Julie Stops Trying to be Funny and Bores you With Her Travel Log

Whew! We paraded through another adventurous week at the Patterson Palatial Apartment. Actually we spent as much time out of our apartment, and in the 80 degree weather, as possible. (Idahoans, you may want to take a moment to wipe the drool off your chin before it freezes and you have to chip it off with an ice scraper.)

On Tuesday (the free day) we checked out the LA Natural History Museum with Laura's preschool group. It was pretty snazzy. The kids loved all the animal dioramas and dinosaur bones. The 35 year-old shark carcase in a giant tank of formaldehyde was Tyler's fav. (Not to be viewed by the faint of heart!) My favorite was the live bug exhibit. A docent let me hold an African millipede that was the size of a hot dog. My skin is still crawling a whole week later!

Thursday was the free day at the Huntington Library. What an awesome place! There was something for everybody. The museum and manuscript exhibits are impressive, but small enough to be viewed in 10 minute segments. That's a real plus if you are an art lover with three small, antsy, children who think that art appreciation should be a "hands on" experience. I had to do a "drive by" of Copley, Sargent, and a few other masters. I like to think that Mary Cassatt would have understood though. I can't imagine how she got her kids to sit still long enough to paint them. Maybe that is the real reason she joined the impressionist movement. She to apply the paint before nap time.
The Children's Garden was a huge hit with the kids. There was tons of room to roam around in the breathtaking gardens, so I didn't feel like I had to keep my kids on a leash the whole time. The weather was lovely and there were tons of knowledgeable docents that had interesting lore to share. I think I am going to try and get tickets to go again next month so that we can take Rance and see the newly opened Chinese Garden. Let me know if you would like to get tickets too, and I will order some for you. They are free on the first Thursday of the month.