Robert's Park - Special Needs Meet-Up - 8/10

A few weeks ago my East Bay Parent's of Kids with Special Needs Meet-Up Group met at a new park. It is up in the Oakland Hills and part of the Joaquin Miller Regional Park System. It is called the Roberts Regional Recreation Area, and is one of the only fully accessible parks in this area. In addition to the playground is a nearby out door swimming pool.Underneath the structure our group was taking a break and sitting for a snack. This week some of them met early (At 9:30) which is like an unheard of time for me. I think it was almost 10:45 before we arrived, so some of the mom's had already left for errands, and other's were just wrapping up.There was a mini hidden slide there that Holly enjoyed using. Also there was a large see saw, that was like a picnic table where you could sit several people on either side and tilt back and forth.We did get a chance to See Quinn and Joshua which was nice. Quinn shared his peanut butter sandwich with Holly. But before long she was off and trying to play. The wide isles were wonderful and made it easy for us to follow her around and made for lots of room for her to run.Another neat thing was all of the cool puzzles and play items on the walls, I think this is to provide more accessible activities. There was also not a lot of wide open spaces to the ground where Holly could easily fall which was also nice. The slide entrance was up high, making them accessible, and Baby Proof.Here she is swinging with Daddy while she waits for a turn on the baby swing. The swings were in the back of the park behind the structure and up the hill. There was a little shaded gazebo near by where I sat and watched them swinging.There were many entrances onto the structure, some from below that sloped up and other's backed up against the hill, so it was multi-level almost like a little maze.Holly enjoyed watching the other kids play, but of course had to stop and say hello to the mirror baby, whom she doesn't often see playing with her at the park. They even had a fully accessible swing, it holds a few hundred pounds so even an older child could use it. Holly tried it out waiting for the baby swing, as there was no one in line who needed it at the time.Slides - 1 - There were slides, although Holly would need our help to do them, and in some cases we would need Daddy on top and Mommy to catch.

Swings - 1 - Yes, Only one baby swing, but that was enough.

Surface - 1/2 - The play structure was metal and the ground sand. The surface did get a little hot and Holly needed to wear her shoes.

Shade - 1/2 - Shade was limited to hiding under the play structure or in the little gazebo, but most of the play area was not protected.

Climbing - 1 - There was some climbing, but mostly various paths to walk on and explore. there was a climbing slope on one side of the park.

Parking - 1/2 - There was a big parking lot, but I am talking off 1/2 a point because it cost 5$ to park there, and there were no other options.

Bathrooms - 1 - Yes. Near the swings if I recall correctly.

Distance - 1/2 - Even though it is seemingly close, it is up in the hills so it took more the 10 minutes but less then 20 for me to get there.

Friends - 1 - There were a lot of kids playing in the park, but it was also very hot and we ended up not staying too long, also a lot of the kids were older.

Fun - 1- The park was a lot of fun, but I am starting to think Holly can find a way to have fun just about everywhere she goes.