My moms group had planned an outing to the Life and Science Museum in Durham. I hadn't thought to much of it, as we were still getting into the groove of things around here and I wasn't sure there would be any kids Ben's age there for him to play with. But then one of our friends sent us a message that they were going! So, since Eric was off work and we had nothing else planned, we decided to take the trip out to Durham and let Ben have his very first museum experience! :)
It was a rainy day, so we did not get to enjoy all the cool things outdoors. We did take a quick walk around the farm animals and then we went into the butterfly house. Here are a few pictures of Ben checking out some of the bugs!
Stopping to play the cowbells before it started raining too much!
Look at that big spider up there!
Hey dad, look at these cool bugs!
Butterflies on the windowsill of the butterfly pavilion
I was finally there for the butterfly release!
A little girl in our group was lucky enough to have a
butterfly rest on her hand before flying away!
After the butterfly pavilion, we made our way back to the main part of the museum. I was hoping Ben would be able to play with the blocks, but all the stations were being used by people who were actually building structures! So we walked through the weather station part, and then took Ben into the area with the snakes and turtles and such. Part of the problem with bring Ben to places like this right now is that he isn't walking just yet and it's hard to let him crawl around too much. So it is quite exhausting to fight with him as he just wants to get down and explore. This part of the museum was great for him though because there were low windows and he could hold on to the wall and walk between the windows.
Cool Owl
I love this photo of Ben and two random boys looking at a snake! So cute!!!
And since he couldn't pet the snake, he decided to pet the little boy next to him. :)
Hmm..I wonder what's in this window?
After the animals, we were in the next exhibit that had some hands on things. Ben, his buddy Lex, and another little girl who was also a June Baby, had fun crawling around, looking in the mirrors, and playing with some blocks. Of course Ben was all over the place and couldn't get enough! He loved watching all the other kids and at one point even went up to some little girl and started hugging her! Poor thing didn't know what to do! At one point Ben took off crawling and went straight across two rooms straight to the computer in the weather exhibit! After some time in this exhibit, we moved on to the space exhibit where Ben and Lex went inside the space ship to press some buttons. :) Ben was laughing and giggling the whole time! I know I've said it before, but I truly love this little guy's personality!
Sitting in the really, really big chair
Standing in the really, really big chair
Pressing buttons inside the spaceship!
Ben and Lex flying into space! It's a little blurry because this little guy won't stay still! :)
And to prove Julia was with us, a picture of Daddy, Ben, and Julia
Just when we thought we were going to have to leave because it was getting a little difficult to keep Ben contained, we found the AWESOME under 6 play area! There were two sections - I think 3 and under and then 6 and under. The 3 and under spot was PERFECT for Ben! First of all it was closed in - very helpful! Secondly, it had toys that were just the right size for our little man! Ben, Lex, and Juliette ( the little June babies from our mom's group) had a blast crawling, walking, playing, and interacting with the other kids in the area! I stayed outside of the area with Julia, while Eric followed Ben around. Even though it was kind of loud, I could hear Ben laughing and giggling above all the noise! He was in heaven!! At one point he even had a squealing match with a little girl! It was cute to hear their happy squeals go back and forth!
Freedom, Sweet, Freedom!!!
Julia just hanging out
So when my mom was here to watch Ben when Julia was born, she taught him to go down the stairs and off the couch backwards. He used his new skill and he turned around and went down the slide on his belly feet first - all on his own! Smart Kid!
Rolling the dice
Meeting a new friend (in the yellow) and hanging out with Lex (at the top of the photo)
Now to read a book...upside down.
"Waving"
Laughing all the way as he tries to climb up the slide. I tell my kindergarten kids not to do this, but Ben looked so cute, I had to let him try! :)
A picture with Daddy before we left.
And a close up of my two favorite guys!
I can't wait to take Ben to other museums and zoos, but I think we will wait until he is walking! I am so glad he had such a great time and he was out like a light before we even got to the highway!
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