Maiden Museum Voyage

 

 

We were so excited for our summer trip to the Dallas Museum of Art with Julie and Abby! Being a teacher has its perks, and free family passes to the DMA was one perk Julie enjoyed this past school year. We were pleased as punch to serve as her “family” a few weeks ago. Bridget had not yet visited a big city museum and I was so excited to see what she thought…and do so without paying admission in case it wasn’t a hit. Well, it was a HUGE HIT!

 

Having visited the DMA countless times on the Symphony/Museum annual field trip my art teacher and I used to plan when I was teaching, I knew the kids area would be a hit. Little did I know they’d made so many amazing additions and improvements in the last 2 years! We started at the main children’s area:

This whole corner was all new. AMAZING. There was so much to see that I tried my best to capture it all. Walls of dry erase boards, a huge felt story board complete with TONS of characters & pieces, texture beads hanging from the door frames…I could go on and on. Kids can draw on, touch, create, move, and explore the entire area and are encouraged to be hands on. At a museum!!! I loved every second:

We played over every square inch of that area and then decided we’d used enough of our free tickets and were happy to find a spot for snack. But on the way out, we peered down a neighboring hallway and found this:

An entire classroom full of amazing treasures and it was ALL FOR US!

We couldn’t believe what we’d stumbled upon. Now, if we hadn’t had the room all to ourselves, it may have lost some of its luster (way easier when we don’t have to share!). Luckily for us, it was 100% empty for our entire stay…and we could have stayed longer if we weren’t so hungry!

 

Abby sure was a fan of Arturo and his fun nest!

The fun just wouldn’t stop. Julie spied a sweet little mailbox with letters for the girls to write to Arturo about their experiences (if you leave your address, he’s supposed to write back!):

Sad to leave our new favorite spot, we needed a “wow” factor for our snack location. Luckily, we found it:

 

Standing under Bridget’s leaf umbrella. Who’s the cutest ever?? THEY ARE!

They’d had so much fun in the kids areas and the outdoor garden for snack, that Julie and I didn’t even bother to take them through the actual collection rooms (another trip – with strollers!). These two may have even felt that holding the railings and sitting on the benches was their favorite part of the trip. Goobers!

Chihuly Glass. Swoon.

Capped off our awesome morning with lunch and ice cream at Chick-fil-A. Some days are crazy. Some are lazy. But some days are JUST RIGHT.