Get Wild and Get Outdoors this month at your Local Parks!

Did you know that July is National Recreation and Parks Month? This year, the theme is “Get Wild” which encourages families to play outside and enjoy the different benefits available at the local parks.

The National Recreation and Park Association is a not-for-profit organization that works to advance parks, recreation, and conservation efforts to create a quality level of living for all people. Studies have found that parks can improve mortality, healthy weight levels, and lower medical cost and they are even found to increase property values! Local parks help keep the community active and take a stand against the increasing obesity levels by encouraging outside play and recreation.

My family enjoys getting outdoors together. One of the ways we like to get outdoors and enjoy good quality family time together is by hiking! As our boys are still little, we go on easy, short hikes so no one gets too worn out. Spending this time outdoors together has been a great way to build memories, get exercise, and talk and laugh together as a family.

Another fun and simple way to get outdoors together is to visit a local community park. My boys love to visit a park near our home that has a large playground, pond full of ducks you can feed, and a dog park! It has enough variety that we get in some exercise walking around the pond and get to check out the dogs playing as well as some good old playing time on the swings and slides.

Another great way to enjoy national parks is for their camping spots! We love to go to camping sites that offer the very basic amenities but still give you a sense of nature and privacy. Arizona has lots of beautiful national parks and community parks around us and we’ve found many unique landscapes and play areas throughout our years living here. It’s always fun to find a new park to visit for the day and see what it has to offer.

You can find a calendar of local events happening in your area through the National Recreation and Park website. While there, take the opportunity to pledge to “Get Wild” this summer and enjoy the outdoors with your family.

Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of National Recreation and Park Association and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.