KCKidsFun

Have we got something fun to tell you about!  Best part, it’s FREE!!!!!  Our valued advertising partner, Paradise Park (Lee’s Summit, MO) tells us that they have never done anything like this before.  Children’s Mercy Hospital’s STAR Power Program and Kohl’s have teamed up to offer a completely free day at Paradise Park on May 22 from noon until 5 p.m. You heard that right!

Everyone who visits Paradise Park that day will receive a wristband for unlimited free attractions.  No strings attached– just a FREE day of play, open to the public.  Does it get any better than that?

Paradise Park is conveniently located off I-470/M-291 and Colbern Road exit in Lee’s Summit, MO.  They feature a wonderful “Children’s Edutainment Center” along with miniature golf, go-karts, a foam factory, bumper cars, a rock wall…it’s all there!   And it’s all included on May 22– on an UNLIMITED basis.  Maze (outdoor) NEW!, Miniature Golf (outdoor), Go Karts (outdoor), Batting Cages (outdoor), Junior Go Karts (outdoor), Sand Volleyball (outdoor), Bumper Cars (indoor), Rock Climbing Wall (indoor) *This attraction has a trained staff person assigned at ALL times), Foam Factory (indoor), Children’s Edutainment Center and Adventure Play Garden (great for toddlers through age 9 years).

In addition, healthy activities will be around every corner: fruit and veggie kabobs, relaxation exercises and more!

*Parents/guardians must sign Waiver of Liability prior to being issued Max Pak Unlimited wristbands. For parents/guardians not attending with child, you can download the waiver.

June in Kansas City can only mean one thing.  The summer 2009 baseball season is well underway and my son loves to hit!  When he’s not playing with his team, the Eagles, he can often be found with my husband at one of the metro’s batting cages. We’ve written about them before, and we always seem to get comments that people love the list.

Even if your son or daughter doesn’t play organized ball–the batting cages are a unique and inexpensive way to have a great time as a family.  Kids think it’s great fun to see Mom hit (or miss) the ball!  And if other men are anything like my husband…well…let’s just say it’s a great opportunity for him to relive his “glory days” –the days when he could hit a baseball a country mile.  I’m thinking that baseballs must travel farther when the batter still has a full head of hair  :-)

Here’s our list–enjoy–and please leave me a comment if I’ve forgotten anything.  GO EAGLES!!!!

• Blue Valley Recreation Complex (Overland Park, KS)  *batting cage hours vary and are linked to game times at the complex.  Call 913-685-6030 for details.
• Cool Crest (Independence, MO)
• Golf Club of Kansas – Kansas Sports Center (Lenexa, KS)
• 68 Inside Sports (Overland Park, KS)
• Mac N Seitz (south Kansas City, MO)
• Mid-America Sports Complex (Shawnee, KS)
• Paradise Park (Lee’s Summit, MO)
• Pop’s Pitch and Putt (Olathe, KS) 14570 W. 151st Street
• Power Alley (West Shawnee, KS) – this one looks like it might be closed? Anyone have news on this one?
• Regal Athletic (Northland KC)
• Retro Bowl (Liberty, MO)
• Shoal Creek Driving Range and Batting Cages (Northland)
• Sports City (Blue Springs, MO)
• Tom Urquhart’s School of Baseball (Overland Park, KS) on 7875 Mastin
• Triple Play Baseball/Softball Academy (Blue Springs, MO)  on 40 Hwy.
• Wyandotte County 3&2 Metro Needs League (Kansas City, KS)

Spring Break has come and gone…and we enjoyed our “vacation” in Lawrence, KS!!  My husband and I took our son (7) and his friend to Lawrence and checked into an inexpensive hotel for the night.  I’ve written before how much fun a hotel can be…the electronic key card alone is cause for celebration.

We changed into swimming suits and headed straight for the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Indoor Aquatic Center.  I had called ahead to check on Spring Break Week times and prices; the price was right at $3/kid.  The pool was great!  Part of the amazing Free State High School complex, the pool has spray features, a water slide, zero-depth entry, a swinging rope obstacle course and those anchored-down-toys that the kids climb on!  On the other side of the building is an enormous lap pool and diving boards.

Although the Aquatic Center itself is not any better than what you’d find at Overland Park’s own Matt Ross Community Center, it’s all about LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION–we were on vacation!  After several hours of swimming, we changed and headed over to the famed “Mass Street” for some window shopping and dinner.  If you haven’t been, Lawrence is a great family-friendly town, perfect for a day trip or even an overnight.  We wrote a series of articles “Weekend Getaways from KC” last year and even profiled Lawrence (#3:  Eastern Kansas).  Check those out for some good ideas!

Speaking of Matt Ross Community Center, my son attended a birthday party there last week and had a blast.  They had a great room available for the cake, presents, etc., and the kids enjoyed the pool on a Friday night.  The pool was still open to the community, but nobody seemed to mind a bit!  Summer is coming…but you still will need to take advantage of the city’s indoor swim facilities to get your swim on until at least June 1 when it’s a bit warmer out.  Check out our great listing of indoor pools here.

The last thing that we did over vacation week was visit the indoor batting cages.  We went to Mac N Seitz’s, at 137th Street and Holmes in South Kansas City.  It’s a great place for the kids to hit some balls and knock the rust off as they get ready for spring/summer ball!  Mac N Seitz’s features several speeds of machines…so everyone can find something, from slower-pitching softballs to major-league fast baseballs!