Sunridge Park, Hillsboro

Location: 8093 Tower Rd, Hillsboro, MO 63050

Website: https://www.jeffcomo.org/ParksSunridge.aspx?nodeID=ParksFacilities

Playground Ground Cover: Pea Gravel

This playground is one of only 2 in unincorporated Jefferson County. It is really not suited for little kids at all. It seems best for older kids and teens. There is one old metal play structure that would be ok (my 4 year old daughter liked it), there is some other bar you can just hang from, and then 3 sling swings. There are bathrooms but be warned they are old and kind of gross. There is an 80 foot observation tower that is open to to the public. They say on a clear day you can see all the way to the Arch. Here is a video showing the view if you're too chicken to climb it like I am!

 I have no idea what this is, I guess you just hang from it?

Pavilion and 2 gas grills

Miss Kelly's Open Gym, Creve Coeur

Location: 12802 Olive Blvd, Creve Coeur, MO 63141 (in Bellerive Plaza)

Website: http://misskellysgym.com/index.html

There were one or two people working around the room helping kids on and off the balance beam and the bars. A few times they blew bubbles and the kids really enjoyed that. I don't know if it was because of spring break or what but it was packed when we went. They had one restroom in the gym area and one out in the hall.

Despite the fact that they didn't have some of my daughter's favorite equipment (trampoline and trapeze), she had a blast. They were really nice to my friend when she asked for a refund for her 11 month old. Under a year should be free but when she first came in they charged her $16 for her 2 kids. When the session was over she asked them about it and they refunded her $8. The staff was helpful and seemed to enjoy helping the kids.

This photo is older, check their website for current dates and times of open gym. It varies semester to semester.

 Rock wall

They had music playing and lots of balls out on the mats for the little ones

River Des Peres Park, St. Louis City

Location: 6701 River Des Peres Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63116

Website: https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/parks/parks/browse-parks/view-park.cfm?parkID=74&parkName=River

Playground Ground Cover: Poured Rubber

This playground has some nice features. Unfortunately, there's no signage and there's no parking. Also, the website says there are restrooms but I didn't see any. There is a building there that looks like it would house the restrooms but there are no signs and I didn't even see door knobs.

You can see here I just pulled into the tiny driveway off of River Des Peres. But my car is blocking the trail, which is pretty active. I saw lots of people running and riding their bikes and they had to go around my car. I didn't see any other area to park, which is a shame because this is a great playground. I even drove through the subdivision behind it to see if I could park there but all the houses had fenced-in backyards and it wouldn't be right to trespass to get to the playground. The city really needs to add parking so everyone can enjoy this playground!

All the landscaping is new, as well as the benches, trashcans, and sidewalks.

I've never seen this puzzle at a playground before. The kids worked on it for a long time.

The playground consists of just one big play structure and no swings. The structure has a very large spider web climber, several different slides, a rock wall, a bridge, a puzzle, steering wheels, a spinning circle, and lots of bars and poles. Everything has a nature theme of trees, leaves, frogs, and logs.

Greater St. Louis Air and Space Museum, Cahokia IL

Location: 2300 Vector Dr, Cahokia, IL 62206

Website: http://www.airandspacemuseum.org/

We visited this museum on the way back from Eckerts. I'm glad we didn't go out of our way to visit because frankly it was a bit disappointing. I didn't really know what to expect, but I thought there would be more real airplanes. In actuality the museum is all indoors. It's just 2 rooms full of memorabilia. My kids are 5 and 3 and they just didn't enjoy looking at things in glass cases. I think this would be better suited for older kids. We saw a lot of historical artifacts which I found interesting, especially the Ozark Airlines area, because my stepmom was a flight attendant for them in the 70's. There is no entrance fee, but the man working did say I was free to leave a donation, which I was glad to do.

 This green and white plane used to belong to Howard Hughes.