Membership Bleg

Except for a one-year fling with Adventure Aquarium in Camden, we've stuck with Philadelphia Zoo and Please Touch Museum memberships for much of our tenure as parents, giving us two solid options on any given free weekend. The kids have probably been to both places 40+ places each, and hopefully we've stockpiled a childhood's worth of fond memories and quality bonding moments.

But it may be time for a shift. We've let our Please Touch membership lapse and are almost certainly not renewing. And our zoo membership is not likely to carry on past its end date later this calendar year. Is this the end of having one or two bread and butter play places?

Possibly. Or, with the kids being older and me having a Transpass, it may be time for us to spread our wings. Some quick thoughts on some other possibilities:

* Franklin Institute. The obvious choice. We've been once, and they loved it. It's downtown, and not hard to get to by public. And they could grow with it, as I've seen younger teens have a blast there.

* Art Museum. Would be fun to hob nob with some culture. Art museums are very fun for kids, mine included. An intriguing play.

* Morris Arboretum. Looks fun. Kind of hard to get to. Maybe worth one visit, but it's possible we'd tire of it.

* Longwood Gardens. The dark horse. We've enjoyed it every time we've been. A great place to take out-of-towners. Downside is it's a long drive for us.

* Sesame Place. Maybe when the kids get old enough that we can set them loose inside the park. Can you imagine the fun you could have if you had the option to go splash around in pools and water slides every weekend?

I welcome your corrections if I've mischaracterized any of the above places. And, any other places I missed?