Mommy Upgrade - Inspiration for Busy Moms Who Make, Shop, Eat, and Go - Dallas Mom's Blog: Baking, Building and Being Crafty

A science-in-disguise exhibition where kids get the answers to many of the slimy, oozy, crusty, stinky questions they absolutely love to ask about the human body. Designed to be the first of its kind, the exhibition gives kids, along with intrigued adults, an opportunity to:

Climb a human skin wall with warts, hairs, wounds and other objects that act as hand and foot holds. Discover more about features such as pimples, blisters, pores, bruises, and scabs as they relate to the epidermis. Stop by the Toot Toot exhibit to create different sounds that replicate the physics of gas. Play surgery and attempt to remove organ parts from a body without touching the sides of the patient. And so much more!

When: Now through January 6, 2019

Where: 1600 Gendy Street, Fort Worth, TX 76107

@fwmsh

Dinosaur enthusiasts will love Perot Museum’s Ultimate Dinosaurs exhibition that showcases an exciting array of species from south of the equator – including T. rex’s more-fearsome distant cousin and the largest dinosaur that ever lived.

Ultimate Dinosaurs reveals a new breed of dinosaurs that evolved in isolation in South America, Africa and Madagascar – dinosaurs that are unfamiliar to most North Americans. Presented locally by Highland Capital Management, Ultimate Dinosaurs tells the story of the break-up of supercontinent Pangaea into today’s continents and the ways that continental drift affected the evolution of dinosaurs.

Through hands-on activities and augmented reality technology, guests will discover that an amazing diversity of species evolved as a result of this phenomenon. Presented in English and French (with a Spanish audio guide available), Ultimate Dinosaurs is presented by the Science Museum of Minnesota and requires a surcharge.

Also new to the Museum’s T. Boone Pickens Life Then and Now Hall is the Paleo Lab, a glass-encased permanent exhibit that gives guests real-time views of the dynamic dinosaur research of Museum paleontologists as they process and prepare fossils fresh from the field. Looming above the Paleo Lab is the first-ever skeletal reconstruction of Nanuqsaurus hoglundi, the polar tyrannosaur discovered and named by Perot Museum paleontologists in 2014.

Guests will also want to check out the new T. rexcalator, which features a life-sized model of the 2nd most complete T. rex skeleton ever discovered at the top of the glass-enclosed escalator. The new “Dancing Dino” interactive allows visitors to dance with their own raptor avatar while discovering how paleontologists use footprints to study dinosaur anatomy and behavior. Also on display for the first time are Protohadros dinosaur tracks found decades ago at Grapevine Lake.

HOURS: General hours of operation for the Perot Museum are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. IMPORTANT: The Museum will close early Nov. 9 (1 p.m.) and all day Nov. 10 for the Night at the Museum fundraising gala. The Museum also will close Nov. 22 (Thanksgiving) and Dec. 25 (Christmas).

Member-only hours! From 9-10 a.m. every Saturday and 10-11 a.m. every Sunday, members can enjoy exclusive access to the Perot Museum, plus member-only access to the Moody Family Children’s Museum on Mondays from 10 a.m.-noon.

TICKETS: Museum general admission is $20 for adults (13-64), $13 for youth (2-12) and $14 for seniors (65+). Museum general admission is free for members. Children under 2 are always free. For groups of 10 or more, call for special rates at 214-428-5555 ext. 8. All prices are subject to change.

WHERE: The Perot Museum is located at 2201 N. Field Street in Dallas, Texas. For ticket information, parking maps and other details visit perotmuseum.org or call 214-428-5555.

@PerotMuseum

Through the wonders of stunning digital technology, audiences are transported to the depths of the rainforest, times long before humankind existed and wild lands a world away.

Slip on some 3D glasses, and encounter Tyrannosaurs, oceans, extreme weather and even a journey through American music. The lineup includes Waking the T. Rex 3D: The Story of Sue (through Jan. 6, 2019), Oceans 3D: Our Blue Planet and America’s Musical Journey 3D (through May 23, 2019), and Extreme Weather 3D (Jan. 7-May 23, 2019).

The Museum’s cutting-edge 297-seat theater features brilliant 4K digital projection, immersive surround sound, and incredible RealD 3D capabilities that come together to create an unmatched theater experience in both 2D and 3D formats.

Waking the T. rex 3D
September 7, 2018 – January 6, 2019

Approximately 20 minutes

Travel into the field, inside science labs, and back 67 million years to the Cretaceous Period to reveal the T. rex named Sue like we’ve never known her before — from nest to death — in roaring, bone-crunching, in-your-face 3D. We witness her life-and-death struggles as she lives up to her reputation as one of the great dinosaur predators of all time, facing off with Triceratops and other threatening creatures. This is a high-drama science adventure you won’t soon forget. Get showtime information and tickets here.

Oceans 3D: Our Blue Planet
September 7, 2018 – May 23, 2019

Approximately 20 minutes

Go on a global odyssey to discover the largest and least-explored habitat on Earth. New ocean science and technology has allowed us to go farther into the unknown than we ever thought possible. From the coastal shallows to deeper, more mysterious worlds, we reveal the untold stories of the oceans’ most astonishing creatures. Narrated by Academy Award®-winning actor Kate Winslet. Get showtime information and tickets here.

America’s Musical Journey 3D
September 7, 2018 – May 23, 2019

Approximately 40 minutes

Chart-topping artist Aloe Blacc invites audiences to join him on a joyful, tune-filled, giant-screen tour of the nation’s most iconic music cities, diving into the special places and unique cultural diversity that gave birth to America’s celebrated musical heritage. Narrated by legendary Academy Award®-winning actor Morgan Freeman, America’s Musical Journey 3D reflects the nation at every turn, telling stories of survival or celebration, of love or heartache, of protest or coming together. Get showtime information and tickets here.

To view trailers and film times, go to perotmuseum.org. 

Films are presented locally by Primrose Schools.

@PerotMuseum

Ever wonder how the Perot Museum appears to “float” at night or why its glass-encased escalator only goes up? Learn all about the structure Architectural Digest recently named one of the “10 best-designed buildings in the world” on a Perot Museum Architecture Tour.

See this award-winning museum – lauded for its bold artistry and sustainability and designed by 2005 Pritzker Prize Laureate Thom Mayne and his firm, Morphosis – in a whole new light.

The tour is available to adults only and lasts 1-1.5 hours. Tours are available for groups of 1-20 at a fee of $5 per person. NOTE: The tour is only available with the purchase of Museum general admission tickets and must be purchased in advance.

For ticket information, parking maps and other details visit perotmuseum.org or call 214-428-5555.

@PerotMuseum

Fall Family Fun at Vetro Glassblowing Studio & Gallery: Grow Your Own Glass Pumpkin

Things are heating up this fall at Vetro Glassblowing Studio & Gallery in historic downtown Grapevine. Help grow your very own hand-blown glass pumpkin! If your kids love pumpkin picking and carving, they will love this unique fall experience.

Join Vetro in celebrating the Fall with Flames and Pumpkins! Help create your very own hand-blown pumpkin. Bring the whole family to join in on the fun; kids are welcome to assist with the color application. We will also have a variety of pumpkins and gourds for you to purchase if there is no time for our hands-on experience.

WHAT:  Select from six fabulous fall colors, apply the colors to the hot molten glass gather, and actually heat the chosen colors in Vetro’s 2,000-degree furnace. Vetro’s professional glassblowers will then blow and shape the glass into a carefully crafted pumpkin.

WHERE: Vetri Glassblowing Studio & Gallery, 701 South Main Street, #103 Grapevine, TX 76051

WHEN: Fridays and Saturdays in October.

COST: $60.00 (plus tax) per pumpkin

NOTE: Older children may participate in the hands-on process, while children under the age of 14 get to sit back and watch the magical method unfold.

CLICK HERE to reserve your space in Vetro’s pumpkin patch.

WHAT: Butterfly Tag & Release – Have a rare chance to witness or safely tag and release Monarch butterflies before their long migration to Mexico (3 pm daily on the entrance lawn). Entomologist John Watts will share his monarch knowledge while showing participants how to tag them.

WHEN: Daily at 10:30 am and 3:00 pm on the entrance lawn through October 21, 2018

WHERE: Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park, 3601 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd
Dallas, Texas 75210

COST: FREE

Facebook: @statefairoftx

Twitter: @StateFairOfTX

Pumpkin Carving with Sharks and Creepy Creatures at Seal Life Grapevine

Come Face-to-Face with New Exotic Reptiles, Underwater Pumpkin Carve-Offs, and More Spooky Sea Fun at Sea Life Grapevine Aquarium.

WHAT: Get your frightening fill of creepy creatures and underwater Halloween happenings at SEA LIFE Grapevine Aquarium. Don your costume and enjoy a few tricks and a lot of fun treats alongside sharks, crocodiles, and other eerie critters. Be sure to stop by on select days throughout October to watch trained divers jump in the ocean tank with sharks for an underwater pumpkin-carving contest.

WHERE: Sea Life Grapevine Aquarium, 3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway, Grapevine, Texas 76051

WHEN: October 17, 20, 24, 27 and 31; Monday – Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. – last admission two hours prior to closing.

• Underwater Pumpkin Carve-Off: It’s hard enough carving Halloween pumpkins on dry land, let alone submerged in a 160,000-gallon ocean tank surrounded by sharks, rays, sea turtles, fish, and other marine life. Watch as animals get in on the action while divers compete in underwater pumpkin carve-offs, then vote for your favorite design. (11:30 a.m. on scheduled days.)
• New Creepy Crawly Creatures: Meet SEA LIFE Grapevine’s newest exotic reptiles in Rainforest Adventure that include a legless lizard, hognose snake, and crocodile skink. (12 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. daily)
• Frightful Fish Facts: Learn all about the most mysterious and scary-looking marine animals during Sting Ray Bay educational talks. (11:30 a.m., 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. daily)
• Spooky Seas Scavenger Hunt: How many scary skulls can you spot hiding inside our marine life tanks?
• Trick-Or-Treat: Don your best costume on Halloween and go under the sea for trick-or-treating. Say the magic phrase after every educational talk for a sweet treat. (October 31 only. Educational talks occur throughout the day. See website for times and details.) 

COST: Admission is $20.95 for adults, $16.95 for children ages 3 to 12, and free for kids 2 and under. CLICK HERE to purchase special discounted tickets.

Facebook: @sealifegrapevine

Twitter: @SEALIFEgrpevine

WHAT: Girls night out fundraiser and shopping at the craft fair at the Alexander Mansion. Bring your friends, shop, and enjoy! Wine, iced tea, and lite bites will be offered. Lots of vendors selling all kinds of gifts and home decor! Clothes, jewelry, candles, aromatherapy, home decor and lots of holiday items for Halloween, Thanksgiving & Christmas. Gifts for every member of the family!

WHEN: Friday, October 19, 5:00 to 9:00 pm

WHERE: Alexander Mansion, 4607 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX

COST: $25 per person for Dallas Woman’s Forum Members; $35 per person for non-members.

Tickets can be purchased online or by leaving a message at 214-823-4533 with your name and phone number, or send a check to The Dallas Woman’s Forum, P.O. Box 140997, Dallas, TX 75214-0997,

Proceeds from this fundraiser will be used to add a wheelchair accessible ramp for the front entrance of the Alexander Mansion.

Nash Farm: Barn Dance and 18th Annual Fall Round-Up 

WHAT: Join Nash Farm for an old-fashioned 1950s-era Barn Dance on Friday, Oct. 19^th. A fried chicken box supper will be provided followed by a dance featuring a live band. Horseshoes and other fun games will be available to play. Then on Saturday, Oct. 20^th, experience life on the farm at the 18th Annual Fall Round-Up. Activities may include kitchen gardening, live music, farm animals, blacksmith, and wood carving demonstrations, cotton picking, heritage toys, heritage games, wood-burning stove cooking demonstrations, petting zoo, pony rides, apple pie making and more.

WHEN: Friday, October 19^th (6:30 pm) and Saturday, October 20, 2018, 10 am-2 pm

WHERE: Nash Farm, 626 Ball Street, Grapevine, TX 76051

COST: Dance admission is $20 per person. Admission to the Annual Fall Roundup is free but some activities may require a participation fee. Concessions will be available for purchase at the event. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets to the dance.

LEGO Pumpkin Patch & More at LEGOLAND Discovery Center’s Brick-Or-Treat

WHAT: Get your costumes ready for some spooky family fun and have a haunting good time at LEGOLAND® Discovery Center’s Brick or Treat— the Halloween party built for kids!

WHEN: October 20, 21, 27 and 28; Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Last admission two hours prior to closing; Trick-or-treat all day on Halloween inside the attraction. (October 31 only, while supplies last.)

WHERE: LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth, 3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway, Grapevine, Texas 76051

COST: $21.95 for guests 3 years of age and older, and FREE for kids 2 and under.

ACTIVITIES:

• Brick-tastic Pumpkin Patch: The perfect photo opportunity awaits in a pumpkin patch made entirely out of LEGO® bricks featuring a GIANT pumpkin. Build your own pumpkin with the LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Master Model Builder to add to the patch and receive a special Halloween-themed LEGO® brick. (11 a.m. to 4 p.m. only)
• MINILAND Monster Invasion: Frankenstein, Godzilla, and other monsters have descended on MINILAND transforming it into a haunted adventure and spooky SCARE-venger hunt. Dare to enter and find them all!
• Children’s Costume Contest: Show off your BOO-tiful costume when you visit and enter for a chance to win a family four-pack of annual passes to LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth. To enter, post a photo of you wearing your costume in the attraction on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram with #ldcmonstermash. Entries will then be posted to the LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Dallas/Fort Worth Facebook page and the photo with the most likes wins. Winner will be notified via social media after October 31.

Wings Over Dallas WWII Air Show 

WHAT: Watch history come to life at this year’s Wings Over Dallas WWI Air Show. The interactive event features spectacular flying demonstrations, battle reenactments, veteran appearances, living history encampments, hands-on family activities, aircraft rides, cockpit tours and more. Enjoy a special tribute to the D-Day Invasion featuring an airborne reenactment.

WHEN: October 26-28, Friday 9 am–3 pm, Saturday & Sunday 9 am–5 pm

WHERE: Dallas Executive Airport-RBD, 5303 Challenger Dr., Dallas, TX 75237

COST: Tickets range in price from $5 to $69. Your admission to the show includes Free parking all days, Friday show free to students and veteran’s discount tickets; Kids 5 and under are FREE when accompanied by a ticketed adult. Purchase tickets.

Facebook: @CommemorativeAF

WHAT:  Halloween Costume Ball at the Alexander Mansion

Join the crème de la crème of Halloween revelers at one of Dallas’s oldest and most decadent mansions eating, drinking, and dancing the night away at The Alexander Mansion’s Halloween Costume Ball.

Featuring:
* Intoxicating (and non-intoxicating) Beverages
* Savory Nibbles
* Music to move your bones
* Fortune Tellers
* Raffles
* Costume Contest with Cash Prizes
* Photographers galore
* The Truth about the Alexander Murder
* Delightful Surprises, and gore… (we mean ‘more’…yes…)

WHEN: Friday, October 26, 8:00 pm to 1:00 am

WHERE: Alexander Mansion, 4607 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX

COST: 1 ticket – $60 / 2 tickets – $100

Prizes and raffles will be handed out at midnight, and you must be present to win.

Costumes are Mandatory. Amazing costumes preferred.

The Halloween Costume Ball will support the historic preservation and restoration of the Alexander Mansion.

WHAT: The National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF), headquartered in Frisco, is excited to announce the kick-off of its new gaming initiative, Game Pink, which will bring together everyone of all ages in the community to help women and families affected by breast cancer. This one of a kind Minecraft live experience will feature four of the world’s top Minecraft Superstars, Colleyville’s own PrestonPlayz, Unspeakable Gaming, Moosecraft, and LogDotZip, as they play head-to-head in person for the first time together. Combined between all four guys, they have over 24 million subscribers on YouTube!

WHEN: Sunday, October 28th, from 2:00 -7:00 pm.  The pre-show experience, from 2-4pm, will include photos with player’s character mascots, scavenger hunt, costume contest, console & PC free play, large screen single player exhibit, and merchandise alley.

WHERE: Dr. Pepper Arena, 2601 Avenue of the Stars, Frisco, TX 75034

TICKETS: PinkMom will give MommyUpgrade followers 15% off their ticket price! CLICK HERE to purchase a discounted ticket. Note: When you are looking at the Ticketmaster site, above the map, you will see a box that says Enter Offer Code. That is where you can plug in the promo code, PinkMom, to receive 15% off. 

100% of the net proceeds will help women & families affected by breast cancer.

WHAT:  Trunk or Treat Halloween Family Festival at the Alexander Mansion

Trunk-or-treating is the new craze that allows kids to trick-or-treat safely. The Dallas Woman’s Forum members will bring their cars or trucks to the Alexander Mansion parking lot, open their trunks loaded with Halloween treats and the neighborhood kids go trunk to trunk collecting treats. Dress up, decorate your car, and let the Halloween festivities begin.

WHEN: Friday, October 30, 6:00 to 7:30 pm

WHERE: Alexander Mansion, 4607 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX (parking lot)

This is a family-friendly event. No scary or inappropriate costumes, please.