Recommendation Wednesdays

I was beginning to feel bad that I was taking my son to the same park day after day. I worried that we were stuck in a rut. I didn't take him to this park exclusively because it was the only one I knew about, but rather, it was clear to me that it was his favorite park out of all the ones we visit. If Bruno is happy, then I am happy and in park talk that means that we can go to this park and stay for a couple of hours, versus leaving after 30 minutes because Bruno is either bored or not interested in what the park has to offer.

Currently our daily park visits take us to the park on N. Harrison Street, off of Lee Highway in the Arlington/McLean Area. I like this park for many reasons. First of all, it is huge and spread out so my son has room to run around. Secondly, I like it because the park offers shade and sunshine as well as picnic tables. There are two large jungle gym structures that are appropriate for children ages 9 months to 10 years old as well as a sand box and lots of toys that people have donated to the park over the years. Thirdly, I like this park because the jungle gym equipment is divided up by area according to age groups so the larger jungles gyms where the 8 year-olds play are not the jungle gyms where the one year-olds play.

Bruno goes to this park every morning for about 1-2 hours and is constantly discovering new things to play with and new areas to explore. We are there so much that I am now friendly with many of the other moms that frequent this park. For example, for the first time today, Bruno discovered that there is a large hill sloping down towards the school behind the park. For half an hour he sent a toy lawn mower down the hill, retrieved it, pulled it up the hill all by himself and then sent it down again with squeals of delight filling the air. The fact that he is able to find new ways to entertain himself at the same park each day, day after day, reassures me that he is getting the stimulation that he needs and the activity that he craves even though we are frequenting the same establishment.

If you have never been to this park I encourage you to check it out with your kids in the future. Be aware though that this park is sandy so be sure your child has on play clothes that can get dirty and that he is wearing old tennis shoes or slip on shoes, such as crocs. For parents potty training their children, also be aware that this park only offers one portable potty. There is not a physical structure that houses bathrooms.

I feel so good about my daily trips to this park that it has inspired me to designate Wednesdays as my recommendation days. Each and every Wednesday I will post a recommendation on my blog. The recommendation will document one of my favorite parenthood-related resources: parks, activities, restaurants, stores, websites, etc. that are available in the Washington, DC area. I hope that you will read over them on hump day and learn about a new resource that you will share with your friends and family. I also hope that you will share your favorites with me.