Our most recent Adventure Friday, was in a little bit different vein from our previous destinations. We have spent most of our Adventure Fridays this school year hiking in various state forest and parks, or exploring different sites of historical or biological significance. Last week we changed it up a bit and met some friends at the Children's Museum at Bonnet Springs Park in Lakeland, Florida.
We began by exploring the Discovery Center on the first floor. The kids spent almost 45 minutes here using various kinds of science and engineering skills. The twins played with Dakota most of the time with some small balls and a hand crank that would carry the balls up to race down the track they made out of house gutters. Rebecca built houses alongside Leah who explored the effects and properties of magnets. Britt and Ben worked to build a chariot out of miscellaneous wood, bolts and rope. With a little assistance they were able to build one, but it didn't really hold up to the weight of the twins. Katherine found the experiment showing the power of air, where a fan held a beach ball in mid air to be entertaining, while Ruth attempted to check out everything.
After a while we all headed up the stairs, and the kids spent about an hour and a half up there. Most of the time they were exploring and playing pretend in the City Play area. It had a fire truck and police car with sirens, lights, and costumes. There was a food truck for cooking meals, a Publix for grocery shopping, and a home with a kitchen for serving up meals. There was also a vet clinic and a hospital for doctoring animals and people. Then there was also a farm for harvesting crops. Finally, there was a meteorologist station, where they could video in front of different backdrops, reporting different kinds of weather, and see themselves played back on the tv screen.
The kids had a ball exploring, and trying on different careers. Britt was a cop, a fireman, a crook, and ultimately a store owner. Setting up his own little entrepreneurial shop with items he collected from around the city, he enjoyed that best. Ruth spent most of her time on crutches after being run over multiple times by Britt. She also tried out different costumes and personalities. Rebecca tried out several things but spent most of her time either cooking up meals in the kitchen or tending to her animals at the vet clinic. Kate's favorite activity was taking turns with a friend to buy groceries and ring up groceries as a Publix worker. The twins were the funniest of all. Jon spent most of his time driving the police car, and Will kept going to Publix loading a buggy with everything he could possibly fit and then loading it in the back of the police car. Five or six buggy loads later, food was falling all out of the police cruiser and Will was frustrated that it wouldn't stay in. In between getting groceries he would get in and ride with Jon and they would hoop and holler with the siren. The kids spent a little time exploring the Music center also on the second floor, but by and large they spent their time in the City Play area.
The kids would have stayed longer but it was getting close to time for the Museum to close up and they also wanted to check out the playground again. We visited the grounds with our co-op back in December, and Bonnet Springs has one of the best playgrounds I've ever seen. The kids started out on the rope climbing section, worked their way down to the swings and slides, before ending up near the trampoline style merry go rounds. I've never seen any like them, but they are made of and surrounded by bouncy ropes so no one goes flying off like we use to as kids. They also don't get too hot in the sun like the old metal playground equipment. The older kids pulled out the swords to fight, and the youngest three took turns exploring the Owl playground station and the merry go rounds.
We stayed until nearly dark, since everyone was playing so well with each other. It was the sort of homeschool field trip day that leaves you exhausted from counting and chasing kids, but really glad that you invest in your kids this way. Most of my bunch passed out in the car on the way home, but all of the agreed that it was a great day.
We had a definitely recommend a visit to both the playground and the Museum. If you'd like to make a trip the address to the Children's Museum at Bonnet Springs is 600 Bonnet Springs Boulevard, Lakeland, Florida. They open up 10 to 5 Monday through Saturday, and 10 to 3 on Sunday. Ticket prices start at $15 per person age 2 and up, but there are a variety of discounts available for everything from military to food stamp households. They also offer various membership packages.
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