Family Events

The Saint Louis Science Center invites you to join the party celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the James S. McDonnell Planetarium with a new exhibition, special programs, laser shows and retro prices for star shows in the Planetarium.
 

Last week I shared the first five of my 10 favorite free things to do with your kids in St. Louis. I know this week has been a nail biter waiting for the final five, so without further ado... the finale.

Like a lot of parents, I struggle through the final weeks of winter. I’m done with the freezing temperatures, the inevitable flus and fevers, and the seemingly never-ending days spent entirely indoors with children in such desperate need of physical activity that they’ve taken to skydiving off my couch.

When it comes to taking your kids out for some family fun, what's better than free?

Our go-to free destination is the Saint Louis Zoo, but it's not on this list.  Don't get me wrong – we love the Zoo with a passion. We are members and go so much we're actually on a first name basis with the anteaters. But the Zoo's reputation proceeds it; everyone knows it's awesome.

So here are the first five of my top ten list of my favorite kid-friendly, free gems of the city. Minus the Zoo, but it's implied.

My husband doesn't get many days off, so on the rare occasion we're hanging out at home all day together it sort of reminds me of when I was in sales and the district manager would pop into town and see what I'd been up to.

Which, on a good day, was blowing off my clients and taking five hour lunches at Lion's Choice with my co-workers. And, on a bad day, was blowing off my clients and sleeping off the night before in the back seat of my Mitsubishi Mirage in a mall parking lot.

I didn't really like sales all that much.

Let me be clear – for the most part Nick is so exhausted on his days off that he mostly just lays on the couch and mumbles incoherently every once in a while for some water. But being the praise-crazed (and starved) person I am, I find myself narrating my every move, giving him the “look what an awesome stay-at-home Mom I am” play-by-play of our daily routine.