MontanaWithKids.com

For years now, IHOP has been the clearest face of Pancake Day, a quasi-holiday dating back at least 1,000 years. At first I thought this nationwide fundraiser for Children’s Miracle Network was little more than an easy-breezy publicity stunt for this house of pancakes, so ostensibly international. I was dead wrong. This is a serious charity drive, and it serves the children well, as the results surely show. (more…)

If you’re driving on Highway 93 in the area south of Missoula, Montana, there’s a certain family fun center you just shouldn’t miss. It’s got a name as unique as the super-fun offerings they have inside, but maybe you don’t have kids, you’re in a big hurry, or just some sort of general fuddy-duddy. I can’t speak to who you are or what made you that way, but I can tell you that if you’re in the area and hungry, forget what you know about afterthought cafés, because Café Gelato is well worth the stop whatever your reason.
(more…)

We first visited Staggering Ox in Helena, where they have an unbelievable flagship eatery, complete with acres of kitsch, an art museum full of some of the least likely “art,” and a staff that just can’t be beat… they also have great food, but once you’re there, it hardly seems like the point. We loved the food, so we decided to focus on it more specifically this time around.
(more…)

It seems that once you hit the summer scorching states, a big percentage of them have water attractions designed to draw you in. Some are better than others, though, and others still soak you twice when it comes to price. We stayed at plenty, but our favorite by a good margin was the Wingate by Wyndam in Missoula. They’ve got the value, quality, convenience and good rooms too.
(more…)

I’ve never pretended I felt anything less than total love for Missoula. It’s hands-down my favorite city in Montana, and maybe even my favorite city anywhere. They’ve got a killer carousel, the greatest public park I’ve ever seen, their public parks have squirty water features for summer play, and the people there are as kind as you’ll find anywhere in the world. So let’s add one more feather to that already-foppish cap; Splash Montana Water Park.
(more…)

The city of Missoula has really come into its own in the last ten years. I’m only five fingers, so I have to take it on faith and research (more the latter) and I’ve got to say, of all the places in Montana — and they were all great cities — Missoula is the best of all of them. Currents Aquatic Center might not be the best example of what’s great about Missoula, but it’s got to be easily in the top 2-3. Currents Aquatic Center is really fantastic.
(more…)

If you live in a city with a wide selection of professional sports, you may think of minor league games as little more than events that make parking difficult at unpredictable times for no good reason, but in pro-sports deprived cities, it can be a lot of fun. Businesses get behind it to do promotions and giveaways and attendance is strong. The people are there for the fun of it, not because they’re obsessive about baseball, but they do cheer for well-turned plays.
(more…)

Just west of Missoula, Montana, along the Interstate-90 corridor, drivers may notice signs for the Smokejumper Visitor Center. The name is a bit puzzling until you learn that it’s exactly what it sounds like – people jumping from planes into flames – and then the whole profession itself becomes the puzzle. I know Smokey says “Only you can prevent forest fires,” but these people take that catch phrase WAY too seriously.
(more…)

If you’ve got some extra time in Missoula, Montana, or you want to learn the most about the natural history of the region, there are two great places in town to do it. One is the Elk County Visitor Center and the other is its less attractive cousin, the one that resides on the other side of the tracks, the Montana Natural History Center.
(more…)

As a man of miniature stature myself, I’m always on the lookout for new things more me-sized than medium. Mostly my size-based pursuits lead to nothing (thanks a lot, jumbo shrimp!) but there is one thing sized to pint that’s true to its name, and it is miniature golf. I discovered it, and I immediately learned to love it.
(more…)

If you aren’t a Montana native, it would seem a bit unlikely you’d be traveling south away from Interstate-90 along the general Missoula-ish swath of the state. Maybe you’re passing by that way because you’re looking for adventure, or your taking a different route to find your way to stones yellow or jelly. I can’t speak to your motivation for driving in such directions, but I can give you advice once you commit to doing so.
(more…)

In the heart of the coolest part of Missoula, Montana, and I assure you such a place can and does exist, is a playground park like no other I’ve ever seen. When I say it’s the tallest playground ever, I am so beside myself I can’t possibly be expected to back it up with facts or figures.
(more…)

This coming Tuesday is National Pancake Day. Sure, it’s only marked on the most comprehensive of every-holiday calendars, but it happens every year, and it’s a day for win-win benefit all around, so maybe you need to gear up for a hot breakfast this Tuesday, February 24th, and get ready to chow down… for the children.
(more…)

If you’re looking for something between cheap and free to do with your kids, a real standout is the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula. The museum is very cheap, but the historic collection around it is free and it’s got more fun stuff to play on than my parents could even endure.
(more…)

Since before time even began to exist* there has been this ubiquitous thing called The Children’s Museum. These are often underfunded, though never underappreciated, and frequently enjoyed by all in attendance. The children’s museum in Missoula is one such example, especially considering how hard they work to make their place so much fun.
(more…)

I’m not familiar with the country of Elk, but I’m not familiar with my own country either, no matter how much of it I’ve traveled, so I won’t try to make like I’m some geographical prodigy or anything. I’ll just tell you that we didn’t need passports to visit Elk Country, and the visitor’s center was worth ten times the suggested donation, and even that was only a suggestion.
(more…)

Plum Creek Timber Company may be citing a decline in home building wood products for the reason their laying off more than 145 workers, but the bottom line is looking more black than red, and an 11th hour Bush shift in land use rights is to blame.
(more…)

Public parks are supposed to belong to public people, and I know few people more public than us. I’ve been in the spotlight since before I was even born, so I was prepared to be the expert I am on all such things. Seems the public here wants water at their parks, so water they do have.
(more…)

In 1988 a man had a vision. It wasn’t of sugar plums, as you might expect, but of an authentic, old-timey carousel ride in his hometown of Missoula, Montana. Spoiler alert: he made his vision big enough for a whole city and now they have A Carousel for Missoula, it’s a carousel like none other in the world.
(more…)