As a toddler mama who works from home, it is hard to be in my house without my to-do list STARING me in the face. My computer reminds me of work stuff that needs to happen. Sometimes there's dishes. ALWAYS there's laundry. Maybe I need to scrub a bathroom or there is a big organization project looming that I know I need to start on. What if in the midst of all that, I'm craving to feel more connected to my son, and to spend more time focusing on him and only him.
Well that is EXACTLY why I try to get us out of the house for adventures whenever possible.
When my toddler and I are out of the house, it is easy peasy to focus on the thing that matters most-- HIM! I'm not dealing with that common mom guilt that so many moms feel when they are taking stock of their task lists. I focus on us being out and having a good time together. I focus on getting him to smile and watching him learn new things. Now it's not like we don't ever do this when we are at home-- we certainly do. It just so happens that when we do this out of the house, my stress cloud doesn't seem to follow me around as much.
So nowadays, I try to get us out of the house a couple times a week. Warmer weather leads to lots of options but right now-- we're in February. Finding great indoor activities that don't break the bank are important and that is 100% why I think this indoor playground is a huge blessing.
A short drive from me to just a few towns over is PEEKABOO PLAYGROUND, a soft indoor playground where a toddler has tons of great new things to do in a safe and clean environment at the super affordable price of $13 (younger kids and siblings are even CHEAPER!). We recently had our first trip to PEEKABOO and LOVED it! We went later in the afternoon hoping for a less busy environment and that totally checked out. There were enough kids there for my kiddo to practice his social skills, but not so many that he was too nervous to explore the many features of the venue. He was happy to climb in the jungle gyms, slide down the slides, build with the massive blocks and more. We planned to be there only an hour but ended up staying there for an hour and a half. We easily could have stayed longer but I wanted to get home to get dinner started.
As a mom during flu season, I was over the moon to see the cleaning products in stock all over the facility. The staff was super friendly and sweet and I also enjoyed chatting with the other parents there. I appreciated that there was a designated snack area, big family bathrooms, and a cute little store up front to get my little sweetheart a little something extra for good behavior (and to avoid a meltdown because we had to leave!).
Peekaboo has two locations-- we went to the Bayville one but I may make a plan to see their other facility as well. When you go, kake sure everyone has clean socks as this is a sock only venue (as are most of these types of places). I happened to have mismatched socks that day, which luckily doesn't really embarrass me! Slip on shoes also make getting in and getting out a bit easier. For open play, I suggest families check their website, socials or call for availability. I am sure parties can sway available play times. I called ahead to confirm hours before packing my toddler in the car.
I have heard great things about these Playgrounds before but avoided them because I was a bit worried they might be germ factories and would feel icky. After our visit, I am very confident that the Peekaboo staff does everything they can to keep the facility as clean and germ free as possible. After all-- I probably saw about 10 different bottles of microban spray while I was there!
We plan to be frequent flyers here! At $13-- the price is certainly right!