Humphrey Calder Community Center and Park

May. 27 Featured, For Richmond Kids, Richmond Kids Activities, Richmond parks no comments

Last week we met some friends at a park that was new to us.  It is located in the city at the intersection of Kensington and Thompson, right next to a fire station.  It seems like there is something for everyone at this park; soccer, basketball, volleyball and of course the playground itself.  I was so excited to see that they have toddler swings.  For some reason I have not found many parks near my house that have swings for toddlers.  The boys wasted no time getting to the task at hand…exploring.

I love taking them to new places and watching them discover all that it has to offer.  This playground has things for different ages and stages of development, which is great for families with lots of children.  The bigger kids were climbing and going down the much bigger slides while the smaller kids were enjoying the see-saws, swings and much shorter slides.  My guys are still pretty young so they did lots of watching at first and eventually wandered over to the swings.  It is so nice to put them in swings that don’t need batteries or a doorway to hang from.  They loved it!  When they were finished with the swings we wandered over to watch some older kids.  Before I knew it, one of my little guys was climbing the stairs to one of the slides for older kids.  Not wanting to disappoint, I climbed up behind him and we went down together. 

I must say that the most exciting part of our visit to this playground was the train.  Since the park is situated overlooking 195, there is a perfect view of the train tracks.  As soon as the train was heard all of the kids there at the time ran over to the fence to watch.  My two followed the pack not knowing what was going on, but wanting to be part of the crowd.  I look forward to the day that I can sit on the bench and watch them play without having to follow so closely behind.

All in all it was a good time for us and a great playground to add to our list.  I must also note that there are public restrooms on the premises, and although I did not go in personally, I was told that they should only be used for emergencies.  Please visit this link for a little more information about the programs offered for children, teens and adults at the Humphrey Calder Community Center.   http://www.richmondgov.com/parks/CommunityCenterHumphreyCalder.aspx

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Core Kids Academy

May. 20 For Richmond Kids no comments

Core

What to do when the energy level is just too much? A little gem of a place we’ve found for our kids is a neat, colorful nook nestled into the Quioccasin Station shopping center called Core Kids Academy.


Core is a small, female-owned gymnastics firm where Coach Cora Pedrazzi presides over all the bouncing, bounding, jumping, and leaping that goes on between her two trampolines and dozens of gymnastics props around the gym. Each one of my kids—now ages eight, five, and three—have taken group lessons there as well as had their birthday parties there in the past.

Although they may be lesser-known, they are small but mighty—classes are full but not overcrowded, and everybody knows your name. I like that.

It’s tough to keep all of my kiddos occupied when just one has a class, and one of the best things about Core is that they have a nice, spacious room where kids can go to draw, color, do homework, play DS, or just hang out and stay out of harm’s way while their sibling is in class. This room has saved us from trouble on more than one occasion!

Holly, Cora, and the whole Core team has really taken to each of our kids and worked hard to make it a fun experience for them; for that I’m truly appreciative. Although I don’t have a lick of gymnastics skill myself, I love watching these skills develop in each kiddo while their confidence grows.

I think that the people at Core—even moreso than the skill-building—has the most to do with that.

You can bet we’re heading there for camp this summer. See you there!

Kate Hall is the Founder/CEO of Richmondmom.com

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Rainy Day Play in Richmond

May. 20 For Richmond Kids, Richmond Shopping Malls no comments

With all of the rain in the last few days I haven’t been able to take the boys outside to play and work off some of their energy.  So, earlier this week we headed to the mall for some retail therapy for me, and play time for them.  In Chesterfield Towne Center there are two play areas for kids.  I chose the larger area this time, called the River Romp.  It was quite busy that afternoon with kids ranging in age from baby to maybe 5 or 6.  There is a rule that children must be less than a certain height to play, not that I know who would enforce it, but I didn’t see any kids that looked too tall or old to be there.

I immediately noticed how clean the play area was.  It helps that the kids must remove their shoes and no food or drinks are allowed.  The mall staff comes several times throughout the day to clean and disinfect, and during these cleanings everyone must leave the area.  I was also pleasantly surprised to learn that everything inside is padded, including the floor.  This was very reassuring since my guys are frequently tripping over their own feet and often fall down face first.  In here they seem to bounce right back up! 

There were plenty of bugs to climb up and over, tree stumps to crawl through and slides coming out of a tree.  At times the boys were happy to walk around and watch the other kids.  I was very happy to be able to sit and watch them.  Don’t let yourself get too comfortable though.  I must warn you that the doorway is completely open.  At one point one of my boys wandered out while I was on the other side of the play area and he was out of my sight.  Luckily another parent grabbed him before he got very far.  Lesson learned!  The next time we visit I will be sure to position myself right by the entrance to prevent any attempts to escape.

Please visit their website for additional mall information.  www.chesterfieldcenter.com

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Why We Love CMoR (Children’s Museum of Richmond)

May. 12 For Richmond Kids, Richmond Museum 1 comment

For my boys’ first birthday their Aunt bought them a membership (good for 1 year) to the Children’s Museum of Richmond.  What a great gift!  We had been before when they were much younger, but now that they are one and walking, it seems that they just enjoy it so much more.  In fact, so do I.  I love the fact that there is a room specifically for kids 3 and under.  As long as everyone adheres to that, you don’t have to worry about older kids running all over the little ones.  The area is large and enclosed.  I feel very comfortable letting them loose while I sit and watch. 

The baby/toddler is called the Little Farm.  There are animals to “feed”, eggs to gather and veggies to harvest.  My boys have always been huge fans of the vegetable garden.  They usually each choose one and then tote it around the room with them until something else grabs their attention.  On this last visit they were smitten with what I refer to as the egg drop.  Watching the eggs roll down the chutes could entertain them for hours.  I intervened after about 20 minutes and suggested that we go fishing. 

There’s a small fishing boat on the other side of the room stocked with magnetic fishing poles and little fish.  They haven’t quite mastered the art of fishing but it is really fun to watch them try and imitate the older kids.  Since my kids are not yet in school and do not go to daycare, this social interaction is great for them.  And whether they realize it or not, they are learning how to play well with others.  On more than one occasion we have been there at the same time as a small daycare group.  The woman in charge of this group only speaks to the kids in Spanish.  I love that my kids always seem to migrate over to this group, and I can only hope that they pick up on a few things.         

Some other attractions in the Little Farm are the crawling area for infants, a farmers market and a kitchen area.  And although we have not ventured outside ourselves this spring, there is an outdoor play area.  I am told that during the summer there is some water play for the little ones.  I look forward to a warm day to try it out.  I must also note that the museum employees are very good about keeping everything clean and disinfected throughout the day. 

This is just one small sampling of what the Children’s Museum has to offer.  There are plenty of other exhibits for older kids as well.  There are also all kinds of classes and summer camps, and you can even rent the party room for birthdays.  A new Short Pump location is opening in June.  Our membership is good in both locations so I am very excited to check out the new space.  For more information please visit their website.  www.c-mor.org

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