We’re deep into winter now, and for those with young children who can’t readily escape to warmer, dryer climes, that can bring on feelings of dread when extended periods of cold, wet weather arrive.   We all can experience cabin fever, where days on end indoors without a good outlet for exercise can have us climbing the walls. Multiply that feeling ten times for a toddler with seemingly bottomless stores of kinetic energy, and you can understand how important (for their own sanity, if nothing else) it is for parents to find weather-indifferent outlets for their rambunctious children’s wiggles.

I rediscovered that basic necessity recently when I helped care for my nearly four-year-old granddaughter after the arrival of her baby sister. Over the past few years my daughter Jenny had developed a list of go-to spots, and we made good use of them. On rainy Sunday mornings June and I visited a local community center which provided access to its oversized gym for just a dollar per child. There wasn’t an age limit, but the clientele skewed to the under 5 set, with lots of small tricycles, scooters and Little Tykes Cosy Coupes available, along with balls, mini trampolines and the like. Parents played along or sat on low bleachers, chatting and commiserating over child-rearing challenges.

We also made use of a fairly new business in the area, Play Street Museum. It bills itself as “an interactive children’s museum and indoor play area purposefully designed to encourage a young child’s sense of independence, exploration, and creativity.” There are currently franchises of this fairly new operation in 10 U.S. states — plus Kuwait! Focus is on imaginative play for kids under 8, and the storefront space in a large strip mall I visited with June included a variety of “businesses” in child-sized “buildings” where kids could serve up meals in a café, be a veterinarian or doctor, play mail carrier, shop at the market, recycle materials at a garbage truck, or play house. Each location was stocked with dolls and stuffies, pretend food items, and all the proper accoutrements for that site. There was also an area devoted to arts and crafts with tables decked out with paper; paints, markers and crayons; Magna-tiles; blocks; and the like. I appreciated the fact that patrons reserve a time to visit (there are several 90-minute sessions each day, with cleaning done between sessions) so that the space doesn’t become overcrowded. Everything was clean and fresh, and parents could sit off to the side and let the children explore on their own (with good sight lines for monitoring) or join in on the fun. It seemed to be a well-thought-out concept, from the cubbies at the entrance (shoes must be removed, which helps keep things clean) to the roomy restrooms and the healthy farewell treat at the end. One must sign a waiver upon entering and pay a $14.50 fee per child (multi-visit passes at a discount are available), but I felt it was a reasonable price to pay for an entertaining interlude for June.

LEKA Playland and DiG PDX, both developed by a local Portland mom, also provide great indoor play environments for Portland Westsiders. LEKA (“play” in Swedish) entertains kids 0–5 in play spaces with a Scandinavian design aesthetic and toys inspired by Montessori and Waldorf philosophies. It offers an infant room for tots up to 18 months old and a more relaxed, less chaotic environment than a lot of indoor playgrounds.

DiG PDX just opened in December and is the largest indoor sandbox in the state. Its 4,200 square feet encompass 55,000 pounds of a special “clean” sand (absent of asbestos, silica or quartz, so safe for indoor use), divided between three play areas: construction (with lots of trucks and the like); dinosaurs (where kids can dig up fossils); and the beach, where dampened sand can be molded into sandcastles.  Outside food and drinks are allowed (though not in the sandboxes!), but beer, wine, cider and snacks are available for purchase. Cost is $16 per child (two accompanying adults are free, as are infants not entering the sandboxes), with unlimited play time for kids 0–6 years (there is a sand-free play area for babies) and kids up to 12 welcome after 3 p.m. June loved her time here.

If you’re looking for great indoor options for your kids to play, whether you’re on the road or at home, consider these:

• Many communities have a children’s museum which encourages exploration and play
• Inquire about nearby community centers which might have open gym and/or indoor pool hours
• Look into offerings from local parks and recreation departments. Many are open to non-local residents for a higher fee than residents pay
• Use search engines to discover businesses such as those named here which cater to young kids and their families
• If traveling, use your concierge as a resource (and find out what the hotel’s policy is for children’s access to pool and fitness facilities in advance)

It’s wonderful that there are so many options for parents with squirmy young ones on inclement weather days. That said, I’m a bit old school, and there’s nothing wrong with bundling them up in boots and rain or snow gear and sending them out to splash and play.  Might be good for you to join them!

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor