Weekend at Pen Park

This past weekend we went to Pen Park. They have two different-sized playgrounds; one for toddlers, and one for the older kids. They are separated by swings (for both babies and older children).

Until last year, Elena only played on the toddler playground--the smaller size made independent navigation more of a reality. Today, she can do the toddler playground almost completely by herself! She can go up the steps (it has a handrail), go over humps and dips (she can hold onto the side of the structure), she can go down the slides. She can get up off the bottom of the slide, and walk around to get on again. I still worry about her falling out of "holes" in the sides--where kids can slide down a pole, for instance--so I don't leave her alone on the structure. The good news about that, though, is the falling danger is true for any of the kids. I also don't trust Elena to climb down a monkey-bar-slat-dome thing...she can go up, but I don't think she can go down safely. Again, typically developing kids may have the same problem.

The big news is, E is now trying to conquer the big kid playground. There's a lot there that she's not tall enough to attempt--pendulum steps (platforms that are high off the ground and tethered by a rope), large hanging structures--but she can go up a rope ladder, climb the steps around the structure, go through tubes and down slides and then start over again.

Here is E getting up from the slide on the big kid playground:



I love it when we visit playgrounds now--because every time we go, she seems to be able to do so much MORE.

Like WALK FROM ONE PLAYGROUND STRUCTURE TO THE OTHER.



When we were done (after an hour of playtime), I asked if she would meet me at the walkpath to the parking lot. I asked if she wanted to walk herself, or with her crutches (we always bring them). She said she wanted to try herself. This is slightly uphill, bumpy grass, with some small sticks and some small rocks near the playground.



Awesome sauce!