If you're ever in Alaska, I highly recommend a visit to the Anchorage Museum. It's not too big that you can't tour it easily in a couple of hours, and it houses a variety of exhibits ranging from Alaskan culture to military history to fine art.
Upon entering the lobby, my 8-year-old daughter was thrilled to see . . .
. . . a two-story Christmas tree adorned with dolls!
. . . and a beautiful miniature doll house
decorated with the loveliest, tiniest furniture!
. . . and a huge display of antique dolls (this is just a small section),
in front of which my daughter sat for a good 10 minutes,
daydreaming about what she could do with all those beautiful babies!
We went to see a showing of works by Sara Tabbert, an artist from Fairbanks known for her wonderful woodcuts and detailed mosaics.
While my husband took the older girls upstairs to look at some history, I took the twins into the children's gallery where kids are encouraged to run free and get their hands dirty.
It's full of interactive, fun learning centers. The kids can draw with markers or stack blocks or play with magnets, all while being inspired by child-friendly art like these birds . . .
. . . fashioned from sharp, dirty nails!
And what child wouldn't be cheered by this series of
half-animal, half-human heads hanging on the wall . . .
You kids shut up down there.
Don't even THINK about trying to sleep tonight,
'cause I'll be hiding under your bed.
Children are brats.
Thanks, museum, for traumatizing my girls. Fortunately, the little stage in the children's gallery allowed the twins to work out their fears with some performance therapy.
"You must pay the rent!" "I can't pay the rent!"
Dinner last night: macaroni and cheese
You might also be interested in visiting the Alaska Zoo
