Rachel Roland is a mom on a mission - exploring beautiful Arizona (and beyond!) with her two little companions, Jeremiah and Sarah, in search of the best restaurants, attractions, and products for you and your children. See what she has in store for your family today!
Jeremiah and Sarah are really lucky children - thanks to this column, we're able to visit so many fun places and have met some amazing people! Part of my job, though, includes meetings, lunches, and sometimes other "boring" things that they tolerate but don't necessarily enjoy. We've had a few weeks of doing things that were more "Mom" focused and less kid-focused, and I was ready to take them somewhere that is completely and 100% for them. I can't think of anywhere better than the Children's Museum of Phoenix, which is one of Parents Magazine's 10 Best Children's Museums in the Country - what an awesome resource we have here in Phoenix.
When we arrive at the Children's Museum of Phoenix, we always get a locker (50 cents)- I don't want to haul around my bag while trying to keep up with these two active little ones. After that, though, we always head straight to the climber. I am actually quite afraid of heights, but as the kids grow, I thankfully don't have to go up there with them anymore. Jeremiah knows the Schuff-Perini Climber very well, and is able to make it to the very top quite quickly. Sarah is normally with him, but the visit this day was different - I was standing below to take photos and saw her head up the stairs towards the top...and she turned and I saw that today, I was going to have to head up the climber to her rescue. Thankfully, the Schuff-Perini Climber is well-staffed with museum 'playologists' who are watching for children in distress.
Thankfully, I was able to get up to Sarah without too much trouble and once we started down she quickly recovered (as you can see).
Next to the climber is the amazing and super fun Whoosh! experience, where children put scarves into tubes that shoot them as high as 20 feet in the air. It's great for children to experiment - you can change which tubes the air is being pushed through and try to figure out what combination of settings will force the scarves from the highest tube. Jeremiah and Sarah love to try to catch them as they float slowly down - and I also love to try this out with the kids.
Another favorite stop is always "Pedal Power" - a fun little area where kids of all ages can either pedal or push their way through a kid-sized car (or tricycle) wash. There are so many different types of little trikes - from one with a little seat to drive a younger brother or sister around on, to a low rider with a big front wheel, to a normal tricycle. They're all fun!
My recommendation - if you're going to visit one time, I'd make a day of it. You get a hand stamp so you could visit a local restaurant for lunch, and with the $11/per person (over 1 year), you want to spend the day there. I really, truly recommend becoming a member, though, which start at $125/year for one adult and one child. This way, you can visit for as much or as little time as you please, and you don't feel bad about leaving if one (or all) your children aren't having the best day and you need to leave earlier than expected. I personally love visiting the museum from 1pm-4pm - it's typically pretty quiet and you have a lot of the exhibits to yourself.
The Children's Musuem of Phoenix is located on 7th Street and Van Buren on the Southeast Corner. They're open Tuesday-Sunday from 9am-4pm. Plan your visit today!
Photo courtesy Red Phoenix Photography
I'm Rachel - a mom, wife, and 'green' blogger at Small Steps On Our Journey. If you want me to come visit your place of business, have any questions on this article or suggestions for a future article, you can email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , tweet me at @rachelroland, or connect with me on Facebook.
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