Meadowdale Beach

 We recently spent a few hours on a Saturday doing the hike to Meadowdale Beach in Edmonds! It was a lot of fun and well worth the walking when you get to the end and get to spend time at the beach with gorgeous views! This trail is popular but once we got to the beach it didn't feel crowded at all. There are port a potty's, a covered area with picnic tables, a volleyball net and plenty of grass to play around on and a park ranger on site to answer any questions.

The hike back to the parking lot was more difficult as there are several spots, especially the last 1/4 mile or so that are uphill. The entire hike combined was approximately 2.5 miles. Our kids have not had a lot of experience with hiking and did pretty well (only one 6 year old struggled with being tired on the way back). We carried our 1 (almost 2) year old most of the way which was a good workout, a hiking backpack probably would have helped! We started out the trail at the same time as a Mom who brought a stroller and it looked pretty difficult, I'm not sure how well she managed as we passed  her but I would not recommend it as it's a really bumpy trail. Her partner was carrying the child most of the time. There are plenty of benches along the way to rest on!

What we loved:

* A combo of things we love in the NW, beautiful green woodland and beaches with beautiful views!

*Challenging but not impossible to do with the little kids

* Lots of space to explore once you get to the beach

*A cool tunnel to walk through and trains!

What to prepare for:

* The parking! We were lucky to get a spot in the main parking lot but several people had to park higher up and walk up and down the hill.

* Be sure to remember water, hats, sunscreen and beach tools (buckets, shovels, etc)

Buffalo Park

 

We are so excited that a brand new park has opened up in Mill Creek, BUFFALO PARK! We have gone twice in the past week. My kids and I love it!

It has a few different things that I haven't seen at some of the other parks around here. It has a bocce ball court (we saw a Dad and daughter practicing soccer on it too!)

 A couple tables in the shade and the restrooms were open when we went yesterday but for the life of me I couldn't see a light switch, so we used our cell phone flashlight! 

Lots of fun "monkey" bars:

And another thing we haven't found at other parks...a "tightrope" as my kids call it!! This was really fun for them!

Another new and fun swing that easily fit my 3

I love that the merry go round is safer than others I've seen. When we went yesterday this area was closed because they had to move this over since it was too close to the swing set. Hopefully it opens again soon!

And hopefully the swings get installed soon too!

This is the main playground area 

 I'm not sure if this is a slide or a climbing structure or both! It is a lot of fun though! 

What we loved:

*fun new features like the tightrope, merry go round and bocce ball court

*lots of grass area

*several benches for sitting around the perimeter of the park

*easy to find

*water fountain, in case you're like me and often forget to grab water before leaving the house!

What to prepare for:

*like most parks, the equipment can get HOT when it's sunny out. We were there when it was 77 degrees and it was getting hot.

*there is a decent amount of parking, but with the construction still going on with the townhomes there are more vehicles around than there would be normally.

Roger's Riverview Bistro

**Please know that this is not an endorsed advertisement for the restaurant! They didn't know we were coming, we payed for our own food and I made sure to meet and introduce myself as a local blogger AFTER we had been served all our food!** Also, I apologize for my cell phone camera pictures, it's not easy to get out on a date night these days and I forgot my real camera!

I'm excited to share our experience with you about Roger's Riverview Bistro in Snohomish! They are a farm to table bistro that is FAMILY friendly! The owner had a lovely family picture up where we sat and we spoke with him after our meal. He has 5 kids (I think it was 5, could have been 6 or 7, lets just say it was a lot!) and 2 of them work in the restaurant. His 13 year old son was the one who had the idea to put an "In-beTEEN" menu for kids who are not little but not quite big enough to eat adult portions! We went on a date night on a weeknight around 5:00 p.m. It was raining and we had our baby with us so we didn't sit on the deck, but if we didn't have baby I may have considered it since they have heaters, blankets and it looked cozy and comfy out there. It would be beautiful on a sunny day! 

*SEATING* It's a bistro, so not a large restaurant, the table you see here was the largest one they had set up, so if you are a family greater than 6 you might want to call ahead and see if they can set up something, but it's a narrow building so I would imagine there is only so much they can do.

*THE FOOD* We started with a couple appetizers. The Snohomish Bakery Bread with herb butter was delicious! We also ordered pork sliders which my husband liked, but I had to pick out several burnt pieces since I don't like burnt meat. For the main course my husband ordered the Chicken Cordon Bleu and I ordered a Chicken Caesar salad. We both enjoyed how fresh and homestyle the food tasted. My chicken was a little dry so next time I think I will order it without chicken because the dressing was delicious! Our waitress was wonderful and it was not loud or too busy which was nice. 

We were too full to indulge in dessert but here is what they had to offer that night: 

And we did order a mac and cheese to go for the kids at home. They didn't enjoy it, because it looked different than what  they are used to (Annie's organic), you know how kids can be!

 And one last shot of my 2 handsome dates for the night! Baby is reaching for everything now and really wanted to explore the glass of water!

The takeaway:

* Love that they are farm to table with LOCAL ingredients from LOCAL farmers!

*Family friendly (they even have a basket full of fun toys to keep little ones happy!)

* Fresh! I love that an hour after dinner I didn't feel "heavy", my stomach was happy.

* I wish the meat was a little more to my liking...but what I don't like about my meat is what others may enjoy!

I always feel good supporting local businesses and will look forward to trying this one again.