The Beach in Little Elm

If you can't make it to a real beach this summer, the beach at Little Elm is a good replacement. It is part of Lake Lewisville and off of El Dorado Parkway.  

The beach is similar to the ones attached to an ocean.  The ocean is 6 hours away from us.  While I love the ocean with it's salt water and waves, the beach in Little Elm is great for a stay-cation.  We always bring our sand toys like shovels, buckets, castle molds, boats, cars, and rakes.  Snacks and drinks are part of our cargo, but there is a mini cafe on-site should you choose to purchase snacks or drinks.  

In addition to this great swimming area, there is a large playground close by as well as a volleyball court.

Cost:

FREE!

Cottonwood Park in Richardson, TX

If you are in the Richardson area, you may want to stop by this updated park.  It is close to Belt Line and Coit in West Richardson.  When I was younger, I lived close to this park, but it has improved in the last 10 years.  A small pond with ducks and geese have been added.  There are play areas, picnic areas, bridges, tennis court, and during the summer a public pool is open.  This park is relaxing, and we had fun watching the ducks interact with each other.

Cost: FREE!

Heard Museum in McKinney, TX

The Heard Museum in Mckinney is a mixture of zoo, preserve and museum in one.  One of the most exciting features about the Heard is their Animals of the World exhibit.  This exhibit features animals such as the Capybara, the Macaw, the Cockatoo, the mongoose, the opossum, the raccoon, the lemur, the deer and more!  During the year, they have child friendly events where you can even meet the animals up close. 

Starting June 1 until September 30, a beautiful butterfly garden comes to life!  This exhibit is worth the visit all by itself.  The butterflies are plentiful and fun to watch flutter around.  Some are inside a mesh enclosure and others are outside of the mesh with the rest of the garden.  The flowers are gorgeous when in bloom, and you can usually get some pretty good photos in this area. 

The kids like the dinosaur dig that is found inside the museum.  It is like a gigantic sand box.  In the Summer there are plenty of "friends" to play with.

Starting October 2 and running until February 3, Dinosaur Live comes back to the Heard.  This is a great exhibit for dinosaur lovers.  There are enormous animated dinosaurs all over the trails on the outside of the museum.  The T-Rex is 46 feet tall!  I don't want to spoil the fun for you, but one of the dinosaurs will be ready to surprise you, so watch out!! 

Many families come to the Heard just for the nature trails.  There are a total of 8 nature trails around the museum.  Along the way there are birds, squirrels, ducks, and other wildlife to spot.  You can really burn calories here as many of the trails are many miles long. 

Cost:

Adults= $9

Children ages 3-12= $6

Cabela's in Allen, TX

If you love the outdoors, you will love the things you can buy and see at Cabela's.  Cabela's has everything you need for camping, hunting, boating, fishing, and any other outdoor activities you can think of.  I am not in to any of those things, but after a visit, I wished I could go camping with the cool tents and accessories. 

This is a place to take the kids to see fish.  There are several tanks with different types of fish inside.  They even have a feeding demonstration.  If you time your visit right, you can see it. 

We enjoyed seeing all of the different animals.  Even though they were all deceased animals that were stuffed... It was cool to see all of the animals we would never see otherwise.  These animals are all over the store.  You can see them above you, beside you and all around you. 

We walked out without buying anything.  We just enjoyed seeing all of the gear they offer and the fish and animals. 

Mesquite Rodeo in Mesquite, TX

I used to attend the Rodeo back in the old days, when the arena was not air-conditioned.  I went regularly, and it was a lot of fun to watch.  I knew then that when I was older and had kids of my own,  I would want to take them to see the rodeo.

These days, the Mesquite Rodeo is inside with a temperature-controlled atmosphere.  You can expect to see some bull riding, barrel racing, roping, as well as some comedy and country music.

There are things for the kids to do like the petting zoo, pony rides, and the run with a calf (where the kids try to see who can get the ribbon off of the calf first).  Snow cones and barbecue are the offerings should you get thirsty or hungry. 

The rodeo goes every Friday and Saturday night through the Summer, and prices vary depending on what kind of seats you want. 

Cost:

Corral Seats: $12

Reserved Seats: $12 child and $24 adult

VIP Seats: $17 child and $34 adult

Suites are available as well

Towne Lake in McKinney, TX

Playground above and in the photo below, you can see the paddle boats in the far background

This 22 acre lake in McKinney is the perfect place to go if you want to relax.  The scenery is breath-taking, and the air is peaceful.  Visitors to the park can be seen relaxing on a blanket in the shade of an old tree, or having a picnic on one of the picnic tables there.  There are even pavillions, if you need a place for a group. 

There is a paved trail that travels the length of the lake that is great for walking the dog, riding bikes, inline skating, or just going for a scenic stroll.

We like it here because there are ducks, geese, and seagulls to feed.  A word of caution, though, do not get too close to the geese because they are aggressive. 

On the back side of the lake, there is a playground with slides, swings, and bars.  There are restrooms on that side as well. 

If you like to fish, fishing is available as well.  I have seen several people fishing while we were there, though I have never seen them catch anything. 

You can rent a paddleboat swan and paddle around the lake on the weekends.  We have never done this, but if taking a paddleboat for a spin is what you would like to do, give them a call at 972-542-4865. 

All in all, we have a relaxing time every time we visit the lake, so we enjoy going regularly.  The physical address to the lake is 1405 Wilson Creek Parkway, McKinney, TX.