Pink Palace and Will's Team Party

Recently, the Pink Palace Museum and Planetarium offered a free family membership from May until July 31 to anyone who called and asked for it before May 22. It took a couple of tries to get through (they do not return calls left on voice mail), but I was able to take advantage of this offer. I remember going as a child and LOVED it, so I was excited about taking the kids.

It started off as fun. Hannah and Will enjoyed looking at the skeletons of different animals, dioramas (?) of local wildlife and fossils of dinosaurs, some found in the area. We then moved upstairs to see a temporary exhibit called "Treasure." It shows different kinds of treasure and the places they can be found. There was a place where the kids could pan for (fool's) gold and colored rocks. Hannah really enjoyed this. You could also see how treasure is protected: alarms, locks and such. The different types of treasure on display ranged from pieces of gold and silver found on sunken ships to the treasure you find in your attic: games, toys, old clothing, etc. There was a place where you could see how much your weight was worth in gold (mine was over $37,500; Will's was around $1500). Hannah found a spot where you could use a metal detector to find metals in the ground.

After we left the Treasure exhibit, we started walking around the history portion of the museum. This area has always been my favorite part. I LOVE looking at and learning about things and events of the past. If I was by myself, I would spend all day there without ever leaving this particular area. Will started getting bored in the Treasure exhibit. It did not improve in the history area. He liked looking at the Clyde Park Circus. It was crafted entirely by hand by one man without using any pictures. I think he started in the 1920s and finished around the 1950s. As we walked through the other areas, Will's attention span decreased to about zero very quickly. So, instead of staying with Mama, he decided to walk around on his own. After looking for him and calling out his name for a few minutes, he decided to show up. I still am not exactly sure where he wandered off to (and yes, I got a hold of his backside really good). Not long after that we grabbed a bite in the museum cafe then wandered through the Mansion portion of the museum. Hannah liked the shrunken head while Will liked walking around.

Will and Coach Keith

Hannah and Will
They are relaxing before Hannah's game
and Will's team party

Amethyst
How would you like to wear this?

Quartz

I just love this picture!

Will and his Tee Ball trophy

Will and Andrew with Rollo the animated dinosaur

Another shot of Rollo

Clyde Park Miniature Circus-1

Clyde Park Miniature Circus-2

Clyde Park Miniature Circus-3

Clyde Park Miniature Circus-4