**Updated: 6:06pm: This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to comment #26, Jennifer on winning the tickets!***
It’s not secret that my family members are huge fans of the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. I mean, really, it’s the largest children’s museum in the world and it has some seriously cool exhibits. I love bringing the kids down for even just a couple of hours, to explore and enjoy all the museum has to offer. The kids know the museum well — they start getting excited when they see the dinosaurs outside the museum. They are always on “hat watch” — because they know the dinosaurs will have on Halloween and Christmas themed head gear during those seasons. Last weekend when we were there, MaM was wondering if maybe she’d see some shamrocks or bunny ears on these giant reptiles.
I secretly can’t wait until we go again. This Friday, the museum is going to out-do itself and every boy within a million miles is going to go NUTS from now on whenever they enter the Welcome Center. Why, do you ask?
BUMBLEBEE is going to be a permanent part of the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis!
Bumblebee, as every Transformers fan knows, is one of the good guys. He’s constantly trying to impress Optimus Prime, his leader, and took a star role in the latest Transformers movie. Also? Kids LOVE Bumblebee. My own kids are constantly on the look-out for bright yellow and black cars and shout, “Bumblebee” when they see one.
Walking into the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and seeing the 17ft tall, 1 ton movie prop? That will rock their world!
Bumblebee will be unveiled at 10:30am this coming Friday (yes! March 11), in conjunction with the special Members-Only Sneak Preview of the new exhibit, Incredible Costumes.
Now for the giveaway-
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis would like to hook one reader up with a four-pack of admission tickets to see Bumblebee for themselves. If you are able to attend the unveiling Friday, you will also be on the VIP list to attend the Incredible Costumes Preview (the exhibit won’t be open to the public until Saturday, March 12). Otherwise, the admission tickets will be waiting for you at Will-Call on a date of your choosing.
To enter, all you need to do is tell me about a favorite family outing of yours — either now, as a parent, or as a kid. Be sure to fill in your email address on the comment form so that I can contact you if you win. Because the premiere is Friday, I will pick a winner at 6pm Thursday (that’s tomorrow, March 10).
Thanks for entering, and good luck!
Disclosure: I did not receive any compensation for this giveaway– I just really like promoting this amazing institution!
My favorite has ALWAYS been the children’s museum..going myself as a kid and now taking my kiddos. We all love it!
AWESOME!!!! Mikey wants to start a costume shop. He says I will have the most important job. Making all of the costumes….He is learning the art of flattery and manipulation early. We will definitely go here during April Vacation this year. They will both love this. talk to you soon. Angie
Wow! Dylan’s head just might explode! I love it when we get the chance to get “lost” as a family – whether it be at TCM or the zoo. We love to go exploring and learn something new. Win or not I can’t wait to see Bumblebee.
As a parent, I haven’t had any exciting outings with my 2 month old. As a kid, my favorite outings were to a local nature park. As an adult, the children’s museum is still a favorite deestination!
Favorite family trip was to Gatlinburg two years ago on October where my wife and I., along with our two kids relaxed in a chalet high up in the mountains and watched the sunset set beautifully on the Smokies. I laugh because one of those nights we were there, we watched Transformers and then the next day went downtown and seen a bumblebee replica.
One of my favorite memories when I was a kid was getting to ride the city bus with my mom and my siblings. We rode to the Arcade Square in downtown Dayton, OH and went to the Coca Cola museum. It was so awesome. It was probably just some guy’s collection that his wife made him move out of the basement, but I loved it. I think we got Coke in those little glass bottles.
We love playing on the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. We take random photos climbing on a rock, hanging from a tree, by the Skeleton at 100 Acre Woods, etc. We just walk, have fun, maybe a picnic, tour the Lilly House, etc. We just hang out for a day as a family, talking, seeing things, and making great memories!
My favorite outing with my husband and six year old was 2 years ago when we went to Hilton Head SC….It rained the entire week we were there. But that didin’t stop us from having fun. We still went to the beach and played putt putt golf all in the rain. I have the best photo’s ever from that trip! It def. is a experience that we will remember forever!
My sister and I took our daughters for the first time last summer (they were 4) and we got to see the dinasaur fossils. That was the coolest thing I have ever seen. And the joy that those two little girls had all day was just such a blessing. Just the awe in their faces all day long was the best part! It was neat to show our kids the things we saw when we went so many years ago, it never gets old no matter how many times you have seen it.
The Children’s Museum has always been a “happy place” for me and my family. We lived about 10 minutes from there when my first son was born. He was and still is a very energetic little man! Going there almost daily was my saving grace!
We now live a little farther away, and have enjoyed going with both my 2nd and 3rd sons as well! We moved away, but have tried to always keep our membership going!
YAY! Looking forward to seeing Bumblebee! As a mom of 3 boys…he is not new to our household!
The one and only family vacation we have had with our children (ages 11, 8, and 6) was our trip to Indy last summer. We stayed at the Caribbean Cove waterpark and went to the zoo and the museum. They had such a great time and we would love to go back. I am a SAHM and found great BOGO coupons last time. Winning a ticket package would be cool, too. We LOVE Transformers!
My favorite memory as a parent is taking my children to Arizona to see a different part of the United States. We live in Indiana so having them see the land and the difference between the two states was so much fun. I have two boys with Autism, and transitioning between two states was hard but they seemed to enjoy it once we got there. It was a blast seeing the Grand Canyon! As a child my favorite outing was going downtown Indy, whether it was visiting the Children Museum or the Zoo I always enjoyed my time there.
My favorite family outing is obvious…when I took my son to Disney World for the first time. I remembered how exciting it was as a kid and I couldn’t wait to see his face when we arrived. We had a great time and the look on his face was more than I could have ever hoped for!
My favorite outings as a kid were when my Dad would take me to Kings Dominion. He always rode all the rides with me and would stand in hours long lines to ride “the stand up upside-down” roller coaster. Not to mention all the junk food he would stuff me full of!!!
Our family’s favorite outing is going too the zoo or a museum!
As a child, my parents would take me to a park with ducks and geese. I fed the ducks but was cautious of the geese, maybe because they were as big as me. One day, my parents looked across the park to see me running and screaming, a goose latched onto the butt of my diaper. It’s their version of the Coppertine baby. I still visit that park occassionally, and the geese still torture me (I bring lots of extra food to distract them). It has become a funny story, a warm memory, and an excuse for my irrational fear of geese.
Now, my boyfriend and I get the joy of his three-year-old boy and two-year-old girl in the house every other weekend. And one our favorite things to do is go to the park, although we avoid parks with geese. It’s been at the park that I’ve earned their trust pushing them on the swings and their friendship following them down the slides. Actually, the first weekend I spent with them was filled with a trip to the Indianapolis Children’s Museum, which we all fell in love with, followed by a visit at the park. I suppose that visit to the museum, watching my boyfriend teaching and playing with his children, watching their faces light up with smiles, and delighting in requests that I play too will be another of my most precious memories of the four of us.
Our favoriate family outing is camping in the Smokey Mountains. We’ve done it the last couple years and it’s such a fun time. I know it’s more than just a day outing, but it’s our favorite thing to do. It’s relaxing and to see God’s creation up close and person is just awesome! It’s a great way to spend time together as a family exploring and seeing new things each time.
One of my family all time favorite outings was…going to the Ft. Wayne Zoo…I’ll never forget the option to walk around the fenced safari pathway with the tall fence and boy was thst a walk leading to even more animals but Loved riding in the black and white striped a Zebra safari jeep thsts caged in…it gives you the Real Deal of what its like on the field with animals from Antelope – Zebras [A-Z]! The safari jeep automatically takes you and your family for an awesome animal adventure that I know lives in my memory …I dont care if you are age 1 to the Grave its amazing!
I always loved going to Wisconsin Dells when I was young. The whole family would pack up and spend the week there…My kids adore the Childrens Museum!
We love going to children’s museums! We love the one here in Indy but we also have enjoyed others in the Chicago area, Cincinnati and last weekend we went to one in Nashville, TN. The kids just love the hands-on stuff!
We loved the Children’s Museum as kids and it is such a joy seeing my kids fall in love over and over again everytime we go there! These tickets would be great!
As a child we used to visit Indiana Beach every summer, now that I have kids of my own I’ve carried on that tradition and we do the same.
A favorite of mine growing up was definitely Wisconsin Dells. After moving to Indiana and having kids I have really come to enjoy and love the Museum. Where else can you learn and have so much fun doing it?
My favorite family outing is every year we do the Race for the Cure as a family to remember my grandma. It is an amazing time to spend as a family while helping a greater good.
My favorite family outing: we all went to the ocean and camped in a nearby park. My father came along with us. That is the first vacation I have ever had with my Dad. It was wonderful. I was so happy we were able to do that! My kids had so much fun too!
I have two girls ~ Samantha (3 yrs old) and Delaney (7 months)! We just moved to Indianapolis from Florida!! This move was difficult on all of us, girls included, as it took place in late December. We visited the ICM in early February and look forward to affording to go, again. I’m fortunate to work as a full time Mom and we use our imaginations daily to create fun excursions. I asked Sammy what her favorite family adventure is and she recounted an imagined trip to the moon on a choo-choo train!!
The Children’s Museum has ALWAYS been a favorite of mine. I have GREAT memories of riding the carousel with my mom and lots of school field trips. Now my children love the Children’s Museum. That being said, I want to share another family favorite of ours. On the 3rd Saturday, of most months, between April and October, we love to pack a picnic and go to the Johnson County Park. On those Saturdays, we ride the Indiana Live Steamers. These are REALLY GREAT trains and are just the perfect size for my children. So, on these Saturdays, we start with a ride on the train then have our picnic and take another ride on the train. We ride the trains as much as we can and then we like to hike on some of the trails. This is just such a fun family outing for our family.
Our favorite family outing is our yearly trip to a new museum for my son’s birthday every year. The Indy Children’s Museum has been our favorite, but we have also visited the Texas Children’s Museum, Imagination Station in Lafayette Indiana, The Field Museum, Science and Industry, The Planetarium in Chicago, and The Chicago Children’s Museum!
I love the Children’s Museum. I love that it’s grown and grown as I and my family has. But the bestest… I was scared to death in the lights on Haunted house about 30 yrs ago. Our brownine troup went and I really couldn’t take it.
My favorite from childhood include many places. My most rewarding outing place as a grown-up, or maybe as a mother, is definitely Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. It is only 5 minutes’ drive away from home. So, we hold a membership to museum. We have been there a lot of time. Still, everytime we drive close to museum and my son sees dinosaurs “walking out of museum building”, he gets really excited and very happy. My son is a dinosaur maniac, and he has Asperger’s. When he is in museum, you can’t tell if he has Asperger’s, or not. He is just one hell of happy kids running up and down the museum aisle in excitement. He of course loves to go dinosphere in the basement. No matter how many times we go there, he gets really happy and blend in instantly, it can’t be better and more rewarding for me to see him that way.
My grandchildrens favorite (and mine) is still an outing to the Indy Childrens Museum. With photography as my hobby, the museum always offers lots of new things to photograph!
One of my favorite family outings when I was younger was also going to the Children’s Museum. I loved building the arch out of fake blocks, climbing the rock wall, riding the giant carousel, and making boats to float down a river. At Christmastime, I begged my parents to take me there so I could go down the giant slide and go into the secret elf shop! I can’t wait for my kids to use those same fantastic memories. The Children’s Museum is truly one of my favorite childhood memories!!
It is hard to narrow it down to my absolute favorite family outing, because anytime I can be with my brother and sister and my nephew is always a great time. I try to take my nephew places he hasn’t been so he can learn. We have yet to make a trip as a family to the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and it is on my places to visit list. Especially since they are opening this new exhibit which will make my nephew ridiculously happy since he loves BumbleBee. But my all time favorite would have to be a family vacation to Gatlinburg, TN. Having a full week of family time together in such a peaceful place was great.
If we lived closer, I would definitely enter to win these! Since it’s the “world’s largest” children’s museum, it’s right up my alley!
My favorite family outing story actually deals with the TCM of Indianapolis. My wife and I do not have kids. However, we do have a nephew who is turning 6 in April. Each year since he was 2, we have taken him on a “vacation” for a weekend in Indianapolis. We live in Dayton, OH, so it is a quick drive. He looks forward to this weekend all year. We eat packed snacks in the back of our SUV then we go across the walkway into the museum. While at the museum, we have certain traditions. First, we take a picture of him posing with the polar bear. He puts his claws out like the bear and growls. It is hilarious! Second, we get a photo in the race car. He really enjoys pretending to drive. Third, we enjoy “riding” on the life size train car in the basement. We always pretend to look out the windows (tv screens) and try to spot animals that are not actually there. We then proceed to his absolute favorite area, the crane/rock area. We love to watch him drive the bulldozer, operate the crane and move rocks around. He thinks he is big stuff! After the museum each year, we get a hotel room in north Indy and we enjoy swimming and dunking his aunt under water. This weekend is actually the weekend we are coming to Indy!
My favorite outing was a birthday trip to Cedar Point. My inlaws (aunts, uncles, grandparents, nieces, nephews) all drove to Ohio to celebrate my husband’s 30th birthday and his brother’s 40th birthday. We spent three days riding rollercoasters, going to the lake, and just hanging out together. It’s amazing how much you can learn about yourself and your family when you’re away from day-to-day distractions and having fun together!
Our favorite family vacation was to Gettysburg PA. It was right at the anniversary and DS had a blast reenacting and learning more. Then we headed over to TGI Fridays and the outlets!
Ft Campbell KY. Army rules!
We love heading over to Indy and checking out the Children’s Museum and/or the Indy Zoo! Can’t beat it for a nice weekend away! My two boys (8 & 5) would LOVE to see Bumblebee!