On Sunday morning we went to the Museum of Anthropology. It was so quiet and peaceful in that museum before our family entered. People were walking reflectively along, studying the totem poles and artifacts and hardly talking at all.
Then we came. And, as you can see below, we weren’t a quiet bunch.
Going with small kids to a museum sometimes feels like torture to me. The older kids are great–they can learn by doing scavenger hunts or reports or just reading and looking at everything. Younger kids…well, at least my younger kids just want to run through the halls. I try whispering and dramatizing the exhibits to catch their attention, but it usually catches for approximately one second before they are off again.
The torture part comes in because these museums are SO rich and beautiful and full of artful, educational displays. They’re Disneyland for adults. But I can’t really take time to learn very much because I am so busy chasing and trying to quiet my kids. Honestly, just looking at pictures from this outing makes my heart pound a little harder with stress. So sad because it was a gorgeous museum. I told myself all weekend that I would come back when the kids are older and re-do everything again. I need to override the stress that happens when I look at so many of these pictures.
Then we drove to one of Vancouver’s big beach parks and watched a puppet show to celebrate Canada Day.
The kids were so excited to get Canada flags on Canada Day!Then we went back to the airbnb and swam in the pool across the street. My favorite part was being alone with Mary and helping her learn how to swim better (or, honestly, just pain swim). It was so delightful to have one on one time with her and I hope we can figure out how to do that more regularly.
Happy Canada Day!