So the Sunday before Memorial Day we wanted to go to the zoo before our membership ended, since that was part of our summer list on this post. But apparently lots of people had the same idea, since all the parking lots were filled. Don't worry, we did get to go to the zoo one more time before our membership ended at a later date. But on that Sunday, we didn't want to just turn around and drive home, so we did a quick search (since we had heard about it from friends) as to where Smith's Playhouse and Playground was and it turned out to be pretty much right down the street.
We took the short drive and was there in no time. Upon arrival, there were quite a few families having picnics right at the front lawn. And since our original plan was to have lunch at the zoo, we just took out our picnic blanket and sat down for lunch. We had a short but fortunately uneventful encounter with a wild raccoon. The kids ran around the lawn for a bit and then we decided to venture in.
You can read about the history to this place here. Admission is free, though there is a suggested $5 per family donation. It consist of a playhouse and a playground. The playhouse is for kids 5 and under. And the playground is for kids 10 and under, which an area dedicated for children 5 and under as well.
We decided to venture into the playhouse first. It had a collection of toys and some pretty elaborate dollhouses. But I was honestly no too impressed with the playhouse, it was a bit dirty and even though it had so many dollhouses, there were no dolls for the kids to play with, seems a bit pointless to me.
Now the playground area is a totally different story. It is really impressive when you first walk in and just take everything in. Lots of very fun things for the kids to play with, is entirely enclosed except for the entrance/exit so there is no fear of children just wandering off site, soft padded grounds, and a great area for age 5 and under. One of the main attractions in the playground is this huge wooden slide that you go down sitting on a sack, which we did once but was a little scary for our kids which are younger.
E4 had a blast there since he doesn't usually get to play in most playgrounds but there were plenty of things here for him in the 5 and under area.
We are so glad that the zoo was filled up that day, so we could go to Smith's. We will definitely try to go again in the future!
*This is not a sponsored post.
Any fun free areas of play around where you live? Ever just stumble upon something great? Would love to hear from you.
Zi
Sorry the inside was drab, but glad the outside playground was great. Don't ya just love smartphones these days for being able to quickly come up with a plan B. Imagine if we didn't have smartphones! There is an "Adventure Playground" near our home that is pretty big and free and always refer to it as Castle Park b/c of the castle structure. Lots of people go there. We are also hoping to take advantage of the community pool this summer. Don't think we've ever stumbled upon anything great, except maybe the goat farm last year in Rehoboth.
ReplyDeleteWish we had a free community pool near us, we would totally take advantage too! I remember the goat farm, that was definitely a nice activity to stumble upon =)
DeleteFun field trip! It's great to find a new place to add to the rotation.
ReplyDeleteWe just tried out a new park near us with really steep, fun slides. Our 16 month old looked a little scared each time he went down the slide but kept going, so it was a hit. We have water fountains less than half a mile from us that I think my son is old enough to enjoy now, so we're headed there this weekend for some water fun.
Water fountains sound like so much fun right now, especially with the hot weather we have been getting here!
DeleteThat playground looks awesome! We have tons of parks near by, that's what we usually do. We have a community pool, but it's never much fun for me since Baby C doesn't know how to swim yet, I'm always worrying about her. Ha ha. But there are great fountain parks all around us too. Baby C is starting to love them.
ReplyDeleteWe like to do the parks around us too but there is one draw back to the park right in our community and that is the play area is not entirely enclosed. I'm always afraid to take the kids there myself b/c there is always a chance that one of them might just wander off on their own. I prefer the national park near us since it has huge fields the kids can run around in and that I can still keep an eye on them. I wish we had fountain parks near us!
DeleteAround this area, people flock to Clemenjontri on nice days. It's a huge playground in rainbow colors. I wish there were more splash parks around me. My kids love water. Oh, I agree with Lisa -- I especially like to use google map on my smartphone.
ReplyDeleteMy kids love water too! We just put a small plastic pool on our deck and let them go crazy. It's a great way to spend an afternoon on a hot summer day.
DeleteThe playground looks pretty awesome and fun. I'm not sure if there are places like that around here, there probably is. I should do some research and maybe take my niece there!
ReplyDeletexo, Yi-chia
Always Maylee
I'm sure your niece loves hanging out with you =)
DeleteSo fun! The best free activity near us is the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, but we rarely make the trek.
ReplyDeleteWould love to have a free zoo closer to us too!
Deletelovely post !!!!! hope i find some like this here for my son
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and leaving a comment Simply Kelly!
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