Franklin Institute

This morning we ate a quick breakfast, tossed the kids in the car, and headed to Philly to visit the Franklin Institute.  It was "Sensory Sunday" there, where they turn down the sounds and the lights on some of their exhibits for kids who may have some sensory issues.  I have no idea how it is on a "normal" day, and if they could have turned the down the volume of the pack of Boy Scouts that would have been GREAT - but we got to go early to beat the crowds, and it was at a discounted price, so we were cool with it.  The kids had a BLAST and would like to go back tomorrow.  The grown-ups would like to go to bed right this instant, and have re-discovered how much they dislike other people's kids.

We spent a whole lot of time in the space exhibit - SURPRISE!

Checking out astronaut suits

Building a Mars rover, the old-fashioned way

Building a Mars rover on the computer - this game has been declared "The Most Fun Game EVER."  John spent a lot of time here.  Fortunately he had a smart phone and free wi-fi.

Erin and I checked out the HUGE train while the boys built more Mars rovers:

There was a pay phone in the train room.  "Mama, how do you hang this up?"  Excellent question, sweetie.  You've never seen a phone with a cord, have you...

Testing out different kinds of train wheels

Blowing the train whistle

All Aboard!  Erin drove.  I got to ride... in the tender.

We had a fun time in the Maze of Mirrors, which was part of a younger-kid oriented room with some water play, bubbles, fog horns, and air tubes:

And then we went and checked out THE BRAIN.  Climbed in the brain.  Made neuron connections.  Put together a brain puzzle.  We liked watching the kids turn a wheel to watch the neural pathway light up, and have ping pong balls POP out of the end when the message got there.  Erin giggled like mad, although it scared the bejezus out of her a few times.

Brain climby thing

Both kids inside the neural pathways of the brain.  They did a nice job of staying together.  Erin, being little, actually had an easier time getting through some places than Dexter.

Say BRAIN!

Very cool screen where you could move neurons around and get them to make pathways.

This is the neuron with the ping pong balls at the end.  Erin was giggling, but then got too scared to actually turn the wheel the whole way.

Dex tried it out, too

I have no idea what this thing is actually supposed to DO, but the kids had a wonderful time dancing around in front of the screen.

Here's Dex, doing something like what the directions said to do.

We spent LOTS and LOTS of time in the Amazing Machines room, which made Dexter and John very happy.  Erin and I did ok for a little while, but Erin was tired and grumpy and I can only watch gears and pulleys for just so long.  So we went and played with rocks in the gift shop.

Erin built a cool domino line

The kids worked together to move the crane and move some pieces of foam.

Dexter spent so much time playing with gears.  He LOVED it.

This was his crowning achievement - with gears and four pulleys.  He was very proud of it.

We spent a little time in the Sports Zone, but it was super crowded and hot by the time we got there.  The kids ran a race, jumped for height, and had an arm-pedaled bicycle race:

Our final stop was the Franklin Air Show, all about airplanes.  We floated balls in mid-air, banged drums and watched the wall opposite shimmer, sat in an airplane, and tried on some wings.  There was lots of air blowing in here, which made Erin happy.  She likes it when things blow her hair:

Dex, pretty close to flying away.

And then we drove an hour home, and Erin single-handedly ate an entire sleeve of Girl Scout peanut butter sandwich cookies.  And now it's 9PM, and I need to go to bed.  Science, man.  It's EXHAUSTING.

100. And 7.

Dear Dexter,

A couple weeks ago it was the 100th Day of School.  Your fantastic, amazing, awesome teacher, Mrs Meute, had all kinds of special activities planned for the day to celebrate 100 days of school.  Every student brought in 100 pieces of something snack-like (you did Fruity Cheerios) and mixed them together in to a special 100 Day snack.  You did math games incorporating 100.  Pictures and puzzles about the number 100 (you declined the puzzle bit, claiming you "ran out of time."  Ran out of time, my ass, child - I know you hate puzzles.)  And you brought home this excellent little paper about all things 100.  It makes me giggle.  I don't imagine you'd ever eat 100 brussels sprouts.  And I agree, having 100 babies would DEFINITELY be a problem.

We maybe need to go to the store to look at the cost of things a bit more.  Because I don't think you'd get a very big rocket ship with $100.

A few weeks ago you turned seven.  SEVEN!  You are 52 inches and 60 pounds huge - you've gained 10 pounds since Kindergarten, and it is mostly solid muscle.  And brains.  Lots and lots of brains.

You have continued to love space.  All things space.  We own, I believe, every single space book known to man.  Our shelves are overflowing with space books.  You know about the phases of the moon (you are currently learning about them in school, so we've been paying closer attention to the moon every night.  I think you could likely teach this section of your science lesson.), all the planets, all the moons of every planet, different kinds of stars, black holes.  We name it, you know it if it's about space.  You got a new bus driver a few weeks ago named Mr. Armstrong.  You were excited because "maybe he's an astronaut!"  I'm not sure you realize that there are LOTS of people with the last name of Armstrong.  They are not all Neil Armstrong.

You love love love school.  It took a trimester or so, but finally your teacher is realizing that you LIKE doing extra stuff at school.  You love math word problems.  You love research projects.  You HATE writing, especially "making connections" in fictional books.  I get it.  I like to read just to enjoy it.  I don't, personally, care one bit about WHY the author chose to write about a topic.  I'm just happy he did.  So I get it, kiddo.  But sorry.  Making connections is something you're going to have to do for a long long time at school.

Bedtime Math.  Best.  Book. Ever.

Your favorite part of school is lunch and recess.  Which - AWESOME!  Lunch was something Daddy and I were a little worried about this year - it's loud, there's lots of kids, you have to stand in line to wait for your food.  All things you kind of hate.  But apparently you are having a grand old time, striking up conversations with other kids, and you're actually playing with kids during recess.  It's huge.  HUGE remarkable progress for you and I am delighted to see it happening.

This fall you've been part of the swim team at the YMCA, which really deserves a post all its own.  It's been so fun to see your swimming improve (you are FAST!) and, even more importantly, to see you so excited about something.  I love watching you jump up and down and get all flappy during practice and during swim meets because you're so excited about the upcoming event.  And I love seeing you actually make friends, and want to hang out with them.  Tomorrow is the last day of swim team for a couple months, and while it will be nice to have those evenings back I am really going to miss having you swim.

Daddy and you just started playing basketball at the YMCA.  Daddy is the coach of your team.  You LOVE basketball, and you get so so excited to play.  Daddy is exhausted after practice and games - coaching a bunch of seven year olds is a bit like herding cats, I think.

You've been super busy with all your activities, but I think what you enjoy most is hanging out at home.  You still love playing with trains - we've got a train track gracing the floor of the living room right now, and I don't even know how many tracks are set up in the basement.  I try not to go down to look very often.  You love LEGO's, and Snap Circuits, and MagnaTiles.  You read a billion books a day.  And I am quite sure you would play Mine Craft on your iPad all day, every day if we would allow it.  You currently have to earn iPad time with good behavior, and Mine Craft has really been pretty good at encouraging good behavior.  Want to argue and talk back and be rude?  Guess you don't want to play Mine Craft tomorrow.

You are pretty good to your sister.  She ADORES you and would love nothing more than to hang out with you all the time.  You tolerate playing with her to a point, and eventually find a way to tell her to get lost.  You like teaching her about space, and helping her with puzzles (amazing), and listening to music and dancing with her.  You play silly silly games together.  Every now and then you give her a real honest to goodness hug, and that just melts my heart.

You are still, and always will be, a bit of a quirky boy.  It takes a little while to figure you out, break through and find the real Dexter, and figure out what makes you tick (and what makes you explode).  But man, when you get it figured out and get a real smile out of you...  It's totally worth the effort.

Happy, happy Birthday Dexter.  We love you to the edge of the universe and back (and, of course, as you know the universe has no edge.  So we love you forever, to infinity.  Which, by the way, IS NOT A NUMBER.  It's an idea.  It's not a number.  Can we please stop having that discussion?)

Be Mine

When you've got two little kids, Valentine's Day takes on an entirely different meaning.  Dinner out at a fancy place?  Oh, hells no.  Baby sitters cost too much and are impossible to find on Valentine's Day.  Sleep in?  Breakfast in bed?  Nope.  Nope.  Mostly our day revolved around the kids.  And the balloons and cards and candy they received and adored.  But they found some cute ways to make us feel loved, as well, so it all worked out fine.

Erin made me a bracelet and a necklace at school on Thursday.

John thought about spending the morning at the shooting range, but the temperature this morning was, like, 6 degrees.  So he didn't go do THAT.  We went to a free admission day at the DE Museum of Natural History, instead.  Erin was delighted because "I've never been there afore!"  Dex was excited about their new display on asteroids and comets.  And John came with us, as it was warmer than shooting guns.  It was a good morning.

Both kids enthralled by the Asteroid Finder Simulator

No idea what this is.  I think Erin was making a new solar system.

Dung Beetle grub, anyone?

Erin thought it was very very cool that we got to see some dinosaur bones.

More simulator

Props to Dex, the only one of the family brave enough to pet a snake.  I was totally proud of myself for getting close enough to take a picture without losing my mind.

We capped it off with lunch at Five Guys (romantic VD meal), some basketball shoe shopping at Dick's (the kids enjoyed running around the shoe department on their pretend "track."  I am sure everyone shopping for shoes was delighted.  Know what?  Bite me.  Don't put a TRACK in your shoe department if you don't want kids to run on it.), and a late nap by Ms. Cranky McGrumpypants.  And then Dex and I woke her up, so she would actually go to sleep tonight.  And THEN we tried to take Valentine's pictures.  So you can imagine how well that went.

Dexter is hugging me too tight!

Trying desperately not to smile...

Dexter, to his enormous credit, was a champ for pictures.  Which was a minor miracle, because it was a HUGE struggle to get him to even wear his Valentines shirt this morning.  Whereas Erin would happily wear a dress with pink hearts on it every day of the year.  But she wasn't having it for pictures.  We did the best we could.  Daddy even tried flying cars and dinosaurs and horses over my head to get a giggle.  Every.  Single.  Thing.  Was met with "But that's MINE!  You can't play with it!" from Ms. CrankyPants.  She's a fun one, that child.

Last week I made John watch a video of a T-Rex riding a horse.  You kind of must Google it.

And those are our Funny Valentines.