Magic House

After a few days of family gatherings and celebrations, we went to The Magic House St. Louis Children's Museum. http://www.magichouse.org/

We had a tough choice to make: The Gateway Arch (where you can ride to the top), the City Museum (with a circus exhibit, aquarium and climbing structures) and the Butterfly House (with live butterflies that land on you) were also at the top of our list. I described all the venues to Adam and let him make the choice, and he made one that suited us all.




The Magic House is one of the premier children's museums in the nation. I was told this by Lindsay Thompkins of Shelburne who, with business partner Mia Beer, is spearheading efforts to create a Burlington children's museum at the former Moran Plant. Lindsay said the Magic House is one of the children's museums they have used as a model, and that is great news for Vermont.

The Magic House offers something -- make that a lot of things -- for kids of all ages, from babies through teens. Adults, too, can learn and enjoy the exhibits. Recently expanded, the museum holds hundreds of exhibits arranged by themes. To name just a few:
village - role play in a restaurant, car shop and t.v. station
bubble room - blow giant bubbles and surround yourself in a bubble
music - play oversized instruments and musical (literally!) chairs
star spangled - try out the president's desk and sign the Declaration of Independence
mystery - follow clues to find the answer to a problem

There are things to climb on, make noise with, dig in, slide down, explore and discover at every turn.

For the very young, there is Baby and Me, where crawlers and toddlers can put balls in tubes and watch where they go, play peek-a-boo with shuttered mirrors and climb on ladders and slides for little people. There's even a Nursing Nook with a comfy private bench so moms can nurse while watching their other children play nearby. I chatted with a mom who was pumping -- I could not see the apparatus hidden under her shawl -- who was grateful for this safe spot to create a meal for her special needs child.

To maximize each child's play time, we split up: Paul went one way with Adam, and I went the other with Zac and Grandpa. We arranged to meet in an hour, unless we found each other sooner.

Zac loved the sand table, where he shoveled and raked fine white sand with other toddlers and little kids. The table was just the right height for a young child to stand and dig with colorful plastic toys. Grandpa and I had to drag Zac out of there, clutching a rake, so we could move on to another exhibit.


He also loved the water works area. I wrapped him in one of the waterproof smocks hanging on hooks. All the smocks were much too big for a 1-year-old, but it kept him dry, except for his feet. (I noticed another child who was without shoes and socks. Probably a good idea for keeping feet dry, although I would be concerned about foot fungus. I suggest wearing watershoes or sandles.) Zac made friends with other children and practiced sharing cups and toys while he worked on his developmental skills of scooping and dumping.

Adam's top spot was the beanstalk, a la Jack and the Beanstalk, where he could climb up the leaves (surrounded by netting) and say "Fee Fi Fo Fum! He also liked fishing for magnetic fish, changing a car tire, solving math problems and serving pizza in the restaurant. And the Ginormous spiral slide that the kids ran up the stairs to and yelled "woo hoo!" all the way down.

The museum has a real restaurant, which we did not patronize, and a gift shop, where we found a robotic "Grabbit" hand for Adam and a maraca for Zac (total sale, less than $5).

The best thing was that the museum was air conditioned -- it was 98 degrees and extremely humid outside. The bathrooms were clean with changing tables, it was completely set up for families and kids and parking was free. What more could we need? Nothing. I'm glad Adam picked the Magic House.

In the summer, the museum is open 7 days a week from morning to evening (closed Mondays and weekday mornings during the school year. Admission is $8.50 for ages 1 and up.