Getzendaner Park

Can we climb the trees?

What?  This is just 1 of the the playgrounds?  There are more?  (This was The Boy's favorite of the 3.)

I can walk on that balance beam mommy.

Woohoo, look at me!

That's a lot of swings.

More swings?

That looks like a good place for a picnic with my friends.

Butterflies!

See this playground (#2)?  We can have slide races here!

A water fountain by the slides?  That seems like a good idea, huh mommy?

There's more swings here too?

Let's go!

*Broken slide on the side of this playground, June 2011.*

Maybe next time we could fly a kite here!

Look at this tube slide!  (Playground #3 - barrier free.)

There's a tire swing over there mommy, let's go!

A maze?  What?  How do we get out of it?

Here I go...

Check it out - there's a squirrel in this tree stump. (Click on this pic to see it better, it's great!)

I went on an adventure across this bridge!

Mommy says: Getzendaner Park in Waxahachie (400 S Grand Ave) is a 33 acre, very well shaded, park full of things to do.  There are 3 different playgrounds, a maze, lots of open grassy areas, picnic tables, and a creek.  One of the 3 playgrounds is a barrier-free playground (next to the maze, which would also accommodate a wheelchair), but it appears to be a combo exercise course/barrier-free playground.  Chautaugua Auditorium, built in 1902!, is housed at the park.  The park serves as the entry point to Waxahachie's nearly 8 mile trail system.  There are plenty of restrooms around the park & it is well off the beaten path, so there are no worries about traffic.  It is also right by the town's hospital, which is comforting to the parents of dare devils.  While this park is more than worth the visit if you enjoy the outdoors, at the time of our visit (June 2011) the playgrounds are in some disrepair, so it is not the ideal park if you are just looking for play structures.

Arbor Hills Nature Preserve

It's another guest review, thanks to familiar faces - The Princess & Little Miss.

Details about the 3 types of nature featured at the park.

This park has an off-road bike trail, along with lots of off-road hiking trails.

The Princess & Little Miss show off what The Boy would call "racing slides".

Plenty to climb on.

More slides!

Barrier-free/toddler play area.

Little Miss is quite the climber.

Peek-a-boo!

The covered pavilion.

Great picnic spots.

The perfect party spot!

Restrooms.

Grassy area for running (or rolling).

Wonderful views.

Nice spot for kick ball or flying a kite.

An unpaved trail to explore.

Beautiful wildflowers in bloom.

Arbor Hills Nature Preserve in Plano (6701 W Parker Rd) is a great spot to go on an adventure, ride your bike, play on the playground, or just have a relaxing picnic.  There are about 2 miles of paved trails around the park, about 2 miles of unpaved bike trails, several unpaved hiking trails, an observation tower, a covered pavilion, a nice-sized playground, a restroom, and plenty of open grassy areas.  After our guest reviewer sent in the pictures, Mommy & Daddy had to head out for a bike ride ourselves.  We were glad we did - it is gorgeous out there!

Coffee Park

This is the playground!
Mommy said this was for my size kid, but I didn't like this side, I'm a BIG boy.

I liked THIS side!

This park is so fun.

I like swings.

My daddy likes to play with me.

I was hiding & my daddy found me.

Look at this ramp!

I went down both slides.

TWO STEERING WHEELS!!!

Next time, I want to have a picnic here.

Look at that, it's cool, huh?

Mommy, can we play baseball?

This is the potty. ((giggles))

Mommy says: Coffee Park in Dallas/University Park (3400 Northwest Pkwy) has a wonderful, barrier-free playground, lots of picnic tables, a huge green area to run in or play soccer, a baseball field, and plenty of nice spots under big old trees to just sit down & relax while the kids play.