The Kentucky Museum! (Bowling Green, KY)

This Summer I've been trying to get out and explore as much as I can with the kids. 

I read somewhere that we only get 18 summers with our kiddos before they're all grown up and out of the house, and that really got to me. Holy cow. Only 18!!! 

So right when school got out, we sat down and made a summer bucket list. (I'll try and post it on the blog soon!) We wrote zillions of things we want to do together before school starts again, and it has seriously been so motivating to see that list on the fridge every day! We've been able to do so many fun things already. 

A few days ago, we crossed off one of the things on our list: "Go to a new museum!" We drove an hour down to Bowling Green, KY, and stopped at Western Kentucky University to go to The Kentucky Museum. It was a random Thursday morning, and we were some of the only people there. It was awesome! 

The first exhibit we walked through was about Bosnia and it's culture. The kids peered into a Bosnian apartment, saw photos of the people and food there, and asked a zillion questions about the traditional Bosnian clothing on display.

It was such a good opportunity to talk with them about people of other cultures, and to show them how things differ in other parts of the world.

Basically it just made me want to travel the world with all of them. So much good comes out of traveling, and appreciation for cultures and people is at the top of the list. 

^Cutest little museum buddy!^

^Bosnia in the background^

The next exhibit we walked through was all about the Civil War. There were lots of weapons, clothing, and instruments used in the war, and the kids were fascinated. It was really, really cool to see old photos of generals and influential people from that time in our country's history, and to tell the kids about it!

The museum gave us free workbooks for the kiddos, and they carried them around like their most prized possessions. They loved filling out info as we went from one exhibit to the next!

Also, it was the cutest moment ever when Camden saw the giant picture of Abraham Lincoln. He ran up to it and pointed excitedly, yelling "Look!! It's HAM Lincoln!" Haha.

^Cam and Ham^

^Holland, eating a cracker and doing the double finger gun in a log cabin.^

Then the kids dressed up in Civil War soldier uniforms, and it was pretty much the cutest thing of my life. I kind of want them to wear these hats in real life. 

^Let's just take a minute to appreciate Holland right here. Because OH MY GOSH. The face! The pose!^ 

^I mean, seriously though, kid! You're a nut.^

Then we walked through several other exhibits, including a giant wing of the museum that is dedicated to Duncan Hines (like the boxed cakes). He's from Bowling Green, so it was fun to learn a little bit of his company's history and its roots.

His wax figure replica though? Not my favorite. The kids were like,

"Mom, do we have to go over there? That guy is really creeping us out."

And I was like, "Me too, kids. Me too." haha. So we didn't linger there for too long.

There was also a painting that is said to be the most similar to the Mona Lisa in style, and in the time frame when it was produced.

It was neat to see it, and reminded me of when we were able to see the real thing at The Louvre in Paris a few years ago! (See more photos of the Louvre, here!)

^I don't even know. Haha! Such goobers.^

My favorite part of the museum, hands down, was the artwork outside in the courtyard.

A couple of Bosnian artists etched incredible pieces of art into stone, and the detail just blew me away. The kids just wanted to feel them (which we asked about and got permission to do), because they couldn't believe how real they looked. Just amazing!

^I love this photo that Camden captured of me and Brights. I can't resist those chubby cheeked kisses!^

Brighton's favorite part of the museum was definitely the courtyard, too, because he could finally get down and play!! He loved crunching the leaves with his fingers, toddling around, and just playing with the big boys.

Learning to walk has really opened up a whole new world of possibilities for him, and he takes every chance he gets to hop out of the stroller and explore.

^It was so cute when he spotted this face carved into the rock. He was like "Hey look! A friend!" haha^

^"Us dis?" is his constant sound, which I think is his way of asking "what's this?"^

I love these next photos of my four boys.

Brighton kept crawling away, but hey. It's a pretty accurate depiction of my life right now! haha.

^My boys. Ages 6, 5, 3, and 16 months.^

I love these photos that Boston snapped of me and Brights on the steps in the courtyard. He is such a little squirmy baby, and I just want to kiss his cheeks clean off.

Sometimes I wish babies didn't have to grow up! (But then I think about possibly sleeping through the night at some point, and that sounds pretty good, too. haha)

It was such a great museum!

If you're ever near Bowling Green, I'd definitely recommend it.

Also, after we left, we were suddenly starving. We went back an hour when we drove to Bowling Green (they're on Central time and we're on Eastern), so we had gone waaaaay past our usual lunchtime without realizing it.

So it was Steak and Shake to the rescue!! Sometimes you just need a pile of fries and a Nutella shake in your life. And boy, did we inhale it. I'm pretty sure my kids devoured their food in 30 seconds flat!

We had such a fun day together! 

Doing an outing like this--by myself, with four small kiddos-- sometimes feels a little bit insane. Haha! But in the end, it's always worth it. It really is. 

I love summertime, and I love adventuring with my boys.