I decided to post a bunch of pictures I have taken from our local Science Center.  I have never been very impressed with the place because every time we went things were always broken and we never seemed to find activities that interested the kids.  Thus it has been a couple of years since we have been.  This year we were able to get a very discounted membership and thus decided to add it into our biweekly museum rotation.  So far I have been pleasantly surprised at how happy the kids have been there.

Despite the fact that each one has their own favorite activities, we have managed to stay in a central location and all enjoy our time there.  One of the bonuses in my mind is that it has been quieter than the other museum that we usually frequent.  Less people is nicer in terms of the kids being able to get at what they want to and not having lots of other kids to deal with in the process.  It makes me have to contain Ava a whole lot less as well!!

On the second floor there is a little nook of exploratory exhibits that the kids and I usually hit first.  Chloe really likes blowing the big bubbles.  Then there is this large concave/convex mirror that you can switch back and forth

between each setting with the push of a button.  That is one of Ava’s favorites.  The big challenge is getting her to stop pushing the button long enough to have the mirror sit at one setting!  Then there is the table of smoke and mirrors that Jayden loves so much.  He climbs up and starts moving all the mirrors around to see how he can make them reflect the red laser beams around the table.  The smoke just adds a cool effect that even keeps Jayden in one place for an extended period of time!

There is a whole corner of the third floor that has nothing but activities with balls.  From wooden balls on slides and sent down a vortex, to plastic balls like a ball crawl with ramps to send the balls down, to a fast set of air pressured tubes that you can send small plastic balls back and forth in.  The kids LOVE this section!  Every trip we have taken there over the past two months has lead us to the ball section.

Last but not least is the newest discovery we made on our last trip to the Science center.  There is a whole corner designated to building with K’Nex www.knex.com/products.  Chloe made an entire gyro type structure from a building photograph they have in that section.  You can even buy your

contraptions…for $12/pound!  Needless to say Chloe will only get hers in photograph form as it is so much cheaper that way!  The one difficult thing was keeping Ava happy while working with Chloe.  Then her and Jayden took to trying to make things and then just moving things from bin to bin.  The best part is that I caught one of those moments that you want to freeze in time.  I don’t even remember taking the photo, but it is priceless!  So I will end this post with one of my photos that I will forever mark as one of my favorites.  Jayden and Ava are the epitome of “hot and cold” and this was one of their “hot” moments.  I wish they were always this happy with each other!