Kids Night In: Mission Space

Did you ever go to an Air and Space Museum as a child? Do you remember the feeling you would get as a child when you walked into it? The awe of the expanse of the space, and the fact that you could look at a ship that had been in space. This was the feeling we got when we completed our Mission Space box from Kids Night In Boxes this month.

We have had the opportunity to explore the Air and Space museum at Balboa park on December nights a couple years ago, but the preschooler was a babe then and she does not recall it. Watching her face as she ate and gave the thumbs up for the astronaut ice cream, and then blowing up the balloon for the rocket mission, was terrific!

This months box was chock full. Seriously, opening the box there was no extra room! The master packers at Aiken, SC have it down to a science! Within the box was 6 missions.

The first activity was to make an astronaut puppet. I did cut out the astronaut first so it didn’t slow the process. Because we have a reader in our home, she was very excited about the level two book included. She dove right in, excitedly reading out loud and pointing to pictures for her younger sibling.

A second craft was mission one: drawing a rocket. Paper and colored pencils were included along with a slew of space stickers. Because we have two kiddos, an extra computer paper was used for the second drawing. Like previous boxes, a link was provided to watch a video on drawing. This video was a “how to draw a rocket.” Myself and the children enjoy this activity because they can be independent and as creative as they like. This is typically when I duck into the kitchen to prep or make a meal.

Mission two was Space Yoga. Included cards with names and pictures of poses for us outside and using our bodies. This is so cute. The facts on the back were neat too and were used to add details to the Space Passport (more on that later).

Mission three was to eat like an astronaut! Space ice cream was a favorite as a kid and oh my word was it a hit this time. It was finished and got a “thumbs up” before I could get a bite!

Mission four was rocket testing. Using a straw, tape, string and a balloon we made our rocket blow across the room from chair to chair. I didn’t get great pictures but this was so much fun and we did this probably another 20 minutes. We would predict what more or less air in the balloon would do, if taping the balloon to the top of the straw would stay, and more. One advantage of these boxes is you can really adapt it to what age or interest there is in each activity. All while learning!

Mission five was making a telescope. Glow-in-the-dark stars were included to put up around the house. But the included self-adhesive was dry so I could not stick it up. Will have to use other sticky substance to put it to the walls at a later date. Plan B was using our free “SkyView Lite” app which shows stars and planets in real life at night.

The mission six was completion of the Planet Passport. Using the Berkeley website, we matched the planet pictures with their names and added space facts inside the pages.

The final mission was building the rocket. The mission space box itself had a template for me to cut out a rocket that was easily put together. It was a fun and unique summation of our space outing.

Like previous months, we were really looking forward to this box. This month especially as they were unusual challenges that life can give. This unique one on one time is refreshing and rejuvenating for our mother-child relationship and among the siblings.

If you were interested in your own box, there are options. If you are looking for a 6 or 12 month subscription, use the code NIB2FREE for 2 free dates! If you are interested in trying out a Kids Night In Box, click here. We were given this box for free, but are not ambassadors for this company and do not earn commission on any purchases.

If you have children ages 3 and up, I would recommend this. Honestly, I really enjoyed the box this time and probably would have enjoyed it on my own!

April’s box is inspired by Earth Day, which is April 22. If you would like a Earth Day inspired box, order before April 13! Shipping will begin April 21.

If your child’s love language is quality time or gifts (yay mail!), this is worth investing in.