Mom Jeans

We all know what mom jeans look like. They are the high-waisted, baggier and not necessarily flattering jeans. Another common "mom look" is the messy bun, baggy shirt and leggings. These style trends are definitely comfort and utility, not necessarily fashionable. I've got plenty of mom style clothing in my closet but does this have to be all that I'm limited to wearing? Am I no longer allowed to wear anything form fitting, dressy or stylish?

Definitely not! Sometimes I feel guilty for dressing up. I feel like I'm being judged, as a mother, based on my appearance. I feel if I dress up, do my hair and put on make up that others will think I spend too much time on myself and not on my kiddo. We have all had days where we don't have time and have yesterday's make up on, a baseball cap and sweats. I've had mornings where I was halfway done curling my hair and my son woke up early so...guess I'm going to do a quick up-do style instead today. We also have days where we have extra time and energy to wake up and make ourselves look extra good. Or we have days where we really need the confidence booster or self indulgence and we want to put extra time into ourselves. Either way we shouldn't be judged as mothers based on what we look like.

Speaking of which, I feel like when you become a mother that society instantly ages your style choices. One day your in your late twenties wearing short shorts and crop tops and then you have a baby and poof it's bermuda shorts and t shirts. Now I've always been a fairly conservatively dressed person by choice. I've never walked around with crop tops or had my ass hanging out of my shorts. However, I've still felt sometimes like my clothing styles are too "edgy" for motherhood. I've felt like I'm not allowed to wear shorter shorts or a summer dress that comes to right above my knees.

To give you an example of this. I recently went in to a popular younger people's clothing store with my son and the stroller. I still suck at navigating the stroller and I was running in to all the displays, but I digress. I was offered no welcome greeting or help by any of the workers. It was also harder to get a fitting room and they looked annoyed when I said I needed one large enough for the stroller to fit in. I didn't want to take my son out of the stroller and have to keep him from crawling under the stalls and making uninvited visitations to others guests in the dressing room. A couple of days later I went back to that same store one evening after my son had gone to bed and my husband was home. I was immediately greeted at the entrance and asked by another associate if I needed any help and was given several suggestions.

Again, we shouldn't be judged as mothers based on our fashion choices. What we wear and how we look doesn't define who we are as mothers. So moms feel free to bust out your shorter shorts,shirts with silly inappropriate sayings, nice dresses or dye your hair a crazy color. You do you and dress to impress yourself because you have enough to worry about without being worried about what others think of your fashion choices.

Explorers in Action

These posts are supposed to highlight the ups and downs of my journey thru motherhood. A lot of times I end up focusing on the downs. Due to mom guilt, these moments are sometimes more prominent in my mind. They are also important to share with other moms because things happen, life happens, we aren't perfect and that is OK.

I do want to make sure that I share my good moments though. Through these moments I hope to inspire other moms. I hope to highlight the achievements and victories that I have earned and deserve. I want to let other moms know that it's      perfectly acceptable to pat yourself on the back and tell yourself that you are awesome-sauce!

As the weather has gotten nicer I've shifted my focus from lots of indoor crafty things to taking my son and my family on adventures. I'm proud of the research and time that I spend finding fun things for us to do. I'm thankful for the memories and the moments I'm helping to create for our family. I'm also humbled at the life that we are able to live and the experiences that we can provide our son.

I love that Wally, my husband, and I are getting to share our interests and our passions with our son. I love seeing his eyes light up and the wheels turning in his head as he gets to learn more about life and discovers the world. It's important to me to instill a passion for wildlife and nature in my son, which we are doing thru our outdoor explorations. By spending more time outdoors he can learn how amazing this planet is. Through these explorations he is also growing more confident socially and physically. In addition, these adventures are helping me grow, learn and explore the area we call home. I've discovered so many places and things to do that I haven't done before thanks to my son.

Now these adventures don't have to cost a lot of money, or any money at all. I try to balance our outings so that some are free, some are cheap and occasionally one is a little pricier. Make your outings fit your budget. Some of the free activities that we love to do include: picnics, malls, barns and petting zoos, parks, beaches, hikes, lakes, walking around various downtown areas, frisbee golf and free community activities. I love to scour the local and city news to find events and family centered activities happening around us. Cheaper outings that we enjoy doing include: community pools, camping, indoor play areas, kayaking, canoeing, grabbing lunch or trying a new dessert place.  A few of our special occasion adventures are: ferry rides, day trips, zoos, museums, going out for dinner and fairs.

Enjoy your time with your little wild one, however you choose to spend it. Life is short so create as many fun memories as you can with your littles in whatever way you and your family love!

The Outback Kangaroo Farm

Being that I was a zoo keeper, and that I still am an avid animal lover, I want my son to learn how amazing animals are. One Sunday we decided to visit The Outback Kangaroo Farm. This is a privately owned, smaller facility that houses a variety of animals including: a tortoise, lemurs, kangaroos, wallabies, emus, alpacas, llamas, peacocks, roosters, rabbits and a variety of hoof stock. You can view the animals via a guided, personalized tour. These are offered Wednesday thru Sunday at 10 am, 12 pm, 2 pm and 4 pm.

We attended a 10 am tour on a Sunday. We weren't sure what to expect, but we held high hopes as this facility had many rave reviews. We were able to find the place, thanks to the GPS, since the signage for the turn in was not well marked. Once we were parked, geared up and got Calvin to try to use the potty, we were greeted by many chickens and roosters that roam the parking lot and gift shop area. Calvin was fascinated with the variety of feathered, noisy birds pecking and parading about. We bought tickets and visited with the parrots in the gift shop while we waited. We also hurriedly shoved food in our faces since food and drinks aren't allowed on the tour. They do have a small selection of snacks and beverages in case you need to fuel up, because few things are worse than a hangry toddler.

The tour is a forty minute walking tour and the terrain can get mucky and rough so I wouldn't recommend strollers. I would recommend a carrier if your little one is not a full walker since the ground can get muddy and forty minutes is a long time to hold a little squirmy one.

The tour was a wonderful experience for the whole family. There were about twenty people total so it was very personalized, and easy to see and interact with the animals. They all appear happy, healthy and many are quite well socialized. The tour guides were friendly and informative. We started off learning about the lemurs and watching the guide feed them bananas. Calvin enjoyed watching them climb and bound around the habitat.

Calvin had an amazing time getting to interact with the animals.  He loved feeding and petting the wallabies and the kangaroos. They had plenty of space and different areas to get away if they weren't up for people time (can't say that I blame them). He loved feeding them leaves and feeling how soft their fur was. I didn't know how he would react to seeing these unusual animals but he had no fear, only gentleness and love. It made my keeper heart swell with pride!

After feeding the wallabies and kangaroos we got to feed and pet some of the hoof stock including donkeys and goats. Calvin was very ticklish and laughed when their fuzzy lips were taking the feed. They were all super enthusiastic to get food!

                  

Next we visited the emus. The guide was the only one who interacted with them. These tough birds are no joke, despite their goofy look. They did, however, come right up for her treats and we got to learn all about them and see their cute, tiny wings.

The tour finished off with us getting to feed and pet the alpacas and llamas. They were super sweet and gentle, especially for alpacas and llamas. Again there was no fear in Calvin, only fascination. Calvin would have fed them all day if he could have!

                  

In summary it is a wonderful place to take the family for an afternoon. This is a unique experience that is fun for people of all ages. The staff love their work and the animals very much. This is a great place to get the to interact with and learn about some amazing animals!

Sick as a Mother

Rewind to a couple of years ago to before I was a mom; when I was sick and praying to the porcelain God. I wondered how anyone would have the energy to wrangle a toddler during a time like this. If you couldn't get out of bed how were you supposed to entertain and care for an energetic little being?

Now, as a mother, I have a new distaste and appreciation for sayings like "a mother doesn't have time to be sick" or "moms don't get sick." Let me tell you right now I have been sick more in my two short years of being a mother, than in my 28 years prior. Kids are little petri dishes for germs. Once he started going to day care the whole family was plagued with various illnesses for about 6 months. On top of all the germs being passed around between day care, work and the family I am so much more run down as a mother, than I was before. Go figure that! I was exhausted, not exercising stellar self care and I would get sick. Who would have thought?

I have been the mom on the couch with a high fever and chills. I've poured out snacks on the coffee table, put out his favorite toys and turned on Sesame Street so my little wild one would be entertained for a couple of hours until my husband got home.

Moms DO get sick and they get sick lots. There are plenty of times when we have to tough it out and manage because we don't have sick time, or our kid was sick, or we were the only care taker. We have all toughed it out and been very thankful when the day was done and we could collapse on the bed.

However, this does not mean that we should always have to tough it out, or that we don't have the right to act like we are sick. If I am really sick, and not in a great place to care for my son, I will ask one of our wonderful family members to watch him, drop him off at day care, or have my husband stay home with him. If you are able to have someone else watch your child while you are sick it doesn't make you a weak mom, or a bad mom. It allows you to care for yourself so that you can heal faster and be a better mom.

It's important to tend to your needs since you have to take care of others. If I'm sick I let me husband know and ask him to do a little more to give me some time to take it easy. And I do the same thing for him when he is sick. We work as a team and step up when the other one needs it.

And do not feel like you are less of a mom for going to the doctor or taking a sick day. You already go above and beyond daily. You have sacrificed your body and changed your life style. You now pee when you laugh, get up at ungodly hours and know the words to every new kid's movie that comes out. You deserve to be healthy and well cared for, so take care of yourself. Take the sick day when you need it. Lean on family and friends when you have to heal and get yourself checked out when you have concerns. A healthy mama means less drama!

Trying To Balance This Unbalanced Life

How do parents find balance? Hell, I can't even balance on one foot. And as for juggling, well I can't juggle more than two balls at once. Balancing life is hard. It was hard prior to becoming a mom, which is a 24-7 job.

I've always been a 110% kind of person. I want to do everything fully and to the best of my ability. In high school I wanted to get straight As, have a social life and be in a ton of clubs. Same goes for college, only add some alcohol and partying into the mix. Now at 30 I'm still the same way. I'm working full time as an Animal Control Officer, I'm a full time mom, wife, a dog and cat mom, home owner, friend, blogger, fitness chick, home cook, dog sitter...oh and  I got the crazy idea to try and learn how to break dance and take some self defense classes. I forget...I'm supposed to sleep at some point.

As you can see balance is a hard thing for me to achieve. There is so much I want to do, and do well. I mean YOLO right?! But the more I put on my plate, the less time and energy that I can dedicate to each area of my life. Sometimes I spend a couple of days each week focusing on certain areas, sometimes I try and devote a little time every day to each area and sometimes I get overwhelmed and cut out some things.

Let me clarify one thing, being a mom is always and will always be number one. My kid comes before everything else on the list including eating, sleep and binge watching cooking shows. All of which are very near and dear to my heart.  Being a mom is my first identity but it's not my only identity.     

Balancing life with kids is an art form. I would place myself in first grade in the school of balancing life.  However, I've picked up some key pointers and important life lessons already in my learning. The first is to prioritize. Is it more important to spend time with my husband cuddling on the couch and watching one of our favorite shows, or do I need to do laundry? Should I spend time playing cars with my son, since he keeps bringing me every hot rod in his collection, or should I finish cleaning the counters?  Prioritize so that when you only get to ten things on your hundred item list they are the most important things you can accomplish. You will always have a list. Chores and red tape will always be there for another time; how nice of them.

I'm also learning to set my expectations low. I get so frustrated when I have it all planned out what I'm going to accomplish during the day and I only get to a few things done on my list. It can make me have less patience, be angry and feel bad about myself. It's important to take time to appreciate everything that you have accomplished during the day. Oh I successfully kept a toddler, two dogs, a cat and myself alive and mostly happy during the day, gold star to me! Oh, I was able to successfully work thru a toddler tantrum in the grocery store because we didn't stop to get a cookie at the bakery, go me! There is so many seemingly little but important things that we accomplish in the day so give yourself props for doing it all.

Now, we all know that a day with a kid never goes as planned, but we forget to factor that in sometimes when we plan our day. Maybe you are out at the grocery store and your little one suddenly becomes possessed and has a complete melt down that you can't recover from. Or you go to take your little one to the mall only to pull in to the store and realized that your kid exploded out of his diaper everywhere and you definitely need to go home and sanitize or maybe throw away everything. Things happen that we can't predict or control. Our lives are constantly structured and chaotic all at the same time. Set your goals low and allow yourself time for crazy life to happen.

Also, make sure that you are a priority. You need to sleep, eat, relax and feel good about yourself to take care of your family. When I take time to recharge, whether it's a fifteen minute escape to the bathroom to "poop," or  a few hours to shop, I feel so much more mentally and physically prepared to take on a toddler.

Lastly, don't compare yourself to other moms. That one can be hard for me. I see a mom that's super in shape or always has her make up and hair done and I get envious. First of all, good to all of those moms out there! But also good for you, for the priorities you chose, and the women that you inspire. Remember that we all focus on different things and balance life differently. We all have different strengths and different weaknesses. Be proud of who you are, the amazing qualities that you have and the wonderful things you focus your time on.

I'm going to keep on trying to navigate the art of balancing this hectic and awesome life. I wish you the best of luck on your journey to do the same. Please feel free to comment on how you balance life and what you focus on. 

Snow Craze

Here, in the Seattle region, we were recently hit with what people are calling Snowmageddon. This winter storm dumped about a foot of mother nature's winter fairy dust right on top of us over several days. While this might seem like a joke to anyone in the Midwest, it definitely brought our daily lives to a screeching post apocalyptic halt. We do see snow on occasion, but it's more like a visit from your far away in-laws. It's infrequent, you over prepare for it but end up under prepared, and it takes a while to recover from.

At first the snow is magical. It's majestically silent and it's breathtakingly beautiful. What's also magical is the feeling of euphoria and awe that a snow day creates. Adults are out walking around with frostbitten noses and blue smiles. The sparkle of the snow matches the gleam in children's eyes as they run out to sled, make snow angels and build a snowman. Also, let's just be honest and say that everyone is glad for a break from the daily work and/or school routine.

However, this feeling quickly fades like perfect, untouched snow in a busy neighborhood. Everyone gets over being cold and shoveling the fallen snow. Cramped quarters result in strained relationships among family members. In general everyone goes stir crazy. I feel like having a toddler in the house escalates the process of becoming stir crazy exponentially. In order for us to maintain our sanity I've pushed my mom creativity to the limits to come up with plenty of activities to fill all nine hours that he is awake in the day (not like I'm counting or anything). I wanted to pass along 20 ideas on how to keep your toddler entertained and how to maintain your sanity on days when you are stuck at home. 

1) Bubbles- These glistening soapy spheres are an easy and cheap way to provide endless entertainment for your toddler. I know that a lot of people don't like using bubbles inside but I use it on the hardwood and do a quick mop of the area afterwards. This activity is sure to get your little wild one running around and using their eye hand coordination to pop those bubbles. It's like watching a cat chase after a lazer pointer. 

2) Outside Snow Play- Take advantage of mother's nature's free toddler enrichment. We took our son, Calvin, sledding around the neighborhood. He loved being out with the other kids and watching them go down the big hills. Calvin, himself, preferred the safety of the small and short hills. We also taught him how to make and throw snowballs. He watched and participated in his first snowball fight, which he thought was awesome. Looking back it probably wasn't conducive to teaching him not to throw things at people....whoops. He learned the art of making a snow angel but he did not enjoy laying down in the snow. We also took him on several walks around the neighborhood and observed the snow.

 

3) Snow Sensory Bin- Eventually the newness of the snow wore off and Calvin learned that he didn't like to be cold and wet. He stopped enjoying going out in the snow so I brought the snow in to him. I filled up a large Tupperware container with snow, cups, bowls and scoops. He loved getting to play with the snow and stay warm at the same time. This activity came to a halt once he tried to have an indoor snow fight. It kept him entertained for about thirty minutes, which is an eternity for a toddler. It also wasn't that messy of an activity since we quickly stopped once he began throwing the snow.

  
4) Simon Says- This is one of my favorite activities to do with my son because he is constantly amazing me by being able to imitate me in ways that I didn't think he would be able to. He has fun trying to copy me and learn new coordinated moves liking jumping and snapping his fingers. He finds it equally as humorous when I copy him. This has also been a great way for us to teach our son to freeze, which is a necessary tool once Calvin is able to book it when he sees a ball or hears an ice cream truck. You can't beat a free, no set up or break down activity that really strengthens the bond between a parent and child. 

5) Music and Dancing- Just get up and then get down with your kiddo. We immerse him in a variety of music. Sometimes we use instruments like shakers or whistles. Sometimes we dance with scarves or pom poms. And sometimes I hold him and dance. Just switch it up. Get your kid moving and immerse them in the arts. Calvin loves to dance...unfortunately he has his dad's dance moves as of yet, but he still has time.

6) Magic Carpet Rides- Calvin absolutely loves to be pulled around on a blanket. I will go slow and fast and use those words as I alternate speed so he learns their meanings. This activity seconds as a workout for the parent pulling their heavy demanding toddler around. This same concept works great with an empty laundry basket. You can even have your little wild one help empty and refill the hamper before and after playing. This is an easy free activity sure to cause a backache, result in a workout and lead to lots of laughter.

7) Puzzles- We love working on one piece puzzles or the shape sorters. He is finally starting to get the hang of them. These puzzles help hone his fine motor, patience and problem solving skills.

8) Books- Calvin is super in to reading right now, which I love. We read a variety of books including: peek a boo books, textured books, books with sounds and soft fabric books. These books provide many different textural and visual learning experiences for him. He loves to flip thru the book and read to me and point at words and objects for me to name.  The secondary benefit to this is I get to snuggle with my son, which doesn't happen very often as he is a squirmy toddler. I enjoy teaching my son words and seeing him excited to read. 

9) Songs-  I find a great way to teach him that holds his attention is thru songs. We spend a lot of time singing songs. I have a terrible voice but luckily Calvin doesn't care. Since he loves to mimic he prefers songs with hand gestures like "Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Baby Shark" and "The Wheels on the Bus." I know...the dreaded Baby Shark song. I too told myself that I would never listen or play that song but he heard it once while we were out and he loves it.
 
10) Talking- I like to talk to anyone that will listen. Sometimes, when in the mood, Calvin likes to listen. I talk to him even if he's not listening; but if he is engaged we will go around the house and point out things and I'll teach him about those objects. It might make you feel crazy walking around the house talking and pointing but it is surprising to me how much he takes in from those talks. This goes a long way in language development so keep talking.
 
11) Sensory Bins- I get inspirations for my sensory bins from the dollar store. I stroll thru the aisles to find different themed toys or different mediums that would make a fun and engaging bin for my son. If there is a holiday I love to make a bin that celebrates that particular holiday. My bins are designed to support discovery, independent play and develop fine motor skills. Here are a couple of Calvin's favorite bins.

12) Stickers-  I have an obsessive amount of stickers from my scrap-booking hobby. Recently, Calvin has gotten super in to stickers. He likes to explore the difference between the sticky and non-sticky side. He enjoys adhering them and trying to take them back off after he has stuck them on to something. This is such an easy and cheap way to provide your child with a busy task.

13) Coloring- We have recently started exploring coloring with washable crayons and markers. The first couple of attempts consisted of me preventing my son from being a marker sniffer or a crayon eater. Once we moved past that and he started to understand and enjoy the concept of coloring it has become more enjoyable for everyone. It doesn't entertain him for very long, and I have to keep a close watch so he doesn't color on something besides the paper or box, but it's fun to let him explore a new art form.

14) Toy Rotations- Switch things up! Calvin gets a new group of toys and books from his collection every week. This helps to ensure that the toys he plays with don't become old too quickly and that he feels like he has new toys to discover we rotate thru all of his toys. If I need some quick Mommy time or I need to complete some chores having toys that are easily accessible to him that he likes is a great way to promote independent play and to let him explore on his own. 

15) Play-Doh- This is a fun, timeless and messy activity. Play-Doh is a blank canvas of creativity. Sometimes we will just feel and play with the play-Doh. Other times we will roll it out and use cookie cutters to cut out shapes. Another thing that we like to do is to take various shapes or textures and press them into the dough. The ideas are endless, but my patience sometimes is not, when I've told him not to try and eat it or smear it off of the splat mat we are using for like the hundredth time. I would definitely recommend closely monitoring your toddler while they play with Play-Doh to ensure that they don't eat it and that your house doesn't become decorated with smears of it. 

16) Magnets- Calvin likess to take off and stick the magnets to different surfaces like baking pans, muffin tins, the fridge and the washer. He also tries to stick them together and pull them apart. As long as the magnets are big enough and you feel comfortable, this is a non messy activity you can give your kiddo to entertain themselves while you do chores or go to the bathroom. 

17) Sorting- Let them sort whatever you want them to sort. Some good things to sort are large pom poms, colored pop-sickle sticks, colored balls and beans in muffin tins. The choices are endless. It's a good way for them to learn about similarities between objects whether it be size, color or type. It just takes a few minutes to throw some stuff together for them to sort and a couple of sorting bins. This quick idea will keep your little ones busy for a few while you take a breather. If you are not a natural at chatting it up to your little one it is a great way to spark an easy conversation with them.   

18) Bath fun- Our little merman loves the bath. We do weekly toy rotations in the bath to help prevent him from getting bored with the toys. Sometimes I will add different scents to his bath like flower petals or lavender. We've also done glow stick baths. He loves to get his rave on in the bath. In addition, I like to do some messy activities in the bath tub right before bath time. It's easy to clean up, they don't make a mess of their clothes and the mess is contained. I'm kind of a clean freak so this works wonders for me. Calvin loves to paint with edible paint like colored whip cream, yogurt or rice cereal, in the bath. He also loves to play with bubble foam. Bubble foam is just whipping up some bath soap so that it's thick and foamy. You can add in some food coloring to dye it. My goal during bath time, besides cleaning up my messy toddler, is for him to have fun so that he loves getting clean.

19) Water play- Calvin likes any excuse to get wet and splash around. This is an easy activity that is quick to set up and doesn't require you to purchase anything. It is also one of the activities that occupies him the longest. I just fill a large bin up with water and add in different cups, spoons, sponges and vessels to create a pour station for him. I do have to closely monitored him so that at least half of the water remains in the general vicinity of the pour station. He loves water play and even though it gets messy it is just water and it's easy to clean up. You can add in ice to give your little one a temperature variable. You can also throw in a couple of toys that float too so they can explore that.

20) Clean up practice- Every lady loves a man who cleans! I'm teaching him right and putting him to work early on. But in all seriousness he loves watching me do household chores and he enjoys assisting so I welcome the not so helpful help right now. Calvin likes to dust, load and unload the washer and dryer and sweep. Sometimes I will put big pieces of "trash" on the ground and use tape to mark an area for him to sweep it all into.  I want to encourage him to be a clean, helpful person and right now cleaning practice is his favorite thing to do, which suits me just fine.

I hope this guide helps you to survive home imprisonment with your busy toddler. Sometimes it's hard to get creative and to have the energy to think of a variety of engaging things for your kiddos to do. Especially when you have the added pressure of them looking at you with their big cute eyes that say "what's next" or their mischievous eyes saying "I wonder what's in here since I'm left to my own devices." When this happens just go to the basics of what they like to do the most. You can also let them take the lead on what they want to do by exploring where they go or by letting them select the toys they want to play with. If all else fails get on the internet to gain some inspiration. And remember that you are doing a freaking amazing job and you will have earned your mommy drink for the evening.

Toddler Fun in Snohomish

I love going on adventures with my family to Snohomish. It is only about a fifteen minute drive so we get to leave home, but if things go south, we can quickly abort and head back. Also, it feels like an escape to me because Snohomish has a different feel and vibe. It has a small town country kind of atmosphere that is refreshing and quaint. The list of activities that I have has been compiled from many different adventures to the beautiful area.

1) Lord Hill Park - It's located at 12921 150th St SE in Snohomish. There are several signs to point you in the right direction of the park. This 1463 acre park contains 6 miles of varying style trails. The trails at this park are great for family hikes, casual strolls in nature or moderate level hikes. Some trails are great for equestrian riders and it's also a popular spot for mountain bikers. The numerous paths allow people to experience a variety of terrains from swamps, to open fields, to woodlands. Some hikes allow for a wonderful, awe inspiring view of Snohomish. The park is also dog friendly. There are picnic areas at the entrance and at the top of Devil's Butte Lookout so you can plan a picnic before, during or after your hike. This large nature preserve offers the opportunity to see many different wildlife species too. My husband and I loved going on the more difficult hikes prior to having a little wild one. However, now we enjoy the shorter, family friendly hikes. These hikes allows us to get out and get us and the dogs exercise without going too far from home. Calvin isn't great at walking either. He's in that very inconvenient middle stage where he doesn't want to sit still for too long but he also doesn't want to walk in one direction for too long yet either. My arm muscles are getting pretty buff, let me tell you. But I digress. The point is that the shorter hikes are great for getting him used to the hiking back pack and allowing him to get out and walk a bit once he's had enough. The trails are kept pretty clear but I do not feel that they are marked very clearly.

2) Riverfront Trail- It's a great historic and scenic walk along downtown Snohomish and the Snohomish River. You can easily access the trail from a couple of locations right off of First Street in downtown Snohomish. There are several entrances into the river from the walk. We have only recently discovered this walk, during the winter, so we have yet to get into the water via these entrances. I mentioned earlier that Calvin is not great at sitting still for very long. Stroller walks can sometimes be painful for both of us when he decides he is finished and we still have to get back to the car. He is too big to carry while holding the dogs and pushing the stroller so these episodes result in the offering of snacks, giving of toys, me singing and bouncing the stroller and all other sorts of distraction techniques to placate him until we make it to the all mighty car. The riverfront walk is less than a mile both ways. It's along the river so there is plenty for you and the little one to look at. To me, it's a really calming walk too since you can hear the rushing of the river. Along the walk there are benches and there are historical plaques providing education about the town. I also like that the path is well paved and easy to take a stroller along. So far we have managed all our stroller walks along this path without any break downs, fingers crossed it stays that way!

  3) Snohomish Library- In another blog post I wrote about the amazing resource that is the library. In that post I focused on the Evergreen Branch of the Everett Library, which is where we used to go to attend the waddler story time classes. Unfortunately, that library is currently under remodeling and so story time classes are not happening at that location. We needed to find another library and another program. We are equally as impressed with the Snohomish Library. First of all it is a large, beautiful library. The children's section is spacious. They have a dedicated play space full of a variety of toys for the kiddos. They have fun activities on the walls and eye catching art. There are also a ton of books for the kids to select from. There are bins down low full of a variety of baby and toddler books too. There are plenty of table and benches for families to sit down and enjoy stories together.

We have been attending the Toddler (19 month-36 month) story time class from 10-1045. These classes consistently have a theme in which the activities and stories are based on. The story time is composed of reading several stories, dancing, singing, music and instruments and visuals to go with the stories. After the story time are bubbles, play time and a craft. The library provides a large selection of age appropriate toys for the kids to play with. The crafts are fun, short and related to the theme. Calvin has always seemed interested in the crafts but they are more designed for the older toddlers. Therefore, he quickly looses interest and it turns into my craft project. Due to the popularity of this program the classes are usually pretty packed so be prepared and come early. The library is located at 311 Maple Ave S.

4) Tillicum Kiwanis Playground- I love that this park is located just a couple of blocks away from the library. After story time we usually head to the park for a bit to burn off some more energy so he will go home and crash for his nap. The park is also his reward for being good during story time. It's a small park but you can't beat the convenience of the location. The equipment is more suitable for older toddlers and kids but Calvin loves the equipment that he can use. There is a picnic bench and a large grassy area too.

5) Snohomish Aquatic Center- This was a magical unicorn find for sure! The aquatic center in Snohomish is a fun small indoor water park that appeals to all ages and offers a variety of class and activities including: swim classes, fitness and training classes and party rentals. They have a competition lap pool, a hot tub, a lazy river, a huge water slide, a surf simulator and a splash zone low entry pool. They literally have everything that any merman, merwoman or merchild would want at this center! Right now we have just been using the Spray and Play area and the competition pool for the balls and hoops they put in during the open rec swim hour. I've put their website below so that you can view their classes and see what times the various pools and areas are open.

https://www.sno.wednet.edu/Page/41

On top of everything they offer it is really cheap! Since my son, Calvin, is under 2 he is free and it's $6 for an adult for the open rec swim, so for the two of us it's just $6 for a guaranteed good time and a worn out kiddo.

They also have family changing rooms, lockers and showers at their facility. In addition to that they have a snack booth and drink stand in case parents, and/or kids, need an energizing boost before or after the swim.

I hope that you have as much fun exploring Snohomish with your little wild one as we have! If you have any other suggestions for fun activities or places to take kiddos in Snohomish then please let me know!