Siouxland Families

Sertoma Park is one of Sioux City's best-known parks, with an iconic water tower, fun playground, scenic views, lots of space to run and play, and a great pavilion. Here's your ultimate guide to this wonderful park just south of Sioux City's Morningside neighborhood and the Southern Hills Mall. What is Sertoma Park? Sertoma Park is a 42-acre city park in the southern part of Sioux City, on the same hill as Cone Park. Essentially, the eastern side of the hill is Sertoma Park, while the western side of the hill is home to Cone Park and to the Lewis & Clark Park baseball stadium where the Sioux City Explorers baseball team plays. Also nearby is Thinker Toys and the Castle Pub, both housed in a castle across the street from Sertoma Park to the South.  The history of Sioux City's Sertoma Park Sioux City's Sertoma Park is one of its newer parks, dating to the turn of the millennium. In 1995, the Sioux City Sertoma Club made an agreement with th

now updated for 2023! One of the best parts of living right in the middle of some of the world's best farmland is access to amazing pumpkin patches! Here are some of the great pumpkin patches within a 2-hour drive from downtown Sioux City, listed by distance from downtown Sioux City. This roundup is being updated to reflect 2023 pumpkin patch hours, rates, and events, and I will update throughout the season as new details are available. Please e-mail me if you own or operate a pumpkin patch and would like to update your entry or add a patch to our list! Scarecrow Farm Photo used with permission from Scarecrow Farm Location : 1592 Charles Avenue, Lawton, Iowa Distance from downtown Sioux City : 8.7 miles/ 15 minutes (4 miles East of Menards) Dates for 2023 : Sunflower Days are weekends in September, beginning September 9th, 2023. Click here for more information on Sunflower Days at Scarecrow Farm. Then September 30th & October 1st, 2023 enjoy Oktoberfest at Scarec

Every month I bring you the best things to do in Sioux City and Siouxland, from storytimes and crafts to music festivals, streaming concerts, and holidays from silly to serious. This month, some of the highlights include Art Splash and the openings of local sunflower farms, apple orchards , and pumpkin patches !  I hope this event list inspires you to go make some happy memories with your family this month!  *Now updated with 2023 events. I'll also keep adding throughout the month as new events and details are shared with me! * Fri 9/1 9:30am: Soap Carving at Ponca State Park in Ponca, NE 10am: Popsicles in the Park at Miracle Field hosted by MOPS (you are not required to join MOPS to attend this event, but this *is* an informational event for them 10:30am: Build you own Bird Feeder at Ponca State Park in Ponca, NE 1-3pm: Pellet Rifle introduction  at Ponca State Park in Ponca, NE 7pm: Glow Ride at Midway Beach at Lewis & Clark Recreation Area in Yankton, SD Sat 9/2 Internation

***UPDATE: this post now reflects dates, hours, and prices for 2023*** It's officially apple picking season in Sioux City!! Autumn Grove Orchard just announced that they are opening for the 2023 season on Sunday, September 3rd from noon to 4pm, and that they should have Macintosh, Gala, and Honeycrisp apples ready! What is Autumn Grove Orchard? Autumn Grove Orchard is Sioux City's only pick-your-own apple orchard. Autumn Grove is locally owned by a Sioux City family and grows 9+ varieties of apples, which are available to pick as they ripen throughout the fall. They may also offer a variety of baked goods and crafts for sale, so watch for those as well! Where is Autumn Grove Orchard? Autumn Grove Orchard is at 1658 180th Street in Sioux City, just a few minutes past the Lakeport Commons shopping area and Fleet Farm. There is ample free parking at the orchard, and if the parking area is full, just pull over along the road! When is Autumn Grove Orchard

Jason's is Sioux City's coolest new place for treats on a hot day! Here's what you should know about this cute locally owned ice cream shop near Sioux City's north side:  What is Jason's Frozen Treats? Jason's Frozen Treats is a brand-new ice cream shop in Sioux City serving up cones and cups of delicious ice cream in a variety of flavors. The building itself is quite small, with a walk-up ordering window, a walk-up pick-up window, and a door for employees only. There is no seating inside, but there's an adorable area on the west side of the building with artificial grass and picnic tables, including two full size picnic tables with huge umbrellas that provide great shade and two cute little tables that my kids couldn't resist and I'm sure other kids will love too. Here's a peek at my recent visit there:  When I went, the employees were polite

  For many Siouxland families, fall isn't complete without a trip to Dailey's MadCat Pumpkin Patch! here's what you should know about the patch! photo used with permission from Mike Dailey What is Madcat Pumpkin Patch? Madcat Pumpkin Patch is an 8-acre pumpkin patch, locally owned by farmer Michael Dailey. If you're looking for a no-fuss pumpkin patch experience where you can go to a field full of pumpkins on a working farm, this is the place for you! In 2023, the patch is planning to be open to the public beginning Friday, September 1st! Once opened, the patch is open to the public from sunrise to sunset every day until Halloween (October 31st) New in 2022 was a 9-acre corn maze based on the Overlook Hedge Maze in the Shining , which is just south of the pumpkin patch. I've also heard there may be a test plot of giant Atlantic dill pumpkins for visitors to admire (I don't *think* these will be for sale but I will update once I hear back for s

Distance running is my favorite sport (I ran XC and track in jr high, high school, and college) and I'm happy to report that there are some really great places to run in Siouxland! Whether you're new to the sport, new to Siouxland, or maybe just visiting Siouxland, if you want to find out more about the distance running and track scene in Sioux City, you're in the right place. I couldn't include every single place you can or should run, and you'll need to of course use your own judgement and preferences to, as every runner has different ideal running conditions. But I tried to come up with some of the best and most useful suggestions to make this the most comprehensive guide to running in Sioux City. So fellow runners, read on to find out more about the best places in Sioux City and Siouxland to go for a run including outdoor tracks, outdoor tracks, and great trails, plus find out about Sioux City's biggest running group, some of the biggest local races held ann