In Draper, UT, Stephanie’s moms group enjoyed touring the Sweet Candy Factory with their kids and babies. Look at all those future candy eaters! Steph’s daughter, Brynn, is the one in the yellow jacket.
A factory tour is something I’ve thought would be fun, but I’m not really sure how many of them are baby friendly. Due to noise, chemicals, and other safety issues, some factory tours don’t want kids. Stephanie has rekindled my interest, especially if I can wear a hairnet like she did.
At the Jelly Belly Factory, where I toured on my 26th birthday while playing hooky from work, we wore paper hats. A similarly exciting effect. (Check it out if you are in the greater Bay Area.)
For big kids, you might want to do something kid-related like a teddy bear factory or the Crayola factory. With infants, follow the Rookie Moms mantra and do what YOU want to do. Wine? Chocolate? Beer? TV-Based Shopping Networks? With the baby in a front carrier, she won’t even mind that you are interrogating the tour giver with questions about production efficiencies. (Oh, that would be Heather.)
Visit FactoryToursUSA.com to get some ideas.
If you’re on the East Coast, Stonyfield Yogurt in Londonderry, NH and Ben and Jerry’s in Vermont have tours that are fun for families. They are also committed to the environment, so no fears about what your kids are exposed to!
It’s not a factory, and I haven’t actually been there, but I heard that East Bay MUD in Oakland is a fun visit for kids (ebmud.com)
In central Pennsylvania, you can visit the Hershey Chocolate Factory for free. You don’t go in the actual factory. They have made a ride that shows you how they make their chocolate candy bars. Kids love it! It only lasts less than 5 minutes. At the end they give you a free bite size candy bar. We always go 2 or 3 times while we are there. Check it out at http://www.hersheys.com/chocolateworld/. They also have a 3D movie and an area where the kids can pretend they work in the chocolate factory.