What we did over February vacation

After the rigorous challenges of 13 full days of school between December 23 and February 18, it was definitely time for a week off, otherwise known as Febrary break. I hate to think how overwhelming it might have been for our children to have a full week of school rather than a full week off. But I complain and digress. And in an attempt to have a positive attitude about the situation, I will list the positive attributes of February break 2011:

1. The house did not burn down.
2. No one threw up.

3. The girls and I drove to see my father and stepmother in Rochester NY, where we got to visit the National Museum of Play. Why is this National Museum not housed with the rest of the National Museums in Washington DC, you ask? No idea. I ask "If it is a National Museum, why isn't it free like the rest of them?" but I won't complain about this too loudly as it was a grandparental treat.

Anyway, the museum contains lots of cool kid friendly exhibits, such as the miniature Wegmans grocery store where kids can shop for, ring up, and restock all sorts of groceries. Those of us who grew up with Wegmans as our grocery store who now have to settle for Market Basket or Hannaford find any sort of Wegmans sighting or experience manna for the soul, so we spent quite some time in there buying pretend celery and wheels of blue cheese.

Greta manouevering through the throngs at Wegmans.

Now, quick quiz....who out there knew that Mama Berenstein Bear was a quilt shop owner? Anyone? I'll admit my children and I never read a lot of those books, so maybe I am the only one, but this was perhaps the most exciting thing I learned at the Museum of Play. In fact, the entire Berenstein Bear village was housed in the museum, but like the good little daughters of quilters that they are, my girls were immediately drawn in to the quilt shop, where they donned their aprons and attempted to sell me some quilts.

Some quilts were priced as high as 99 cents. Clearly I have much to teach my daughters regarding the worth of handmade quilts.

There was even a little area where you could do some designs with tiles and a light box. Paige, who is my little artist (of the three, anyway. She's cute, but she's no Van Gough) enjoyed that very much.

The Museum of Play - something for even the vacation weary quilt designers.