Hey mamas!! Our fenced in portion of our backyard is about 1 acre so we have lots of space. Unfortunately, we also live in the country where it's very windy most of the time and anytime there is a storm, anything we haven't put away is probably going to be blown away! We had an 8 in 1 that was blown end over end several times and over our fence and into the field (some pieces up to 60 feet away) after a particularly bad storm here recently. Due to that, my husband didn't want to put it back up. I envision a backyard with tons of stuff for the kids to do (slide, swingset, water table, etc) but we HAVE to put everything away each night so this limits what we WANT to buy for our kids!! Here is what we currently have - a metal swingset that has three swings, a sand/water table, a picnic table, wheelbarrow, shovels and buckets for the dirt/rocks/mulch, a barbie jeep, chalk and bubbles. Am I crazy to want more in our yard? My hubby hates moving all the stuff each time we mow (which I get)....but do I really need more (my kids are 3.5 and 1.5). I want them to play in nature and not always HAVE to have something to do or play with.
Here are few things that I can hopefully answer before you ask them!
1. Our metal swingset will be anchored into the ground. It had a slide but the entire thing was knocked over in a storm and we haven't replaced it.
2. All things that are not bolted down will be moved next to the house or in the garage each night
3. We don't want to invest the time/money in a large area that is mulched incase we sell it (2 bedrooms) to an older couple
4. Because we don't know if we'll stay here more than year, we do not want to get a nicer/stronger swingset and cement into the ground
They have MORE than enough toys inside...I guess it's just ME wanting them to have any and everything they can dream of outside. What did your 3.5 and 1.5 year olds love?
It's funny that I'm even posting this because they do not ask for the 8 in 1 (since we took it down) and don't ask for 'a different toy' than what we offer to them. The last two days their favorite thing was to play in our 'lake' (really just a low spot in our yard that was full of water with sticks and go 'fishing'. So I'm glad they are using their imagination!
Give it to me...am I just asking/wishing for too much for them since we have the space?
I think it's fine to want more! Kids should be outside in the nice weather! We bought a big storage bench and put a concrete block in the bottom. That holds, bats, balls, chalk, sand toys, bag chairs, ect... For ride on toys you could put a post in concrete and bike lock the toys to the post so they won't blow away.
We always had a playhouse my dad built us. It was very heavy, and cemented into the ground so that baby stayed PUT! lol. It had swings and a slide. I wouldn't get any 'big' stuff that can't be anchored. You could try getting some long steel spikes with a hook on the end, and stake stuff down with straps if you have to instead of cementing stuff down. Everything else, I would put in a storage shed that you could get for that purpose. That would be a great way to teach your kids responsibility for their belongings... they have to put one thing away before pulling out something else. That way hubby doesn't have to move everything every time, it should already be put away. Besides our playhouse, our absolute favorite toys for outside were the 'big' blocks. My dad cut a bunch of 2x4s into rectangles, and they were our outdoor blocks. We had enough that we could build entire cities, or set them up lego-style all over the yard. VERY cheap, easy to replace, and fun! Plus it encouraged our imaginations to no end.
In my opinion, kids usually play better when they have fewer material possessions to get in their way of creativity. That being said, my 2 year old has a favorite bike/ride on toy from radio flier that is really neat. It doesn't have pedals, so she scoots around and the seat is able to lift off and turn it in to a wagon if she wants to push stuff around.
It sounds like you have a great back yard! set up the sprinkler on hot days and let them have at it :)
If you are not planning on staying there for more then a year or two I would not put a lot of working into making YOUR "dream" play area.
Growing up we had a small swing set, sandbox and wooden play house. That lasted for 8 plus years, enough for 4 kids and we used our imaginations to play not needing anything fancy.
Just let the kids explore and enjoy what you already have.
I think you have plenty. My guy has a couple Tonka trucks,sand toys,a play house, soccer net,picnic table and a swing set with a play house and sand box. We keep the balls and bats and toys that can blow away in our deck box.
They are very young- don't go over the top! As they get older, their ideas of outdoor fun will change drastically.
Just a thought... we used an old wagon (Radio Flyer) as a mobile sandbox and it has worked out really well. It's easy to wheel around and keeps the sand contained (including in the garage in the winter).
- no water table... ends up being a breeding ground for mosquitos and it's not nearly as fun as you would think
- cool sprinkler for warm weather! My son LOVED his sprinkler (hooked into the hose and looks like a shark). He asks all the time when it will be warm enough to play with it again.
- Swing set is good
- gardening toys
- weighted basketball hoop (we found ours on Craigs List)... can be filled with dirt/water but is still easily moved
Honestly- if you're not staying and they are still little, you don't need to go crazy with outdoor toys. Let them run around and use their imaginations!
My daughter's favorite outside toy when she was younger was a little wagon. She pushed and pulled it everywhere. She loved to go around the yard and pick up pinecones, sticks, acorns, etc. and put in it. She's 4 1/2 an she still plays with it.
My boys are a bit older than your children now, but we have a few acres, and we're in Texas. I don't think the wind ever stops blowing here. My kids are always outside. We wanted to set things up so the same way you want to. Our boys are outside all the time, and they are able to put things away easily so that it's not cluttered; we can easily mow around everything.
We have a trampoline, a swingset, and a basketball goal; everything else is put away whenever they are finished playing with it (oh, they also had a sandbox when they were younger). We have a toybox - one of those heavy-duty plastic ones- in the garage that they keep all outside toys in (balls, gardening tools, cars and trucks, etc.). One of their favorite things is a hammock that is hung between two trees outside the kitchen window. They love the hammock, and have loved it at all ages! My dad also helped them build a tree house a few years ago. If you stay there, that may be something to consider. When they were the ages of your children, they had an outside playhouse that they LOVED! It looked like a cabin. :)
Have fun playing outside!
our kids didn't play with much that we bought for outside either. They mostly played baseball and kickball. A soccer ball would also be good and start teaching them some soccer drills.
As for the wind blowing everything away. Plant some trees that get tall quickly--like in 5 years instead of 20. They will provide a wind barrier.
My kids loved driving their power wheels jeep. That was probably the favorite toy of all time. They would drive it for hours. We bought one when oldest was 2 and he loved it. When oldest was 4 he would drive his 1 yr old sister around and she loved riding. We had 2 sets of batteries so one set was on the charger all the time ready to go so if the batteries ran down they could still continue riding if they wanted. I think this would be the best toy for your big yard and can park it in the garage every night and plug it in.
