Our First Trip to the Field Museum

Bill took the day off of work this past Monday to nurse his Superbowl hangover but he didn't overdo it and felt fine enough for us to take the kids to the Field Museum instead. We had a great time and had the museum practically to ourselves - there were times that we were the only ones in the exhibits!

Hannah had a hard time understanding that the things that we were seeing were once alive but now dead so she was a little scared a few times while we were wandering around. She did NOT want to go into the pyramid because she thought that the mummies were going to come alive and chase her (like on t.v.). After we convinced her that mummies really don't come back to life after they're dead she was fine - at least until we went to the underground adventure. UA is a temporary exhibit that gives you a view of life under the soil if you were the size of a bug. It was cool in a creepy sort of way, but again Hannah was scared. The exhibit pretends to shrink you using mirrors and cameras and she hated the idea. She wanted out of there in the worst way until we explained that it was just pretend and that we were just imagining that we had shrunk. She eventually found a touch screen computer and she was good to go. The girl LOVES computers. After the computer she was more agreeable and was even willing to touch a few things.

Our next stop was the Evolving Planet Exhibit which both kids loved. it was full of Dinosaur facts and fossil and loads and loads of dino skeletons. Hannah knew most of the dinosaurs' names, which I was surprised at and Alexander just liked looking at the pictures and pushing the buttons to hear the dinosaurs' latin names. I swear he must have hit the Triceratops button about a dozen times!

The kids sitting on a dinosaur bone

Alexander in a dinosaur footprint

Hannah in the same footprint

After lunch we headed over to the Crown Family Playlab. We had been there earlier in the afternoon and Hannah had made a painting of a frog in the art room that she wanted to pick up before we left. I think that this was their favorite place in the whole museum. They got to run around and play in the different areas and mom and dad got to sit and rest! Hannah dressed up as different animals and jumped around the pretend forest and Alexander found some buttons to push - again! Then we headed into the music room and they banged on the drums like there was no tomorrow. There were buttons to push on the walls to hear samples of different types of music from different countries and they really enjoyed those. I think their favorite one was from Chile. Finally the kids moved over to play in the pueblo where they got to harvest corn and "make" pottery.

Hannah the turtle

My corn pickin' boy


Jammin' on the drum


Drum solo

We were a little bummed because the Scientists' lab was closed but we had such a good time we figured that the kids could see it the next time we visit.