The same day we had our Greek picnic we discovered the Anita B. Gorman Conservation Discovery Center. The center is surrounded by 10 acres of gardens, wetlands, walkways and wildlife...all located near the banks of Brush Creek near the Plaza. They host educational programs in "the heart of the urban core" to help kids and adults appreciate nature, learn outdoor survival skills, hiking, camping, growing native plants and various science experiments. The day we went we learned about Lewis & Clark and had an opportunity to carve out our very own "dugout" boat. After all the boats were ready they got to test them out in "Brush Creek" in a river model of the Plaza. Since the discovery center is an outreach of the Missouri Dep. of Conservation they showed us past, present and future of Brush creek and the surrounding area. I am not sure the boys caught all of the educational stuff because they were too busy racing their boats down the river, avoiding the rain, and enjoying the fake thunderstorm. I had no idea that little boats could create hours of entertainment! It must be a boy thing!
This is a half-scale model of the Lewis & Clark Keelboat...our family would like to live on a boat and sail around the world...we are all adventurers!
Lucas went thru a Buffalo stage where he LOVED them, imitated them and generally obsessed over them but that has mostly passed but he really thought this was cool. On top of the buffalo hide is the stomach lining of a bison along with hooves, horns and skulls. Great boy stuff!
Our great adventurers carving their boats...
Tiny little boats still pack a lot of fun...
Racing down present/future Brush Creek.
The old dugout boat is rotting so the Mo. Dep. of Conv. is making a new one. The guy stripping the log is Jean-Paul, a friend of the man in the hat...sorry, no monkey in this story...or are there 3 monkeys...hmmm....it's ok, you don't have to laugh...it's after midnight and I'm slap happy...
We were lured in by the promise of tools and hard labor but Jean-Paul took over. He is from Senegal and is currently teaching at the French academy in KC. He just stopped by to see his friend and volunteered to strip the log. He actually use to do this a lot in Senegal and he kept telling us he really enjoyed the hard labor. Someday this log will be a dugout boat.
Since they didn't get to exercise their manliness with axes...they were given the opportunity to help move the 1000+ log. They thought that was cool.
Last but not least is the token group photo...such cuties!
It's always rewarding when your kids enjoy something you have introduced them to...and I think we had a really good balance this summer with educational and cultural adventures. It makes it so much easier when they LIKE museums and the artsy stuff we share with them. What can I say...they are just amazing! :)
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