NASA in Houston

On the way home from the cruise we decided to stop at NASA. The kids have been interested in all things space and it was a chance to let them run off some energy before the long drive home.

The entire place is filled with hands on activities. The kids were able to go from one thing to the next without us constantly telling them to just look. We did many things that I don't have photos of (or at least ones I'm willing to post publicly). We took the tour of the grounds and saw the rockets, astronaut training facility, and shuttle.

One of the kids' favorite parts was when we rode a shuttle around the moon. Ok, so it was a simulator, but they were still impressed. There are a couple of simulator rides, but only one that is approved for children this young. It didn't even have seat belts. Our kids loved it and still talk about when we went into space. 

This interactive board was next to where you wait in line for the tour. If you touch one of the shuttles you can control where it goes and it sets off sparks. Another area that I didn't get a good photo of is the HUGE playground. There are tons of places to climb and slide. The best part is the foam balls. You can shoot them at people, you can send them up chutes, there are just so many options. It is an indoor playground which helps when the temperature or weather isn't cooperating outside. However, it's in a very dark area and all of the photos we took didn't turn out well. Our kids spent more than an hour and a half playing on it and there was plenty of seating around for the parents to sit and watch.

Another of the hands on exhibits - You controlled where the chair went and tried to complete the challenge on the video screen in front of you. My kids weren't quite big enough to reach the controls while sitting in the chair, but both loved it anyway. At some point we will visit NASA in Florida because I've heard it's even better.

For  more photos from our visit at NASA come back for Wordless Wednesday this week and next.