Dinosaurs-Live!

It was a much awaited outing -- the trip with YK and YY to check out the dinosuars "live" at the Science Centre.

Noey has been interested in dinosaurs ever since we went to the really excellent exhibiton at the Australian Museum in Sydney last year. (I realise I totally ran out of steam before I got round to blogging about it, which was a pity because it was really one of the highlights of the trip.) So when I heard that the Science Centre was going to be bringing in more than 50 live-sized animatronic dinosaurs for an exhibition, I made a date with fellow mummy FY to bring our dino-loving boys there.

Roaar!!!
The matching shirts weren't planned, but they're cute, no?

The boys were terribly excited. Even the long trip to Jurong (and resultant mishap for YY and his Mummy) didn't dampen their enthusiasm. Which only increased ten-fold upon arrival and seeing the dinosaurs at the entrance.

This is Stan.

YK was terribly chuffed to get on the dino ride. Noey watched, fascinated, though when I asked him if he wanted a ride too, I got a quick "no!".

Riding a walking, talking dinosaur. An Omeisaurus, says YK. I wouldn't know the difference!

I had seen some photos of the exhibition and I was a bit worried that the darkness plus the growling sounds might scare Noey. Those fears were thankfully unfounded. His enthusiasm to see the dinosaurs, plus the company of his equally eager friends carried him through. He did tell me a couple of times that he was brave though, which I think shows his underlying fear! I did tell him before the trip that we would be seeing robot dinos, not real ones, and that helped a bit I think.

Inside, there was a lot to see and do. Best for me, I had my own tour guides in the form of YK and his Mum who were able to identify all the dinosaurs without looking at the descriptive panels. Seriously. I tried reading one of the panels once to Noey, said "Velociraptor" wrongly, and got a funny look from YK who promptly corrected me. HAHA. He must have been thought that this Aunty knows nothing!

Spinosaurus

The boys checking out a Protosaurus PROTCERATOPS. (See, told you I learnt something.)

"Tywannosaurus-Wex" says YY. It was so cute, I kept trying to make him say it over and over.

Aside from checking out the exhibits, there were also a few fun activities for the kids, like:

1. Completing the exhibition "passport"

Noey was very enthusiastic about stamping. The passport costs $2. Sadly I lost it on our way home. I suspect I left it at Macs.

2. Digging for fossils

Our little Paleontologists at work. Which kid doesn't like a sand pit? We Mummies even got to chat in peace for 15 mins before we dragged them out, which is excellent in my book.

3. Shading/Colouring stations

Two absorbed boys.

We walked through the exhibition twice before the boys reluctantly left. We spent sometime in the Discovery Zone before we headed to Macs for lunch. The boys were happy, but the Mummy in me wishes that there were other more healthy options for lunch. Well, I suppose junk food is also what makes an outing a treat!

In between playing with the toys, Noey ate his whole McNuggets Happy Meal with Milo and more than his share of fries. I don't know if I should be happy about that or not. Hah.

I had come across these tubes of mini dino toys and had brought them along for the boys for an after-trip play time. I'm glad they were a hit.

Noey went home clutching his fistful of dinosaurs and jabbering about them. He even took them to bed with him when he went down for his nap.

Boy and his dinosaurs.

It was all in all a very enjoyable outing. The exhibition is on till Feb 2012. Go check it out if you haven't done so. It is worth a visit.