Boston Children's Museum, Boston

I decided to be brave and courageous yesterday and bring the crew to the Boston Children's Museum.  While it's a great museum, and there's lots of fun to be had, this is absolutely not a place that I will be returning too anytime soon, (unless, of course I have extra reinforcements that are totally dedicated to me and my kids!!)

 As you can tell, I certainly don't shy away from exploring the area parks, playgrounds and attractions.  I try to keep calm and not get stressed out because children can feel that stress.  Me getting stressed out makes them worse, and ultimately gets me more stressed out.  So, I generally try to maintain my laid-back attitude when bringing the clan out and about.   It took us a little while to find parking, and get our bearings in the area.  But we found parking ($19.00).  I think it was the closest to the museum.  It was a little tiny lot where the attendant had to park the car for us.  It took awhile to unload.  I decided to bring the double stroller, Baby Bjorn, and the sling carrier.  We also had packed a picnic lunch to enjoy on the waterfront.  

Once we got into the museum, I sensed that I might be in over my head.  It is the end of the school year, and apparently 11am prime time for elementary school field trips.  Can we say chaos?  As soon as we got in, Patrick flew into the climbing structure.  Cecilia made her attempt, but fortunately she didn't have the height to get up too high.  For this age group, and with three kids, my biggest complaint is that I can't see them in this structure.  At one point, Patrick had climbed down, and I saw him come out.  I didn't catch him quickly jump back in because I had grabbed one of the other two.  We thought he took off through the museum.  After what seemed like 15 minutes, and was probably one 2 or 3, our friend noticed him in his neon orange shirt at the top of the structure.  Be aware, this is not something that an adult would want to climb up into, and thank god I didn't have to because I'm not sure what I would have done with the other kids! 

I really wish I could do a better job describing the layout to you all, but honestly it was so tough to keep on top of them (even with help) that I couldn't tell you where anything was!  So here, check out the map! 

We did explore most of the museum, though not all.  We tried the third floor, and then headed outside for lunch.  There's an Au Bon Pain in the 'milk bottle' which would be great on warmer summer days.  It was a great place for lunch even though they were closed.  We then headed back in to check out the other floors.  The kids LOVED the bubble exhibit on the first floor, as well as the water tables on the second floor.  There's a great construction room that Patrick loved when  we went about two years ago.  This time, Patrick was so overwhelmed with how much there was to see that he couldn't pay too much attention here and just wanted to keep moving onto 'bigger and better things'.  At the very end of our visit we learned there was a 0-3 center that was GATED.  I wish I was able to pay better attention to the map when we first got there.  Perhaps we could have prevented "Lost Patrick Round two"!

So the nitty-gritty:

Boston Children's Museum
Congress ST, Boston.
Parking: ample parking at various lots around the museum.  Almost all parking is at a cost.

Hours
Open every day 10am - 5pm
Fridays 10am - 9pm

Costs:  Adults: $12.00
Seniors(65+): $12.00
Children (1-15): $12.00
(0-12 Months): Free!
Members: Free!
United States Armed Forces Active Duty Personnel OR one of their dependents will receive complimentary admission to Boston Children's Museum with appropriate ID.


And Check this out: $1.00 Friday nights from 5-9.  This is sponsored by Target!


There are also library passes that offer a discounted rate.  If you are a member of a children's museum, and have a Reciprocal pass, admission is free. 

Bailek Park, Ipswich

What a great park we went to today!  It's called Bailek Park, and it's on Linebrook Rd, in Ipswich, MA.  We'd never been and decided to go check it out.  It's fun trying out different parks!  Anyways, this has a 'new' section that was built in late 2009, with an older wooden 2-5 structure.  It's a really cool park.  I really can't do much in terms of describing it, but I did remember to take some pictures for everyone.  The kids had a really good time.  Positives: lots of fun structures to play on.  Mostly fenced off from the road.  Parking: today seemed to be plenty of parking, but since this park is with several ball fields, I think it might be a bit more difficult on busy days!   Negatives:  No shade!  We all left with some color, and the baby unfortunately got a bit of a sunburn since she's photo-sensitive due to meds.  There were also a few broken things, the large swing (see pictures below) and one of the play structure had a sign saying not to use until it's replaced.  It did look like a new sign, so hopefully it's fixed soon.

Totplex, Canton MA

I packed up the kids, and headed down to the Canton Totplex to meet a friend and have all the kids play together.  I heard about it from another mom's posts on Facebook.  She really enjoyed it, so we figured this was a good halfway point between our two towns.  The Totplex is actually part of the larger Sportsplex.  They have several programs, but we were there for the indoor playspace.  It was not too far from the highway, but at the end of an industrial park.  We had a very hard time finding it, since I couldn't find any signs saying either totplex or sportsplex.  After driving around and around, I decided this must be the place due to the number of minivans in the parking lot!  We headed in.  Basically, this is a giant complex with ice rinks, indoor fields, locker rooms, etc.  The totplex part of it is actually just a large indoor soccer field (maybe lacrosse) with a bunch of toys.  There were a few inflatables, some infant exersaucers, cars, playhouses, and the kiddie coasters.  It was very wide open with lots of room to run.  I had purposefully dressed Patrick in a neon green shirt for easy watching!  This proved to be useful as he literally ran from one end to the other for the entire time we were there. 

This was a great place for multiple kids, since I could keep an eye on them.  Although, it is a huge place and you could end up with one kid at one end, and one at the other!  What I liked most about this place, was that at the entrance to the playspace, there are staff members who don't let the kids leave!  Everyone has numbered tickets/wristbands that match.  (for example, we were all number 14)  This also proved useful when Cecilia had enough playing and wanted to go home.  Great safety feature that I wish other places implemented.  There were a few downsides, the biggest being the condition of the turf.  It appears to be deteriorating, and little bits of the floor were coming through the turf.  With Riley being such an active crawler/roller, she ended up covered in little black bits.  I thought they had great inflatables, but found that most of the toys were things we had in our yard or friends yards.  Still, this is great for those long winter days.  We won't be there in the summer, that's for sure!

Canton Totplex
 5 Carver Circle •
Canton, MA 02021 •
Telephone: 781 821-0304 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              781 821-0304      end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Hours: Monday - Friday 9-2 pm
September 13, 2010 - June 13, 2011
closed on all school holidays and vacations.
Cost:  $8.00 per child.  (Discounted rate for more children)

Discovery Museums, Acton MA

I've been a bit lax in updating this blog the last few weeks, not because we haven't been going anywhere, but more because we've been going everywhere!  We had a whole 10 days straight of heading out an about.  Some of the places I've already written about, like the two zoos, and Ackerman/Boy Scout Park.  And of course we've been off visiting friends.  We did check out some great new places! 


One of those was the Acton Discovery Museums.  Wow!  Can I just say, this was probably the best place I've taken these kids!  It was a little bit of a drive, about 45 minutes from Wenham, but it was so worth it!  Can you imagine, we spent three hours at this very small museum, and didn't even come close to seeing half of it?   There are two small buildings, and actually, we didn't even see all of the smaller building.  There were upset children when it was time to go, and sleeping children the entire ride home. :)

So we met up with two friends and their (combined) 4 children.  Driving down the road, I literally drove right past it. I was looking for a 'building', not a 'house'.  Thank goodness for the giant dinosaur in the lawn!  We turned around and found the parking lot.  It's not a huge parking lot, but I think it gets the job done.  We didn't have a hard time finding spaces.  I was surprised to notice a sign that said "30 Minute Wait".  A museum with a wait?  So we got our tickets.  (Free if you have the Children's Museum Reciprocal pass or a library pass, and can be discounted if you have the Entertainment Book)  We headed back outside to explore.  There's a lot to do in the parking lot.  We hovered around the tree house and ship area, and also the painted 'road' they could drive tricycles on.  I noticed there were other things around the parking lot, but the kids weren't interested in heading there.  They also have a 'classroom' that has some toys in it, and a bathroom! 

The wait ended up being much less than 30 minutes, and when we got in, I could see why there was a wait.  It's a small victorian style house that's been converted into this amazing playspace/museum.  No strollers allowed in the museum, and I'm not sure it's fully handicap accessible. 

The first room was the train room, complete with a large train the kids could go on, a train table, and a ticket counter.  Nothing high tech, and for me not all that exciting.  The kids on the other hand had to be dragged out and into the next room, the ball room.  Now I thought this room was great!  There was a 'loft'-type structure for the kids to climb, some stage type areas, and a fireplace converted into a cozy reading nook.  The entire room was outfitted with different 'tracks' for the balls.  There were large lacrosse balls that you had to climb into the loft to put in the tracks.  The tracks went around the room and hit different obstacles like keys, or dominoes.  This was great for Patrick, and Cecilia loved the lower level tracks for golf balls scattered throughout.  Room 2 was were we lost one set of friends......they stayed here almost an hour!  The next room is the water room.  Pretty simple.  Giant water table, and this giant bubble set up where the kids can stand in a bubble.  They do have 'water aprons' but I would definitely recommend a change or two of clothes per kid!  

Then come the stairway, also full of fun for the little ones.  There's a giant lighthouse they can climb in with a periscope and switches to turn on the light.  Under the stairs is a seat and a TV that showcases an ocean scene.  (No, not a Sponge Bob ocean scene! )  We headed upstairs, there's a bunch of rooms up there, and I know that with the three of them, I didn't really get to explore all the rooms, because it was hard to keep track of them all!  I do wish there was a gate at the top of the stairs.  The first room we went in was exploring colors with a huge wooden puzzle along the wall, and some neat color mixing containers and wheels.  There's also a big wooden bridge that has light-up steps.  The next room was a restaurant set up. This pretty much speaks for itself, but just picture a play kitchen on steroids!  Complete with restaurant booths for us parents to sit and enjoy their creations.  Here is also an unimpressive infant corner.  There weren't too many toys in it, but I appreciated a chance to put Riley down so I could keep a better eye on the bigger two.  Then we worked over to an eclectic area.  There was a puppet theater, dollhouse, and they could climb up into an adventure fort. 

The two other rooms on this level were the safari room, which also had climbing structures and a sensory room.    I didn't get to spend much time in there since I could be in the hallways and keep an eye on them. Oh, and very important to note: Bathroom is located on this floor too, with a changing table!

There is a third floor, but we didn't make it up there.  At this point, we'd already been inside about 2.5 hours!  We slowly headed back outside and went to the 'front yard'.  We grabbed some lunch at the picnic tables and the kids played in the sandbox and on the dinosaur. 

I can not wait to go back!  Not only did we miss the third floor of the smaller building, there's the entire 'science museum' that didn't open until 1 that we missed.  Some of our friends had been here before and the kids really wanted to go there as well.  But rush hours was fast approaching.  We will be going back and planning a full day, so look for the Part 2 post. 

Discovery Museums,
177 Main Street (Route 27)
Acton, Massachusetts 01720
Phone: 978.264.4200 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              978.264.4200      end_of_the_skype_highlighting
fun@discoverymuseums.org

Parking: Ample
Bathrooms:  Classroom building by the Children's Discovery Musuem, and on the second floor of the Childrens' Discovery Museum.  (I don't yet know where in the Science Building)

	Children's Discovery Museum (The smaller front house) Tues-Sun 9-4:30
	Science Discovery Museum Tues-Fri 1-430, Sat-Sun 10-4:30

Imajine That, Lawrence

When I was living in the Merrimack Valley, Imajine That, 354 Merrimack Street , Lawrence MA was one of my most favorites places to go. When I only had Patrick and Cecilia (as a baby) it was pretty easy. With three, it's obviously a bit more difficult, but I do love it here! We had a 6 month membership to get us through the winter months. Now that I am no longer local, it's not worth the membership. Fortunately, we have some close friends who still have memberships and we can use their guest passes. Also, some of the libraries in area have passes, and I know that the Haverhill Family Network has passes as well. The 2011 Entertainment book has coupons for discounted entrance fees as well.

Imajine That is a tad tricky to find. Its just below Salvatore's Restaurant, on the second floor. A tricky part, particularly in the summer: NO SHOES, that is for everyone! Everyone must have socks, so throw them in your bag!

We went this past Wednesday to meet up with a couple friends.  I had started this blog entry, since I'd been there so many times, and sure enough when we got there I was surprised.  They had a renovation!  How did I not know this??  Anyways, the basic layout is still the same, but they 'de-cluttered' the place, and replaced the old beat up bouncy house. They also repainted the entire interior.  It used to be full of all kinds of bright colors.  Now it's more along the lines of coffee house colors, but I think in some ways its good.  Much less overstimulating than it was, but I find it a bit blah.

Anyways, that's just my opinion.  I still love Imajine That!  It's very easily accessible with my oversized stroller.  There's push-button handicap doors and other than making sure Patrick doesn't push the alarm button in the elevator it's a piece of cake.  When you get upstairs there's a lobby area where you can hang jackets, shoes, stroller parking and restrooms.  (Not the nicest ones I've seen, but they have changing tables and do just fine.)  When you enter the playspace there's a little boutique, and the check in desk.  Then it's just wide open areas of fun.  Here's some photos.  There used to be a great map on the website but that's not there anymore.  So I'll do my best to recreate it.  

This place really has a lot of things for the under 5 age group!  What makes it really unique in my mind is the arts and crafts area and the cafe.  The Arts and Crafts area has a chalkboard wall, and lots of supplies such as crayons, glue, feathers, sequins, stamps, etc.  You can also purchase paint for $0.25 from the cafe.  And speaking of cafe, this place is pretty good for playspace food.  They serve Sal's Pizza, yogurt, snacks, fruit cups, and Patrick's favorite Nutella and Jelly Sandwich!  It is peanut free, but they do have soy nut butter.

The Maze is small, but pretty nice.  I like it because I can fairly easily go through most of it with the kids, including the baby.  It's only two levels.  To use the slide, you don't have to struggle through everything.  You just climb up the stairs and slide down, so it's great for small ones.  There is a dress up box near the stage, and also a puppet theater!  I think the rest of it is pretty self-explanatory - toddler area, music house, bouncy house, playstore.  :)

They offer a bunch of different programs and activities.  Some of them are included with admission, some have an extra charge.  When I heard about this one program, my initial thought was "I can't believe no one's thought of that before"!  It's a program called Date Night.  You can get more detailed info at the link, but here's the short version.....   Salvatore's Restaurant and Imajine That have teamed up.  You 'book' your date night, either Friday or Sat with Imajine That between 5 and 8.  You're given a two hour window and Imajine That makes a dinner reservation for you at Salvatores.  The staff will take your (walking) children and watch them for that time block.  They feed them pizza and juice, and you can enjoy a quiet dinner!!  The kids are in the building and staff will get you if need be.  Can you say AWESOME!  We've done this before, but always had a non-walking baby.  I'm looking forward to enjoying this as soon as the little one is on the go!

If you're nearby it is definitely worth checking out!  I do find it a little hard to keep track of the kids, but really no more so than any large place.  The area's all have half-walls which I think is great.  The jury is still out on this one.  I love this place for multiple kids, and I have friends who don't like it because it's hard to keep track of them.  They however like some other places that I'd rather avoid for the same reason.  For us and for now, we love it here.  We'll see what happens when the baby is on the move! 

Details:
354 Merrimack Street , Lawrence MA

Hours:

Monday - Thursday	9 - 5
Friday and Saturday	9 - 8
Sunday	9 - 5

Cost:

Children 1 & up	$8.95
Babies under 1	$2.95
Adults	$1.00 Next stop: Canton's Totplex that we went to yesterday. Discovery Museums in Acton we're heading to now!  Can't Wait!

Pump it up, Peabody MA

I am really looking forward to going out to explore all the playgrounds! Unfortunately, this week is going to be quite a rainy week, and we'll have to do our best to avoid 'cabin fever'. When I moved to the Northshore area, I did 'join' a few Mom's Groups. (I think they are a GREAT way to learn the hot playspots, make new friends for both you and your kids, and just to get out and about). By joining, I'm on the email lists, and unfortunately have yet to make a scheduled playdate!

A mom's group had a play date at Pump It Up, 5 Webster St. Peabody, so I decided it would be worth checking out. I heard about them about a year or so ago. When I called, they had very limited playtimes, and we'd never been able to coordinate. Today would be a great day with the rain and as a bonus I would get to meet some local moms!

Pump It Up is located in a fairly industrial area, and was a little hard to find. Fortunately, GPS knew where to go, otherwise, I don't think I would have found it! If you are going here and use a stroller, there's definitely a right and wrong side to park on! We were on the wrong side. (Read: stairs, no ramp!) The side we parked on had a sign for a place called Fastner, and only a few "temporary" parking spots for Pump It Up. I was able to hike the stroller up the drainage ditch, and a staff member gave me a hand when we got to the top. It was $16 for the four of us to enter. $8.00 for each walking child, and free for me and the baby.

The website doesn't have much for pictures, so I'll do my best to describe it. After checking in and going down a hallway, there are two 'arenas' which is where the inflatables are. I was so happy when I learned at check in that parents CAN play on the equipment with the kids. So many times I've had to either chase or rescue a child off a bouncy house that clearly states I shouldn't be on it! When we got into Arena B, I realized why I could join them - the play structures are huge! I quickly realized this might not be a great fit for the situation I'm currently in. A fearless 3 year old, almost two year old determined diva, and a 9 month old baby.

So there are two Arena's full of large inflatable structures. The arenas are separated by a set of doors, but during drop in play the doors are open. Each room has giant slides. Both Cecilia and Patrick could climb these big slides. Arena A has a basketball-type court, and a pair of obstacle courses. Arena B has two other inflatables. One of them had a jumping area, some pillars, and a small slide. The side you climb on was set up more like a rock wall. We didn't make it onto the other one, but it looked pretty cool. It was circular, with a big mound in the middle. Each room also had an air hockey table, and there were a couple coin operated games scattered throughout.

I did venture onto a few things with the kids, because Cecilia had a hard time climbing into, and up most of the pieces. This would have been great if I wasn't lugging around the poor baby! Riley held up fairly well! She enjoyed the basketball court with her siblings. She also didn't seem to mind climbing up the big slides. I was surprised she also did well as we navigated the obstacle course, until we got to the end and had to scale a 'rock wall' style hill! Much to her dismay, I had no choice but to put her down and helped Cecilia. As I climbed back down, I then wondered how on earth I was going to carry Riley up to the slide! We survived. :)

Pump It Up is a great place to bring kids: its fun, super clean, and the staff were very friendly and helpful! If you are planning on venturing out with your little one/ones, be leary of the timing of open play. This was a very difficult day for this Momma, trying to help her on the equipment and keeping an eye on Patrick while dragging the baby. This was during the middle of the week, at roughly 10AM. I can't even imagine how it would have gone if older kids were running and jumping around! I heard from another mom of two that she can't bring her kids together because of the age difference. If your kids are close in age like mine, be sure they are old enough to venture in on their own, because it can be very difficult to keep a close eye on them.

I can say however, that we will be going back and maybe even dragging a few of our friends. Maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment? Or perhaps it's because I don't want to waste the perfectly good Groupon we purchased.

Details:
5 Webster St. Peabody. Limited Parking

Cost: $8.00 per child (adults play for free when accompanied by a child)

Hours: Check the calendar for the latest information
It looks like Pop In Play Time: Tues, Wed, 9:30 - 11. and Thursday 1030-12. There are also scattered afternoon times.


Up next: Imajine That, Lawrence. New Hampshire Children's Museum, Dover NH.

Children's Hospital, Boston

So, this isn't exactly my idea of fun, but I had to throw out a plug for Children's Hospital Boston, Blackfan St! My baby has a 'minor' medical problem. Now, by minor, I certainly don't mean that I consider it minor, but in the scheme of things it most definitely could be a lot worse. The standard of care for this condition is currently under question. The biggest problem with what she has is that she's very likely to develop infections. The standard is to administer antibiotics on a daily basis until the condition is outgrown, which could be as many as 5 years! Many docs are currently questioning this school of thought since the effectiveness hasn't been tested. Short story, Children's is participating in a national study that is examining if administering prophylaxis antibiotics are preventing anything at all.

Yesterday was our first day of the study. It was a VERY long day that involved nuclear med tests, bloodwork, urine sample, rectal swabs, blood pressure (surprisingly harder for her than I would have thought!) and a 90 minute scan....that's 90 minutes if my 8 month old doesn't move an inch during the test! They told us to expect 3-4 hours for that scan.

I just have to say, EVERYONE at Children's made this as enjoyable as possible. Each staff member that I walked by at the very least smiled at the Babe, and at me. Many of them said hello, talked to Riley, etc. Those that had to do tests were just so kind to her and tried to make it as painless as possible for her. The study coordinator was incredible, and I just couldn't be happier to have to partnership with them.

While I hope that noone needs to have specialty services for their children, if they do, try try try to get into Childrens! They are affiliated with Harvard Medical School. They just opened a new satellite clinic in Peabody at Centennial Drive. They also have a Waltham location, and a Lexington office.

Hope you and your children have a healthy day!