. It lasted less than half of a cup of hastily chugged coffee. Greeeeaaat.

On to Kindergarten Bars! These were granola bars that I wanted to make in the hopes of interesting my older son in granola bars. That part didn't work, but they are fun to make- especially since you can mix and squish everything together with your hands.

The kids had no interest in mixing them with me. At least I had fun.

Next, we went outside. That was nice. The patio was cool, but the sun was warm, and the kids had fun running barefoot in the dew covered grass.

Then they had fun throwing mud at each other. *sigh*

To get them focused on something more positive, I brought out the cornstarch and water to make MOON MUD!

If you've never done this before, try it! You don't even need kids. It's fun! Pour some cornstarch in a bowl, then add water until it starts acting weird. When this is the right consistency, it will become stiff when you apply more force, and very drippy when you apply less.

Thank God this cleans up with just water. I hosed the table off. Then the kids. It was fun for them, and pretty cathartic for me.

We were a little ahead of schedule, so we took our time cleaning up, then went inside for a little Candy Land and cleanup from the Kindergarten Bars (which were DELICIOUS, in case you were wondering).

A traditional lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, was sadly not followed with napping of any sort.

I knew it was a reach when I put that on the list, but a girl can dream, no?

Our day wrapped up with books, iPad games, and a couple of episodes of WordGirl.

The kids survived, were entertained, were well fed, and were ready to harass Daddy when he came home.

I still need that nap.