We started the day at our local Earth Fare market. They have a free kids' cooking class that the boys have been dying to try. And as an added bonus, some friends of ours came along too. The Crafton girls are 7 & 4 years old and we don't get to see them nearly as much as we'd like. The "cooking" project for the morning was to experiment with different fruit and see which made the best tasting smoothie. While the kids were blending, I sat with the girls' mom in the cafe area. It was so nice to eat breakfast, drink a big cup of coffee and chat with a friend -- uninterrupted!
Once the class was finished and their bellies were full of fruit, we said goodbye to the Craftons & headed out for our first park. Some early recon last week made us realize that Fewell Park had undergone so many changes that it wasn't much fun anymore. We crossed that one off our list and went straight to playground #2 -- Cedar Crest. It's been refurbished recently and the kids like it even more than they used to. The weather was beautiful and there were plenty of folks who had the same idea as us. I nabbed the last parking space!
There were lots of toddlers at the park and the boys did a great job of avoiding collisions (while racing down the slide). Parks are a great place to play -- not just on the playground equipment -- so we brought along other "recreational items". I brought out our baseball gloves and we had a game of catch. After almost an hour, the boys were ready to move on.
Our next stop was a tiny playground near the Winthrop Coliseum. I don't even know if it has a name. There is one piece of equipment, some swings, and absolutely NO seats or benches for parents. I was hoping their interest in this location would be short-lived. The kids spent some time on the swings -- something that had been removed from the previous park. But, luckily, a bathroom emergency made it necessary to go quickly to our next destination -- Cherry Park.
Cherry Park is arguably the largest park in town. In addition to a rather large playground, it has a baseball and soccer complex, indoor and outdoor picnic pavilions, foot & bike trails, and a bathroom! (several bathrooms, actually)
We took the chance to sit down and eat our picnic lunch before the boys joined the throngs & throngs of other children who were also enjoying a beautiful day at the park. Cherry Park was a little more enjoyable for Will and Charlie because there were busloads of elementary school children from local daycare centers. So they were able to join in with children their own age. They waited patiently for a turn on the swings and helped other kids gather up hundreds of caterpillars. I was the one who eventually had to insist that we move forward with our plans.
There was an older playground about 1/2 mile from Cherry Park, but once again the boys opted to skip it. They were eager to visit Rock Hill's newest park, Manchester Meadows. The soccer complex there is gorgeous. And the clubhouse is headquarters for Rock Hill Parks & Rec so the bathrooms are always clean. They have level, paved paths throughout the complex which are perfect for biking, skating, etc. The boys had chosen their preferred mode of "wheeled transportation" and were ready to get going. But you can tell from the picture that they were already running out of steam. I decided to stick with my sneakers and walked the path. But I had no trouble keeping up with my two tired little boys. After a few laps around the field, they played a while on the playground. It's the newest one in town and is equipped with a climbing wall and gymnastic rings. It has approximately 6 slides and plenty of room for kids of all ages. The boys always have fun at Manchester.
We finally headed home at 4:00p. After 5 hours at various parks we were all sweaty and I was sunburned. The boys, though exhausted, were still hoping to visit the parks in Fort Mill before Will's taekwondo class at 6:30p. But I was afraid that using up their last bit of energy would turn their moods sour & ruin our fun day. I made them a deal -- I would take them out for dinner instead. Ha! My kids can't resist food.
We went to the new Bat's BBQ next to the Food Lion on Celanese. The kids pigged out -- they were starving! If any of you locals go, I highly recommend the smoked sausage and sweet potato fries. They had just enough energy to make it through taekwondo class and get home for bed.
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