Curiosity Didn't Kill Any of Us

We are now the proud members of a pass to Thanksgiving Point.

I tend to steer clear of memberships...wait...that is not accurate. I tend to buy memberships and then regret them almost instantly. I don't like dragging around small children who need naps, so much of life previous to this time has been spent close to home making sure that children get enough sleep. (I promise this is connected. Stay with me.)

We tried the Zoo membership. But it was far enough away that every time we went some child fell asleep in the car. It was not ideal, and thus we just didn't go that often.

We also tried the Pass of all Passes. I guess that one is supposed to be good for Seven Peaks, but I do not feel comfortable taking five children by myself, so I never availed myself of that one, and we used the other venues perhaps once or twice. (Really, memberships are wasted on us.)

We even have a family pass to the rec center right now, but we have only taken the kids a few times. That is probably because it is such a pain to get kids all dressed in swimming attire. (Can you feel the laziness coming off me in waves??)

So, why the new membership, you ask? Because I am an optimist. I don't have any babies and no one naps around here except me, if I can sneak one. Thanksgiving Point has a lot of different places to visit and it is only a hop, skip, and jump away. I have already promised to incorporate all its different venues into my field trips this summer. I am DETERMINED to use it. If I don't, I will never get a membership again.

Most likely.

But the real reason we got the membership was because it is so dang expensive to visit that Museum of Curiosity, that it would pay itself off after only two visits. And when you have people visiting and you are thinking of something fun to do, the museum is certainly worth a trip. I think the Kelly's enjoyed it. Let's check out our activities.

First off, I made myself the designated photographer, mainly because Tyler had never been to the museum before and it seemed only fair that he should get a chance to explore like any child person. I tend to like to start and end events with a group photo. Here we are bright and early at the museum. (Not that we beat the crowds. I took the kids out of school, much to their delight, but there are daily field trips to the museum and it was already crowded when we got there.)

Tyler loves imitating strange sculptures and faces. Oh, and enjoy the only picture of Ivory there. She escaped into the maze of the museum and I didn't see her until we rejoined at the end.

The kids paired off. Ivory begged to go with Ethan first and they disappeared into the Rainforest. I followed June and Daisy who went out to the Garden, which was amazingly empty.

I then wandered inside looking for more photography targets. I found Pearl and Robyn in Water Works.

I know that I have mentioned this before, but I love seeing the older girls helping the littler ones. It warms my heart.

Here they are trying to stand up to the winds of a hurricane.

Then I went in search of some more victims and ran into these two again, headed for the Rainforest.

I found the Kelly's in Kidopolis. There is always a hundred things to do there. Tim actually found his favorite place in the percussion room. (I had never been there before. It was pretty awesome.)

Having gathered some reinforcements, we all headed over to the Rainforest to find children. We still didn't locate Ivory and Ethan, but we had plenty of fun playing. We tested our hanging endurance over at the sloth rope. Tim went first. He made a good effort.

Tyler hung a little longer.

Jeannie showed up both the men. She is tough.

I was proud to hang in there over a minute.

But nothing compares to Daisy. I think she was made to be a sloth. She finally let go after five minutes, but probably only because she was bored.

Kids were once again scattered throughout. It really is hard to keep track of everyone in there. I found some kids over by the delayed video. The kids didn't even know I was there until I wandered in and across the screens. Ivory saw me first. (Oh, hey...I did find Ivory!)

Back in Kidopolis, I finally caught up with Ethan. He had traded buddies and was exploring with Daisy.

I left them to search out some more people. We ended up in the garden maze. I love this picture. I hadn't fixed camera settings, so it is a bit bright, but it makes me smile. (Keeping up with camera settings is harder than you think. In one room there will be hardly any light, and then I'll be outside with plenty and to spare.)

Here is the whole Kelly family. Impressive that we had all found each other again.

The only area we hadn't visited was Motion Matters. We didn't stay long, but we did bust out some smoke rings.

About this time everyone was getting hungry. It was time to wrap up the festivities and head for lunch. But don't forget a final group photo. I know, you don't need to say anything. It is awesome.

The Kelly's were so kind to take us to lunch. There was a funny moment when Tim took Pearl to get a hot dog and soda. She came back with a Mountain Dew for herself and Ivory. She thought it was yellow sprite.

I didn't even know what to say at first. I don't let the kids have caffeinated soda because I don't think they need it, so they have never had Mountain Dew before. I think Tim thought I was a little crazy to even care, but I realized quickly that it wasn't a big deal. A Mountain Dew every now and then isn't going to kill them. But in the bathroom, Ivory could tell I was concerned and she asked, "Does it have alcohol?"

Haha. I told Ivory that Uncle Tim would never order them an alcoholic drink. Clearly we need to have a talk about sodas and why their stingy mother doesn't let them drink them. I've never had a Mountain Dew myself actually. I guess old habits die hard.

We headed home from the museum to color eggs and get ready for what else? A Crack Off!! It wouldn't be Easter Time without it.