Mom What's Next Salem Oregon, Salem, OR (2025)

01/17/2024

✨ MWN Salem’s first ever play date meet up ✨

I am so excited!

Tuesday Jan 23rd from 9:30AM to 11AM
I will be hosting a play date for kiddos and their parent/caregiver at Athletic Edge Adventure Park in Salem.
Located at 1379 Madison St NE

Please bring non-slip socks for your kiddo(s)!
Admission costs $8 (walking to 3 yrs) & $10 (4-17 yrs)
Parents and infant always FREE

No outside food or drinks allowed. With the exception to water for your kiddos and milk/formula for infants. There is a cafe on site for food/snacks/drinks.

Waivers must be signed upon arrival to use the adventure park. You can sign the waiver online at athleticedgeadventurepark.org

If the weather doesn’t clear, we will have the reschedule. We will let you know in advance.

01/17/2024

Gilbert House Children’s Museum | Salem

Open: Tuesday through Sunday
10AM to 5PM

Cost:
General admission $14
Seniors/Military $12
Children under 1 yr FREE
Members & OMSI members FREE

We used our OMSI membership to enter! I was so excited that it was flexible between the two. Travel tip- Gilbert House members also get into Bend’s High Desert Museum for free!

The Children’s Museum has three different houses to roam between plus the outdoor play areas!

Some examples of the exhibits include: Vet Clinic, Bus Station, Doctor Office, Play Cafe/Main Street, U.S.S Gilbert Submarine, Fort room, Tv/Movie set room, Sensory Room and SO MUCH MORE!
They have a craft/science house as well! (Not pictured)
*Bill’s Bubble Factory is closed until further notice

Outdoors you’ll find a prehistoric dig area, climbing and imagination play areas. Plus a nature workshop to use all of natures elements.

There is a room for designed for crawlers (infants and young toddlers) to play safely with their caregivers.

There is so much to do and see here! If you’ve been- what is your child’s favorite exhibit to play/adventure in?! Comment below 💙

01/11/2024

Awesome Indoor Playground | Salem

⏰:
Monday- Friday 10AM - 9 PM
Saturday 8:30AM - 9 PM
Sunday 10AM - 4PM
💵:
Children 0-2
Weekday- $10
Weekends and no school days- $12
Children 3-16
Weekday- $12
Weekends and no school days- $15

Parents are free. Parents can accommodate children 5 and under on the structure as well. Which is so helpful!
They have a full food and beverage menu. Ranging from coffee, tea, cider/beer, pizza, salads and snacks.
TVs for watching sports games. And party “rooms” to host your next event.

For the little kids they have a safe soft play area which is only for children 5 and younger. Including a climbing bus, ball pit and tunnel.
For older children they have a trampoline area with basketballs, an obstacle course, tons of large tunnel slides, and a scooter area.
Ideal age range is 18 months to 12 years old. Children 13 to 16 are asked to stay in the obstacle course and trampoline areas only.

Everyone is required to wear socks on the equipment. No shoes allowed. I recommend non slip socks for any little ones!

01/11/2024

Big Leaf Coffeehouse and Grill at Smith Creek Village | Silver Falls State Park, Sublimity

Fall through Spring hours:
Fri/Sat 8AM to 8PM
Sun 8AM to 3PM
Mon-Thur 8AM to 12PM

This restaurant mostly services the cabins/campers within the state park campground. However; you do not have to be a guest to enjoy it! This place was beyond magical. With all this rain it truly felt like a rainforest movie scene.

We spent an hour exploring the state park playground, the river and the many bridges in the area. Then we took a short drive through the south falls camping area. When you arrive at the Smith Creek Village you will see parking signs for the restaurant; follow these arrows. The other parking closer to the cabins are for guests staying there overnight.
It’s a small walk down a lighted path to the front doors of Big Leaf.
There is a small driving loop in front of the building as well if you need to drop off family members and then park.
There are two seating areas inside and an outside picnic table seating with a large fire pit. My favorite spot was the comfy chairs by the fireplace inside, where we enjoyed the music from the record player.
There are games and books in the back dining room; Yahtzee, jenga, etc.
We had fun playing while waiting for our food. They even had some things to keep my toddlers occupied.
There are three menus depending on time of day- breakfast, lunch and dinner. Pricing varies.
Coffee, tea, beer, wine, and soft drinks available for purchase.

A perfect place to stop after a hike to one of the many waterfalls Silver Falls has to offer or just an evening stop for dinner- especially on a rainy day.

01/11/2024

Salem Public Library Discovery Room | Salem

585 Liberty St SE

Discovery Room (all ages):
Tuesday-Thursday 10AM to 6PM
Friday & Saturday 10 AM to 5PM
Sunday & Monday CLOSED

If the discovery room is at max capacity, families can also use Story Room B Tuesday through Saturday 10AM to 12PM.

Tiny Tots Playarea (infants and toddlers) can be found at the inner circle of the upper reading area. It is available during library open hours.

If you have been to the Salem library with your kids previously you may have remembered a bracelet monitoring system. They are no longer using this system, but are making extra efforts to have spaces for lots of families.

The discovery room has puppet/dress up play, magnified glass table, LEGO table, dinosaur bone discovery, bean bag chair, alphabet matching toys, and more

Preschool story time (2.5 to 6 years old)
10:15 AM Wednesdays, Fridays* (*Fridays are also interpreted in ASL)

Infant/toddler storytime (0 to 2.5 years old)
11 AM Wednesdays, Fridays

Spanish storytime (0 to 6 years old)
4PM Miercoles

Russian storytime (0 to 6 years old)
11 AM on the 1st Saturday of each month

01/11/2024

Home Depot Kids DIY Workshop
Shared by .megan

The first Saturday of each month your local Home Depot hosts a FREE kids workshop right in-store!
All tools, paint (if necessary for that DIY), hardware, instructions and supplies are provided.

Workshops are from 9AM to 12PM (while supplies last). Signing up ahead of time ensures they have enough kits for everyone attending.

Perfect for all ages. My twins are 2.5 years old and although they don’t do much of the hammering, they love to be apart of the process and enjoy painting or applying stickers.
If you need to leave early or can’t stay to complete the DIY in-store, don’t fret!! Kits can also be taken home to complete on your own time.

Kids also receive a Home Depot apron of their own and a badge pin for every DIY they complete.

See the last photo slide for information on the next DIY workshop.

Thanks to .megan for sharing!! 🧡 we appreciate community submissions as this is a collaborative page and we love when you share your adventures with MWN!

01/11/2024

Turner Lake Park | Turner
5203 Holly Street

Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day parking costs $10 in the lot beside the playground
Otherwise it is free to park in the off season (if you reside in Turner you can apply for free or discounted parking year round)
Open dawn to dusk

Dock and boat ramp
Covered picnic area - first come first serve (no reservations)
Walking/biking path around the lake

This playground says it’s best suited for ages 5-12 years
My 2.5 year old twins had a difficult time managing this equipment without adult help
I would say it’s best for very independent and safety conscious 3 year olds and up

Fishing is allowed from boats or the bank. You must have a current valid fishing license to fish. You may keep any fish caught

Porta potty on site

01/11/2024

Barnes & Noble Booksellers | Salem
Willamette Town Center

Anyone else grow up in the era of Barnes and Noble kids club and the whimsical storybook stages surrounded by wooden trees? No? Just me? lol. I dare you to google “Barnes and Noble Kids reading area” images.

Now, not to disappoint you… but most of the new Barnes and Noble stores do not have the same kids areas that I grew up with.
However, I was very excited about what the Salem store had to offer:

LEGO building table
Sit-in train car
Expansive book, toy and craft section

Some brands sold here including; Melissa and Doug, Calico Critters, Schleich, Lego, Disney, CocoMelon, Bluey, curious George, Pete the Cat and a HUGE Harry Potter section.

There is also a Starbucks cafe with snacks and drinks for sale and a cafe sitting area

Follow for events and storytime dates ❤️

01/11/2024

Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge and Nature Center | Jefferson

Thank you to one of our followers for the recommendation.

Open daily dawn to dusk

Ankeny National Wildlife Refuge has many different trails throughout (some only open April to Sept yearly- check the last photo for details on this)

The Nature Center serves as a classroom for groups like 4H, Scouts, etc. and an additional classroom is currently being built on site.
US Fish and Wildlife often has events open to the public to educate and involve kids. Check back to their Instagram and website for info!

Check out the pollination station for a fun way to educate your kids on different plant species, butterflies and bees. This space looks different season to season.

The nature center play area has:
Two bridges (one with a tunnel to climb through)
Tree stump obstacle course
Tree balance beams
Overlook area with benches

Please please follow the rules of the refuge to preserve the lands. No dogs, no jogging and no bicycles!

Restrooms on site!

We will definitely be back when the weather changes to hike the family friendly - “Rail Trail” that comes highly recommended.

Mom What's Next Salem Oregon

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