I have some pretty fond memories of my Dad, a math teacher, bringing home one of the (or maybe it was the) Apple II computers from work when I was in first or second grade.  That’s how I got introduced to computers (and where I learned how to spell catalog).  It’s also where I spent a lot of time learning economics and running my own lemonade stand (iPhone version here).

Flash forward 30 some years and I find I’m doing the same with my two children and weirdly enough on Apple computers (first computer I owned was  Commdore 64 followed by an Amiga and then some Gateway running Windows in 1995 – only recently went back to Apple).  My son spends his time in KidZui (which to him is the same as pbskids.org) and my daugther does drawing with Tux Paint (on an 8 year-old Powerbook, but she doesn’t seem to notice or care).

My son recently asked me if he could have my black MacBook when he is older.  I laughed, sure, but I haven’t any idea what computers will look like 30 years from now!

This is far from my normal Mozilla related posts but worthwhile enough that I feel like sharing it.

I took my two children to the California Academy of Sciences this weekend.  I wasn’t sure what to expect but since it’s new (or newly opened) and I enjoy these types out outings with my children, this become our weekend activity.

It’s a combination aquarium (which saves me a trip to Monterey), natural history museum, planetarium, and rain forest.  The rain forest is enclosed in a 4-story glass-like globe with a winding staircase that, I think, lead to the roof top. The line was too long to bother going in with two children who clearly wanted to run around and explore instead.  There was also a great outdoor area on the west side of the building where the kids had fun running around while having snacks.

One of the places I’ve missed from Chicago was the Field Museum. The natural history part wasn’t anything as large as Chicago’s but was good enough to make me want to go back.

The absolute best, however, was when at bed time when my five-year old son told me that today was the best day ever.  So thanks, Academy.  You’ll be getting my membership application soon.

Things learned:

1. Buy tickets beforehand.  The lines were really long and the Planetarium was sold out by the time we got there.
2. Let the kids loose and let them tell you where to go and what to look at.  Turns out they know how to explore best.
3. Get a membership.
4. Museum has guest WiFi.