Thursday, June 7

Today was adventure day. The kids and I decided to strike out and spend the day doing something that they would really enjoy. One benefit of having a library card in MA is that you can get passes for discounts at lots of great things to do. We decided to give the Discovery Museums in Acton, MA a try. It's actually 2 separate hands on museums.
The first is in a rennovated victorian home. The whole house has been converted into a hands on museum geared toward preschoolers. We started out on the 2nd floor where there was a rainbow room, a safari room, a tree fort room, a sights and sounds room, and a play cafe. Rachel took right to the cafe and started organizing all of the players into her staff of customers, cooks, and servers. Fourtunately, all were willing participants. Jamie and David started in the rainbow room where there were huge color puzzles on one wall, a rainbow slide with steps that lit up in different colors as you climbed them, and wheels you could spin to see how colors blend to form secondary colors. Then we went on to the safari room where David climbed in the treehouse, used binoculars to spot wild (stuffed) animals and slid down a log slide. Those were really the favorite activities on that floor.
The third floor was all a ship. There were jacket-type costumes that the kids could put on. David liked the captain's jacket and the penguin suit. There were all kinds of instrument panels for flipping switches and mashing buttons. The kids also enjoyed the submarine room - a small space made like the inside of a sub.
The first floor was probably my favorite. At the foot of the stairs was a wall covered in chalkboard paint that the kids could draw on. Jamie, of course, graced the wall with a picture. David and Rachel went straight for the water room, where there was a water play table set up (like at Sci Quest). The next room was an entire room of balls and courses for them to run through. On one course, the ball travels all the way around the room twice ringing bells, knocking down "dominoes", playing chimes, and going through several tubes and funnels. The final room was the Train room. There was a ticketing station with play money and tickets, which Rachel took over. There was a large train the kids could get in and ring the bell and whistle and pretend to drive. There were also several tables and Brio sets for the kids to play and create with. As if that wasn't enough, outside there was a mega sandbox and bubbles galore. We dragged David away after a morning of play to go grab some lunch.
After lunch at McDonald's, we headed back to the Science Museum. This one was geared for older children. The kids loved playing with all of the magnet activities that greeted us as we entered. When we finished there, we went up to the second floor to the optics room. In it were color wheels, kaliedescopes (sp??), prisims, polarized glass, and a room where you could leave your shadow on the wall. David really enjoyed this room. We had to visit and revisit it. Also on the second floor was a huge sound exhibit. There were big balls you could squeeze and play different pipes from a pipe organ. There was a display showing how a cucco clock works. There was a "harp" which operated by breaking beams of light to make different sounds. There was also a microphone you could speak into and see the sound waves your voice makes. David's was "to infinity and beyond." Jamie and Rachel played int the fog table for a bit and with a game of hairdryer basketball. You had hair dryers and you tried to get a pingpong ball through the hoop using the air. There was also a cool, huge swinging balls thing - the little desktop game where you pull back a ball and it hits a group of balls and knocks the end one out on the other side. The third floor had an observation window where you could climb up a ladder and peek out a skylight "bubble". There was also a skeleton in the attic - which Jamie enjoyed. We went back down to the first floor and made a picture to take home. It was made on a suspended table which you gave a push and a stationary marker made a design which looked a little like the old Spirograph line designs.
We finished the day with one more trip down to David's museum to play in the boat and train rooms one last time. It was a super day. The kids were on their best behavior - in hopes of getting to walk to the store to buy webkinz that evening (with their own money).
Tim is working with Rachel on riding a bike without training wheels. This is a much better location for working on that than on our road back home! She's really starting to get the hang of it. I think that in a week or so, she'll be ready to head out on the road with Jamie and me. That will be nice, because there are even more places we can go by bike that are a little far for walking. I am hoping to come home in a little better shape than when I left. Between walking and riding bikes daily and climbing the stairs to come in and out and go to the kids rooms, I'm getting much more exercise that I ususlly do. Plus, it's really pleasant here in the evenings - even on the warm days, it cools off really nicely at night.