This weekend we headed out to Three Bears Acres near Creedmoor for a fun parent/kid play date with some folks from the daycare Griff used to attend. I had read many good reviews of this place, but we’d never managed to get out there previously, so we packed a lunch (they have a very limited concession stand and there’s nowhere to eat nearby) and off we went.

To be honest, we were a little underwhelmed when we first arrived. The area near the entrance is a big scrubby field with a giant inflatable bouncy pillow (this was a huge hit with both the kids and adults) and a smattering of other stations, including a sand box, a mud kitchen, a grafitti wall, an archery/slingshot area, and a field where kids can climb into giant PVC drainpipes and roll around.

Once we explored a little further, though, we were seriously impressed. Back in the (lovely, cool, shady) woods is a giant 4-lane slide that you can sled down (so fun!), a big pond with pedal boats, a water play area (which we skipped), and an enormous play structure with swings, slides, and playhouses. There are large picnic tables right in the center of all this where you can plop your stuff down and wander back for snacks whenever folks are hungry. We had no trouble staying busy from around 10:30am to well past 4pm, and the kids didn’t want to leave even then! The staff were all really sweet, as well.

Here are some photos from our day there. I really can’t recommend it enough for a day of flat-out, full-tilt outside fun (and it’s just as enjoyable for the adults as the kids).

I’ve been working on getting into a fall/autumn mindset to gear up on cold-weather knitting projects (the recent spate of 90-degree weather isn’t helping, though). I decided to start with something quick and fun: a pumpkin hat for Griff. I’ve been meaning to make him one of these for years. I told him about my plan, and he was totally enthused, to the point that he sat next to me on the couch watching me finish knitting the stem, wore his new hat around the house all Friday evening, and reminded me before bed on Friday night that I needed to keep knitting the leaf for the top.

I know in a few years he’ll probably consider anything I make for him to be lame beyond belief, so I really cherish this time. There’s no better payoff to any kind of handcrafter than having someone be completely thrilled with something you’ve made for them.