30 Days, 30 Parks, week 1

September brings many things: slightly cooler weather (thank goodness!), a new school year, apple picking, my wedding anniversary, and the anniversaries of both my mom's birth and her death. It's a bittersweet month, for sure. In keeping with our "30 days of ..." theme, September's challenge is 30 different parks in 30 days. This challenge will give us an opportunity to explore some new and interesting areas, spend some quality play time together, take advantage of the gorgeous fall weather, and maybe even allow for a little bit of geocaching!

The goal is to visit 30 different parks, for a minimum of 30 minutes each. On rainy days, I've got to find an indoor playground alternative. As much as possible, I'd like to try completely new parks, but I'm sure I'll be relying heavily on old favourites as well. We're very lucky to have an abundance of beautiful playgrounds in our area!

I had the idea to post a picture or a video of the kids at each park. Unfortunately, I didn't think of that idea until day 3! So here's the run-down on the parks we've been to so far:

September 1: The "Pirate Ship" Park, Evanston, IL (no photo)

This is one of our favourite parks ever. It's right on the lake, and it has a pirate ship climber that inspires all sorts of creative play. Although the climbers are new(ish), this is a park I used to play at when I was the twins' age. I love that I'm getting to share my favourite spots with my kids!

September 2: The Libertyville Farmer's Market Park, Libertyville, IL (no photo)

We met Katie and Nora for some farmer's market shopping and the kids had a great time at the nearby park afterwards. Of course, it was slightly wet after the morning rain, and Izzie landed in a mud puddle just as we were getting ready to go to the orientation at the twins' school.

September 3: Margate Park, Chicago, IL

I love this park! It's in my old neighborhood and has a great variety of things for both younger and older children. There are also beautiful metal sculptures and colourful mosaics adorning the playground. This is one of he friendliest parks we've been to, both for the kids and for me. Elijah loved playing on the fire truck with a gaggle of other kids, and Izzie worked on her skills flipping on the rings!

September 4th: Tall Trees Park, Glenview, IL

A nice, shady playground in a nearby town. Izzie mastered the monkey bars here, and Elijah loved all the different ways he could climb up to the slides.

September 5th: Penny Park, Evanston, IL

Another all time favourite that I used to play at as a kid. This place is a really cool wooden fortress of a playground with tunnels and mazes and all sorts of fun places to explore.

September 6th: Secret Hidden Park, Evanston, IL

I wouldn't have even known this park was here, tucked away in the center of a city block, if it weren't for a geocache that was supposedly hidden here. We looked and looked, but never found the cache.

September 7th: Wilmette Community Recreation Center Park, Wilmette, IL

We had a picnic lunch here after Izzie's gymnastics class and before the twins first day of school. After we ate, the kids blew off some steam by swinging and climbing. Elijah loves this climbing wall!