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Anyone who has birthed a child and raised them to the age of four or five knows that said offspring will at some point in their lives develop a passion for a place that is unspeakably, unbearably boring. A place where time moves backward and where five minutes can seem like five hours. It may be a museum or a petting zoo or a park where no other children ever want to play. And yet you will go there. Repeatedly. Why?

  • Because it is raining. For the tenth day in a row.
  • Because your child has fixed his baby blues on you one too many times and pleaded.
  • Because sleep deprivation has left you devoid of all decision-making ability.

For me, the place that somehow seems to put a hole into the space-time continuum is the Delaware Museum of Natural History, much beloved of my youngest child. What bores me so much is a mystery. Is it the giant dung beetle? The huge collection of birds’ eggs? Or the stuffed elephant’s head? I can’t really say. But I know that every time I go there I feel like I must be at least ten years older when I leave, and yet no time at all seems to have elapsed. (For more details,  if you dare read them, please see Out and About With Kids: More Dinos as the Natural History Museum.)

Does your child have a favorite day trip that bores you beyond all belief? Do share – we promise not to judge.

Last 5 posts by Traveling Mom

post Comments (3)

Woo Hoo! There are 3 comment(s) for me so far ;)

#1
We actually can’t get enough of museums! However the one that bores me the most is the video arcade. I just don’t understand the appeal of loading tokens in a machine and playing games similar to those you can now enjoy at home. To me it numbs the brain and burns out a few cells up there.
TravelingWithSanityMom wrote on July 15, 2009 - 10:52 am
#2
Great post! I groan at the thought of going to Little Village Playplace in Arlington Heights, Ill. It costs $8.50 per kid and the whole place is about as big as my basement. The kids play in these tiny rooms, like a vet’s office or a grocery store, with lame decorations and the same toys they have at home (a cash register, doctor kit, etc.) It’s always crowded, a complete mess, and I just don’t understand the appeal but they beg to go! Thanks for listening to me vent. :)
JamieB wrote on July 16, 2009 - 3:26 pm
#3
My boys are into golf lately and I don’t play. I boycott mini golf too. And of course they want me to watch their every shot. I bring a book to the driving range now.
TravelingMom wrote on July 17, 2009 - 4:22 pm
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