Sea-ing the new Toledo Zoo Aquarium is Fin-tastic

When our family heard that the Toledo Zoo's Aquarium was open after having been closed for two and half years for an expansion and renovations we just had to make a road trip to go check it out.  This new $25 million investment in the exhibit has transformed a 46,000 gallon aquarium that had mostly displayed local freshwater varieties of fish into a 178,000 immersive underwater experience where people can view more than 3,000 creatures from a variety of ecosystems.

One of the key additions to the renovated aquarium is its interactive touch tank and ocean lab area.  Children and kids at heart of any age can experience touching sting rays, sharks, crabs, and sea stars.  There is a large open tank you can walk around and simply place your hand in the water to pet something.  The sting rays will actually seek out submerged hands to get a nice rub against.

There is also a second tank area where you can walk up to get a close up view of creatures like crabs and sea stars plus give them a pet if you'd like.

My daughter really enjoyed a display they had with jelly fish.  It featured a control panel where you could switch the coloring of the lights in their tank allowing visitors to illuminate the jelly fish in different shades of colors.  My kids were just wowed by this and I do have to say it was a stunning sight to behold.

My son's favorite part of the ocean lab was a wheel you pushed to open and close the jaws of a Great White shark demonstrating the pressure of its bite.  That's definitely not something you would want to experience in real life.

The heart of the new aquarium facility is its brand new 90,000 gallon Pacific Reef tank.  Prior to the renovation, the largest tank in the aquarium has held 7,600 gallons of water to highlight the scope of this exhibit's expansion.  The Pacific Reef tank is full of colorful coral and fish plus of course what people come wanting to see at an aquarium, sharks.

 

The touch tank and ocean lab section isn't the only interactive aspect of the aquarium.  The Pacific Reef tank features daily presentations at 11 am, 1 pm and 3pm where trained divers give feeding demonstrations and wear microphones so they can talk to people who are watching them.  During our visit the diver swam up to where my kids were my kids were viewing her and begin communicating and interacting with them.  It was really a memorable moment that my children have brought up quite a few times in conversations since our visit.

 

The renovation has expanded the saltwater displays in the aquarium from 37% of its space to 87%.  In addition to the touch tanks and the Pacific Reef tank some other new displays include the aquarium's second largest tank which highlights the Gulf of Mexico and features a rays, a sea turtle, and sharks, a Kelp Forest with leopard sharks and bat rays, and a view of the Deep Sea with giant Japanese spider crabs.

Freshwater fish haven't been forgotten or tossed aside in the renovation either.  There are displays highlighting South America's Amazon and Asia's mangrove forest underwater ecosystems.  Of course the aquarium needed to preserve its local educational aspect as well so there is a Lake Erie Islands & Ohio Waterways display as well featuring fish that range from tiny minnows to incredibly large growing sturgeon. The alligator turtle was quite an impressive sight as well and not something I'd want to bump into while swimming in a river or lake.

One final note - you're going to want to bring your swim suit with you to this aquarium.  No you won't be swimming with the fishes but the Toledo Zoo has added a very nice oceanic themed splash pad and playground behind the aquarium for families to enjoy during their visit.  Yes that's a whale spouting out water at you and a crab you can swing from!

We really enjoyed sea-ing the new Toledo Zoo Aquarium and had a fin-tastic time!  If you happen to be visiting Toledo or not too far away to make a road trip, A Geek Daddy highly encourages you to pay it a visit.

The Lights Before Christmas @ Toledo Zoo

"Lights Before Christmas" @ Toledo Zoo

A video posted by @geekdad248 on Dec 12, 2014 at 12:17pm PST

We recently took a road trip to meet up with some family friends and enjoy the Toledo Zoo's "The Lights Before Christmas" event.  It really was a festive time as we strolled through the place all aglow which impressed both the kids and the adults in our group.  The zoo really does an impressive job decking out the place for the holidays.  What is nice about this particular display is that the zoo focuses on decorating its existing natural scenery with lights rather than have a large number of designer displays being the focal point of the event.  Of course they have a few animal themed displays that catch people's attention too.

 

 

 

 

Some of the highlights of "The Lights Before Christmas" were a dancing light display that was set to energetic holiday tunes, an ice slide, and checking out the zoo's Big Tree which was named by Travelocity as one of the top holiday trees in the nation.  The Big Tree is a Norway spruce located at the zoo that is more then 70 years old and has grown to be more than 85 feet tall.  Seeing the Big Tree decorated is a site to behold.

While my favorite part of the evening was the dancing light show, my kids highlight of the night was the runs they took down the ice slide.  The ice slide looked somewhat tame from afar but once you got on it you really flew down it.

 

My kids also had a great time taking a spin on the carousel while we were there.  My son wanted to ride the "King of the Beasts" and it was nice they had a few lions lined up together on the carousel so my daughter could ride one too next to her brother.

My wife's favorite thing about the night was this pink and purple lighted tree which she just raved about throughout the night.  She also appreciated that we got to see the zoo's polar bears in their display while we were there.

The rates to attend the event are $13 for adults (age 12-59), $10 for Seniors (age 60+), $10 for children (ages 2 - 11) and children under 2 are FREE.  If you purchase tickets in advance online you can save $1 per ticket.  In addition parking costs $7.  Toledo Zoo Members receive FREE unlimited visits to "The Lights Before Christmas" Monday through Thursday and one FREE weekend visit (Friday through Sunday).

We had a great time at "The Lights Before Christmas" and if you live within driving distance of Toledo I would absolutely recommend a family road trip to enjoy it.  Because my kids had such a blast during our visit, the Toledo Zoo's "The Lights Before Christmas" gets A Geek Daddy nod of approval.

For more information, visit www.toledozoo.org 

Minor League Baseball Games can be an Economical & Entertaining Family Night Out

 

My 5 year old son and I ventured the hour drive from Detroit to Toledo, Ohio the other day to meet up with some friends for a Mudhens' game at Fifth Third Field.  It was a first trip to a minor league baseball game for both of us and I have to say we were both very impressed and had a great time.  The Mudhen's are the Detroit Tigers Triple-A affiliate club team meaning that this team has a variety of players going up and being sent town from the Major League club.  We recognized a few names of Mudhens who we'd seen play this season in Tigers games and my buddy who was with us with his 5 and 7 year old sons pointed out a few that would probably be making their way up to the Major League before the end of the season.

Fifth Third Field is a nice 8,000 seat facility in downtown Toledo.  You can see some of the classic architecture buildings from the City's heyday as a backdrop to the outfield which provides a nice urban vibe to the stadium.  It is really easy to get to as you take a short drive right off the freeway exit that leads you straight to the ballpark.  We found a safe and secure parking lot a block away from the stadium that charged a reasonable $5 dollars.  A few days after our visit to the Mudhens game my wife and I went to a Tigers game and in comparison that same spot would have cost $30 and we ended up paying $10 at a parking lot 6 blocks away from Comerica Park.

Our seats at Fifth Third Field were $10 each and were in the second row along the first base line, probably some of the best seats in the stadium.  Those same tickets at a Tigers game probably would have been 100% more expensive.  It was great to sit back and just enjoy the great view of a baseball game.  The stadium was probably at half capacity compared to a Tigers game which probably has 30,000 to 50,000 people.  There was just this nice laid back atmosphere at the game with everyone enjoying a nice summer evening outdoors and appreciating watching some baseball.  In addition to  close up views of the players, we also had a lot of interaction with the various mascots that attend the games.  Muddonna spent most of the game either sitting by us interacting with fans or dancing on the dugout in front of our seats.  We could spot her husband Muddy flying around the stadium throughout the game thrilling the kids in attendance.  Also present at the game were the mascots for the Toledo Walleye Minor League hockey team which has an arena a couple blocks from Fifth Third Field, Cattrick and Spike.  My son was laughing and pointing out these characters the whole game...although he still is a little afraid of these type of costumed characters and didn't want them to get too close which made for some interesting moments when the mascots wandered over to say hello.

I know that a basic hotdog with mustard on a steamed bun is standard baseball fare but we splurged a little bit enjoying some of the alternatives they had at Fifth Third Field.  My son enjoyed a Mac & Cheese Dog which is a grilled hot dog covered in macaroni & cheese and bacon while I had the Chicken & Waffle Bites with warm maple syrup for dipping.  Unfortunately, the Mudhens menu prevented my daughter from joining us on this fun evening.  Like Comerica Park and most other ballpark venues Fifth Third Field was littered with peanut shells and the risk of absorbing the oil from these shells contaminating seats and other fixtures of the stadium is too much of a risk for our daughter who has a severe food allergy where exposure could be deadly.  Unfortunately we have to take her to games where special accommodations to avoid peanut interactions are available which are often very seldom and limited opportunities which unfortunately really reduces our ability to go on a family outing to the enjoy America's pastime.

My son is more interested in getting out of the house at his age than really sitting down to watch a baseball game so what was nice about this experience was there was a variety of things to do and the price tag didn't break the bank.  We sat down for awhile and watched the game with a great view.  Because of how close we were to the action,  I was able to point out numerous things about the game play and what the fielders, batters and base runners were doing to explain him the game.  My son was also excited to see all the "baseball players" right up there in front of him.  We had some fun watching the mascots and eating our dinner.  Than my son and his friends headed over to the nice playground the stadium has behind center field, Muddy's Marsh, to play for a few innings.  We wrapped up the night with a visit to the gift shop picking up each of us a really nice fitted baseball caps from my favorite hat manufacturer, 47 Brand, for about half the price a similar cap would cost at a Tigers game, plus these were also slightly lower in price and minus the shipping of the Mudhens caps I'd seen for sale online.  Of course my son wanted me to buy him one but than wouldn't wear it during the game, though he has been wearing it around the last few days.

The Mudhen's are known for having some interesting promotions: Star Wars Night, Ghostbusters Night, Christmas in July for example.  We went on LEGO night.  They did a really nice job of having Lego themed images and videos on the scoreboard during the game.  My son won a contest where he made the most "Lego hotdogs" within a minute and received some stickers and temporary tattoos as a prize.  It was sad though that the PR department for the team went all out to market this event to kids and parents promoting they were giving out a special Lego minifigure at the gates when you entered.  They didn't order enough and although we and our friends arrived at the game well before the first pitch none of the children in our group received these toys.  So I have to give the promotions team a thumbs down.  It is one thing to have great promo themes but if you can't properly execute them than you are just lame.  The kids were disappointed not to get a Lego but fortunately this didn't damper their enthusiasm or fun at the game and all had a great time despite this let down.

The most important part of the night was that it put a smile on my son's face and we had some nice bonding time.  I'm thinking of buying tickets for the Mudhen's Star Wars Night next season and if they have a peanut free night maybe we'll take the whole family out for a night at Fifth Third Field.  Based upon the fun we had at this minor league game, my wife and I know the Whitecaps, the Tiger's Class A minor league team in Grand Rapids, Michigan, holds some peanut free games each year and we're considering a roadtrip to go to one of them in 2015.  Just a note to teams that are thinking of holding peanut free games, many of these events are held in early weeks of season when attendance is low, please consider some summer nights that are convenient to families who have to struggle with the challenges of food allergies.

Minor League Baseball games can really be an economical and entertaining family night out.  If you haven't been to one yet or lately I'd recommend going out to one of these ballparks for a fun time.

A Hands -On Adventure in Ann Arbor

We took a road trip with our kids this weekend to Ann Arbor to check out their children's Hands-On Museum.  The museum has a focus on teaching children about the science behind everyday life through more than 250 exhibits that let kids touch, feel & experience demonstrations & experiments.  Admission is $10 per person for both children and adults.   It is located on Ann Street tucked away along a nice neighborhood in downtown Ann Arbor in close proximity to 2 parking decks and numerous restaurants.  The museum is divided up into 9 areas covering four floors: the "Concourse", "All About You", "Preschool Gallery", "Legacy Gallery", "Michigan Nature", "World Around You", "Lyons Country Store", "Light & Optics" & "Media Works".

The "Concourse" is the main floor of displays for the Hands-On Museum.  Some of the fun and interesting things they had on display were whisper dishes at either end of a hall that reflected sound waves so that you could hear someone whisper to you from one dish to the other, the Building in a Building that shows you how things like a toilet, furnace, insulation, and electricity work inside your house, Google Liquid Galaxy that provided a 3-D computer generated view of the world around us as if you were exploring the Earth from a visiting space ship, the Tornado Generator that recreates miniature tornadoes in front of your eyes, along with an area where you can play with huge building blocks, water tables, and an original World War 2 flight simulator.

The "All About You" area of the Hands-On Museum has a real ambulance on display where you can climb aboard and pretend you are on an emergency run.  They also have machines that you can interact with that let you hear your heart beat and do other things to explain health topics and let you examine your own physical fitness.

We spent the bulk of our trip in the "Preschool Gallery" that had a huge exhibit that demonstrates how physics work by shooting rubber balls through a metal obstacle course in addition to water tables, a fish tank with a real life Finding Nemo clown fish, a building blocks room, a play house and a miniature fire truck.

The "Preschool Gallery" is designated for children 5 and under.  It is a shame that the museum doesn't have the another physics display like the one in this area for older children to have access to because I believe it would be entertaining and educational for most grade school kids of any age.  It's nice to have a space for younger children to enjoy without being overwhelmed by "older kids" but this was one of my son and daughter's favorite parts of the museum and they'll be too old to experience it again if we go back again as they will be turning 5 in a few months.  My 4 year old twins did have a blast in this area though during our trip!

The "Lyons Country Store" is an early 20th century general store that shows store goods and toys from this time period.  What is most interesting about this display though is the 21st century tech it demonstrates ... there is a realistic 3 dimensional hologram that tells you about the store in the exhibit.  This probably was the Geek Daddy's favorite part of our visit. I wish I'd gotten a good picture to share with you but unfortunately all my photos just show a blur.

The "World Around You" had a really fun exhibit where you walked inside a circular area and pulled on a chain.  This action raised a screen around you that created a bubble film screen around you.  I hadn't seen this type of display before, based on the same premise as blowing bubbles in the back yard, and it was fun to play with.  The area also had a bee hive, a piano you could walk on and play like the one in the movie "Big" and some pipes that you banged on with a sandal to make music.  There also was a fun climbing wall for the kids along the back wall of the room. This was another interesting and amusing part of the museum.

The "Legacy Gallery" had some interesting mechanical displays including an awesome exhibit called the Magnetoscope which allows you to manipulate magnetic fields to create amazing patterns in fluid.  It also had an interesting maze display that shoots metal balls through it to explain how the Internet and email work.

Unfortunately, I have to say that the last three areas of the museum were somewhat lame and could use some work, even though our kids did have some fun in the "Media Works" area dancing in front of a screen that re-displayed their images on a big screen as colorful images that vibrated to their motion. That being said overall it is a very nice facility with friendly staff and we had an enjoyable experience with our visit.

If you live in Southeastern Michigan or may be visiting and have preschool, kindergarten or young grade school kids, I'd recommend stopping by the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum.  For families with older children, you may want to consider a trip to the Imagination Station in Toledo though.  Check out my post from our family's visit there: "Our Trip to the Imagination Station."