Guest Post: The Twin Spin in Austin

Katherine Fleischer Park

When Heidi asked me to guest post for her while she was up in Canadia (not a typo) frivolously spending all of her loonies and twoneys, I said, “Sure! I’d love to enlighten all of your readers about all of the fun, free things that are easy to do with twins!” Or in my case, twins plus one.

Then I thought about it. And thought. And thought. Because the only place that’s really easy for us to go is our backyard (and even that’s not always easy), and as much as I love you all, I don’t want the entire city of Austin trampling on my weeds grass.

But good guest poster than I am, I’m going to power through.

Let’s talk about parks. Parks are free. Parks are fun. And Austin has a lot of them. They all have their pros and cons, so I’m going to break down some local parks for you based on “Leigh Ann’s (Not Really) Patented Park Twin Judgement System". This ingenious system rates parks high, medium, and low, on three things:

•   FUN, or variety of age appropriate activities - Are there play areas for toddlers and older kids? Lots of things to do, or is everyone going to be bored after 5 minutes?

•   SUN, or weather resistance - Are you going to be left in the blistering sun the entire time? Or are there plenty of shaded areas to cool off in? What about picnic tables, and pavilions?

•   RUN, aka flight risk - Probably my most important factor to consider since I’m always outnumbered. Is the space fairly easy to manage, or will you be left in the dust as your kids run for the hills, or worse, the street?

So let’s talk about some parks, people! [Note: I am mainly covering parks on the north side, well, because that’s where I live. You’ll see some central as well. Oh, and my kids are ages 3 (times 2, which does not equal 6, much to my chagrin) and 1, so a lot of my opinions are based on their abilities and my need to keep a close eye on them.]

Zilker Park -- Centrally located, it’s the home of the Austin City Limits Music Festival, Barton Springs Pool, and the Zilker Zephyr train. Lots of space, lots of fun, and guess what? Lots of people. I don’t think I’ve ever been there when it wasn’t crowded. School groups often make field trips to Zilker.

•   FUN: High! Seriously, this park is fun! There is so much to do! The train is only a few bucks, there are nearby concessions serving food, drinks, ice cream, and snow cones. The playscape has tons of stuff for kids of all ages, from bucket swings to tall playscapes.

•   SUN: Medium. Most of the playscape area is in the sun, but there is plenty of shade surrounding it. The immediate area also offers picnic tables and a huge nearby pavilion that can be rented for parties.

•   RUN: High. Moms of multiples have mentioned having a hard time at Zilker if alone with their kids. The playscape is large, it’s most often crowded, and it’s easy to lose sight of your kids while they get lost in play (tip: dress them alike!). With another parent or friend it might be a little easier and less stress inducing.

•   Overall grade: Excellent, as long as you have help, or older kids who don’t need to be watched as closely.

Springwoods Park -- Located on Anderson Mill just off 183, Springwoods is a lovely neighborhood park.

•   FUN: High. This park has two good sized playscapes, one of them just installed last year. Plenty of slides, climbing equipment, and swings for all ages. We like the little dinosaurs. And bonus? Little gravel rocks, since that’s all one of my kids wants to play with. Bring a bucket and a shovel.

•   SUN: Low. This park has tons of shade. One of the playscapes is in the sun, but surrounded by shade and nearby picnic tables when you need a break. There’s even a nice gravel trail that goes around the park and is mostly shaded if you feel like taking a fun mini hike.

•   RUN: Medium. This park is fairly manageable. It’s far and blocked off from the street, but one of the play scapes is kind of close to the parking lot. And the two play scapes are pretty far from each other, so if one of my kids takes off for the other one, I have to either drag her sisters over there with her, or bring her back to keep us all together. They also have a tendency to flee the play area for the nearby soccer field.

•   Overall grade: Exemplary, as long as your kids will stay together.

Milwood Park  -- Just down Anderson Mill on Amasia, Milwood Park is a cute little park that’s perfect for a last minute trip.

•   FUN: High. Milwood Park may be small, but it has plenty of activities. Smaller children can explore the Little Tikes play scape, climb on more little dinosaurs, or relax in the bucket swings. Older kids will love the zipline and slides on the larger playscape. And they are close enough together that you won’t sweat it if they separate.

•   SUN: Medium. Plenty of shade, plenty of sun, and plenty of tables very close to the play area, as well as a nearby pavilion with several more tables.

•   RUN: Low. There’s a trail that runs around the park and leads to a greenbelt, but it’s not hard to gather the troops and take a little walk.

•   Overall grade: Excellent. Plenty to do, but small enough to keep an eye on everyone.

Katherine Fleischer Park -- Located in the Wells Branch MUD, it offers a lot of variety that you don’t see at most neighborhood parks..

FUN: High. Fleischer Park has 2 playscapes, one for ages 2-5 and one for 5+. It also has plenty of swings, a large wooden playhouse, and a large sandbox. Did you hear me? A sandbox!

SUN: Medium. The sandbox area gets a lot of sun, but a covered pavilion and numerous trees provide plenty of shade throughout the park.

RUN: Low. I drove out of my way to go to this park because my girls would plant themselves in the sandbox and never move. Twin moms can get a feel for a park and whether or not there’s a huge flight risk, and this one gets a thumbs up for safety.

Overall grade: Excellent. Easy to handle, with a large variety of things to do.

Rattan Creek Park -- This is a new favorite for our family, but it does pose some challenges.

•   FUN: High. Rattan Creek has tons to do! Two fun playscapes, one with a triple slide that goes three different directions, two separate swingsets, and a huge climbing rock give kids lots of options. Nearby trails and soccer fields are great for running about. My girls go nuts over the huge hill (excuse me, mountain) that provides a buffer to the road.

•   SUN: Medium. Like all good parks, there’s plenty of shade and plenty of sun. One negative is that there’s only one small pavilion with two tables, but there are plenty of ledges and benches to sit elsewhere.

•   RUN: High. I love this park, but I do need help there. While the large hill does provide some blockage to the road, kids can easily run right over it and BAM! There’s the street. There’s so much to do, and it’s fairly spread out, so young kids wanting to play on separate activities can be hard to keep an eye on or can easily turn the corner and follow the trail without mom seeing.

•   Overall grade: Great, as long as you have someone with you to help manage the kids, or if your kids are old enough to play on their own and not wander too far.

So there you have it! Some of my favorite parks broken down from a twin mom’s perspective. When you have twins, it’s often hard gather the courage to get out of the house on your own with them, but by doing a little research, you can find the perfect park for you and your kiddos.

Leigh Ann Torres is a freelance writer and mom to three year old twins and a bonus baby. When she’s not cleaning up endless messes, tweeting, or trying to get the poop smell out of her house, she blogs a The Twin Spin. You can also find her at Examiner.com and Suite101.