There is actually a medical term for the fear of ventriloquist dolls: automatonophobia. Some kids get scared of those dummies, even when they aren't particularly creepy. Other kids just seem fascinated by the whole idea of a talking doll. Believe it or not, but there is a museum devoted to the world of ventriloquism. The Vent Haven Museum is located at 33 West Maple Avenue in Ft. Mitchell, Kentucky. Tours are by appointment only, but a tour is really worth the effort.

The Vent Haven Museum is made up of hundreds of "retired" ventriloquist dolls, including some replicas of famous dolls like Charlie McCarthy. The tour can last up to ninety minutes, so that should give some indication as to what to expect. If the Vent Haven Museum was just a collection of wooden and plastic doppelgangers staring at visitors with their dead eyes that would be one thing and kind of interesting in a macabre way. Admittedly, some younger kids will not be impressed since the Vent Haven Museum is not the kind of hands-on museum that all the kids seem to love today. But as the only museum dedicated solely to the genuinely bizarre art of ventriloquism, it is worth a visit to peek into what still remains a rather mysterious sub-genre of the entertainment world.

Parents whose kids do suffer some form of automatonophobia or parents who suffer the disorder themselves, may want to put some serious thought into visiting the Vent Haven Museum. A large part of the appeal for some visitors is the eerie feeling the museum gives off. Yes, truly walking through a museum that is populated with lifelike dummies everywhere you look is like stepping into the Twilight Zone. If one of the dolls happens to move by itself, the best course of action is probably just to ignore it. It almost undoubtedly is simply your imagination at work. Either that or put a direct call in to Mulder and Scully.

Every Monday night, families used to gather around the television to watch the continuing adventures of the Ingalls family in the TV show based on the Little House on the Prairie novels by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Today, it is truly a momentous undertaking to find a show that a family with kids can watch without cringing at least once. Those days may be gone, but this show itself lives on in DVD form, and there are always the original novels by Laura herself. Many a young girl still grows up reading these infinitely fascinating tales of the tough pioneer life and the extraordinarily inspiring way in which a young girl became an American icon.

This is where the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum comes into play. There are actually two different museums with Wilder's name, but only one, in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, where the stories take place. The museum near Springfield is perfectly fine, but the one in Walnut Grove has a Laura and Nellie lookalike contest every year, usually in July. You remember Nellie, right? That little blonde snot who tried to make young Laura's life miserable every episode. Near the museum, you can also visit the actual site of the home where Laura and family lived.

And then there's the Wilder Pageant, which is the highlight of Walnut Creek's year. The Wilder Pageant takes place during the summer and features a live performance starring all the favorite characters from the show. A visit to the Wilder Pageant is like actually watching the Little House on the Prairie TV show come to life as you get to relive some of the favorite moments of the stories of the Ingalls' family history.

And if that weren't enough, all Little House fans can actually shop at the Olsen Mercantile store for things like flowers, clothing, pottery and collectibles. Oh, and don't forget to make a visit to Nellie's Café. The yellow ringlets of the snotty little Olsen girl may not be atop the head that serves you, but it's a really fun place to visit.

Baseball may not be quite the yardstick by which kid-dom is measured, but that doesn't mean the National Pastime does not permeate into the collective consciousness of most children. The Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, is unquestionably a destination spot that any lover of baseball will enjoy, regardless of age.

It is perhaps more important than ever to taken kids to Cooperstown, however. After all, the current state of baseball is not one that is inclined to inspire idol worship and heroism the way it used to. Steroids, salary disputes and strikes have tarnished much of the glamour of the game, and for those reasons, it behooves the parent of any baseball fan to take their child to Cooperstown so they can see what baseball players used to be like.

The Babe, Jackie Robinson, The Mick, Dizzy and Daffy. These names are threatening to disappear off the face of the playground, not just because they are old and dead, but because baseball as a social force in America is dying. It is very hard to teach kids about how vital the game of baseball used to be to the very fabric of America when the home run king's tally is tarnished by allegations that his well-sculpted body may not entirely be the result of good old-fashioned workouts. But baseball really did used to mean something special to kids, in part because baseball players were special. There was something elemental about a man knocking out 60 home runs in a season or tossing a perfect game in the World Series. Those days may be gone, but they will exist forever at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

The movie, Night at the Museum, introduced millions of kids to the imaginative effects of walking through a museum. In this case, the museum isn't one of those Smithsonian deals in Washington, but the very same museum hosted Ben Stiller battling Genghis Khan and playing fetch with dinosaurs. Truly, it can be said that no visit to New York City with kids is complete without stopping by the American Museum of Natural History.

This iconic piece of American was founded in 1869, and one of those founders was none other than the man who would give birth to President Theodore Roosevelt. You can see why he was the only president who came to life in the movie. The museum always has a revolving list of new exhibits. You never know what you may find when you walk into that tremendous lobby, but it is the permanent exhibits that really draw the attention of kids. Any kid who has watched Night at the Museum will definitely want to get a glimpse of the big dinosaur that can fetch as good as any golden retriever.

In fact, much of the fun of visiting the American Museum of Natural History nowadays, for both kids and their parents, is finding the exhibits that came to life in the movie. For the most part, it's all there. The little dioramas featuring the movie's tiny characters are available for up close viewing. The monkey and Mr. Khan also await your fascinated viewing. In essence, the American Museum of Natural History in the Big Apple becomes two tourist destinations in one. The museum offers an opportunity to learn about everything from dinosaur fossils to the Star of India, the world's largest blue sapphire. At the same time, the museum allows kids to relive the events of the movie: pretending to be chased by dinosaurs and Mongol hordes. Maybe a day at the museum is no Night at the Museum, but there must be something to a place that has been around for almost 150 years.

Quiz: What kind of structure is Hoover Dam? If you said dam, pretend you hear the sound of a buzzer going off. You are wrong. Technically speaking, Hoover Dam is not a dam, it's a retaining wall. To get even more specific, Hoover Dam is a retaining wall that is used to block the Colorado River about 30 miles away from Las Vegas. Las Vegas is the site where you and the spouse and other adults can try to break the bank by counting cards while playing 21. During the day, however, you really need to travel that 30 miles and take in what has often been designated one of the modern wonders of the world. If you have kids, this side trip away from the glittery and glam of Vegas makes even more sense.

No child getting his or her first look at the amazing, if misnamed, Hoover Dam is likely to yawn. Amazement may either be preceded or succeeded by fear when they realize they are actually going to take a tour along the top of this magnificent monstrosity. Once you get there, you will find two types of tours, the Power Plant tour and the whole Hoover Dam tour. The Power Plant tour is available to kids as young as four years old, while the so-called Hoover Dam tour excludes children under eight years old. If possible, try your best to convince the good folks who run things at Hoover Dam that you five year old is an eight year old that is simply short for his age because there is no doubt that even younger kids will be fascinated by the inner workings of Hoover Dam.

Many adults have been pleasantly surprised to learn that a trip to Hoover Dam leaves them with a feeling of breathless wonder that they cannot even get inside one of the more spectacular casinos. And the best thing is that a tour of Hoover Dam won't cost you nearly as dearly as that trip to the 21 table is likely to cost.

Okay, you can't really get your kids a degree in foreign relations by visiting Denali National Park in Alaska and looking at Russia from atop Mt. McKinley, but it is still a worthwhile trip. There is probably no better spot in all of America to give your little Nintendo DS fanatics a taste of what the great American outdoors was like before kids reduced their interest in nature to when it appears on television.

Has your little one ever watched Balto or been thrilled by the fast-paced excitement of the Iditarod? What kid doesn't want to watch big husky dogs pulling a man on a sled behind them? And what about you? Did you ever have one of those Ansel Adams calendars pinned to the wall inside your kitchen? One of Ansel Adams' most famous sets of black and white photographs captured the majestic beauty of the aptly named Wonder Lake. Just the beauty of Wonder Lake will be enough to make your kids appreciate the incredible power of going on a vacation that doesn't feature roller coasters or even museums. No museum on earth can fully capture the sheer, overwhelming awe of the features on display at Denali National Park.

Denali, the most gorgeous of America's National Parks, is ideal for families that enjoy hiking, backpacking, fishing, climbing and all those things that people used to do on vacation before "virtually" enjoying a vacation became the standard. Sure, you could go down to the Country Bear Jamboree at Disney World, but wouldn't you rather show your kids what black bears and grizzlies look like before they are wiped off the face of the earth? In addition to bears, a visit to Denali National Park will probably result in encounters with caribou, moose and possibly even the elusive wolverine. Just remember, however, that wolverines in the wilderness aren't like the semi-domesticated types who play football in Michigan.

Did you know that Hershey Park is one of the oldest amusement parks in America? It originally opened in 1907. Over time Hershey Park grew to look more and more like a traditional amusement park. The amusement park built on the rotten teeth of American children actually has more rides than the Magic Kingdom.

The thing that really separates the amusement park in Hershey, PA is the smell. I'm not sure whether they pump the smell of chocolate in artificially or if just naturally wafts over from the factory, but arriving at Hershey Park has much the same effect as looking for a new house where the owners were smart enough to bake a batch of chocolate chip cookies before you arrived.

The truth of the matter is that Hershey Park is not really particularly distinguishable from a Six Flags park or even Disney, but there is one thing that Hershey Park has that those areas don't: proximity to the Hershey World of Chocolate. Once you get your thrill from the rollercoaster and other wild rides, it's time to take a tour of what Homer Simpson would describe as The Land of Chocolate. Don't go mistaking the idea of a regular Taste of Whatever with the tour in Hershey World. Yes, you get to sample chocolate at your leisure (and what child won't go crazy over that?), but the tour is really an interactive experience featuring animatronics and special effects. Do you remember that wild boat ride in the original "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory"? Well, that's nothing compared to the 3-D show that they put on at Hershey. While you won't actually see any Oompa Loompas, the animated characters flying directly in front of your eyes are a pretty good substitute.

After you See Rock City and give the whole looking at seven states from atop the peak of Lookout Mountain a try, there is only one place left in this Tennessee vacation spot for you to hit. It is time to turn your kids into mole people, lace up their finest hiking boots and trek down into the ground beneath the surface of that majestic plateau of Tennessee limestone. What awaits you and the kids in the coolness that can only be found in the summertime 1,200 feet underground?

Ruby Falls! Yeah, sure, you've heard of Niagara Falls and all the other spectacular falls that America has to offer, but they are all aboveground. As amazing as the sight of a raging river falling over a cliff in the great outdoors may seem, that's nothing compared to the 145-foot drop of Ruby Falls, which takes place entirely beneath the ground. There is simply no other waterfall in the United States that compares to Ruby Falls.

How many times have you heard that what's important is the journey rather than the destination? Well, you can have it both ways at Ruby Falls. The destination is, of course, that amazing waterfall, but along the way you will be treated to all the memorable sights that make up a spectacular cavern. In addition to the expected stalagmites and stalactites (your kids can probably tell you which one is which if you are confused), there are also unusual rock formations with memorable names. Although you will probably see any number of these amazing rock formations, it is almost guaranteed that your kids will remember one rock formation in particular twenty years after the visit to Ruby Falls. It is called Steak and Eggs. Keep an eye out for it!

Ruby Falls, Lookout Mountain and Rock City make up a fascinating trip for kids and adults alike, and anyone living in proximity should make a trip to all three.

See Rock City.

There is nobody from the immediate north, south, east or west of Lookout Mountain, Tennessee who has not passed a veritable multitude of barns with the words "See Rock City" painted on them. Rock City is just one of the many fantastic sites to see in the Lookout Mountain area near Chattanooga. And Rock City is definitely a hot vacation spot for travelers with kids.

Kids in particular will go crazy at Rock City. Why? Because, well, it truly is a rock city. Rock City is a long, winding path of rock formations, which the guys in charge have doctored and dolled up to present a kind of story. In fact, if you pay close attention while you meander along these truly extraordinary rock formations, you can kind of create a little plot line for you and the children. Kids really love to turn a vacation into an adventure, and in too many cases that means pretending to be spies while chasing each other through the corridors of the hotel. Instead, the kids can squeeze through the narrow passage of Rock City known as Fat Man's Squeeze and pretend they are trying to escape from pirates. Or they can pretend they are helping some gnomes escape through the tunnel at Goblin's Underpass. And do not forget the myriad thrills as they cling to life on the magnificently frightening Swing-A-Long bridge. Of course, if you or the kids have a phobia about heights or swinging rope bridges, you bypass this particular thrill, fold up your umbrella and seek comfort beneath Shelter Rock. The more adventuresome members of your party can create a back story to the crossing of the bridge.

No one who sees Rock City forgets its undeniably magical appeal. If you take your kids to see this natural and even mystical wonder, you can bet that in another twenty years or so they will be eager to re-experience the pleasure through their own children's eyes.

Our trips to destination sites every kid should see has been taking us to the natural wonders of America that Hollywood filmmakers have exploited for such legendary films as "Stagecoach" and "Creature From the Black Lagoon."

Now it's time to fill you in on one of the goofiest and somehow most American of all tourist destinations in this great country. The Alamo is famous to every American who ever studied history, although with the rise of the importance of standardized testing, it is entirely possible some of your kids will be thoroughly unfamiliar with Davy Crockett's escapades at the Alamo.
Believe it or not, this entry is not about taking your kids to the actual Alamo in San Antonio, Texas.

You see, in the early 1960s John Wayne decided to retell the story of the Alamo on film. The Duke discovered what most visitors to the actual Alamo find out: It's too dang small! And so, about 100 miles to the west the producers built an exact replica of, not only the Alamo mission, but the surrounding community. While San Diego's actual Alamo is surrounded by the historical inconveniences of 21^st^ century society, taking your kids on a trip to Brackettville, Texas is actually like taking a step back to the Texas of the 1830s.

Known as Alamo Village, in addition to a full-sized replica of the Alamo mission at which the famous battle was fought, this magnificent piece of unreal real estate also includes what used to be called an Indian store, a cantina, restaurant, trading post, church and jail, all looking exactly like what they might have looked like back during the time Davy Crockett fought for the independence of Texas. In addition, the Alamo Village does contain a bit of the 21st century in the form of a souvenir shop and gallery of the celebrities who have filmed movies there. John Wayne's version of The Alamo was not the only the Alamo movie filmed in Brackettville, you see. The Alamo Village, understand, is actually more realistic than the authentic
Alamo.

Weird, huh?

Hey, guess what? Remember the Junior Ranger program available when taking kids to visit that big crack in the earth in Arizona? Well, America is a fantastic country from sea to shining sea, and who cares if there isn't even a shining sea at the Grand Canyon; it's close enough to fit this-here analogy. Way out east, all the way across the country, there is a shining sea and situated upon a small harbor stands a 151-foot tall woman. Now, don't go calling 911, her name is Lady Liberty and she's perfectly harmless. And guess what? The Statue of Liberty also offers a Junior Ranger program not unlike what is offered at the Grand Canyon.

Just as every kid, and most adults, should visit the Grand Canyon at least once in their lives, they should also see the Statue of Liberty. And the Statue of Liberty Junior Ranger program is just the thing to make a visit memorable. Because, after all, there is only so much memory that can be packed into the mind of a kid simply from riding a ferry to Liberty Island and gawking upward. The Junior Ranger program at the Statue of Liberty offers kids the chance to make their visit to Liberty Island a learning experience that also just happens to be fun. Consider it a kind of scavenger hunt for trivia, information and knowledge. By the time the kids get through filling out all the missing information in their Junior Ranger kit, they'll know enough to write a book or host a talk show. In fact, the amount of factual information that will fill their heads will make them over qualified to become a talk show host.

The Statue of Liberty is one of the big three American tourist spots that every citizen needs to visit, alongside Mt. Rushmore and the Grand Canyon. The only problem is that most kids will probably enjoy the majesty of the Statue of Liberty the least of these three. Of course, the caretakers of the very tall Ms. Liberty probably recognized this and that's why they came up with this great Ranger program to toss a little adventure that is sorely missing from this American landmark.

Okay, you saw Bigfoot in Willow Creek, CA and aliens in Roswell, NM. Now it is time to complete the trilogy and take in a sea monster. No, not Nessie. The Loch Ness is simply too far away for most Americans to get to in this age air travel costing as much as a small compact car. Have no fear, however, because America has its own famous sea monster. And she's located in one of the most beautiful states in the country: Vermont.

If the Loch Ness Monster is real, then there is reason to believe that the creature found in Lake Champlain is a relative. Both of these sea creatures share the many of the same characteristics and Champ, as the creature is called, may be a leftover of the dinosaur era, specifically a plesiosaur. The Scots often refer to these creatures a water horse and there is much in that. The photos that have taken of Champ or Nessie don't actually look like a horse, of course, but do you remember that breathtaking sense of wonder you used to get when you were a kid and you came across a horse running with abandon during a drive in the country? That is the same sense of wonder your perhaps slightly jaded kids will get if they happen to just see a stick floating in the waters of Lake Champlain.

That is exactly the reason why a visit to Lake Champlain or Loch Ness or Ogopogo up in Canada can be something your children won't soon forget. Nobody really expects to see a sea serpent in these strange waters, but in most cases there is always something floating past that may seem to look like a sea creature. If you want to instill a sense of wonder in children who are growing up in a world in which all the mysteries have been sucked away by science or television shows overexplaining things, then take them to a place like Lake Champlain and watch as their imaginations take over and transform the most mundane item into a thing of absolute marvel and awe.

OK, so the kids loved Bigfoot Country in Willow Creek, and now they're all pumped up for the paranormal. The Bermuda Triangle is too dangerous and Loch Ness is too far away. But you're in luck because the truth is not out there; it's in Roswell, New Mexico. You and the spouse don't have to be Mulder or Scully to have a fine time exposing your kids, who may at times seem like aliens to you, Close Encounters of the Buzzword Kind. Let's be honest about Roswell, New Mexico. It is a destination spot your kids won't forget, not because of what they may learn about UFOs, but more for what they will learn about the ability of America to market literally anything. Roswell at times seems like literally stepping back into that innocent era of tourist traps where it was the cheesy quality that made them special. You know, like alligator farms and mermaid shows?

Just how much cheesy fun is the UFO capital of the world? Even the local Wal-Mart sports a sign that says "Aliens Welcome." Roswell is a company town, and the company headquarters is that big face on Mars. Everywhere you look in Roswell there are flying saucers and little gray aliens. There isn't a kid in American whose face won't light up the first time he sees one of the many saucers that appear to have crashed into the façade of one of Roswell's many alien-themed diners. Once the kids eat a hamburger made from an actual alien, (OK, that part was totally made up) round them up and head them over to witness a recreation of an actual alien autopsy being performed at the Area 51 Museum, and that part wasn't made up. There are exactly two places in Roswell that you and your kids will leave saying you believe. The Area 51 Museum not only offers an alien autopsy, but an upside down room and the ability for the kids to pose with an alien.

Once you finish with the fun it's time for the education. The International UFO and Research Center is the place to take the kids to learn about the actual history of the alleged Roswell crash, which gave birth the Roswell obsession with UFOs and aliens.