Question the Wisdom
Posts tagged activities
The Boss finally tore herself away from the museum’s requisite ballet bar and relished this feature: an elephant’s trunk that blew cool air to keep an orange plastic ball afloat. Levitation was its first lure, but after a few minutes, The Boss was more impressed with the rush of air blowing in her face.
Our mission to visit every children’s museum in America for free continued last weekend with an impromptu drive to Connecticut. The Stepping Stones Museum for Children, in Norwalk, has been the most impressive so far.
Its preschool play area was bright and roomy, with lots of interactive features for The Boss to enjoy. Another exhibit taught kids (and adults) the benefits of good nutrition. And there was an art studio in which to glue and glitter various masterpieces.
But the museum’s big hit was the Energy Lab, which housed three stainless steel, kid-level tanks filled with cold water and colorful plastic balls (above). The lesson in thermodynamics didn’t hold The Boss’s attention, but Ron and I had fun blasting plastic balls towards the ceiling with an air cannon.
My little family is milking its membership to the New York Hall of Science. The Boss and I hit its air-conditioned preschool play area every Thursday and Friday, and once Ron and I complete our weekend errands, we reward The Boss’s patience with another visit.
If tomorrow’s weather cooperates, I’ll take The Boss to the museum’s outdoor science playground. It’s got a sandbox that she might like.
This week’s unbearable heat and humidity have meant early visits to the playground and confinement to our air-conditioned living room.
Thankfully, The Boss doesn’t mind spending afternoons at home, as long as she can get in a game of tag while wearing pants on her head.
Just as the burnout was kicking in, we brought The Boss to another children’s museum—our third in as many days. It was rainy and warm and sticky in New York, so a day at the Long Island Children’s Museum seemed like a good idea.
It must have been the same idea streaming through the minds of hundreds of other parents, because that place was packed. Strollers were double, triple, even quadruple parked along the walls. Kids were screaming everywhere. Too many adults hovered over the exhibits, making it difficult for children to access them.
I’ve got a fucking headache.
Here’s the truly awesome part: Membership at one museum can translate to free (or discounted) admission to others across the country. As members of the New York Hall of Science, we got into the Children’s Museum of Manhattan for free. Our membership benefits also extend to the Brooklyn Children’s Museum and the Staten Island Children’s Museum.
Both the New York Hall of Science and the Children’s Museum of Manhattan had wall-mounted ballet bars for babies on the verge of cruising. The Boss couldn’t get enough of it at the Hall of Science (above).
New York’s children’s museums are awesome, even for kids as young as my eight-month-old Boss. We spent Friday at the New York Hall of Science, which had a circus-themed exhibit for grade schoolers (above) and a preschool play area that The Boss absolutely loved. There was also an outdoor science playground that all of us enjoyed.
Then on Saturday, we visited the Children’s Museum of Manhattan. Its preschool play area was a hit with The Boss, but the “no strollers” policy meant Ron and I had to juggle The Boss, both diaper and camera bags, a contraband water bottle, teething toys and other necessities that we usually stow in the City Mini’s basket.
