3 parks with lakes for stroller-friendly walks
3 parks with lakes for stroller-friendly walks
Plus, make your Thanksgiving restaurant reservations soon
Somehow walks around lakes hit different than just a regular walk through the park!
I had a little poll in my Instagram Stories this week and the majority of you responded that things are rough, you need a reset, or you’re just generally overwhelmed. (Me, too! All of the above.) So let’s try to be nice to ourselves!
There is no way to get around those feelings. And I know it’s really hard to prioritize play when it’s necessary to prioritize your health, your budget, your housing, your family members, schooling, your to-do list — AND all of those things are battling it out for your attention and action outside your family unit. It never ends!
Let’s try to insert some micro-breaks and moments of joy into your day to take the overwhelm down a notch.
Take care of yourself!
Michele
As a friendly reminder, make sure you ALWAYS check official sources when you are heading out to any of the locations I share. These are merely suggestions. Only you know what works for your family. Plus, your experience may not be the same as mine — and there can be changes to the hours or unforeseen circumstances or conditions at the suggested locations.
Featured Post: Thanksgiving Restaurants
I don’t know if this is the biggest list of options in OC, but I do think it’s the best! Mostly because YOU have added to it over the years to fill it with all of your experiences when eating out.
I put in a lot of work to update it this week. I will keep spending time each week until right before Thanksgiving. Share a link to this post with friends — or when you see someone ask if you’re on Reddit or in a Facebook group! I would love to collectively save everyone some time!
You might wonder what eating out on Thanksgiving has to do with parks and play? I don’t know! Maybe if you eat out, then you have more time for parks and play? It’s just something we have done with family over the years — and you know how much I like making and keeping lists!
3 parks with lake walks
Don’t be afraid to stop the walk and sit for a while to watch the world go by. These are great for moving, but also for sitting and noticing what’s happening around you in nature.
Tri-City Park in Placentia
Let’s start with this one in Placentia! I love this park because:
It’s free.
It’s easy access from parking.
I always spot cool birds and even turtles here!
Read the blog post with info about restrooms, the playground, and even the outdoor workout area!
Heritage Park in Irvine
The lake at Heritage Park is a feature of the park so it's not super big - but it’s nice for a short stroll, a visit to the nearby library, and playing at the nautical-themed playground.
Read the blog post to find out about one of the only year-round splash pads in Orange County at this park!
Just a FYI that sometimes the path is littered with goose droppings. (Did you know you can always contact your city to report things that need a service call at the parks you visit? So many cities now have apps! For instance, the City of Irvine’s app is called “Access Irvine”.)
Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley
I like the lake at Mile Square Park nearest to Edinger for walking because there is a sidewalk all around it plus there’s Palm Island and you can even ride on a swan boat — only if you time it right and want to splurge on renting one. Here’s an idea of the route.
Read the blog post to find out about where to park and 8 other things to do on your visit to the park!
PLAY: You get to decide!
This is the section of the newsletter where we talk about PLAY each week. I might share a video, an article, a book, or something inspiring. Just trying to help keep you empowered to prioritize play to benefit development and preserve childhood!
I feel like sometimes it may not even occur to you that there is a choice in how you spend your time + energy — and YOU get to decide! You can get off that hamster wheel of constant activity and do your own thing.
You get to decide:
How many seasonal events or activities you attend (that number CAN be zero!)
How much money you spend on “entertainment” for your kids (that number CAN be zero, too!)
What is “worth it” to your family - this will depend on your budget, your tolerance for crowds, your personality and your children’s personalities, too! Be picky! Don’t worry about missing out on anything! FOMO is real, but you can overcome it.
Or maybe you prioritize free play time and THEN make the decision for adding in anything/everything else?
If you feel like you are constantly swimming against the tide, then I hope you don’t worry about not doing enough! Your child(ren) will benefit from downtime and playtime — and your family will figure out what balance works best for you by ignoring the influence of outside pressures to do more and especially to spend more.
One example of getting to decide: I don’t know if you follow, JessiMeeks on Instagram — but she just cold turkey took TV away from her kids for reasons that made sense to her family in the moment. Not easy. Not the norm. Here’s why and how she did it. I loved hearing her story and how it turned out. And I’m not saying you need to do this! Just relatable how it feels to change things up at home.
Would a FREE personal 1-topping pizza help?
Remember my posts about Fresh Brothers Pizza on Instagram? I first paid our own way to try out their Lunch Deal ($9.99 available Monday – Friday until 3pm!). It was yummy and I shared it with you. Then they treated me and a friend to lunch.
I honestly don’t seek out influencer opportunities or sponsorships, but I first posted about them years ago on the blog when they opened their Laguna Niguel store. Apparently, I only go for decades long business relationships who respect and treat my audience and make things easy for me to share? They have been nice to support me (and now you) with food freebies — and I truly think their pizzas live up to the “fresh” in their name which makes them have tons of flavor but at a reasonable price.
Anyways, they provided me with a freebie to share with you! The first 25 subscribers to message me by replying to this email will get one of these cards! If you are one of the first 25, I will ask for your mailing address and pop it in the mail to you this weekend. OC locations in: Irvine, Newport Beach, Corona Del Mar, and Laguna Niguel. Link to the menu which is WAY more than just pizza.
Not part of this offering, but they are launching a Detroit-style pizza next month! I’ll be sharing about it when it comes out!
Tiny Hike Teaser: If you like trees and horses, you’ll like this one!
OC Tiny Hikes are a PAID add-on/upgrade to this FREE newsletter subscription. When you become a paid subscriber, you get a mini trail guide sent to your inbox each week in addition to this regular free newsletter.
You can subscribe for $5 a month OR $39 a year - just be aware that it’s NOT a full year since I don’t send out hikes in August/September. It’s still a good deal because for those 10 months of trail guides, it costs only $39 for the annual subscription and would cost you $50 total if you were paying monthly. So an annual subscription is more like a 22% savings on 10 months. [Again, there’s a pause on monthly billing for the months of August and September to skip the heat of summer and then it restarts back in October for prime fall hiking season.]
If you are a new subscriber in October 2024, I highly recommend coming on as a monthly subscriber for the $5/month. Then you can see if you like it and cancel any time.