Trail at Pipestone National Monument, Pipestone, Minnesota

by Linda (minnemom) of Travels with Children

In Pipestone, Minnesota, there’s a unique quarry of pipestone, the stone used by Native Americans to create sacred pipes.  Visiting the Pipestone National Monument allows visitors to see the natural beauty of the area, learn about tools used by the Native Americans, and enter one of the quarry areas.

Inside the National Park Service visitor center, artisans are on hand to show how the pipes are crafted.  Another display gives a close-up view of petroglyphs that have been found in the “red rock” of the area.

Outside, a circle trail meanders through the prairie, crossing a creek, passing a waterfall, and offering a climb up on the rocks for a different view.  It’s very quiet and peaceful, and although the trail is only 3/4 mile long, it shows off a variety of plants, wildlife, and terrain.

Waterfall at Pipestone National Monument, Pipestone, Minnesota

Kids can participate in a junior ranger program.  Once they complete the scavenger hunt and workbook, they can turn it in for a junior ranger badge.  My children were very proud of their badges, and the interaction provided by the guidebook helped them to enjoy the site more.

Nestled in the southwestern Minnesota prairie, the Pipestone National Monument is important in teaching about Minnesota history and Native American culture.

Photo credits: minnemom

Monkey Frog - Houston Zoo

The Houston Zoo is a 55 acre park with over 4,500 animals.

Indian Star Tortoise - Houston Zoo

It supports species survival and conservation projects that assist in the survival of threatened wildlife and habitats.

Spectacled Bear - Houston Zoo

For the most up-to-date daily info, see the Zoo Website.

Indochinese Tiger - Houston Zoo

The Houston Zoo is closed on Christmas Day,

but open and FREE on MLK Day, Columbus Day, President’s Day,

the Friday after Thanksgiving & New Year’s Day.

It’s also a lot of fun.

Photos courtesy of cburnett from Wiki Commons

The store as it appeared around 1910. Photo courtesy of Mast General Store.

On any morning, stop into the Mast General Store in Valle Crucis, North Carolina, grab a 5 cent cup of coffee, sidle up to the pot bellied stove, and join the locals who gather each day to argue politics and exchange news from around the valley.

Isolated high in the Appalachians, with unreliable roads even during the best weather, residents of this town have relied on general mercantile stores for their every need since pioneer days. One of these, the Mast General Store, began as the Taylor Store in 1883. By 1917 it had been purchased by the Mast family, who owned it for anther 60 years. Although today no longer owned by the Masts, the current owners continue to operate the store as a historically accurate general store.

The Mast General Store exerior. Photo courtesy of Ken Thomas, http://www.kenthomas.us

Step through the front door and you are instantly transported to a bygone era. The walls are lined with dry goods, overalls, and every imaginable hardware implement. Hand-hewn wooden display cases rest on plank floors polished smooth by generations of footsteps, offering everything from stone ground corn meal to locally canned preserves. In another room, rows of wooden barrels overflow with old-fashioned hard candy, licorice, and sugar-coated gum drops. Yet another cubbyhole features handmade local crafts. Upstairs, customers find an extensive selection of sportswear and sporting gear.

Photo courtesy of Mast General Store

Indeed, there seems to be no end to the rooms at the Mast General Store; the facility goes on and on like a giant maze. Even the Valle Crucis Post Office is still located in the corner of the original store’s front room, complete with antique boxes and a postal window. The store not only sells wares made by local artisans, it regularly sponsors demonstrations of making bread, corn husk dolls, and herbal remedies; construction of birdhouses and gout rockers; basket weaving and hand-painting of thimbles and Christmas ornaments.

Because it was considered one of the finest remaining examples of an old country general store, in 1977 the Mast General Store was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, which seems fitting, since it is located in the countryside of North Carolina’s first and only Rural Historic District. No visit to the charming hamlet of Valle Crucis is complete without a stop at the Mast General Store, where customers can buy everything from plows to cloth and cradles to caskets. The locals will gladly tell you that, “If you can’t buy it here, you don’t need it.” Just ask any of them as you warm your hands over that pot bellied stove.

Present-day photo courtesy of Barbara Weibel

Article by Barbara Weibel of Hole In The Donut Travels

Why is an astronaut like a football player?

They both want touchdowns!!

NASA banner

The official visitors center of the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (NASA) in Houston, Texas is called Space Center Houston.  You can find attractions and space artifacts here and fun for the whole family.

It’s a great chance to talk about how to pee in space, aliens and gas…all big draws for my boys.

Space Center Houston

Quick trivia: Do you know what the initials “NASA” stand for?  I’ll have the answer at the end of the post!!

Space Center Houston is home to many cool space capsules and artifacts, including Mercury 9, Gemini 5, Apollo 17, a lunar rover vehicle trainer and a Skylab trainer mock up.

Rocket at NASA

Some of the big attractions also include the Martian Matrix/Kids Play Space for kids in fifth grade and younger, as well as an IMAX theater hosting movies titled “To Be An Astronaut” and “Inside the Space Station.”

You can take a two different tram tours of NASA to the old and new Mission Control centers or space vehicle mock-up facility and Rocket Park.

NASA Tram

How did the astronaut serve dinner in outer space?

On flying saucers.

My son and his cousin enjoyed some virtual flying at Space Center Houston, but I have to admit, my son can’t land a plane. Thank goodness we’re still a few yeas away from his driver’s license.

Virtual Flying - Space Center Houston

Currently they have a Star Wars the Clone Wars Exhibit, which is a huge draw to Star Wars fans.

Frankly the Space Center is fun for kids and adults.  Space travel is exciting, dramatic and unknown.  It’s fascinating to relive and appreciate where we’ve been so far and what we’ve achieved…and where we plan to go next.

Apollo Capsule Engine - NASA

And we all have to appreciate an engine that looks like this. Space Shuttle mechanics need more props, I think.  This looks harder than calculus to me.

Trivia answer: NASA stands for National Aeronomics and Space Administration.