Mommin' It Up!

July 26, 2011July 27, 2011

A Day at the Museum

Yesterday the kids and I ventured out to our local children’s museum, the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery, to check out their new Mindbender Mansion exhibit. We LOVE the Boonshoft and go several times a year, but it’s always more fun with friends! So I “twisted” Cortney’s arm and she and her boys joined us as well. We had an awesome time! First, we hit all our regular exhibits, like the zoo and the Cassano’s Pizza making-station and the pretend Animal Hospital, then we ventured to the main exhibit hall to see Mindbender Mansion.

Mindbender Mansion is full of brain teasers and interactive challenges. I gotta admit, some of the brain teasers were even hard for myself and math teacher Cortney, so it is fun for the whole family! There are also several group activities that are really fun, like this fast-paced shape sorting – putting food shapes on “cafeteria trays” on a conveyor belt! The kids LOVED this one.

sorting shapes on a moving conveyor belt

We spent almost an hour in just Mindbender Mansion itself. Everything was SO hands-on and easy to manipulate, the little kids even had fun playing the activities that were age-appropriate as well as the ones that were over their heads, and all the kids had a lot of fun working on things together.

joshuaevan — Joshua and Evan working together

We easily could’ve spent at least another hour in just the Mindbender Mansion exhibit, if I hadn’t had the baby with me. We might have to go back and check it out again before it moves on. The four kids and two moms in our group had a blast using our bodies and brains and working together!

carter — Carter, our littlest Mindbender

Mindbender Mansion will be at the Boonshoft through August 28th. If you haven’t experienced it yet, go for it! We had a blast and learned a few things too!

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This post was sponsored by the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery. The opinions expressed therein are all me, baby!

July 26, 2011

Burnt.

Like pretty much everywhere on the face of the earth, it’s been hideously hot in Ohio for the last week. So, in an effort to beat the heat, we went to our local water park over the weekend. This was smart for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which being A) the temperature is always 20 degrees hotter inside the gates of an amusement park than outside; B) the concrete had soaked up every bit of the heat and was like walking on fire; and C) everyone else in southwestern Ohio had the same bright idea.

Not that I’m bitter.

But the best part is that it was slightly overcast while we were there and, in an effort to not leave as the whitest person in attendance, I decided to forgo sunscreen.

BAD MOVE.

I am so burnt. Those are not my actual legs pictured above (mine are just as red but slightly less hairy) but take that image and apply it to my entire body and that should give you a good idea of what I’ve got going on.

And it’s making me mad. Seeing as how my skin tone is akin to copier paper, I have had a number of bad burns in my life. There was the time I thought putting on suntan oil at the beach was a good idea, and the time I spent a few days on the coast of Spain, not accounting for the fact that I was laying my beach towel directly on the equator. Burning is nothing new to me – but getting mad about it is. I think I am getting grumpy in my old age or something, because this time around any benefit I might eventually get from this scenario (as in possibly no longer being florescent) is vastly outweighed by the fact that I am extremely uncomfortable. And apparently at the ripe old age of 32, I’ve decided that comfort trumps all.

If you need me, I’ll be out shopping for zinc oxide and elastic waist pants.

July 25, 2011July 24, 2011

VB-YES!

Last month, I sent Joshua and Sophie to Vacation Bible School at our church. VBS at my church when I was a child was pretty much the AWESOMEST week of the whole summer, so I was psyched for them to go. And, they L-O-V-E-D it. It was in the evenings, and even though they got home past bedtime, it was ok with me because they actually slept in for once in their lives! They learned songs about Jesus, did crafts, made friends, and had an amazing time. In the mornings at home, they’d sing me a duet of the songs they learned. And Bobby and I, we got a few semi-quiet evenings at home with just the baby. WIN!

Since VBS was just the 2nd week of summer, I’ve been longing for it. It was over far too soon.

So I decided to become a VBS ho and send my kids to another VBS. At my brother’s church. After all my sister-in-law is in charge of the preschool program so I know they’ll be in good hands. Tee-hee. I guess I’m not really a VBS ho *yet*, I mean I think two VBS’ is marginal, but three would be down-right skanky. So I am just marginally skanky right now. In terms of sending my kids to multiple church programs.

Hmm. That last paragraph is all kinds of messed up.

Once again, my little VBSers are LOVING it! And I am loving dropping them off every evening and running off for a couple hours of semi-freedom.

So…any of you locals have a good VBS coming up in August? Maybe in the daytime? 🙂