Young families in Dysart have developed a noticeable cabin fever in recent months with winter weather playing it’s worst, so Chris and Jenny Dumas have created a Toddler Time group at the Dysart Community Building.

“When we were living in Waterloo, the Cedar Falls Rec Center had a thing with their gym that children could come and play with,” Jenny said. “It was nice to get out during the winter. When we moved here, there was story times on Thursday, but besides that we had nothing. So we thought we’d start Toddler Time for the kids to have fun.”

Toddler Time runs from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays in the Dysart Community Building, which was opened to the group by the City Council. Parents are free to bring their children to work off some energy with the toys in the building. The Dysart Development Corporation (DDC) donated two bouncy houses for Toddler Time as well as additional toys. The group also allows young parents to socialize with others in the area who may have recently moved, like the Dumas’s.

“We have had 20 kids and about 10 adults attend per time,” Jenny said. “It’s been an excellent response. A lot of these kids are coming from Traer and still quite a few from Dysart.”

In addition to the toys and activities available through Toddler Time, the Dumas’s have hosted Dr. Sarah Gingrich to talk to the kids about brushing their teeth. Jenny also expressed interested in having the Dysart Police Dept to stop in.

“We want to help bring people to Dysart to spend their money here rather than in Waterloo or Cedar Falls,” Jenny said. “We hope to have activities that a daycare might do, like walk over to the fire station this summer to look around. When you’re a stay-home parent, you might not get those opportunities.”

Toddler Time will look for other parents to help lead the group when Chris or Jenny are not available. Parents stay for the time to allow their kids to have time to run around.

“The big thing for me is meeting the parents and grandparents through this,” Jenny said. “Being a stay-home mom might be hard for some. There’s a lot of new families here and we want to plan playdates with them. Chris and I have made just as many friends as our kids have through Toddler Time.”

The Dumas family hopes to plan more ideas over the summer rather than be inside the Community Building all the time. Support from the City Council and the DDC has been offered for toys and necessities the group may have in the future.