Playgrounds Update

I’ve updated the Playground List. If you visit a new playground, or if you have a favorite that isn’t listed yet, please share it with us by filling out the survey.

For those of you who didn’t catch it in the comments and who aren’t a Fan on Facebook, Schenectady’s had to shut down the Tiny Tot Land portion of the park to fix the buckling surface.  They didn’t have a firm date for the re-opening, but when I hear, you will.

J at Craig Elementary School

Small-bany just wrote a review of Riverfront Park in Rensselaer.  One of the things that struck a chord with me was that she’d passed by the playground many times, and she’d finally gotten around to stopping.  We really do get so ingrained in our routines that we miss out on some serious. . .  you got it!  Fun!

My friend and I had a similar experience recently with River Road Park in Niskayuna.  This park is convenient for gatherings because it’s got a big pavilion, plenty of tables, and bathrooms right there.  But, really, the equipment itself tends a bit toward the young side.  Between the potlucks and playdates and the equipment itself, I’m just bored with it.  Or I was.

Last time we went, we took ourselves for a little walk.  Now, I’ve done the bike path loop before, but this time we struck out into the woods.  We’ve always known, in theory, that the path leads to Rosendale Elementary School playground, but we’ve never taken the walk.   We decided to let our five-year-olds lead us, and we acted like we had no idea where it might lead so that when they “discovered” the other playground, they were shrieking with delight.  But we were surprised, too, because the trail felt like a mini-wilderness, and someone before us had put together a fort-like structure made entirely of branches (when we saw this, we both cursed ourselves for not bringing a camera for this blog), and several fallen trees made excellent balance beams.  I have a whole new appreciation for the playground.  And we still haven’t gone down the bike-friendly path through the woods!

Oh, and one more playground-related note:  does anyone know of any playgrounds (besides Tiny Tots, River Road, & Rosendale Elementary School, which I’ve thought of already) that have the extra wide-strap-’em-in swings that are suitable for bigger toddlers or children with special needs? We have a mom who was asking about this one.  If you do, can you tell us in the comments or, even better, complete a survey on the playground?  Thanks!