Urbandale Parks Challenge: Lakeview Park

We're nearly done with our Urbandale Parks Challenge. Lakeview Park is our 31st Park, and so we have just one left after this! Lakeview Park has a trail that goes in a loop around a small lake. It branches off connecting to the sidewalk along Aurora Ave, the neighborhood behind the lake, and to the local middle school (where we parked).

As we drove by, we saw a sculpture on the west side. We walked about halfway around the lake, along the east side, and we never found the playground. It must be on the west, but away from the main road.

The kids were happy to play on the oversized Adirondack chairs that make the rounds to different Urbandale Parks. They love it when we find them! And these ones came with beautiful views of the lake.

Along the lake is an open-air shelter with a unique, modern design. I snapped a picture because it looked like a great spot to have a picnic. The shelter is first-come, first-serve (no reservations taken).

Urbandale Parks Challenge: Donald J Brush Park

This afternoon, I took the kids to Donald J Brush Park. It's our 11th park toward completing the Urbandale Park Challenge.  Unlike some of the other neighborhood parks, this one was very easy to find, right off of NW 128th Street. When we pulled up, the kids were excited because we found the adirondack chairs again!

This park was about average, as far as playgrounds go. It did have a digger, but Oliver said it was too lightweight and couldn't dig down into the wood chips very well. I think the kids were a little cranky from the heat, to be honest!

They mostly climbed on stuff, like they did at Colby Woods Park yesterday.

A trail runs near the park, and I saw a number of people ride by on their bicycles. There weren't any kids at the playground, though. The kids got a little bored and hot, so we left after about 15 minutes. Like a few of the other parks, I'd say that this park is a nice one to stop at if you're in the area, but I can't imagine driving any distance to go here.

Urbandale Parks Challenge: Ashleaf Park

 

For the next park in our Urbandale Parks Challenge, we went to Ashleaf Park. We found another set of oversized chairs there! Apparently, the sets of chairs move from park to park. My kids love them.

I wasn't sure what happened at the playground. We found caution tape and beer cans. The tape had fallen down, but I wasn't sure if something was unsafe. So, the kids climbed on other stuff and played on the chairs.

Urbandale Parks Challenge: Walnut Creek Regional Park

The drive to Walnut Creek Regional Park took a lot longer than I expected! It's way out west, but it was worth the drive. The park currently isn't listed on Google Maps, but I just tried to add it so hopefully it will be available soon. To get there, we took I-35 north to the Douglas exit, and then we drove west for probably about 4 miles. We turned right onto 155th, and the winding street changed names a few times before ending right at the playground.

The kids thought the over-sized chairs were pretty much the coolest thing. One helpful kid gave Jo a boost to get into the purple chair. Update: I learned from some other moms in Des Moines that these over-sized chairs move to various Urbandale parks! You can track where the chairs are on the Urbandale Adirondack Chairs Facebook page.

The playground was bustling with kids! There was one kid riding his "crazy car" in the basketball court, and a group of bigger kids were running around playing tag. The trail was a little busy with people going for a stroll, and a couple other parents were there with little kids. I like it when the playground is a little busy!

If you look in the background of the chair picture, you might notice something bright green in the distance. We decided to go check it out. It was a climbing structure! It's meant for bigger kids; Jo couldn't get past the first step, which was probably a good thing!

We've now made it to 4 parks in the Urbandale Park Challenge. 28 more to go!