Young Life in an Old Town: The Armory Tot Lot

The second installment in Patch’s playground series is the urban oasis known by locals as the Tot Lot (Read about how the park got its name here).

This little gem is a favorite playground for us when doing errands or going out to dinner in Old Town because it’s a stone’s throw from King Street and right in the heart of fabulous shops and restaurants.

It’s not unusual for me to bribe Sophia with playground time here. It usually goes something like this: “If you will be good for 10 minutes while mommy looks at some shoes, we will go to the playground.”

Or if you’re strolling around with a willing spouse or friend, you can try to sweet talk that person into taking your child to the park while you pop into Mint Condition (one of my favorite shops, but not so fun with children because of a narrow staircase and generally tight quarters) or get your nails done at Royal Nails. As the name would suggest, this is a park best suited for toddlers. No monkey bars only bucket swings, and not a ton of room to run. The sandbox and riding toys make it a great choice for the five and under set.

Location: 208 South Royal Street

Sandwiched on a residential street and surrounded by homes, this little park is tucked on a relatively quiet street just south of some great shopping and dining. Just down the block are the Grape and the Bean, Fontaine Caffe and Creperie and Lavender Moon Cupcakery. Retail shops on this same street include Whistle Stop Hobbies, Mint Condition and CVS.

Equipment: 2 bucket swings, a seesaw, a sandbox that is usually well stocked with sand toys, a play structure with a tall “tunnel” slide, 2 smaller slides, and the a few ladders to climb and scale

Shade? Yes! But not really in the play areas. The benches and picnic tables are relatively well shaded by trees but if you think your child is going to hunker down in the sandbox for 45 minutes, it’s a good idea to pack sunscreen and a hat.

For Adults: 2 benches and a picnic table

Fenced? Yes

Bathrooms? No. Your best bet is probably the Hotel Monaco on King Street. They’ve never given me a hard time about rushing my “potty dancing” child in there for a bathroom break. Plus I always enjoy a look at their fun décor and a wistful glance at the grownups enjoying drinks at the bar.

Miscellaneous: There’s a wooden fence surrounding the park on two sides and sometimes there’s chalk lying around for drawing on the fence. Throw some sidewalk chalk in your bag if you think your child might enjoy this. My daughter loves the riding toys that are usually available here, possibly because we’ve never owned anything like this since there’s no place to store them at our house (at almost 5, she is too big for most of them but still seems to love them).

The only negative about this park for me is that I find it quite “buggy.” Perhaps because of all of the trees and lack of any kind of breeze, the mosquitoes and gnats seem to be out in full force here on muggy summer days and evenings. Ah, the aroma of sunscreen mixed with insect repellant - it must be summer in Old Town!