Oregon Museum of Science & Industry {OMSI}

Located on the East side of the Willamette, OMSI was founded in 1944 and is one of the world’s leading science museums.  It is also home of the Pacific Northwest’s largest planetarium.  With 219,000 square feet of science at your fingertips the museum offers educational fun for the whole family.  Something I am embarrassed to admit I didn’t know about OMSI is that they are completely non-profit.  Committed to educating the public about science and technology, and completely dependent on financial support from you and me!  I hope you’ll put the family in the van on a rainy day this season and show your support for this amazing institution.  For more information on purchasing a membership, hours and exhibits please visit them here.

Portland Children’s Museum

The Portland Children’s Museum is one of the local “go to” places for families.  Located off of HWY 26 at Washington Park, the museum is located right next to the zoo.

Santa left a membership in our stockings last year and we loved popping up there on any given rainy day.  My children love everything about the museum but are especially fond of their special exhibits and of course the water exploration area!  I love all the entertaining storytellers and musicians that are part of the museums staff to interact and entertain the children.  I also love that I can go to the museum, play with my children and not have to clean up a mess when I’m done!

Aside from indoor child friendly exhibits the museum also offers a cafe, art classes, k-5 Opal school, field trips and a place to host birthday parties!  Membership is great, if you can swing it.  In my stay at home mommy opinion, it more than covers the cost in sanity if your children are the right ages.  But if you still aren’t convinced go and check it out for yourself.  Many local libraries offer a cultural pass, permitting individual families entry to several local institutions free of charge, once yearly.

For hours and more information on the museum, please visit them here.  Also check out TriMet for special offers and transportation to the museum.