What: Ruben H. Fleet Science Center
Where: Balboa Park (a.k.a Family Heaven) in sunny San Diego
Why: We finally convinced my son he didn’t need to go to the San Diego Model Railroad Museum for a third visit.
My Kid’s Picks: He forgot all about the Railroad Museum and got his science geek on. My son tend to gravitate towards anything that has gears, balls, and maze-like construction. Luckily, there was plenty of that to be found in the exhibits. He spent the most time in the main gallery, trying out all the hands-on mechanical experiments. The hit of the technology-based exhibits was the one where he got to pose in front of the psychedelic screen. He tried out some of the games in the Origins in Space exhibit, but I don’t think he understood much of the science behind it yet.
Mom’s Verdict: Worth the price of admission, even more so, if you have a Balboa Park Passport. We went soon after it opened on a Sunday, and found the place blissfully uncrowded. That’s a nice change of pace from most kids’ museums. We only spent about an hour at the museum, but that’s mostly because I was rushing things along before lunch.
Useful Tidbits: There is a (thankfully) small gift shop, an Imax theatre, and a cafe. The museum is right across from the San Diego Natural History Museum, so it’s easy to combine both museums in one morning’s visit.
The Park
2. Feel the primate connection with the gorillas. I secretly wanted to put these furry guys at the top of the list because they’re my absolute favorite part of this zoo. I could sit for hours watching the gorillas go on with their very busy, gorilla days. I’m a bit jealous of the security guard stationed at the exhibit, because he gets to hang out with these primates all day. You can get a close-up view of the gorillas through large viewing windows, and, luckily, they spend most of their time right in front. I won’t forget getting such a close-up view of the the baby gorillas when they were first born. They’re a bit bigger now, and love to play around in front of visitors.
I’ll be around to keep you posted on the trip’s highlights and unfortunate moments throughout the week. I’m off to pack the pet hermit crab now. Right after I go check out Mother of All Trip’s 
When I dream of getting away from it all, I usually picture myself on a quiet beach with a good book and the lull of the waves. In other words, I don’t picture myself on Doggie Beach with a bunch of canine friends, sandy poop, and frisbees whizzing past my head. Yet, this is one of the stops I will have to make on a road trip to Southern California this summer. Why? Because my son is in love with Cooper the dog. We will be visiting a family friend and her pet wonder dog while we’re in San Diego, and that can only mean that we’ll also be going to San Diego’s premiere beach for dogs. My son is in the I-want-a-cute-doggie stage, so he could spend hours playing catch with Cooper. In fact, that’s the part of the trip he’s probably the most excited about (sorry San Diego Zoo pandas). So I will have to accept this part of our itinerary and hope that there won’t be any black fur balls landing on my lap this time. Seriously, there was this little guy that flew over my shoulder and landed on my lap last time we were there. It’s no Hanalei Bay, but Doggie Beach is still a pretty cool place to spend an afternoon.
There are only two reasons my son will get into the car for the six-hour drive to Los Angeles: 1. Disneyland, 2. 
Every time I hear one of my friends say they’re going to Disneyland for Spring Break, I wince and tell them: DON’T!
