Splash Pads and Spray Parks

So I recently went to one of the coolest water areas for kids in Philadelphia and I promise that post is coming! For now I wanted to keep it local to new England and tell you all about a few places I know of that we have been to that will keep you cool this summer!

 

The first place is right in my town and its called Colchester Rec Plex its a nice playground with a small spray park. We are local to Colchester so we frequent there often and its always a big hit. It has bathroom facilities a covered pavilion and in the summer there is a concession stand. All the necessities of a good time!

 

 

 

Second on the list is Wolcott Park in West Hartford CT. This spray park is in a great area for anyone in need of shopping and playing! Right down the street from here is Westfarms Mall and many other shopping plazas. The playground is great and there is a pond and cute walking trails. Facilities are available but I haven't seen any place for food so bring your own or take a trip down the street!

 

These two places are the only ones we have been to this summer so far but we plan to go to many more here in this list.

 

 

Lauter Park 625 Jackson St Willimantic, CT 06226 

Kennedy Park 160 Oakwood Ave  West Hartford, CT 06119

Lighthouse Point Park 2 Lighthouse Rd  New Haven, CT 06512 

Colt Park 92 Wethersfield Ave., Hartford, CT 06114 

Kavanagh Park Trask Road Old Saybrook, CT 06475 

The Dinosaur Place 1650 Hartford-New London Turnpike  Oakdale, CT 06370 

Cosey Beach Cosey Beach Avenue East Haven, CT 06512  

Rogers Park 21 Memorial Dr, Danbury, CT 06810 

Lake Mohegan 960 Morehouse Hwy Fairfield, CT 06825  

Keney Park 280 Tower Ave, Hartford, CT  

Goodwin Park 1130 Maple Ave, Hartford, CT 06114 

Rockwell Park Jacobs St & Dutton Ave Bristol, CT 06010 

 

Here are some in MA

 Frog Pond in Boston

Splash Fountain at the Christian Science Plaza in Boston

Johnson Playground and Stony Brook Spray Deck in Jamaica Plain

Bradley Palmer State Park and Wading Pool in Topsfield

Davis Farmland in Sterling

Beach Grounds in South Hadley Ma

Forest Park in Springfield Ma

 Assabet Park, Rt 135, Northborough Ma

Municipal Playground Westfield Ma

Chapman Playground Westfield Ma

Beaver Brook Reservation Spray Deck & Playground, 680 Trapelo Rd Belmont Ma

Parkhill Park Splash Park, 235 Pratt Rd. Splash park Fitchburg Ma

Greenwood Spray Park, 11 Forsberg St. Worcester Ma

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jessica's Garden

Hey everyone! I have been slacking on the blogging! My kids had salmonella and then we went away on vacation to Philly! That's a blog post for another day! Today I wanted to share a special place I found that I like to call a hidden gem! Jessicas's Garden and Lobster shack! Yup I said "Lobster!".

 

 So recently I made a fairy garden with my girls and I thought how awesome would it be to show them a real fairy garden and maybe even take it a step further and dress like fairies! That is totally optional for you and you can of course just come for the lobster!

 

 

 

 

We decided to head over to the garden for lunch and their menu is amazing, they have smoothies, floats, grilled, cheese, lobster mac, lobster rolls hot and chilled! The garden itself is beautiful and its full of charming little touches. The girls enjoyed the play house most of all!

 

The Mom Info

• Jessica's Garden is located at 198 East Hampton Road Marlborough CT
• Open 7 Days a week 9am-7pm

 

Elizabeth Park Hartford CT

This majestic park is home to some of the most amazing flowers I've ever seen! I took my girls here after a car nap and they loved it. We walked the whole park and all the way to new playground. The park admission is free! And it's open from dawn till dusk. Located at the corner of Elizabeth Street and Whitney Street in Hartford, CT.  

There is also a free summer concert series on wed nights at the end of June until August. 

The playground at Elizabeth Park was built in memory of Ana Grace Greene- Marques, a victim of Sandy Hook. The playground is covered in her art work and has some unique musical instruments. 

Get a picnic lunch and get to this park! 

It's stroller friendly and it walking is a must! The park is pretty big so be prepared to walk some distance if you don't want to drive from the playground to the gardens. 

Play dough magic

Play dough is that fun activity that either is a hit or isn't, but I think with a little extra something we can take the boring ball of dough and make it into hours of fun for your little ones! In my experience it just takes a little something to draw the child's interest if they aren't into just the play dough. I like that you can make your own and you can add a scent or glitter! I recently found out you can make it edible!

First let's talk about the play dough tools. I know there are kits but you can literally make your own! Cookie cutters are always a go to but you can really use so many things! Cars to drive through it, buttons to push in it, cups to squish it in and tons more! Recently I found out that Melissa and Doug  has a blog! This where I found the play dough creation station!

I was thinking after I read all their great ideas that of course my child needs a little creative inspiration! It really changed how we played with play dough. 

I don't own a fancy wooden box but I do own a Tupperware veggie tray!

So that's it! Get inspired and make your own creation station! Get a play hammer and some play nails for your builder. Some sparkly jewels for your princess or pirate and let them epxlore! 

So here are the recipes and what I love is you can customize your play dough to your tool set! 

So first up is Ice cream play dough And no I'm not joking. You can eat it, you can scoop it and you can lick it!

I know! Mind officially blown!

Do you love the smell of play dough? I do not and this recipe is wonderful because it smells like summer! Lemony play dough

Get out your straws for this one!

This next recipe smells great, looks cool and is fun to make. Glitter play dough  

Pretty amazing stuff!

I think it's safe to say play dough will never be the same old ball of dough in your house any more! 

Kid City

If you live within 100 miles or are visiting the Middletown CT area with children 0-8 years old Kid City is a must see! We have been over 10 times and every time it's just as fun as the last time! This museum is 3 floors of non stop delight. Middletown is also a very busy and fun city with lots of hidden gems. The museum has a ton of exhibits and there is something to see every where you look! We pack a lunch usually and eat in the cutest funky little cafeteria that has hand washing, a water fountain and mini high chairs!

Before we sit down for lunch we like to explore the first floor until we get hungry! My kids first stop is always the big car! 

In this room there is so much to see and do, you could literally spend your whole visit in here but I recommend dragging the kids away to see the rest! The fishery is always a big hit! Who doesn't enjoy a big ship and an igloo?

The best thing about this museum

Is there is something for everyone! I have a walker and a non walker and there are a ton of areas where I can put my littlest down and let her enjoy too! While my oldest can still play as well! The sea cave is located in the basement and is for ages 2 and under, it's a magical colorful underwater adventure! Make sure you have socks on! 

There are tunnels, hideaways and a slide!

Are you totally excited? I haven't even told you about the upstairs! 

My daughter had her second birthday party at Kid City and it was by far the best birthday! They have a designated party room and we partied hard! 

Upstairs is a room with a rain stick see saw, a slide and monkey bars! 

What is also great about kid city is it is located on an adjacent street from Main Street so while the museum doesn't allow strollers still bring one! If the small cafeteria is a little crowded there are tons of places to eat within walking distance! Since we are members and if your like me you like to make the most of the area you travel to. We like to walk to Cherry Berry right on the corner! It's a fun froyo place and perfect for kids! 

If your looking to take the kids out to lunch and are in need of coffee and a great sandwich I highly suggest Brew Bakers they have amazing sandwiches, baked goods and if its nice you can eat outside!

Kid City is located at 119 Washington St Middletown Ct
Hours : Sunday -Tuesday 11-5 members only hours 9-11
             Wed-Saturday 9-5
Rates: 1-8 and adults 8$ babies under one are free!

The art of distraction

So I have a two year old and a nine month old and I've learned that there is a point in every child's life where flashing lights and sounds no longer hold their attention, lucky for me my nine month old loves a good noise or a flashy light and will be amused by it for awhile. My two year old on the other hand requires me to get extremely creative and even then she is hardly amused, so I call it "the art of distraction". The idea is to find  something, anything that will hold her attention long enough for me to chug my coffee and swallow a bagel in two bites. Yesterday I went to target and purchased a few "tricks" for up my sleeve if you will. 

 

 

 

 I snuck out after bedtime and left Daddy in charge, and I drove to the furthest Target just because I could and I armed myself with an ICEE that I drank all by myself. For those 2 hours I was a free woman alone in retail heaven. I like to visually go back to that happiness when I'm knee deep in dishes and laundry with crying babies, it is my happy place. 

 

Fast forward to Monday and Em was down for her nap and Dani was itching for something to do. I pulled out my first trick Crayola Twistables I love these because they don't look like crayons and they don't break like regular crayons which is something my two year old likes to do. However she was not amused for more than 3 minutes. I had to improvise and get creative because I think she caught on that they were just fancy crayons, damn those genius Daddy engineer jeans. I stepped up my game and taped paper to our sliding glass door and handed her Crayola Paint Brush Pens  these are markers that have a special brush tip so they write like your painting, its basically painting without the drippy mess! Genius! Mommy win! She loved them! She painted all over the paper and didn't even attempt to paint anything else (this is not to say you will be so lucky). With these bad boys I got a load of laundry in and a cup of coffee! I joined in the fun because they really are so neat.

 

 

 

After all our arts and crafts were over Dani worked up an appetite. I was texting a friend and she was making Oreo cakes do I decided to ruin Danis lunch with an Oreo pop! I have pinned them and was going to wait until Valentines Day, and I'm glad I didn't. All tasty treats should be tried ahead of time especially if they involve a stick. After cracking 3 Oreos I finally got one on the stick. I didn't have any chocolate melts which in hindsight was where I went wrong! I heated up some frosting and dipped the cookie in it... Are you picturing this? The cookie got heavy and fell off the stick. 

I was determined to deliver what I promised so I kept trying. I had an ingenious idea and stuck the whole pop in the freezer! It worked long enough for her to be excited and the rest didn't matter. However I think we will try marshmallow pops for Valentines Day. 

One of my newest favorite things to do is make baby food! I love coming up with combinations and having loads of fresh food for my baby Em. My latest recipe was cherry berry pear. I bought frozen cherries because they are pitted already and last longer. I steamed pears and blueberries and blended it all up. I have an awesome baby food maker called Beaba but I love my stick blender more!

It's going to be a long winter so we are also taking lots of trips and outings as much as we can! But sometimes you have to make the most of a day at home. 

After ruining Dani's lunch I was worried she would need more than just an Oreo pop so I decided a kid friendly protein smoothie was in order! This fun creation is called a Nutty Monkey. A recipe I also found on Pinterest. It was very good and I had some too. Who doesn't love Greek yogurt, bananas and peanut butter!

 

Nursing Essentials

Mommas! It's been too long! I just welcomed my second little girl into the world on Easter Sunday! We feel incredibly blessed to have two healthy children. My little one is already a fabulous nurser and I'm feeling lucky with having a great supply! This being my second time around nursing I feel more prepared! My first time around I was so overwhelmed and my daughter had a poor latch and then also developed a dairy allergy. This was so hard and I ended up dairy free for 8 months in order to keep nursing her and I am really glad I did!
This time around I spent some time getting ready to nurse again.
First thing I did was get out my pump and run it through a little sanitizing cycle and made sure all my membranes and parts were in great shape, I had no idea how important that little white piece is to pumping! Then I went out and purchased some great products! Obviously some most people already know about, nursing bra, nursing tanks and breast pads!
Wait breast pads?! Ok with my first I was given a few things at the hospital and one of those things was disposable paper beast pads? Um I wish someone had thrown them away for me and pointed me into the direction of BAMBOOBIES! These are the bees knees of breast pads! Why? For the most obvious reason they are heart shaped! They are washable! But more importantly they work! I purchased a pair and my first mistake was only buying one pair! My first week home I had a major over supply and my milk came in full force, at night I was constantly leaking, and I expected to wake up soaked. Well I can honestly say I didn't! My BAMBOOBIES were soaked but not my shirt! Amazing! I threw them in the washer and then the dryer and they came out even softer than before! These breast pads are made of an incredibly soft organic cotton and bamboo rayon velour with an inner layer of hemp and organic cotton. They are so absorbent and really truly amazing must have for nursing moms!
Something else nursing moms struggle with is keeping a good supply and making sure they are producing enough for their little one. The most important thing is to stay hydrated and keep up your calories! I have to amazing products that help with both!
First milk maid tea! It's an organic tea that helps promoted healthy lactation. I think it's tasty and I've noticed an increase in supply by just brewing a cup once or twice a day! I also enjoy it iced with a lemon or hot with a little sugar! Earth mama angel baby carries milk maid tea and a whole bunch of other great products for pregnancy nursing and baby!
Second milk makers cookies! Yummy cookies that help increase supply! I'm sure you could look up a recipe and make your own but I for one don't have the time with two kids to run to the store and then bake? They carry a variety of flavors oatmeal raisin and oatmeal chocolate chip! The raves about how well they work are never ending! The two main ingredients that assist in milk production are brewers yeast and flax seed! Did I mention they were cookies?? These are a must try for sure!

Nursing is one of the most amazing experiences I have had as a mother and I feel lucky to be able to do it. Hopefully with these things many more mommas will be able to enjoy nursing their babies!