A Day at the Museum

We took the kids to visit the Maturango Museum not that long ago. They thought it was pretty neat. We introduced them to local artwork in the gallery, which had a really neat show featuring pottery that integrated antlers in some of the pots. The show was called "Ancient Clay - Desert Legacy" by artists Twyla and Hal Wardell. There was some really neat pieces and it was nice to expose the kids to fine art.

After visiting the art gallery we took the kids through the museum itself. They thought it was neat to see some of the desert animals on display and both of them really liked the Saber Tooth Tiger skull and special effects display. Galen thought the missiles were pretty neat for the NAWC display and we reminded the boys that their grampa and a couple of their uncles work on the base where they make the missiles.

Liam liked looking at things, but I'll admit it - Galen got a bit restless. He especially decided it was time to go when we suggested he stick his hands in the "touch and feel" boxes that have hole in them so you can't see what you're touching. The contents are things like local rocks and minerals, but oh my was that ever not a good idea! Liam thought it was great fun - my adventurous little one. The boys also thought the mammoth bones were kind of neat but you could tell Galen was slightly freaked out by them. (We've since asked him if he'd like to go to a museum to see dinosaur bones and he's said "NO").

The most fun part of the event, at least judging by how many trips they did, was the rock labyrinth next to the museum. You can walk around it until you reach the rock at the center. They have some solstice marks indicated and in several areas around it are desert gardens. I sat on a bench in the garden and watched as the kids took several trips around the labyrinth. They weren't happy to leave because they were having too much fun! However, promises to return and walk the labyrinth again coaxed them into the car where we had fun talking about our little trip to the museum. I look forward to future trips as they grow and can learn more about our local habitat and history with each visit.