Brenda Breland Sims
3/5
We were visiting Florence for the day and looked online for an activity that would entertain my grandchildren. The online description was engaging, so we decided to give the Children's Museum Shoals a try. The young ladies at the desk were friendly and gave us a quick overview. I signed up for the membership they recommended (which gave me a twenty dollar discount on our admission), and we entered the facility. First obstacle, the elevator was out of service, so my ninety-five-year-old dad had to climb quite a few stairs in order to watch his great grandchildren play on the upstairs level. Secondly, even though the desk staff mentioned that we were fortunate to have arrived after the departure of a large group of kids who had visited earlier in the day, I wasn't prepared for the state of disarray in the play areas. It looked like a daycare that had been overrun. Thirdly, I wasn't prepared to find so many items that needed to be repaired or replaced. There was a plastic cup that was completely split down the side, and there was a toy accordion that wouldn't work right and had exposed screws that would hurt your hand when you tried to play it. There was a guitar and a ukelele that had missing or broken strings. There was a plastic sword handle with jagged pieces sticking out of it where the missing blade had completely broken off. Loose jingle bells that had fallen off of jingle sticks were lying on the floor, and there was a miniature juke box that wouldn't play music and had exterior lights that were out. A small xylophone was losing its structural integrity and kept trying to fold in on itself, and there were no mallets to use on the instruments. In the small "digging room" on the first floor there were two devices where a child should be able to sit and control an extended metal arm to which was attached a claw bucket. The first device was intact but was beginning to lose its structural integrity, the second device was missing the second half of the arm that should have held the claw bucket for digging. There also appears to be something wrong with the pump that should keep the water flowing through the display in the river room. There is a model of a dam that wouldn't seem to work properly. Fourthly, even though the sign on the front door says that the facility has been disinfected, that's really not possible with cloth puppets and stuffed animals. There was a stuffed eagle toy that was wet with some unknown substance, so we quickly put it to the side to keep it away from my grandchildren. Puppets and animals made of rubber and plastic that would be appropriate for such facilities are available from school supply sources. Lastly, let me hasten to say that my grandchildren (a one-year-old and a four-year-old) had an entertaining and enjoyable time. There has been an effective use of space in the architecturally interesting building. I hope there is, or can be, an ongoing plan to clean and paint the exterior of the building and keep it stocked with sturdy, well-maintained toys and activity stations. Perhaps an Amazon wishlist could be created and advertised so that community members could make donations of needed items.
