Park Predicaments

At 21 months, Cayden is running full speed through the world. He skips (sorta), climbs, and meanders into any nook he discovers. One of the best parts about becoming a family is that a child can really put the 'simple things' in life in to clear view. Aside from our daily walk, Cayden loves to play at the park and as his mother, I've become a bit of a park enthusiast myself. We're lucky that in our neighborhood there are a lot of options: Bird Park is a great location, but has a very lame play structure; Pioneer Park in Mission Hills has a fantastic new play structure for the little ones and you can take a stroll among the gravestones. The gravestones add a bit of Edward Gorey macabre to a park outing, which I find kind of amusing. The park has becoming a great way to kill the afternoon hours before Papa gets home, but it does present one problem: Where's the line between letting go of your toddler just a little bit and keeping him in one piece?

Sunday was a full day for us and we went to a birthday party in Harry Griffin Park in La Mesa. While it's not close for us, this park is a fantastic place to play! There are huge grass fields to run through, a dog park near the back, and a jumbo play structure! As soon as we got out of the car, Cayden took off yelling, "Side...Side" (slide) and I pretty much had to do a drive-by greeting to the other parents. "Umm...Hi... here's Amaya's gift...gotta go catch..." Immediately, Cayden runs to the biggest play structure and starts warming up. He climbs up the little ladder and does a quick run down the little slide, the one perfectly fit for his size. Or should I say, the one that doesn't make my heart race? Within a few minutes he starts eying the big loopty-loop slide and my mind starts troubleshooting.


At 21 months Cayden is a great walker, but of course like any child he's not safety-proof either. With Thom and I both at the park, managing him is easy. We split duties, one person at the top of the slide, one at the bottom. Being there alone is a whole different story, such was the case on Sunday. I had to assess the situation and decide if it's better for me to be at the top of the slide or the bottom? There's so much to think about: Will my arm fit through the bars to catch him if he stumbles on the ladder? How many steps? Three? Umm, I think he'd be Ok. Of course, while I'm thinking about all this, he's already at the top and getting ready to go. You can never predict the slickness of a slide either. There are some that he's gone off of and he's totally gone airborne! With all my worry though, the slide was just sticky enough with who knows what, to make for a smooth spiral downwards.

At the bottom he was all smiles and staticky hair and ready for "again...again" I love our days in the park and I suppose I love his weeble-wobble ways too because they force me to get up and play right there with him! Even more, despite all the complaints about modern-day gadgetry and TV obbsessed toddlers, a day with Cayden in the park reminds me that you don't need a dollar to make your little boy brilliantly happy.