Meal Worms, Crickets and Caterpillars! Oh My!

Yesterday, we were anxiously awaiting Phillip's return from working in Atlanta. To pass the time, we decided to check out Bug Fest, taking place at the Cincinnati Museum Centre. We had a fantastic time! Archie got to go onstage with the musical performer who was singing bug songs. Here is Archie indicating, as part of the song says, how many legs an insect has. Six, in case you were wondering!



I am looking at life through bug eyes. It made me a little cross-eyed and dizzy.



Archie has mandibles!



Probably the most fun activity of the day was the bug eating activity. I always considered myself a try-anything-once kind of gal. But apparently I am not. Maybe if I were much, much younger. I left the Bug Fest still hungry.

They had prepared various snack items made with meal worms, crickets, caterpillars and scorpions for folks to try. I was so surprised by the grossness, I almost forgot to take pictures of everything and had to go back through. The meal worm cream cheese dip looked pretty gross, but I forgot to get a photo of that. Or the meal worm jello. However, here are some tasty delectables. If you want to get the full effect, click 'em big. Go ahead...I dare ya!

This chunky salsa had these enormous caterpillars in it. The thought of those big, chunky insects almost made me gag.



The Asian Cricket Salad. Now if I had to pick something to eat outta this whole group, it would've been this.



This was Archie's first trial. Cricket Salsa! He didn't dip any actual crickets on his chip, just sort of dipped in the real liquid-y part. I don't blame him a bit!



Literal ants on a 'log'. Yuck! These ants were huge!!! I substitute raisins for the ants. But that's just me. :-)



My friend in Texas was wondering what to do about her scorpion problem. Well, here ya go! Dry Roasted Scorpion!



Dipped in a chocolate fountain, no less! Mmmmmmm!!!!



At the chocolate fountain, you could choose dry roasted scorpion or dry roasted crickets to dip in there. Much to my utter amazement, Archie picked up a skewered cricket, slathered it in chocolate and ate it!!! Ewwwww! I don't know what got into him! The whole thing was very funny because he finally worked up the courage to get it in the mouth, and let it sit under his tongue for the longest time because he was afraid to swallow it. He eventually got it down with copious amounts of water. He swallowed it whole.

All gone! I don't think that's a cricket leg lingering on his lip, there. I think it's chocolate. I think!



For his bravery, Archie got an enormous button to wear that says "I Ate A Bug!" which he proudly wore all day long. He did say that he needed to hurry up and get home to brush his teeth. Hmmm...a way to get him to willingly brush his teeth????

Since he was such a good sport, I took him to 'Old McDonalds' to get a Happy Meal where he charmed all the girls working the registers with his adventures of eating bugs. Extra crickets on that burger, please!

We picked up a cricket brownie to bring home so Daddy could see it. It was really gross. There were probably four or so crickets baked into the tiny brownie square!

Not to be outdone by his son, Phillip ate the cricket brownie, chewed it up, swallowed and everything. He had bits of cricket in his teeth afterward.