A Stroll At The Kingwood Center

As a family, we love to visit The Kingwood Center in Mansfield several times a year. My husband and I love the flowers and plants. The kids love the statues and we all love the exercise! It is easy to spend an hour strolling the paths with the kids.

The Kingwood was one of the first places Adam and I visited when we moved to Mansfield, pre-kids. Over the years we moved, but we make a point to visit The Kingwood several times a year with the kids, not only for the experience but also to revisit our roots in a way.

The Kingwood Center is a 47 acre estate that is open to the public. The grounds are compromised of gardens that are breathtaking. Kingwood Center Gardens develops and displays exemplary gardens on the former estate of Charles Kelley King for the pleasure and education of its constituents.  While admission is free there is a parking charge. It is minimal and helps to support the operation of this amazing place in Ohio.

If you visit, plan to stop by the greenhouses. It is easy to get swept away in the fun of the outdoor experience, but the greenhouse offers many gems including a fantastic banana tree. We seem to make a purchase of a plant on each visit.

This is a great place to snap some awesome photos of your family. The flowers are awesome in the spring and summer, in the fall the leaves add a lot to the experience.

Be sure to bring quarters to buy a few handfuls of food for the ducks! If you pay attention you may see the peacocks. They were nesting on eggs on our last month so we really hope to make it back this summer to see babies!

Do you have a favorite public garden? I would love to hear about it!

Fun With the Kids: The Rennaissance Teddy Bear concert Series

My family is always looking for something fun to do with the kids! Lucky for us, we live in Ohio! There are so many things to do in this state! From parks and museums; to the Lake {We have some major #LakeErieLove in this family!}; to the events that are ideal for families!

Next weekend on April 3rd we will be heading to the Renaissance in historic downtown Mansfield to see a really adorable performance with Roo and Harper! They are so excited about the Teddy Bear Concert: The Emperors New Clothes. Let me tell you a little more about this performance and why you are going to want to head into Mansfield for the event!

This show is a part of the Mechanics Bank Education Series. It is the perfect way to introduce your kids to theater and live performances. This performance will feature a woodwind trio playing popular and classical selections along with an interactive puppet retelling of the Emperor's New Clothes with actors Maddie Beer and Colton Penwell. My kids are incredibly excited! 

The show begins at 2:30 pm on Sunday, April 3rd. Of course, doors open an hour before the start of the show. If you are worried about price, don't be! This show is incredibly affordable! Tickets start at $10. 

Have you ever taken your kids to a play? How did it go? We have taken Rolf to a few when he was a toddler. He did really well with sitting and watching! Harper has not been to the theater yet, but I anticipate that she is going to love the Teddy Bear Concert! 

Millstone Creek Park : Topping the List of Best Ohio Playgrounds

We really love to go to the park and play! My family has a once a week standing date for the park. When my son gets out of school we go to the park and play! Mr. Sweet Silly Sara meets us there when he is off of work. It is probably my kids favorite day of the week. Not only do we love to enjoy the parks in our town, but we also love to get out and look for the best parks and playgrounds that Ohio has to offer.

In August we had to make a trip to Lancaster, Ohio. That is a long drive with young kids. On our way back we made a detour to Westerville, Ohio to Millstone Creek Park. Our kids were so glad to get out, stretch their legs and play with other kids!

This is the most awesome park we have experienced with the kids. As we arrived, we enjoyed a short walk over a boardwalk. My kids were delighted to hear a bullfrog and see it hop into the water. As we arrived at the playground my kids were ready to run!

Harp loves Millstone Creek Park!

 My son really loved the park. He was a blur then entire time we were there. Constant motion! I promise he was there, but no great photos of Roo were taken.

Harp was ready to climb!

 One of the things I loved about this park was there were so many things for kids of all ages and all abilities to do. This is one of the playgrounds that are accessible and fun for kids with special needs such as wheelchairs. Knowing that this area was designed with all kids in mind really sets it apart from others!

The park had a nice sculpture to view and a great slide; that kind of went down a hill into an area of tall grass. This was fun for my adventure seeker son!

My sweet little Harper adored this park. There were so many things for her to do, explore and discover. To see her having so much fun was contagious. My mood immediately lifted upon the first sound of her giggles.

This park was spacious, super clean and really quite lovely. The sound of happy children playing was thick in the air and there was no way to avoid the contagious feeling of a great summer day.

The entire family loved the option of taking the boardwalk or hopping over some stones in a creek to reach the playground. My husband and I had a blast playing this electronic game together. It was a fun way to get moving ourselves while showing our kids you are never to old to play!

Millstone Creek Park was fantastic. It very well may be the best park in Ohio. It is certainly on the top of our list of Best Ohio Playgrounds!