Playground Fun?

I must have looked like a crazy, obsessive person to the casual observer.  No one probably even noticed.  I'm the lady who wiped down the playground equipment with a wet wipe.  That's right, I did it!  And no, it wasn't the minute we got to the park. 

We went to a local playground around 10:30 a.m., and someone was already set up at a set of tables across the park for a kids' party.  I hoped it was too early for anyone to eat, because I knew there was no way the Babe would be willing to leave as soon as she saw the slide.  There were two sets of equipment, one clearly for older kids, so again I had hope.  The Babe had the little kid set to herself off and on, as the party goers ran around like a wild mob hopping on and off all the equipment.  Another toddler with his mother (his older brother was attending the party) joined us after a while.  All was fine, until he ambled over to the distant tables for a snack.  Ahh, he only came back with some tortilla chips, which should have been fine.  I wasn't so lucky the next time he went when I could see something orange grasped in one hand.  Clearly it was a chip or cracker with some cheesy flavoring.  Alas, time to go.  But the Babe didn't sense the dire urgency or me telling her time to go.  Bribes weren't working.  I had hoped to have a normal outing, but had to tell the other mother why out of the blue I was trying to flee the scene.  She apologized (not her fault), and she tried to brush her son's hands off.  Well, that won't work.  Only washing will remove the problem.  However, in light of not getting my child out of there peacefully, I wiped everything down.  Not the perfect solution, but I hovered and things worked out. 

Now I know, if we ever go back to the playground it will have to be super early.  The reason I don't want to return was more due to her resistance to leave (45 minutes in the car before in her carseat) than the hazards of the playground. 

The key though is to come prepared.  I always have wipes and her meds on me.  I also happened to have packed some freshly baked cookies in case we ran into some friends, which we did.  This averted anyone eating a snack they may have brought that wasn't safe for us to be around.  Having a food allergic child may remove any spontaneity, but at least we can still try to have fun (with lots of hovering!).