A Local Adventure: The Parks in Our Town
Even if school is not out for the summer these are a great place to spend time with your kids.
Yes I have kids of different ages. And all have gone to the different parks in our town. The older the get the less they go. Or so they wold have you think. Its amazing how if you word things just right all the kids will want to go with you.
The youngest is easy. Lets go for a walk to the park or we are going for a walk try to figure out where we are going. Start guessing... The middle one is different this is one that it depends on where we are going. Some play grounds he likes better then others. And the oldest one. Well lest just say there is still one that she likes. And we can blame that one on the ducks.
As we travel on my youngest and I will start out in the morning and walk to all the local parks. OK so there is one we may drive to but that is in the next town over. And when our oldest was still under the age of three we were in walking distance of this location and the pond that is still there.
All photos provided by yours truly.
I tend to refer to them as Parks - Others say Playgrounds
Which are you?
A Park was Born - And its just across the street
This is another strange one that just happens to be in our neighborhood. When we first moved in there was a large lot across the street from us. The building there was a bit run down and scheduled for demolition. This would not have been my first choice. Renovation would have been an interesting alternative. But the building came down. It took three days to take it down and remove everything. For my middle child who was much younger it was a great way to spend the time looking out our windows.
The next step was to for the town to figure out what to do with the property. Time passed and one of our neighbors suggested making it into a park. The town seamed to fight against it. In the long run it received approval to be a park. I remember all the folks on our street coming out to get the place ready. We even had one guy on his riding lawn mower mow it for the first time. The town stepped in after that. But it was interesting to see them use some old stone to make a pattern on the lawn. They also added benches.
Over all it has been a great place to just get together and have fun. There are always kids playing or flying kites. My son will pull out his telescope and look at the mood and the stars from that open space.
If you are bringing kids to the park - They may need a few things to climb on and play with
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Remember there are rules to follow when you visit a park
A couple of other common signs you will see.
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Which Park are you At?
Your cell phone rings and the wife wants to know were you are. And if you are like me you have no clue what the name of this place is. I could tell her directions but by the time they were all recited she has either gone to sleep or told me to stop and just tell me where we are.
That's when I pull out the old stand by. Each playground seams to have one thing that is different then the rest. This one is the one we go to the most and the one thing that makes it stand out is this Red Swing! Its weird but it is the one thing both her and I like to sit on and go back and forth. Its also the one thing that we both remember about this one playground.
And even though I took pictures there, I still don't know the name of this park.
You may not see these at every playground in your town - A duck pond and an obstical course
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Other stops along the way
I know I suggested that you bring water with you. But remember that water will warm up as you go along. And you could all ways use something cold to help cool things off a bit. So that's why we hit a local ice cream shop along the way.
Oh twist my arm on that one. They did have coffee ice cream but it had nuts in it. My son did find something that drew his attention. And that is where this picture came from.
A Public Service Anouncement - For Your Local Parks and Playgrounds
Remember to take care of your trash. Either take it with you or use the provided trash bins. As a good gesture to your friends and neighbors you could even spend some time walking the grounds and doing a little clean up. You may not receive thanked for your time. But there are those that notice and a smile is something that can not be turned away.
A few useful things - That sometimes go unnoticed
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It may look like a public playground
But its not
That's right there are playgrounds that are on school grounds. Even though those look like playgrounds and feel like playgrounds they may not be for public use. This holds true both during the school year and over the summer. I know I still see kids using them What it comes down to is that they should check with their local school districts. Some will say its OK as long as the parents are with them. Others will say no as this is a private playing area for our students only. And others will say to check with the school district first.
I checked with different types of schools on this one. In my opinion the safest route to take is to check with the school or school district on this one.
A final note
I know that you will most likely not be visiting our parks and playgrounds. But if you have some around you then visit with the kids. If you don't have kids they can be a nice get away.
