Madison's Children's Museum

We went to the Madison Children's Museum today, along with all of the other children in Dane County other than my sister's kids. It was fun, worth seeing, worth going to again, but I have concerns. Frankly, I am confused. I am not raising my child to become Stanley Kubrick. I want my child to develop a normal imagination. Yet some of the displays and activities at the Museum are frankly creepy.

On the ground level, there is the pointless water room on the ground level smack dab on the edge of the Wilder Ness area which mixes a rustic native american theme with dinosaur bones. There is also the deafening musical instrument hut. They should hand out excedrin at the door before you go into that hut. There is a sheep/buffalo mix pulling a wagon and driver. There is also the lawsuit-waiting-to-happen slide with climbing wall that was probably sponsored by a personal injury firm.

On the upper level, there is a series of old-electrical contraptions that don't work, including a telephone booth with astronomy grafitti. There is also a wood City of Madison playset where kids can build small buildings (nothing taller than the Capital please) and use little cars and equipment. There is also four lego contraptions. There is the giant hamster wheel which D & H loved.

And that brings me to the "Hodge-Podge Mahal." If anyone can tell me what the heck the jungle gym with the tube and rust-looking cage structure, World War II mine-like bobbers, random snake slide, and even-more random screwed up 60's car is based on, then please enlighten me. Donovan and Hayden loved it, but I can only imagine some children will look at it and have nightmares as to how some twisted person could create something so . . . twisted. Here is a theme that you can make a playstructure with: Flowers, trees, or MMSD's sewer system. All would make some sense. Instead, I fear this will untap and bring out the even darker side of our children. A few other preliminary thoughts on the structure: If any child throws up in it, then good luck below. If your child gets stuck in it and you are over 5'8" or 200 lbs., then just leave and go have another child. It would probably be easier to give birth and raise that child anew than to climb and extract your child.