
Family Friendly Boston Cambridge
Weekly Event Summary (Jan 15)
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Weekly Event Summary (Jan 15)
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A group of my friends started doing something we are calling Toddler Time and each week we choose a letter to focus on. I realized that finding objects that start with the letter of the week can be a challenge and I thought it might be helpful to have a long list of “A” letter objects them on hand. If I’ve missed something drop me a note in the comments, I would be thrilled to add even more letter “A” objects.
I wanted to go check it out for a while but felt like it was ridiculously expensive for a one time visit ($14 per person, including young children) but not awful for a year long family membership ($150/year). I needed to get out to stay sane so I decided it was worth it and that we may as well just get a membership.
We waited for a warmish day and walked the 2 miles to get there, but there are lots of other transportation options to get you their more easily, I’ll list them below.
The Boston’s Children’s Museum is tall and laid out with a bunch of different themed rooms, like a music room, a community room (where they have a small grocery store, a barber shop, and a dress up station), a construction room where kids can build things or climb in crazy tunnels and most importantly for us at the time, a little kid room where you were only allowed if you were under… I want to say two… This room had books, puzzles, a climbing area, and bubbles.
We made it to the museum and let our son go wild. He loved it… and I’ve never seen him throw so many tantrums so he also might have been a little over stimulated… :/ I mean there were about a million-billion kids there going crazy and so many new things to see and do.
After having a membership for a while I realized that the Children’s Museum is always crowded, even during week days during the school year. My son really loved it, but I felt like at a 1.5 years old he was constantly getting plowed over by other, bigger kids, and when our membership expired I decided not to renew it until my son is a little older and more able to enjoy the bigger exhibits.
1) Price
I think it’s fairly expensive for a single visit. $16/person for anyone over 12 months or $150 for a four person family year long membership. Also if you want to try it out before you commit, and you don’t mind large crowds, you can check out the museum for $1/person on Friday nights between 5-9pm.
2) Getting There
There are tons of options for getting there including buses, trains, and a parking garage, you can learn more about those options here: http://www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org/visit/directions
3) Stroller Friendliness
Surprisingly not very stroller friendly for such a child centric place. We always ended up there with a stroller and had to drag it around room to room with us. There is a little bit of stroller parking near the toddler area and you can leave your stroller at the end of a couple of corridors, but there really isn’t a place to check them in and some of the room spaces are too tight to accommodate them. The museum suggests leaving them behind or bring a smaller umbrella stroller that can fit in a storage locker.
4) Lots of Kids, Always
This places is a mad house of kids during the weekends, but I found it to also be quite busy during the week with field trips and the like, and the toy and exhibits are all fairly well loved/used.
Four Stars. This place has a lot to offer, but I think it’s fairly expensive and much better suited to children older than two years. I felt like my little son ended up getting run over by less well accompanied older children and the baby/toddler room didn’t hold our interest super long. We’ll try going back when he’s a little bit older, but for now we’re going to stick with the Boston Museum of Science.
Have you been here before? If so I’d love to know more about your experience and any tips or tricks you have in the comments section below.
Boston Children’s Museum
308 Congress Street
Boston, MA 02210
Phone: 617.426.6500
Website: http://www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org/
Hours: Saturday-Thursday 10am-5pm
Fridays 10am-9pm
Click to Tweet: In Boston with Toddlers? Check out what you should know before visiting the Boston Children’s Museum #Boston #touringboston http://ctt.ec/o6kpe+
This is my first post for Cardboard Creations and I’m super excited about it, especially since this craft was really easy and turned out a lot better than I dared to hope for.
Kids seem to have a strange fascination with cardboard boxes and since we live in an apartment complex we have access to tons of boxes of every shape and size sitting near the recycle… turns out they are kind of an ideal crafting material.
And, since my son can’t get enough of dogs, I thought it might be fun to make him a Playhouse/Doghouse.
Step 1) Create the Roof Flaps
Grab a large box, I stared with an Extra Large U-Haul Box. Lay the box flat, with flaps out. Find the top middle of the small flap of the box and draw a dot, then grab a strait edge (a ruler or book work great) and draw a line from that dot to the bottom edge of the flap, creating a triangle shape. Repeat this step for the other small flap at the top of the box. Then cut off the outside triangles so you just have the one large triangle in the middle left.
Step 2) Create a Window with Shutters
On the wide side of the box I traced a small book so I could create a window. Then I drew a line down the middle of it, so my window could have shutters.
I finished it off by drawing two small rectangles right in the middle of my shutters that could be used as finger holds when opening and shutting the window. Use your Exacto knife to cut out the windows leaving the further most sides intact.
It might help to have a book pressed up against the side of your window so that first crease happens along a line and doesn’t make your box bow awkwardly.
Step 3) Create a Door
Grab a large plate or book to trace. I used a plate and positioned it toward the top of the box. I traced the top half of the plate, then used a book to create strait lines to the bottom of the box making a door.
I would also suggest marking a small area to cut a window in the door, this can be used for your child to open and close the door, and to peek through it. Again, use your Exacto knife to cut out your door shape leaving one side intact.
Again, it might help to have a book pressed up against the side of your window so that first crease happens along a line and doesn’t make your box bow awkwardly.
Step 6) Reform the Box (optional – only if you flipped your box)
Flip your box inside out, so that the unprinted side of your box is facing outward and glue the seam back together (I used a hot glue gun for this and it worked marvelously).
Step 7) Paint Your Box (optional)
Paint it however you like.
Step 8) Fold the Box
I left the bottom flaps of my box intact and folded them under the box for some additional stability. I rested the long flaps at the top against the triangle pieces I had cut out and laid the roof across them. And Bam! The house is ready to enjoy!
Have you made this craft? What was your experience like and do you have an suggestions to make it better? I’d love to hear about them in the comments section below.
Click to Tweet: Check out this super easy, cheap, cute, DIY playhouse! #Upcycle #CardboardCreations #DIY https://www.slyspoon.com/2016/01/cardboard-creations-easy-diy-playhouse.html