Ecotarium

The kids had a day off from school so we decided to bring them to the Ecotarium near us.  We had never heard of it but our town library has discounted passes to many museums in the area and it was available so we took it.  The kids had a great time exploring everything.  They got to see how wind moves even though you can't see it.  They had a fan blowing air onto pinwheels but then they had bif matts that the kids to move to change the direction of the wind and how it was hitting the pinwheels.  It was fun to see them figure out how to direct the air.  They explored different rocks and shells as well as watching a possum.  This was a stroke of luck since we had no idea they had a possum on exhibit but Ali (for some unknown reason) has been fascinated by possums so it was perfect that they had a live one that she could see.  I think one of their favorite things at the ecotarium was the Hurricane simulator.  They stepped inside this booth with Jason and closed the door, hit the button and the wind ramped up to category 1 force winds.  It was great for them to see it since Sofia has a fear of hurricanes.  It is really more a fear of the unknown so having her feel what a hurricane would feel like here (as opposed to the carribean) I think helped her to not worry about hurricanes.  They liked it so much they went in again without Jason.  Overall, a fun day spent as a family.