If your forecast looks like this:
you have to get creative when it comes to spending time outside. In central Texas this year we’ve had over twenty days above 100 degrees, so it’s easy to stay inside with the air conditioner and get cabin fever.
My two boys (ages 1.5 and 4) are generally happier, better behaved, and more prone to take a better nap if they’ve had a chance to have some physical exertion outdoors. We can all use some vitamin D right? But the only way to stay outside for any amount of time without being totally miserable is to be in the water.
With that in mind, we took the boys to the Falcon Pointe Splash Park in Pflugerville on Friday afternoon. The boys had a blast. It’s not quite the same as a pool, but it’s so convenient!
Falcon Point Splash Park -
Pros:
- Close to home.
- Kids love it.
- Play in the water with no drowning risk
- Cool and refreshing water
- Free!
Cons:
- Not totally submerged in water – but this is not so much of a con, because the kids are able to play in it by themselves with no swimming ability
On the 4th of July we went to Granger Lake in Granger, Texas. This experiment was much less successful.
As you can see from the picture, there is hardly anyone on the lake’s beach. This is because the water is bathwater hot and extra muddy, and the covered picnic areas are totally infested with strange looking bugs. We didn’t actually get in the water because we arrived about ten minutes after our relatives, and they let us know the water was totally disgusting and too muddy for the boys to walk in without getting stuck in the mud.
Granger Lake, Friendship Park – Swimming Beach
Pros:
- Cool views of the lake on the drive to the park
Cons:
- Hot, muddy, yucky water
- Bug infested picnic areas
- Costs $4/car
I understand the lake’s terrible conditions can be blamed on the extreme drout conditions we’ve had in central Texas. In any other year it might be a decent swim destination, but do not go here in 2011. It is a total waste, and it cannot provide a good experience.
