MN children's museum: dora & diego.

Linna bumped into her friend Hailey at
the Tot Spot.

I can't believe it took me almost a year and a half to take my daughter Linna to the Minnesota Children's Museum. This place is a Minnesota staple. It was worth the wait though, because we got to check out the Dora & Diego exhibit, which was totally toddler-friendly.

First of all, when you go to the Minnesota Children's Museum, PARK IN THE WORLD TRADE CENTER PARKING RAMP!!! I made the huge mistake of parking in the Lawson Parking Ramp, and had to carry Linna what seemed like a mile to get to the Children's Museum. Plus, I had to pay like $8 for parking. The World Trade Center Parking Ramp is so close to the Children's Museum, and you can park there for like $4 for three hours! Please learn from my mistake.

Linna had so much fun running around, participating in all of the activities that were conveniently located at her "little-person" level. I just love watching her discover how things work. There are countless areas in the Dora & Diego exhibit for children under the age of four to explore. Linna's favorite was Isa's Flowery Garden, where she got to work on all of her gardening skills. There was also a fun slide that Linna spent a lot of time on.

After checking out the Dora & Diego exhibit, we walked over the the Habitot Gallery, where they had so much for the babies and toddlers to do and discover! Linna ran up and down the pathways, while stopping to do a little ice-fishing, and to pick up some eggs out of a bird's nest. She wanted to touch everything! There were tunnels for her to climb through, and since everything is at a "safe" level, I just sat back and watched her play.

Putting stars in the holes. They had
these cute little "explorer" jackets
for the kids to wear too.

Isa's Flowery Garden.

Inside the Habitot Gallery.

The Dora & Diego exhibit is at the Children's Museum until September 22nd, and is included in the price of admission. Admission for Linna and I was under $20 for both of us, and then there's parking on top of that. Not a bad deal if you park in the appropriate parking ramp:) We went to the Children's Museum on a Thursday afternoon, and it was pretty busy because there were a lot of groups (schools, day-cares, etc.) running around. The Children's Museum does not take group reservations on Tuesdays, so that is supposedly a very toddler-friendly day to check things out. If you're brave enough to face an even bigger crowd, you can check out the Children's Museum for FREE on the third Sunday of every month from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. We have never been to one of the free Sundays, but I hear they are SUPER busy. We can't wait to go back for a visit on a Tuesday, and park in the World Trade Center Ramp, so we can enjoy our time 100%!

Ice fishing in the Hobitot Gallery.

Egg thief.