My first love will always be dirt trails but paved trails can be great if you want to use a stroller, wheelchair, have an early walker, or are trying to avoid mud. One drawback is having to compete with bicycles, but I’ve tried to note the trails below that seem to be more popular with cyclists. This is a subjective list, based off places we have hiked, that were paved but feel more immersed in nature than a typical sidewalk. There are lots of parks that have paved paths around them that might be great for little kids to bike on or shorter walks, you can find them all in the interactive map if you toggle it to show “places to take a walk” but I’ve narrowed that list way down to places that feel a little more wild without losing that paved footing.

When the weather starts to finally warm up and the snow melts, playgrounds with lots of dirt or sparse wood chips can turn into mud pits. I thought I’d put together a list of playgrounds with rubber footing around Des Moines, Iowa so you can get outside even if you don’t want to do a million loads of laundry! These are are all parks you can visit without getting muddy and burn off all that stir crazy winter energy.

We try to get outside no matter the weather, and Iowa winters have had us trying all sorts of different snow gear. After using them for a full year, we finally like a mitten well enough to recommend it so I’m sharing a product review for Mittyz from Veyo Kids! Not a sponsored post; I bought them and we’ve been using them for the past year and a half before I felt good about reporting back. I think these are the best mittens for toddlers and the best mittens that actually stay on for kids! We basically wear the fall gear for hiking, plus puffy down coats and snowpants, plus these mittens, for winter.