Spending the Day at Mystic Aquarium

We've been to the aquarium many times through our homeschooling journey.  My boys had gotten bored with going but since it had been a long time since our last visit I thought they might like to go again.  Knowing we would get in free this month with our Science Center Membership I figured this was the perfect time to go.  The boys were so excited!


It's always a fun day at Mystic Aquarium and other than the wind we had an amazing time!



There have been so many changes and we had a great time exploring the new exhibits as well as interacting with the animals.

We arrived in time for the beluga whale feeding and listened
to how they train their whales to help out with their veterinary care

We headed over to the sea lion show and found that it too was new!

Getting to see a sea lion up close 


  They have a new exhibit area called Exploration Wild and they set up areas of the room to resemble the rain forest, the North and South Poles, the ocean etc.  Each area had fun toys, facts, and interactive computers.  It was SO MUCH fun! Evan and I spent an awful lot of time reading all the signs depicting the differences between the arctic and the antarctic; perfect for his report!

Exploring the rain forest in a jeep 

Posing with a polar bear 

Trying out a sled dog sled 

Alec quizzing himself on facts about arctic animals 

Evan quizzing himself about rain forest animals and their features 

"Aaahhh! A shark!"

This was the neatest sand table ever! As you moved
sand around you made a new topographical map.
You could make it rain by waving your fingers over it
and then the rain accumulates in all the valleys.  

Making an island and a volcano 

Visiting the penguins 

Evan likes to get right up close 

The underwater viewing area is lots of fun 

Petting sand sharks.   

Alec made such an impression with his knowledge about animals
that the docent started talking to us about volunteering when he's
older! 

Jellies!  

Upside down jellyfish 

Not the best picture but the octopus was moving all around in his tank;
right in front of us!  We aren't allowed to use flash photography
 and the tank was dark, but that did not stop us from seeing so many details! 


Moray eels 

Checking out a hermit crab up close; this
was perfect and good practice for Evan who
would like to get one for a pet one day 

Holding a spider crab 

Evan FINALLY got to touch a ray!  They usually swim away from
him and he was so thrilled that they were all swimming up to him today 

The rays were very active today


There was another new mini exhibit all about birds that the boys enjoyed too. We read about birds that are commonly found in our area and we could push buttons to hear them and see them light up around the exhibit.  They had interactive screens where the boys could learn about and listen to more than 500 other types of birds.

Learning about local birds 

Checking out the bird sounds

Look at all those birds to choose from 

coloring bird pictures 

Alec's peacock picture 

Eating snack while saying goodbye to the beluga whales 

They come so close to the glass! 

Linking Up With:

Comments

  1. Hey, Mother of 3! Saw your post and am visiting from Chronically Content today. What a fun adventure! We are thinking about doing the science membership also for the free days and discounts at other places. Thanks for sharing such a great day!

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    1. Once I saw all the other places we could get into for free it seemed like an amazing deal... now I just have to make sure we get to them all!

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  2. What an amazing trip! Thanks for sharing at Together on Tuesdays :)

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  3. What a beautiful aquarium. This looks like such a wonderful place to visit. Visiting from Together on Tuesdays.

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    1. Thanks for stopping by. We are rather lucky to have such a nice aquarium so close by.

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  4. looks like a great place! pinned it! thanks for linking up!

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  5. How fun is that! My grands would love it. Love for you to link up with me at http://nanahood.com/barns-houses-and-scenery

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    1. Thanks; we love getting out for field trips! The aquarium is always a favorite.

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  6. Ah I took mineto an aquarium for the first time a few months ago and they really enjoyed it. They are a little young to get the most out of it but they certainly liked it and I can't wait to take them again. It looks like youabll and a great day, which is lovely to see. You have some fab photos too! Thanks for sharing at #familyfun

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    1. We always have a great time at zoos and aquariums.

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  7. Wow, what a great day out. We haven't been to an aquarium since the one in Norway a couple of years ago... After reading your post I want to take the kids again! #explorerkids

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    1. We love the aquarium and I often find myself wishing we could visit more often.

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  8. I have actually been to Mystic but I don't think we went to the aquarium. I love aquariums! #ExplorerKids

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    1. It's a pretty small aquarium but they really pack a lot in. It's also just about the only aquarium around us.

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  9. What an amazing aquarium -n I love the touch pools! #ExplorerKids

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    1. I love touch pools too! My boys are getting quite adept at handling sea life.

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  10. The aquariums in the UK are not that huge so we tend to have things like turtles, rays and some species of sharks. It would be amazing to see beluga whales! #ExplorerKids

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    1. They are so fun! We've been a few times when we could paint on their tanks or one docent told us to hold our cell phone to the glass and they are so curious that they come right over to inspect what we're doing. One used to "play" with the kids and he'd get up close to the glass and open his mouth. Most little kids would squeal and I'd swear that whale smiled. If he could have he would have been laughing.

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  11. This looks like a great aquarium! Beluga whales, wow, my gang would love that!
    #ExplorerKids

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  12. They definitely are peaceful.

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