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February: the time in Minnesota where everyone starts going a little crazy from being inside all winter. We have been lucky enough to have a pretty mild winter; in fact E and I have even been able to make a few trips to the park in January and that is UNHEARD of! But going outside is still a challenge and being stuck inside with a baby or young toddler can drive a parent crazy.
I've been working on compiling a list of indoor playgrounds to take your baby to and saw this GREAT list that MinnMoms.com put together. [By the way, if you haven't checked out MinnMoms.com and you live in the Twin Cities you need to add it to your bookmarks!] I've taken some of their list, plus added a few of my own and made sure they are baby friendly. E has been walking for about a month now and he is at that stage where all he wants to do is climb, crawl and walk all over. An indoor playground is PERFECT and I can't wait to take him to one of these!
[photo credit]
Adventure Peak [Edina]
Adventure Peak features great areas for toddlers to explore. The Tot Area includes climbing, crawling, sliding and even bouncing in an inflatable air bounce geared just for them!
Eagles Nest [New Brighton]
Part of Eagles Nest, The Eaglets Aerie, is for kids 3 and under. It has its own colorful ball pit, challenging climbing structure, reading corner and more! $5.50/baby 12 months & up.
The Blast [Eagan]
Babies 17 months and younger are FREE [they do not have a specific toddler area] But at the Eagan Community [where The Blast is] they do have open gym Monday-Friday for $3 which is for ages 1 and & up, see more details here.
Maple Maze [Maple Grove]
Babies under 12 months are FREE and over 12 months are only $5 [$4 for residents] There is a specific toddler area for ages 3 and under where they can crawl into the lions mouth and back down a slide to venture on to the molded alligator, hippo and more.
Lookout Ridge [Woodbury]
They do have a toddler area here [$4.50 for 1 & older]. The "inside tip" is that mornings are usually busy, so if you are looking for a quieter time to take your baby, head on over after lunch.
Tropical Adventure [Shoreview]
Babies under 12 months are free, otherwise it's $5 per child for their indoor playground. Tropical Adventure also has an indoor water park with an area called "Ship Wreck Beach" with a zero depth pool just for little tots to splash & play in!
Sky Zone [Oakdale, Plymouth]
Sky Zone is a indoor trampoline park. Check each website for toddler time [ages 5 & under].
The Little Gym [Edina, Burnsville & {coming soon} Eagan & Eden Prairie]
The only downfall to The Little Gym is that they don't have any type of open gym and you have to sign up for weekly classes. Although your first class is FREE so you can always try it out first!
My Gym [Eden Prairie]
Same thing with My Gym, they have ongoing classes that you can register for unless you are a member then they have "free play".
I have yet to speak from experience about any of these places so I would love to hear if you have been to any and how they were. Or did I miss any places you like to bring your older baby to? Please share!
7 comments:
You know what I want to see? More coffee shops with play areas in them!! I know of a few (Riverview, Sovereign Grounds, Java Train) - but none are great. If I had any business sense, I'd open one. But I don't. :)
Oh, I also wanted to mention that Edinborough (Adventure Peak) is SO GREAT on school days. The infant/toddler area isn't usually too busy. But, to me, paying $5.50 per kid (and I have twins) for a young toddler (12-18 months) is outrageous! We never last more than 30-40 minutes there. So the cost is too high. For babies/toddlers that age - The Blast in Eagan is much better. And free through 17 months! But again, only go on school days. If you go on a non-school day, it's crazy busy.
@Tracy: So the blast is good for little guys [and gals!]?? I tried calling to see if they had a tot area and the lady on the phone wasn't too helpful. And I AGREE about the coffee shops w play areas.... we mamas NEED our coffee :D
As a New Brighton resident, I have spent numerous hours at the Eagle's Nest with my young daughters, ages 4 1/2 and 18 months. We love this place! The toddler area is wonderful - very roomy with a variety of activities. For the most part, my baby can wander around safely while I watch from a bench along the side. I would recommend avoiding weekends because with all of the birthday parties, it can be terribly busy. Sometimes older kids slip in and can get a little wild with throwing balls, but the staff is pretty good about monitoring the room and asking older childrent to move back to the front area. On Monday and Wednesday mornings, they also open the community center gym for preschools. The gym is equipped with foam building structures, rolling scooters, and a bouncer. A couple things to note is that the price drops to $3 after 6 PM on weeknights, and there are BOGO coupons in the current Happenings book if you have more than one child.
I have spent less time at the Shoreview Community Center. The Tropics water park is wonderful. The toddler swim area has a water fall / water spray area and a small kiddie-slide that parents can ride with their children. The larger swimming area has basketball, a stepping stone activity, several large floaters for kids to climb on, and a big water slide. In the summer months, there is also a very small kiddie pool outside for kids to splash in. The downside is that it can be really pricey if you are bringing multiple kids (plus yourself).
On the other hand, I was not impressed with the indoor climbing area at the community center (Tropical Adventure). The day we visited, my 4 1/2 year old got stuck and I thankfully had my 9 year old stepdaughter with us to retrieve her. I would not have attempted to let my baby crawl in there, it isn't toddler-friendly at all. The stucture is built into a tiny cramped room, with benches along the edges. You cannot easily see your child inside the structure, and I didn't get the impression it was very clean. The day we were there, the room smelled badly like dirty diapers. (On the other hand, the Eagles Nest is very spacious and the staff thoroughly cleans it at least daily, if not more often). We spent maybe 30 minutes in the structure before moving on to the pool. I could have perhaps come on a bad day, but I won't be returning to the climbing area when the Eagles Nest is in the same vicinity of the Twin Cities and a much better value for the cost.
Sorry - I forgot to mention but the photos posted on this page are all from the Eagles Nest toddler area. I just thought I'd mention that if anyone wanted to see what it looks like.
Nancy, THANK YOU for such a detailed response! Always good to have feedback from people who have actually been to the different locations. :)
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