Durham Museum of Life and Science

Since my husband was off of work a few days last week, we decided to check out the Museum of Life and Science in Durham. I had heard great reviews from friends but until I started looking at the website, I had no clue all that they had to offer. The museum itself is on 70 acres (which I had no clue was just sitting in the middle of Durham), 13 acres of which are outdoor exhibits (so you may not want to go on a rainy day). The museum opens at 10 a.m. for non-members which made us feel a little rushed to make it home in time for lunch and an afternoon nap. Admission was $12.50 for adults and then the lovely free admission for kids under 3.

Because we only had around 2 hours and we weren't sure what was ahead, we walked past many of the indoor exhibits that related to aerospace and weather that were a little too old for girls. Our first big stop was at a indoor play area for toddlers and infants. Here's Anna watching balls go down various ramps.



Next we ventured outside to an area called Loblolly Park. There were various metal items and drum strung up for kids to beat on with sticks and listen to the different noises they made. There was a water area where you move the pumps (a little hard for small kids) and then the water flows in different areas. There was also a sandbox and wooden play area (which we shielded the kids from this go around :)).



As we made our way around the park, we saw butterflies, bears, wolves, lemurs and farm animals. We sailed sailboats, flapped our wings like a bug and watched pretend seeds fall from a crane.



We saw and did so many things and yet there was so much more to do! (There is even a big dinosaur exhibit that opened over the weekend that would be interesting to go back and see.) I loved how there was something to learn from every exhibit and the hands-on nature of it all. I think we'll definitely go back.