The Children’s Museum of Houston is about to premiere a brand new expansion that doubles the size of the museum and it is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!! (Yes, I realize capitalizing on the web is the equivalent of shouting and should be reserved for the most appropriate moments. Well, this IS one!!!)
And, by the way… Do I have any photos? No. I left the camera at home and just played and played with the kids. Sorry for you (and my scrapbook). Check the museum’s website if you need the visuals.
Back to the excitement…
I will first disclaim myself in telling you many moons ago, just before I became a mom, I worked at that the Children’s Museum, so this place holds a very special place in my heart. I loved working there and I love visiting there (but I am strategic and try to visit when the rest of the city isn’t. But with this new expansion, there will be lots more space, so maybe not the same crowding…) Anyhow…
When we turned the corner off Kid’s Hall to enter the new area, I teared up. Really. I did. I was so overwhelmed by the enormity of what I was about to enter. I saw neon lights, a super-cool climbing structure and all the beautiful bright colors and designs that just say “Children’s Museum of Houston” to me.
And then there was the new gift shop I dared not enter for fear of never making it out alive. (Wow! It looked fantastic. And now they offer cool gift-wrapping, too.)
We proceeded past check-in, were handed our Kid Cards and entered Kidtropolis, a city with a bank, ATMs, paychecks (“grown up allowance” the sign said), newsroom, ambulance, police station, market, veterinarian, diner and more. All 3 kids wanted in on the action, but I was determined to start down on the lower level first. So we found the elevator.
When the elevator doors opened at the lower level, my jaw dropped and I could barely move. In front of us was Invention Convention, the most incredible place I have ever seen for building and tinkering and testing.
I stood there speechless for about 10 minutes (really) while my kids and husband charged forward, ready for action.
My 3-year old daughter made a parachute, hooked it up to a pulley and launched it. My 5-year old boy built and rebuilt and rebuilt and rebuilt Lego cars and raced them down a track with the help of an engineer volunteer. My seven year-old boy was captivated by building things (rockets, flying saucers, whatever) to launch in the windtunnels. And then they all folded and shot paper airplanes on a launcher. After about 45 minutes, I had to peel them out of there to explore the rest of the museum. They were in love. I was in love. The place was incredible. It was clean, inviting, energizing and totally geared for the kids to explore at their own pace and in their own way. And that was just part of the expansion!
Soon after that we entered Power Play, a collection of physical challenges that you can track with your Kid Card and a massive climbing structure with twists and turns.(Beware: The climbing structure is really for the kids, although I did squeeze myself through, following my three-year old who was much faster than I.)
At each activity, you can test your heart rate or some other progress indicator and store your results for next time on your Kid Card. You can learn dance moves in a “studio,” test your flexibility in a stretching zone, play a light-chasing game with your whole body and tons more.
After watching the guys chase the lights I bumped in to a friend and we decided to explore the new Tot*Spot upstairs. WOAH! This new space is huge with tons of options for the under-three set, including their own outdoor play patio with a padded ground. My daughter had a tea party, drove a car and spied on baby bears in their house. She also loved the perfectly-sized slide and eyed the babies crawling through mazes and playing in individual ball pits.
I glanced at my watch and realized I needed to meet back up with my guys, so we made a stop in the new super clean and spacious bathroom before heading out to the new water play area where my boys and husband were splashing, filling a massive cauldron and designing boats. I love this new water play area. Yes, your kids will get wet, but I think this new design is safer and lends itself to more exploration for all ages.
At this point we had to wrap it up and head for dinner. So we left a lot of the museum (even the new part) still unexplored, even though we were there for 2 ½ hours.
I realize this post is long and still quite incomplete. But I was just blown away by all the new things. And I cannot wait to take the kids and return for more playtime soon.
I thought the Children’s Museum was a gem before, but now it is truly a treasure. If you are nearby, you must take the kids and check it out. If you aren’t, you might consider a trip to Houston. Yes. It was THAT good.
Oh, and if you’d like to host a birthday party there, I hear there are 4 brand-new party rooms throughout the museum and that you get to pick which exhibit you’d like to host your party near. How cool is that? (I want one by the Invention Convention!!)
The Children’s Museum of Houston
1500 Binz
713-522-1138
Free admission Saturday, March 14, from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. as part of the Grand Opening celebration
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