Places to go with babies and toddlers in Leiden/Leiderdorp

Since M was born, I received an advice from my kraamzorg (I know, I haven't explained much about that process and it's been almost two years now) to go of the out house everyday. 

I can certainly say that I'm not much of a stay at home person, even though I'm a SAHM that doesn't mean I have to literally stay inside all day all week. But I also enjoy being at home some days. The thing is that M normally NEEDS to go out, otherwise he gets fussy, sleeps less during the night and that doesn't make this mom very happy. 

Anyways, when he was a baby, we went for walks around the neighborhood, or went visit some friends in town or in other towns close by. 

As he grew up we started having play dates and playgroups in Leiden but that wasn't enough. So we started taking him to the aquarium, the zoo and other nice places around with other mama friends and their little ones. 

Now, there is something else to consider for going out in this country: weather. During the months of November to April it can be cold to spend the mornings or afternoons outside, but for their own good (and your peace of mind too) you still have to take them for a stroll. 

Then all year round it can rain A LOT! Even  it is summer time, it rains a lot. So you have to look for places where kids can safely play inside. One of those places is called Bubble Jungle. We went the first time when he was about 11 months and stayed there a couple of hours. There is a small place for babies to play but big children don't respect mug of the rules and can get inside too. Also parents go there to sit on a table and enjoy a chat with their friends and a cup of coffee or a snack, that they just let kids play around the place, which is very big, and some of these kids are bullies and don't mind hurting small kids. 

We went again this past week on a rainy morning just after the start of the summer holiday and it was HELL! I spent my time of course chasing M and playing with him because I was afraid someone might hurt him and he is still little to be without adult supervision. So there I saw all this big kids taking toys from babies or jumping hard next to them and the parents are nowhere around to tell them to stop. 

I love going to this place and it is a lot of fun for my little one, but for us it's not the right place to be on a rainy, summer vacation day. It will be best to try it again once school starts in September on a weekday morning when all kids are at school. 

There are several more playgrounds Id like to review and post my opinion here. Our favorites are Zuiderkwartier an De Speelschans, but fee haven't been there in a while so I'll go soon, take some pictures and let you know the comparison between going on a school day and going in the summer. 

But yesterday we went to our FAVORITE place to be with babies and toddlers. It is a beautiful cafe inside a huge park called Cronesteyn (I'll check spelling later) and the restaurant is called 'De tuin van Smid' . 

It is so comfortable to be there on a sunny afternoon. It has a sandbox and a small petting farm with chickens, horses and donkeys. There are duckings and swans around a small canal surrounding the cafe and it is far away from the roads. So there is almost no danger that your kid will go out and be crushed by either a bike or a car or fall down into the canal water. Also the place is surrounded by a gate which makes a loud noise when you drop the door, so you always look and see who got out. This makes easier for distracted moms to see if their kids went out. 

It has an indoor place too with sofas and tables and a small corner with toys and books for the kids to play. It's so friendly with kids and quiet for moms to enjoy a nice afternoon either alone with their little ones or with the company of good friends. 

I'm definitely not a lazy mom, but in this summer months where parks are full of bigger children with parents that just leave them play alone and a kid who is very independent and wants to try every game around and that thinks he can go anywhere and doesn't walk but run, those places are not the best idea for us. I'm afraid I will loose sight of him or someone might take him. That's why I prefer quiet places for the moment. Once he understands not to go outside my sight and to check with me before going to a new attraction then we can go on the summer to this busy, full of kids and parents parks. 

But even though we have these situations, I enjoy going there with him, and see what works for us and what doesn't. I'm always open to try new locations and see how safe they are to spend our beautiful afternoons there. For the moment I can't have enough of 'De tuin van Smid' it's just perfect in every way.