It took two days of trying, but yesterday we finally took the boys to see “Santa Versus the Snowman” in 3-D no less, at the IMAX in Salt Lake City.My 11-year-old is getting way too sophisticated for our little planetarium. Or so he thought. Thursday we planned a leisurely day. We stopped on the way to the show to eat lunch, then walked in the planetarium door to discover a bazillion kids and their parents waiting in line to see the same show we had planned to attend.
So, while DH waited in line to buy tickets for Friday, the boys and I explored the building. We only got as far as the staircase, where a perpetual motion machine was set up with balls looping, and ringing bells, and swinging and spiraling all over the place. The two-store gadget was a kid magnet. I was fascinated by it too.DH said if he had something like that going on in the front entrance of his elementary school, he would never get the students to go home.
Friday we came back to see the show. It was very fun, with plenty of subtle adult humor and a generous dose of slapstick for the kiddies. The first 3-D movie we went to was about as interesting as watching grass grow, but it was in 3-D, so it was cool. We have since seen a movie about bugs and this animated feature. I really enjoyed the bugs movie, but this was just pure entertainment.One of the next movies on tap is a dinosaur movie featuring the T-Rex. I have an 11-year-old niece who would probably give her new mechanical raptor for a chance to see the movie. She is a freak for dinosaurs, snakes, jelly fish, bugs and anything else furless, creepy, and unlikely to appeal to a pre-adolescent girl.
As it happens, this crop of cousins is quite a scientific bunch. As I mentioned, my sister’s daughter loves natural science. She likes to camp an
d isn’t even slightly phased by things like leaches. My brother’s oldest son loves to build things and has a mechanical mind. My 11-year-old is fascinated by math, and all kinds of science from geology to electricity. My 7-year-old son is a chemist. He is always mixing potions. He also likes projectiles and things that explode ~ cap guns, rockets, darts ~ you get the picture.The trick for us as parents is to take this interest in exploding, electrifying, tinkering and camping, and turning it into something they can use as lucrative careers.
Or, maybe they’ll just be the next generation of people who, like their parents, have ordinary jobs and houses full of books, metal detectors, dismantled blenders and the like.
Either way, life is richer if you follow your bliss.
2 comments:
Hey, My interest was in Science also, even if I liked to sew and cook. I just had the unfortunate problem of being a GIRL in a age before girls were supposed to grow up and be secrataries or teachers or housewivew! My choice was housewife and mother. My "real" life was College graduate in Home Economics Education . My carrier was underemployed woman, single until mid thirtys, then almost totally the sole support of the DH and myself No kidlets. Life is strange!! We do have the brains for scientific things. We just haven"t followed through on it!
I would love to see the pmm I always wanted to build something like that. The only thing I liked about "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" was how they make breakfast. I also remember some 70's cop show where our hero had a huge erector set in his house that was all interconnected. Funny what sticks in your mind. DS13 wants to be an engineer like his three uncles. DS7 is also facinated by how things work and DS4 is an expert lego builder. DD11 is also very courious and highly organized.
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