{hot} dish: new federal hill playground plan

The South Harbor Renaissance community organization recently commissioned a new playground design for Federal Hill Park -- and just released the plan on their facebook page. The new playground is being designed by Hord Coplan Macht and includes Baltimore-centric elements such as a Federalist model ship for kids to play on and explore.

From South Harbor's website:

The proposed playground design will provide a child-centered, parent-friendly experience that also honors Baltimore’s and Federal Hill Park’s rich history. 

The main theme of this plan is a set of miniature, child-centered historic icons, including “The Federalist” ship from the 1780s, for which Federal Hill is named; “Signal Hill Tower”, which stood watch for merchant ships in the 1800s; and “Fort Federal Hill”, which occupied Federal Hill during the Civil War. 

get your play on: our playground at stadium place

Spring has sprung. That can only mean one thing.

It's time to get your playground on.

Ironically, playground scouting was one of the original impetuses behing (cool) progeny. We were looking for the best ones and couldn't find a resource that gave us the information we we're looking for. So we decided to create one.

Almost 10 months later, we are still on a quest to find the area's best playgrounds. Boy did we stumble across a real winner on Sunday!

Have you heard of Our Playground at Stadium Place? It's operated by the YMCA through a unique partnership with Friends of Our Playground, and can be found on 33rd Street in Waverly. A simply fun-tastic place to play.

Things we love:

• It's rubber play surface. Note that's it's not rubber mulch, but rather a pliable surface that degrades the sting of face planting -- which toddlers inevitably do as they are learning to run around.
  
• The abundance of swings. All shapes, heights and sizes.
• We were 'charmed' by the city landmarks built into the play space: a puppet theatre affectionately named 'The Hippodrome' and a wooden train engine labeled 'B&O Railroad.'
  
• Innovative climbing equipment, tunnels and slides create a myriad of age-appropriate challenges for kids 2 and up.
  
• All of the play equipment is constructed out of a trex material, so no splinter threat.

Double-Quadruple-Triple bonus? AMPLE parking in a lot. No need to seek out a spot on the street or -- gasp -- parallel park with an antsy toddler in the backseat.

In the spirit of full disclosure, we were a little taken aback by the sign posted on the gate: No Food. No Drink. No Rats. But, as a mom who has spent many playground hours chasing bees away from those at play, I appreciate the no-food policy. There are picnic areas off of the play space and trash receptacles right as you enter so you can bring along the snacks. Although some debris had drifted over the playground, the YMCA promptly took care of the issue.

We hear that this playground can get pretty crowded during warmer weather and summer vacation, so take advantage of it now while there is still a light nip in the air and the 'big kids' are in school.

Another interesting playground fact? This space was built entirely by the community. After the original playground burned in September 2008. All of the destroyed parts were rebuilt by volunteers on May 5th and 10th, 2009. To find out how you can keep "our" playground beautiful, get in touch with the Friends of Our Playground organization.

Have you been to Our Playground at Stadium Place? We'd love to hear about your experience! Please share by leaving a comment. {{Or let us know about YOUR favorite playground and maybe we'll review that next!}}

(cool) tip: The playground is open 7 days a week until sunset, but doesn't open until 10 AM on Sundays. If it's locked when you get there and it's after the posted opening time, just ask the YMCA for the key.

We're spilling the beans: A FABULOUS hidden gem of a playground...

Oregon Ridge Playground may be one the best-kept secrets around.

Oops. We just spilled it!

This quiet getaway in the Cockeysville/Hunt Valley area has a completely rubber play surface. Not rubber mulch, but rubber surface. (So no, no worries about the rubber mulch controversy here... we're not weighing in, just alerting you that there is one). The Bug literally bounced when she fell off her feet. And then bounced right back up.

The playground space itself is expansive. Towers. Bridges. Rock climbing. Slides. LOTS of slides. Swings. Cars. Monkey bars. One of those playgrounds you wish was in your background!

Even better? The climbing equipment is adult friendly. You can run all over with your toddler and not worry about squeezing through any toddler-sized tunnels.

A few sturdy, covered picnic tables surround one side of the playground. Perfect for snacks or catching up with a friend over coffee while your tikes get some exercise.

The playground is located on the Oregon Ridge complex next to the Lodge (think Oregon Ridge Dinner Theater). Tons of trails and open space. Kickball, anyone?

There is one negative: I didn't see a restroom anywhere. I'm sure there is one close by, but I have no idea where it is. So keep that in mind if you're planning an outing.

Oregon Ridge also has a nature center and beach (small fee for beach access) for sand exploration and swimming. We haven't tried that out yet - - but would LOVE to hear about your experiences!

Hidden Gem: Linkwood Park Playground

You know the funny thing about great playgrounds? They are all different and all have some unique quality that you can't quite describe beyond the word "magical." There isn't a perfect playground checklist. (We tried coming up with one when we reviewed Annie's Playground - - but honestly, it's inadequate.) You know it's great because there is some sort of synergistic magic between your child and the space. A big toothy grin. A huge OOOOHHHH! Constant exploration.

And that's just how our excursion to Linkwood Park Playground went this morning. From Lila's expressions, you would have thought she was on the biggest adventure of her life.

Linkwood Park Playground is a quiet place. Located across Cold Spring Lane from the Loyola University dorms, the shaded playground hosts a variety of climbing equipment, slides of every height and speed, and plenty of swings. There are lots of rocking things to ride and even a retro geodesic dome. The playground uses good old natural mulch, and Lila excitedly discovered the mind-blowing qualities of mud. You have to park in one of the surrounding neighborhoods and walk to the playground, which gave me peace of mind because I didn't have to worry about cars in and out of parking lots or children running at them.

Best of all? The city playground was clean and well cared for. An archived edition of Roland Park Newsletter suggests that the playground was constructed in 2005 and has a volunteer committee that cares for the space.

This is definitely a park we'll be frequenting more often! If you need directions, check out Linkwood Park Playground on the Open Green Map!

Cultivate Imagination at Annie's Playground

We've quickly learned that playgrounds are not a dime a dozen. The little tot lot across the street from our house that we thought was 'so adorable' when we bought the property? It wouldn't even make our top twenty list of playgrounds one year into parenthood.

So how DO we rate playgrounds? I wouldn't say we've adhered to the scientific method on this one... but here goes: It has to have enough swings that you don't need to wait 20 minutes with a less-than patient toddler for the safety swing. Slides? At least two: a big one that can fit a parent-toddler-tandem team and a smaller one that Lila can do with just a bit of assistance. Rock walls? Yeah, we're not really there yet. Extra incentive to go if it has a bouncy, swinging bridge that Lila can stand on while other kids toddle or race across. We pass if the tunnels aren't big enough for an adult to get through because someone will need to go get her if she stops mid-crawl... Speaking of crawling, we generally prefer playgrounds that are well-cared for and clean.

We had heard about Annie's Playground from a friend and made an impromptu trip up the 95 corridor to the Baltimore-Harford County line. Despite high playground standards, we're not really likely to drive thirty miles for a playground visit. But Lila had fallen asleep in her car seat and we opted to take a drive and check it out. We were not disappointed.

The playground blew even OUR wildest imaginations. It was like stepping onto a vacant enchanted storybook stage set. All you had to do was play.

A sea of wooden sculptures to through, or climb up and down, or peek out of. Topsy-turvey slides, cascading slides jetting out of a a dragon's mouth, pirate ships, castle towers, alien spaceship, barnyard animals, and a puppet theater. A mixed-up Sondheim musical playground for kids!

Swing shortage? Not here. There were at least fifteen. Complete with gorgeous garden views.

Walking through the playground, built in memory Annie McGann Cumpston, was like taking a walking tour of a young child's imagination. It's stunning in both it's simplicity (there are no geometric rock climbing domes), beauty and creativity. And it's HUGE.

Located in the heart of Edgely Grove Park in Fallston, Annie's Playground houses an ampitheater, ball pit, and picnic pavilion in addition to it's expansive play area. The park has clean restroom facilities and walking trails. We didn't get a chance to go for a walk - - but plan to visit again and check out how stroller-friendly the paths are!

The one drawback to the playground is also one of the features we appreciated: rubber mulch. Your toddling little one definitely won't get hurt if they fall down, but the mulch heats up just like charcoal on a grill. We made the mistake of visiting the playground during the heat of the day, so we ended up only staying 25 minutes or so. The 83 degree heat radiated off the ground -- not so much fun for a crawling Lila bug. She was happy as long as one of us was holding her away from the ground or she was on the equipment and off of the mulch.

Annie's Playground is definitely one of our new favs - - and 100% worth the drive. Just be sure to head out early in the morning, or during the evening hours if you're planning a visit this summer.

(cool) tip: The park has fantastic picnic facilities (and tons of green space for spreading out blankets), but if you're like us and plan an impromptu visit, check out the Fallston Diner. It's just a few miles from the playground, has exceptional service and huge sandwiches. Pat and I could have easily split one... if we could have come to a consensus on what to order! In typical diner fashion, they had a ton of options.