Libby's Adventure

Yesterday (Saturday), Libby decided to take Gabe and Norah to Exploration Place, a science oriented "fun" place in Wichita. She had some discount tickets from work and managed to talk Kris and Jessica into taking Finn. Here is her account of the events:

"I see why mom would have these great ideas and then later wonder why she tried so hard. Gabe and Norah and I went to Exploration Place ((EP) yesterday along with Kris Jessica and Finn. Of course there was all the pre-packing, loading the stroller, taking extra clothes, diapers, etc. along with a 45-minute drive.

· We played in the EP’s big foyer until the McHughes got there and then went down the long hall to the dinosaur exhibit. Finn was instantly petrified. Gabe was okay until the T-rex moved…petrified. Sigh. Okay…so the dinosaurs were a bust.

Norah in her stroller, oblivious to the terror and suffering going on around her.

· We all went around the corner and played in the little kids area for a good half hour to 40 minutes. Good opportunity to change Norah’s diaper and load her up in the sling and out of the stroller, so that Gabe could have a sit down break.

Inside the toddler area. Blessedly dinosaur free.

Last time we went to EP, Gabe and Finn SOAKED themselves in the water displays. This time they managed to stay pretty dry (because both sets of parents remembered to bring a change of clothes, obviously)

· Time to walk around to the other stuff (‘cause we, the moms and dads, were bored). First though…you have to walk through the dinosaurs again. I had Norah (hungry by this time) in the sling and Gabe in the stroller. I stopped just outside, but in view, of the dinos to make a quick bottle of formula and throw some fruit snacks at Gabe. Screaming baby, petrified toddler, Saturday crowds.

· Safety on the other side of the dinos we went up to the entrance to the Whales exhibit – no food allowed. Okay…we’ll walk around to the other permanent exhibits first. This would give me an opportunity to feed Norah with one hand and push the stroller with the other.

· Kansas in miniature – great. Ice cold a/c and little choo trains. Bought us a good five minutes.

· Out to the tornado exhibit that the boys LOVED when we went to EP in March after Gabe’s adoption. Kris and Jess each held a boy and went into the tornado chamber. Terror this time. This was followed by some general running through the crowds of people.

Inside the tornado exhibit. For those who've never seen it (which is probably just about everyone), it's a plastic tube. Inside, wind swirls around you while a MPH reading tells you how fast the wind is supposedly blowing. In reality, I don't think it's ANYTHING like a real tornado. They claim the wind gets up to 70 mph, but I've been outside on normal days here in Kansas and felt more blown about than in this tube. Still, scary enough for kids, so I guess it's a good teaching tool about the value of not running into the middle of tornadoes.

· On the other side of the tornado-y stuff is the “flight” area. Gabe saw a young girl turning a crank to power an old propeller and went up to the adjacent one. One crank…two cranks..bored…crank kept turning with momentum…smashed lip. Blood went everywhere. Gabe was screaming, blood was pouring out of his mouth, and the baby is still hunkered in her sling. I used one of Norah’s blankies to try to keep the blood mopped up…it seemed to take forever to get it to stop. The bash was inside his mouth and, at the time, I couldn’t tell if it was just the inside of his lip or if he blew out a tooth as well (turned out to be just his cheek but it looks like hamburger today).

· All calmed down we all headed back over to the New Zealand whales exhibit. First…we had to cross through the dinosaurs again.

· Once inside the whales, we could see the big skeletons and life-size blue whale heart, and the sounds of whale calls. Two toddlers instantly terrified. Still with Norah in her sling, Gabe has jumped up on me too. Jess takes Gabe, Finn is clinging to Kris and Norah is oblivious. We last less than 10 minutes in the whale exhibit.

· At this point we are all fed up and ready to be done. As we head out toward the exit we of course have to pass through the dinosaurs again.

· Once back in the foyer, we re-group and discover someone is poopy. Butt checks…it is Norah. Off I go to the restroom, leaving Gabe with the McHughes. Now, Norah is a really easy baby but she is a little hard to burp. All this time she has been smooshed in the sling. I move her upright to extract her and the pent up pressure of the formula (un burped) projectile pukes all over me and her. At least the bathroom is empty. A quick change of poop, scoop her up, and head back out to the foyer.

· Back out in the foyer all looks fine. Jess comes up to me and says, “you know how Gabe busted his lip on the right side? Well, while you were gone, he slipped on a chair and busted the left side. He bled for a little bit but is fine.” No worries by me…the kid is the most indestructible thing I have ever seen.

· Finally we are loaded up to leave…total time INSIDE the EP…90 minutes."

After she got back (I was at work this entire time), I called to see how things went. She told me the story. Then, because I'm an "I told you so" kind of person (probably my worst character trait, I admit), I asked "So, did you learn a valuable lesson today?" She won't admit it, but I think she did.