Field Trip Fridays

Today's Field Trip Friday includes one thing I forgot to mention in my "Goodbye Summer" post. My local Pool! For the LONGEST my husband would not let me take my daughter to the public pools. He was terrified of the chlorine level being too high, someone pooping in the pool, even someone splashing too hard. But this summer I (and the 100 degree temps) finally convinced him to let her enjoy the pool. We went to the Forest Park Aquatic Center in Forest Park, Il.
 I think this is probably the best pool in the area for young children. It includes a sprinkler playhouse (pictured above) and cool tube slides. I also love that the deep end is blocked off and the shallow part of the pool is the majority of the pool. You know how some pools are shallow for like...a second...you take three steps and you find yourself slipping off of a seemingly cliff of water. I hate those. But this pool has a generous slant where you are fully aware of how deep you are, and are going.
Another thing I love about this pool is the sandbox. Not a teeny one, a large sandbox with sand that is actually clean!
The big seller about this pool for me was the sprinkler park. I loooooovvvvveee the sprinkler park! My daughter felt the same and it was easy for me not to hoover over her and let her run around in the sprinklers and have a little freedom.
 

Field Trip Fridays

A while back I took advantage of a trial class offer at Bubbles Academy in Lincoln Park. My daughter loves music and movement activities so we signed up for the "Bubbles Music Babies" class. I must say Bubbles academy is a cute, cute space. A huge pro of this place is that the floors are made of some kind of soft material, and upon stepping on them I felt like I was walking on a cloud. Awesome for early walkers and excited tots who often trip over their own feet.


Bubbles academy has four themes rooms:

The Meadow room, Ocean room, Mountian room, and Treehouse room. As you can see above, there is plenty to keep your kids entertained.

One of the things I like about the class was that they switched up the activities to keep the kids involved. They sang, played instruments, had free time to explore on their own, and of course...Bubbles! What kid does'nt love bubbles? Since becoming a mom I've really gained an appreciation for them, lol. You can see through them, they float, they can take on any form...just overall awesome. But back to the review...

I highly reccoment that you also join the "Bubble-u-tion" and take advantage of what Bubbles Academy has to offer!

Bubbles Academy

1504 North Fremont Street, Chicago, IL 60642-2526 (312) 944-7677 () ‎ bubblesacademy.com

FIELD TRIP FRIDAYS

Hey Mommies! This is a quick review of one of my recent "field trips" I've taken with my 23 month old daughter in the Chicago land area. I will try to make sure I post a new "FIELD TRIP" post every Friday. My Gym, also has locations in other states so this post is not limited to Chicago area families. The My Gym Children's Fitness Center location I went to is in River Forest, a suburb about 15 minutes west of downtown Chicago.

We signed up for a free trial class, Little Tumblers, which lasted 45 minutes. The class was pretty full, but there was enough activities and equipment to keep my little one busy and not waiting to take a turn to use something. (We all know toddlers CANNOT wait for anything).
As an Early Childhood Professional, and self-proclaimed "Helicopeter mom" I was on the prowl for safety. The space was bright, colorful, and inviting to young children. I did however feel that the equipment was not very safe for children to explore independently, so I advise to always stay near.
The class was great overall. There was time for the children to explore and make choices on their own and also time for them to come together and do group activities. They also sang songs and played instruments, which my kiddo really enjoyed. Awesome staff also, the director was very nice and checked in on us to see how my daughter was liking the space. Here are some pics of the space: