April 30th, 2010 Ryan
Note: this blog is from our sister site, Crazy Kids Chicago.
Friday is cartoon night at our house. Both the Cartoon Network and Nicktoons provide a blazing lineup of cartoon action including Iron Man: Armored Adventures, Wolverine and the X-Men, Star Wars: Clone Wars (part 1 of the season finale on Friday), Batman Brave and the Bold, Teen Titans, Johnny Test, and Speed Racer. It is definitely a little testosterone heavy but combined with a D’Augustinos Pizza it is a great night. This Friday, two new series are premiering on the Cartoon Network, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien, 7:00, and Generator Rex at 7:30
Ben 10 is one of our favorite cartoons, maybe our absolute favorite. Ultimate Alien is the 3rd incarnation of this series. Ben 10 was a young boy that found a watch (the Omnitrix) that can turn him into one of 10 different aliens (my favorite is a big red guy with four arms, called Four Arms. Then as a teenager, there was Ben 10: Alien Force. He teams up with his sister Gwen (who is a sorceress) and his friend Kevin (turns into the material he touches). His watch had new aliens like Humongasourus and Way Big. Now, in Ultimate Alien, his watch is called the Ultimatrix. There are new aliens and there are also Ultimate versions of old Aliens.
Ben 10 has great action, interesting stories, powerful alien characters, and great bad guys. Ben 10 is also one of the funniest cartoons out there. Ben’s bumbling faces criticism and sarcasm from Kevin and Gwen and there is quite a bit of name calling among friends. Ben’s watch malfunctions constantly and he turns into the wrong alien at the wrong time. If your kid is into superheroes, tune into Ben 10.
The makers of Ben 10 have a brand new series called Generator Rex. Rex is a boy who can turn parts of his body into different weapons. He has Smackhands that are huge fists to bully bad guys. His arm can turn into a rocket launcher and jet packs come out of his back. He can control other machines and actually cure evil machines as well, turn them into good guys. Rex has lost all of his memories so this is sure to be recurring theme as he tries to figure out who he is, if he has a family, and even his real name.
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April 22nd, 2010 Ryan
Elmo and the gang visited Boston again this year for yet another spectacular show, “When Elmo Grows Up.” The best part is that the music is geared toward adults just as much as the kids, using familiar songs such as “Down on the Corner” and “Give a Little Love” alongside “Itsy Bitsy Spider.” Before you know it your smile will be as big as your child’s.
The plot of the show… spoiler alert – skip this paragraph if you don’t want to know about it! Big Bird starts the show by asking the kids in the audience what they want to be when they grow up. He joins the other muppets on Sesame Street in preparing for a big pageant where each one performs a number based on what he/she wants to be. Big Bird doesn’t know what he wants to be, so he ends up helping everyone practice their part of the show. Elmo doesn’t know what he wants to be either, so he joins Big Bird and watches everyone rehearse, only to wind up changing his mind with every performance. Different career choices include a forest ranger, firefighter, train conductor, and police officer, amongst others. The moral of the story: Big Bird learns that he does not need to know right now what he wants to be when he grows up and he can even change his mind several times if he wants to, because that is a part of being a kid.
The show is absolutely adorable and a great lesson for kids of all ages. Plus, if one career isn’t interesting as a storyline to your child, it will change in a few minutes and their attention is grasped again. As usual, Sesame Street keeps the action rolling. They include discussions about letters and numbers and the ever-popular “Elmo’s World” is featured in the second act.
The show started about 15 minutes late (we’re assuming this is to help those parents arriving late, like us!), and ran about an hour and a half. It’s broken up into two acts with a 15 minute intermission. Watch out for the $10 Elmo balloons, which are sold during intermission. Be prepared to tie them to something and keep them low; Big Bird asks that you not block the view of your neighbor. We also saw the rest of the balloons being sold on our way out of the show, though we’re not sure if that happens on a regular basis.
One last piece of advice: if your kid is antsy and you don’t anticipate them sitting through the performance, consider upgrading to floor seats. The children can move about freely and even dance in front of the stage. During several parts of the show some of the monsters actually come down to the floor to dance and visit with the children. The screams of joy are priceless!
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April 8th, 2010 Ryan
Last week we ventured out to Disney on Ice presents Princess Classics. You know that princess gown that your daughter wants to wear everywhere? Tell her to put it on and pin her hair in an updo – this is one venue where little girls and tiaras are the norm!
As soon as we walked into the doors of the DCU Center we were surrounded by girls running around in their princess dresses, and why not? There’s no better way to meet your favorite princess than to be dressed exactly like her! Even the girls that did not have Disney-themed dresses made the effort to spruce up that night. At the end of the show the characters come up to the edge of the ice for the final song, and we just had to laugh when we realized that our son was surrounded by screaming girls jumping up and down. It was adorable to see their faces when they were merely a few feet away from the princesses.
As with any other themed event, there are vendors selling tons of Disney memorabilia, and none of it was cheap. Bring your wallet or, at the very least, be prepared to say “No” a lot! We packed toys and food in our bag, which was not checked at the door, so our son had plenty of supplies.
If you’ve been to Disney on Ice before, you can probably imagine the storyline, but to those of us that are young at heart it never gets old!
Spoiler Alert: Stop reading if you don’t want to know the plot.
Mickey and Minnie emcee the show, special guest Tinkerbell helps with the introductions, and a few other characters make appearances. The first half of the show consists of shortened versions of many Princess stories, such as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Mulan. Every story is presented up to the point of the magical kiss, which is completed in grand style at the end of the first act. At that point each one of the princesses and her prince are brought out onto the ice for the magical kiss, so they all end up on the ice together.
The second half of the show focuses on the Cinderella storyline (a huge hit for her fans). When it’s time to try on the glass slipper, the servants even check the feet of some of the girls sitting in the front row around the ice. The end of the second act is their wedding, and all of the characters reappear dressed in white and gold and skate around on the ice. If you have good seats, remember to scoot down to the edge of the ice to get a close-up view.
Disney is known for their productions, and Princess Classics doesn’t disappoint. Children and adults alike will be smiling and singing along to all of the familiar songs. Even if you aren’t into the storylines, the ice skating is always spectacular to watch.
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April 1st, 2010 Ryan
General Info
Situated just over the river on Congress Street, the Boston Children’s Museum is a must-visit location if you’ve got kids and are near the city. Admission is $9.00 for kids aged 1-12 and $12.00 for adults. One key tip is to check out this list to see if your town/city library participates in the Museum’s coupon program. Participating libraries have coupons that are good for 4 tickets at a reduced cost of $2.00. That’s $40.00 in savings for a family of four! Call your library to reserve tickets ahead of time as they usually have one coupon available for each day of the year. Pack a lunch and you’ve got a very inexpensive, fun, and educational day with the kids.
Lay of the Land
The museum spans 3 levels with 5-6 themed areas on each floor. It seemed logical to us to start at the top and make our way down, but the centrally located large elevator and staircase make is easy to move between levels during your visit, so order probably isn’t too important. Peep’s World on the 2nd floor is primarily a hands-on water play area. Science Playground on the 1st floor also has a hands-on bubble area. Even though there are plastic smocks for the kids, they are bound to get wet, so take that into consideration when planning your path through the museum.
The third floor has the Global Gallery, which features visiting exhibits, usually for several months at a time. Check the website to see what is currently there. Let’s Get Curious was there when we visited and we timed our stop to this floor based on a scheduled visit from George himself. Make sure you check the daily schedule on your way in. This floor also has an actual Japanese-style home which you can visit (make sure you take your shoes off!) as well as a construction zone and a room focused on Black history in Boston.
If you’ve got toddler-aged kids you will want to make sure to check out the PlaySpace on the 2nd floor. It is dedicated to kids 0-3 years old with a museum staffer guarding the door to make sure the older kids don’t sneak in. In this area are a large train track, blocks, puzzles, a play house and kitchen, bubble making area, and a special zone for little crawlers.
General Information
If you want to plan for eating during your visit, there is an Au Bon Pain connected to the eating area and you are welcome to bring your own. The map of the museum also lists some nearby restaurants if you’d like to go that route. There are a decent amount of tables and if the weather is nice, plenty of areas outside to eat. Lockers are available if you need to store any valuables without having to worry about carrying them around. Bring a few quarters to rent one of the self-service lockers. Strollers are welcome and there are plenty of ‘parking lots’ for them throughout the facility.
Other Highlights
We like that admission to the museum is all-inclusive, meaning if your kids want to take part in a special event or the frequent KidStage performances, it’s included!
We really enjoyed visiting the Japanese House, an authentic two-story silk merchant’s home from Kyoto, Japan. You have to take your shoes off to visit this one and it’s worthwhile as you’ll wonder how they got a real home into the museum. Your older kids will enjoy viewing how a different culture lives and be very happy to go home to their bed when they see the sleeping space in this home.
Kid Power is an active area focused on teaching kids about the activities that will make them healthier. There is an interactive dance floor, a rock-climbing wall, power pump seats, and other fun exercise activities.
The 3-story New Balance Climb is the centerpeice of the lobby when you enter the museum and is something your kids will want to try out. Painted, curved platforms encased with carpet seem to float around the central pole with a net surrounding the entire structure to make sure nobody falls out as the climb up. Unlike many climbing structures, parents can follow their kid’s progress on the stairs next to this structure.
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