June 30: Palmer Park



Palmer Park



One of the items on our summer check list is "Visit a New Park"...meaning a new-to-us park.  Palmer Park is listed at grkids.com as a great park to check out, and since it isn't too far away from our house it became our "new park" choice. 

I actually missed the entrance to the park...not realizing it's the same entrance as the L.E. Kaufman Golf Course.  Once there, we needed to drive a ways on the property before arriving at the parks.  There were two play areas available, each near a pavilion or picnic area.  Of course, we had to play in both areas just to compare.  The second area was a bit more toddler-friendly which Brielle loved, and the boys enjoyed both areas.  Since they are walking distance from each other, it's no problem to play in both areas in one visit. 

We enjoyed our time there with friends from church -- picnic lunch and all!  It was quite nice that we were the only ones visiting the park so it was easy to keep track of the kids and let them run around.  They loved exploring the forest area, hunting bugs, and playing hide-and-seek .  I loved that it was shady!  The only thing to be aware of if you choose to visit the park is that the kids WILL get dirty!  But isn't that half the fun of being a kid? 

Koen took this picture of Brielle and me
coming down the twisty slide.
 Our friend, Noah, checks out Koen's work
behind the camera.




Koen and Ty down the twisty slide!






Kiersten and Ty playing in the dirt.




"Wheeee!"  Brielle said this each time
she slid down!  So cute!





Koen froggin' around.



Doesn't Brielle look stunning in Mom's sunglasses?
 She thought so!

September 30: Frog Hollow Park



Frog Hollow Park



Even though I'm posting this a month after we visited the park, the boys saw the pictures today and wanted to go back, so already you know it was a great visit!  I'd heard about this park from numerous sources and decided we should try it out.  Yes, we do have a park right down the road from our house, but sometimes a new environment with new toys is just plain exciting!!! 

Frog Hollow Park is hidden right around the bend from Metro Hospital just off M-6, so it was just a short drive.  The afternoon was a beautiful autumn day -- sunshine with a bit of a breeze.  We spent over an hour exploring and playing.  Despite its popularity it wasn't extremely busy, and it was easy to keep track of the kids even if they were in different spots of the park.  We'll wait until next spring, but we'll definitely be return visitors!



Brielle sat back and enjoyed the sunshine.




Our little monkeys...





June 25: Lamar Park Splash Pad

Some friends from church planned a morning at Lamar Park Splash Pad in Wyoming, MI, so we joined in the fun!  Recently, we had visited a splash pad in the Lansing area when we visited Uncle Ethan and Aunt Tracy and had a blast!  This splash pad is much closer and just as fun, even though it's a smaller place.  One of the perks is that it is TOTALLY FREE! 

There were only two downsides to this trip...first, the water was a bit frigid making the kids shiver more than once, but the sun was out and that helped.  The other was that every once in a while the water just stopped spraying and we all just stood around for a minute or two until it started up again (yes, I played in the splash pad, too).  Not a big deal, especially for a FREE park, but something worth noting. 

One great thing was the set up of this place.  The splash pad is situated right next to a play area, so the kids could go back and forth between the two (see the pictures at the top of the page).  There's also a pavilion there which offers great shade.  Lamar Park is a huge place, and we only played in this little area, so I know there's more to do there.  Here's the website in case you're interested in finding out more:  Lamar Park