Rubber mulch seen with playground equipment in the background. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Part of the point of a stay-cation is saving money. This week I need to keep the monkeys entertained and happy without spending loads of cash. Saturday they went to church with Nana, stayed the night with PaPaw and Grandma, and had an overall good time. Sunday, Monkey #1 went to a sleepover with some of his buddies and Monkey #2 camped out in the living room. 2 down, 8 to go….
Luckily for me, Real Chick is doing a Stay-cation, too. She was quick to agree to a play date at the park. Friday, checking the weather forecast, Monday seemed a safe bet. The Field of Dreams Park, in the northern part of town, is close to her neighborhood, and although I would have had to cross the railroad tracks, it was my first suggestion. Real Chick doesn’t have the same qualms about driving distances I do, and liked the idea of East Kings Highway Park, locally known as “The Duck Pond,” even better.
The Duck Pond is located on East Kings Highway in Shreveport, near Shreveport-Barksdale Highway. The park includes a walking trail, a picnic area, several play areas, and a pond that is home to a bunch of really fat well-fed ducks. I really like this park because they have playground equipment for all ages. I went there with my friends as a teen and came back when my monkeys were toddlers. The equipment and grounds have been revamped in the last twenty years, but are even more family-friendly now. Instead of sand or gravel, like you might see at other parks, the playground equipment at the Duck Pond is surrounded by a loose-fill rubber mulch, which makes for cleaner monkeys with fewer “bobos.” Also, each play area has a theme, and my monkeys love love love the pirate ship.
Duck pond park, Shreveport (Photo credit: trudeau)
Due to the freaking FREEZE WARNING we received last night, as well as busy schedules, we set up our play date for 2 this afternoon. I was afraid I’d run behind with 12 year old drama. Real Chick was afraid she’d run behind because of errands on base. Neither of us was particularly late, and Pioneer Woman was able to join us, which was an added bonus.
I’ve decided playdates were invented by mamas, for mamas. It keeps kids out of our hair so we can grown-up talk. And, funny thing, all we had to do was say “grown-up talk” to get any one of the monkeys to turn around and head back to play. Nice!
The weather had the potential to be fabulous. It was so pretty and sunny out! Unfortunately, the temperature rose
maybe into the fifties and the wind today was brutal. I remembered to bring bread for the fowl, but Pioneer Woman and Real Chick are total playdate rock stars – they came prepared with kites! The kids spent a lot of time trying to fly, getting tangled, getting untangled, getting water, and then playing on the playground. I think the monkeys have anti-freeze in their veins. The mamas absolutely do not.
The restroom consisted of what is affectionately known as a “one-holer” with limited privacy, made of metal, only to be used upon threat of bladder explosion. Please note, the Men’s Room at the Full Moon was cleaner and more chick-friendly. Not that I would have touched skin to any metal commode today, even if it was completely germ-free. Just sayin’.
Overall, I think this particular stop on our stay-cation was a huge success. I’m not sure about Real Chick’s girls, but the Monkey’s were asleep before 8:30 – and we skipped karate because Monkey #1 was worn out.
Now I just need to figure out tomorrow.
So if you’re looking for something inexpensive to do for a few hours on a pretty day in Shreveport-Bossier, the Duck Pond is a good bet. There is ample parking and plenty to do. If nothing else, you can burn off a bunch of excess energy in your kids!
Do you have any great parks in your town? Are they worth visiting on stay-cation?
~ Katie
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