My Favorite Spring Activities for Toddlers and Babies

I love watching James grow and develop and it’s easier in some ways not to have to carry him everywhere, but I miss the days of being able to go outside and have him be content just chilling in his stroller or carrier. Running after him all day is exhausting. With spring fever at a high, I’m also eager to get out of the house more so we’re trying to think of fun spring activities for toddlers and babies to take advantage of spring and not go stir crazy.

It’s hard when you’re sleep deprived to motivate to do anything on weekends, but I find kids are more likely to nap and the days are more fun and easier when we’re out and about. Plus as they say, the days are long but the years are short and as a working mom, weekends tend to feel like they go by to quickly. I want to find ways to make the most them so that going back to work on Mondays is easier. So this spring, I’ve been trying to work ahead to make a bucket list of fun spring activities for toddlers and babies that we want to do with the kids.

Here’s our list of spring activities for toddlers and babies that we’re hoping to get through this spring. Let me know anything fun we should add that’s on ours.

I want to take more advantage of our local parks for playdates and getting early morning energy out. I know we’ll be happy when we do and it’s a great way to catch up with other parent friends without having to worry about if your house is clean enough to have anyone over or if your kid will throw a fit in the middle of a restaurant. We usually go to the parks in our backyard, but I want to explore some other playgrounds this spring. The kids always love a change of scenery and different park toys to play with.

The Bronx Zoo is one of the best in the world, and I feel so lucky that we live so close to it still. We let our membership expire, but I am going to renew. It’s just a short drive from us, and the kids love walking around and seeing the animals. With a membership, I don’t mind if we just go for an hour or two, and they still make you sign up for slots, so it’s not too crowded.

While traditionally a winter activity, we didn’t venture to some of city’s most iconic museums this year because of Covid. Now that they’re reopening, I don’t mind making the treks around the city to spend an hour walking around and trying to get the kids (and ourselves) “cultured”. I was never that big of a museum person, but since they’ve been off limits, I’ve grown to miss them.

Even though we are still finishing renovations to our current home, we’re already on the look for our next fixer upper. It’s unlikely that we’ll move anytime soon. I think Andrew would kill me, and the market is crazy right now, but I love visiting an open house when there’s not much else to do, and imagining what we could make of the house.

Now that the snow is thawing, I want to spend more time outdoors when we go outside. I can’t wait to start hiking again. There’s a great fly fishing river nearby that we love to hike down to in summer and it’ll be fun to do the hike in spring. Last year, I just carried Charlotte in the baby bjorn, but this year, we’ll be using our hiker backpack. If we keep the hike short enough, James can walk and loves picking up sticks and leaves and rocks along the way.

We did some bike riding on our trip to Florida years ago  and I’m excited to do more with the kids. It was great exercise, a fun way to get places and riding In the carriage put James right to sleep. We’re debating whether to invest in a carriage that you pull behind the bike or a seat that goes on the back of the bike, which frankly scares me. I think we’re going to keep the bikes upstate, so maybe a trailer is the way to go?

Another confession: I haven’t been to the famed New York botanical gardens at all and I think it would be fun to do with the kids while it’s nice out. We missed the winter train show over the holidays, but hopefully, they have some kid friendly programming for spring. Even if they don’t, it’s a place for them to run around and explore.

So we have two jogging strollers currently, one in the burbs (a hand me down), one upstate (another hand me down). I haven’t really exercised much in the past few months, and I think it’s time to get back in shape and whip out that jogging stroller. I’ve been trying Tracy Anderson workout vids in the mornings but it’s hard with the kids, and I want to get out and run. I love how I can be with the kids, get them outside and occupied and get in some exercise with the jogging stroller.

Now that the kids can hang outside, I’m excited to have some of James’ friends from the building over to do more arts and crafts. We tried painting indoors and I’m still getting it off our kitchen table, so I’ve banned indoor painting but I think he’ll love creating stuff and getting dirty with washable paints. Chalk is also a fun activity for a deck or driveway.

Okay clearly this is nothing genius, but sometimes just taking Dakota for a walk is enough to tucker James and Charlotte (and us!) out. James loves to hold the leash now and chase after her, and it’s a fun (albeit slow) way to explore our neighborhood and enjoy living in the city. With a coffee in hand, it’s an easy way to get Dakota walked, get the kids’ morning energy out, and get outside.

A new favorite activity is to just jump in the car and head to another town. It can be an hour away or three hours away. We’ll check out the town, houses, look for a nearby park or beach for the kids to run around, and have lunch or dinner, or grab an ice cream treat if we’re between meals. The change of scenery is not just great for the kids, it’s great for us as well. Plus, it’s fun to find hidden gems not far from our own home.