A Day Trip In Pictures

Yesterday. I did something awesome.

Something totally un-Dumb Mom-ish.

I (and my sidekick, aka Mimi) took my dudes to the city.



Baltimore City.

And, it was so fun!

Don't get too overexcited.

We didn't go anywhere daring (like the bus station).

But, we did go someplace fun!



I know, they don't look like they are about to have fun, but they totally did!

Port Discovery is a huge children's museum and (get ready for this) it's 100% hands-on-action-packed-even-#3-can't-break-it-three-levels of awesomeness.

When we first arrived and realized that to get in we'd have to pay $12.95 per person which came up to like 40 bucks or something (I'm no math whiz, you figure it out), I thought, "This place better be the bomb diggity."

And, you know what?

It kinda was.

After spending a good chunk of the day there I was able to put the cost into perspective: a movie is like $10 and this place was way better than a movie!

There were just tons of fun things to do.

#3 learned to drive.



#2 was able to get some shopping done and ring it up himself (now maybe he will quit jockin' me about it at the grocery store).



And, #1 got to lose himself (literally) in this 3 story monster of a climbing, sliding, crawling apparatus.



There was horse back riding...



Tomb Raiding...



Even a pick up soccer game...



And, while the place was primarily #3 proof, he did get to break something and no one even cared...



Okay, so maybe this one kid cared a little and possibly cried for like a couple of minutes, but that's it, and we totally thought she was done playing with it, and really, she should just be glad I have lightening quick reflexes because they are seriously the only thing that prevented her form being bludgeoned by #3 as he excitedly beat the crap outta this log cabin dealy with a stray stick.

But, other than that. All good.

We decided to enjoy lunch outside of the museum (can exit and reenter as much as you want between 10am and 5pm), you know, to take in some local cuisine.

So, to get a real taste of the inner city, we went here...



It may look familiar, but this was a special, Baltimore flavored version of the golden arches.

They had a custom soda dispenser (and by custom, I mean broke the hell up).



They had vintage, metal legged, high chairs (and by vintage, I mean old as hell, will probably collapse and severe a limb if you put your baby in them).



They had unique facilities (and by unique, I mean dirty as hell, thought for a minute we actually were at the bus station).

And, they even had a sign posted which stated that there was a 30 minute dine-in time limit. Woof it down kids, lest they think we're some kind of vagrants.

We didn't spend a lot of time there (less than 30 minutes, didn't want to cut it too close), and then high tailed it back over to the museum for more fun.

We finally left when #3 demonstrated that he was downright exhausted (he laid on the museum floor and tried to take a nap).

I thought it was a hit.

Actually I thought:

Cost of gas to museum: $20
Entrance fees to museum: $40
Seeing the dudes have unbridled, imaginative fun: priceless

And, then I went to pay for my parking and thought, Ah-Hell-to-the-no!

It was $13! I seriously coulda taken an extra kid into the museum for that price.

Way to ruin it, overpriced-non-validating-mother-thieving-parking-deck-owners.

All thanks goes to CK over at Bab Mommy Moments for encouraging me to think outside the I'm-pretty-sure-I'm-scared-to-go-out-in-public-with-my-kids box. Totally worth it!