101 Ways to Play in Bloomington- Normal
The following are 101 ways that you and your family can play in our community. While this list is chock full of really great ideas, it is by no means comprehensive. If you have an idea that is not included in this list, send it to us (hyoung@normal.org) and we’ll include it next year. Thanks to everyone for their great ideas, and to WBNQ for their help gathering your suggestions. Our community is a special place to live, work, and of course, play. Our family likes to: 1. Swing on a tire swing. 2. Go nature exploring at the Nature Sanctuary (Fransen Nature Area) on the Constitution Trail. 3. Have foot races around the outside of the house. 4. Play kickball in the court with the neighborhood kids and parents. 5. Go hiking at Sugar Grove Nature Center. 6. Dance in the Recollections Room at the Children's Discovery Museum. 7. Beach Towel, Water Balloon Volleyball- Each team has anywhere from 4 – 10 players. You play in pairs, each pair holds a beach towel between them as they face each other. You play with a water balloon instead of a volleyball. You have to catch the water balloon with your partner using the beach towel. Obviously, if you break the water balloon, that is a point for the opposing team. Great fun for ages 5 to 55! 8. My son and I take walks in the evening and chase each other’s shadows, try to step on them, and wave our arms and lets and watch our shadows dance. 9. One of our favorite ways to play is to get the hose and bucket and hand-wash our cars. Each of us grabs a sponge and scrubs all the grime away. The best part is rinsing the car (and ourselves) off- lots of fun and our cars sparkle when we are finished! 10. Bike ride or rollerblade either on the Constitution Trail or around the neighborhood (remember to wear your helmets!). 11. My kids and I love to have “dance party” on rainy days. We turn on music and dance around to their favorite songs. It keeps them active while teaching them about rhythm and music at the same time. 12. Exploring ISU’s and IWU’s campuses and finding all the different varieties of trees. You can print out maps and have a great day on campus exploring. 13. Our family likes to meet at Franklin Park during the lunch hour and have a picnic. After we eat, we swing on the swings and then go back to our day. We have often said it is the best picnic spot in Bloomington-Normal. 14. I like to walk my dog! (You can also take your dog for a run at the Dog Park in Maxwell Park) 15. We play hide and seek. 16. Playing at the parks- Bloomington-Normal has more than 70 parks to explore. 17. Climb the Luckey Climber at the Children's Discovery Museum. 18. Skating at the Pepsi Ice Center. Golfing at Ironwood , Prairie Vista, Highland Park and the Den Golf Courses. 19. 20. Playing at one of the spray parks in Bloomington- at Tipton and McGraw Parks. 21. Participating in parks and recreation programs in Bloomington and Normal. 22. Strolling around Miller Park Zoo.
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We chase after and try to pop soap bubbles. Bounce a balloon around using different body parts without it touching the ground. Go swimming at one of our community’s public pools or State Farm pool. Lake Run Kids’ Fun Runs at Wesleyan every weekend. Just play tag! You’re IT! The kids like to get moving on Saturdays by getting on their bikes with me on my rollerblades. We pop on the bike trail, a wonderful asset of Bloomington/Normal, and trek to Uptown Normal to get a healthy smoothie. Refreshed, we head to Rosa Parks Park, play, catch a local soccer match, and journey on home to have a neighborhood soccer game with the kids and parents. I’m a single mother with two kids. The best thing for us is to spend as much time together as we can. We like to go to the zoo, walk around the pond at White Oak Park, and play outside with a ball and ride bikes. We walk… to the park, the school playground, the grocery store, the post office… it’s a great way to stay healthy and save on gas! Bowling is one of our favorite family past-times. Fun runs at Centennial Park in Heyworth every Thursday evening during the summer. We choose from a one or three-mile run, and the kids and I would run together. It is a good feeling when your kids will run and bike with you. We swim at Four Seasons Fitness Club almost every night as a family. I swim laps while my kids do dives, flips and jumps off the diving board or throw a splash ball around. When done with my laps, I join the kids and we have swimming races, diving-down-to-the-deepend contests, and see who can hold their breath the longest. Going goofy golfing at Grady’s, followed by an hour at the batting cages. Our family plays in an unusual way- our hobby is model rocketry, which is safe, fun and educational. We build our models from scratch, we fly competitively as well as just for fun. My kids love to attend open gym at Rising Stars Academy. Kids under the age of 5 can play with a parent five times per week! Kids ages 6+ can play for 90 minutes every Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. It’s a great way to burn off energy and build muscle. We go on a nature hike at Ewing Park and see how many hedgeapples we can find! Rake leaves and jump around in the huge piles and have a “leaf fight.” Ride our bikes around the trail at Prairieland School. Play catch in the backyard. Our family likes to play at a local ball diamond. Our son practices his hits while my husband and I chase baseball after baseball. It’s good exercise and provides lots of laughs! Go shore fishing out at Lake Evergreen and have a picnic afterwards. Horseback riding at one of the local equestrian centers. My family of three likes to play “tennis” at Ironwood Park. It’s 2 vs 1 as we volley back and forth, sometimes trying to see how high we can hit the tennis balls. We run all over the courts laughing hysterically. Go to the library and borrow an Elmo exercise video. Pop it into the VCR and exercise together! Slather on sunscreen and head to the beach at Comlara Park. Build lots of sand castles and then take a refreshing dip in the lake! Go rollerskating at Skate N’ Place. Attend family swims at the YMCA, YWCA, or Rob Knight Swim America.
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Hit a bucket of balls at a local teeing range. Go to the McLean County Fair. Play Disc Golf at Maxwell Park and at PJ Irvin. Learn some jump rope songs, grab some friends, and learn how to double dutch! Get a kids’ music CD, find a stage, choreograph some songs and put on a concert for your parents and friends. Set up an indoor Olympics challenge using things in your house. Couch flipping- how many somersaults can you do back and forth without getting dizzy? Crab walk- maneuver from one spot to another and crawl like a crab. Long jump- have your mom or friend measure how far you can jump. Arm curls- grab a large can from your pantry, use as dumbbells and see how many arm curls you can do. Go sledding at Virginia Hill on Jersey, The Kelly Detention Basin, and Highland Park Golf Course in Bloomington. Create and go on a Nature Scavenger Hunt. Look for leaves, special rocks, tree seeds, animal tracks and more! Catching (and later releasing!) fireflies. In late summer, go to a wooded area with milkweed, and look for Monarch caterpillars. Observe, but please don’t touch! Gather water bottles, squirters, water balloons and hoses and engage in a friendly water fight. Ride the historic Route 66 by bike through Normal and Bloomington. Canoe or paddleboat around Lake Evergreen. Take up geocaching- go to Wildcountry to rent a GPS Unit. Learn a new skill- check out Upper Limits Rock Climbing Gym. Go to Lake Bloomington during the fall and enjoy the colors. Cross country ski or snowshoe at one of the many golf courses. Walk on Constitution trail and stop for ice cream at Emack and Bolio. My son likes to make up games. He’s come up with variation on 4-square called Combo Ball. The whole family plays it in the driveway. The main difference is that you can use any part of your body to hit the ball back in someone else’s square. Top square is “king” and you go back to the first square if you miss. My son is almost 13 and still wants to go out and play “Combo Ball” when we can. Bike rides through Tipton Trails. Fishing at Miller Park. Check out the kids fishing derby too. "Pretend" camp using blankets and tables in our house. Sometimes we even sleep in our "tents." Use your imagination. Make up quests for the kids to go on around the house like search for the talking owl who will tell you where the magical ruby is and travel through the laughing forest for the wood elves to join them for a feast. They get "rewards" (pretend medals, invisible capes, etc.) once they've completed a task. Go rock hunting and add to a rock collection. Have tickle fights with the kids right before bed till they can hardly breathe! Then they ask for more!!!! Read together, taking turns. Go to Sugar Grove Nature Center for their smore-campfire nights. Paddle Boats at Miller Park. Get a team together to play Sand Volleyball.
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Gardening is a great way to spend quality time with your family. Time seems to stand still when you are working on a vegetable or flower garden together. Grab some sidewalk chalk and head for the driveway! When you are done creating magnificent works with sidewalk chalk art, play hopscotch! Go to any of the free concerts or Movies in the Park offered by Bloomington Parks and Recreation. Attend an event in downtown Bloomington and Uptown Normal. Build a snowman. Don’t forget the stovetop pipe and button nose! Attend a sporting event at Illinois State and Illinois Wesleyan Universities. Strap on your rollerblades and protective gear for a game of street hockey. Play - badminton, bocce ball, croquet, Frisbee and shuffleboard. Rent needed equipment from your local parks and recreation department! Go to a history museum. In the summer, pack a picnic supper and go to Ewing Manor for the Shakespeare Green Show. It’s free….and always a laugh! Take $5.00 to the Trailside Market in Normal, or the Farmer’s Market in Bloomington…..Buy fresh veggies and see what fun concoctions you can cook up for supper. Visit the Children’s Garden at the ISU Horticultural Center. Set up a tent and go camping in your backyard. Head to one of the many fall festivals that are coming up- many offer free craft activities that are wonderful memory makers. Set up an obstacle course throughout the house, creating obstacles that require skipping, jumping, shimmying and shaking. Make sure to time each participant- grown-ups too please! Visit the Hidden Creek Nature Area and discover its small butterfly garden. Grab your bikes and trikes and head to Safety Town located in Carden Park. It’s a charming park that teaches bicycle safety and so much more. Play hot potato, ring-around-the-rosy, duck, duck goose, musical chairs and other oldfashioned family time games. Play clothes-pin tag. Clip two clothes pins on each child’s shirt and start chasing. Players try to pull pins from each other and return pins to the container. If a player loses both pins, he returns to the container to refuel. Grab a board game and head to the park to play. Get out old costumes, dress-up clothes, feather boas, crowns and more and play dress-up. Find a spot in the garden, give the kids some shovels for digging, a hose, and cookie cutters and get ready for some good old mudpies! Put the kids in charge for the day. Let them decide the menu and the day’s activities (within reason- safety first). They’ll love the experience, and it is great family bonding time.