What do your children like to do when they play outside?
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Outdoor Play
Every once in a while I start thinking that our backyard needs a swing set, one of those fancy ones with a play house at the top of the slide. Then Bear and J-jo could climb and slide and swing to their hearts content. When we play outside, we mostly just run around the yard, balance walk on the landscaping bricks, and roll down our hill. We also play in our "sandbox", an under-the-bed storage box we no longer use for storage. Even without a play structure, Bear and J-jo happily want to stay outside all day. Nevertheless, I can't help but daydream about owning one of these swing sets for kids.
We don't have any playsets either. I will usually hide items in teh back yard (plastic insects and other nature toys) and let them search around for it. On good days, I'll have the printed cards to go along so the first one to fill up their card wins. Sometimes they get creative on their own and use the toys to make little habitats in the backyard.
ReplyDeletewe have a fenced in yard which is the most fabulous thing EVER. our yard is generally muddy, so when my boys go out they roll around in the mud, splash in puddles, find sticks and attack their little plastic slide. but the best feature of my backyard is my adorable orange VW bug! it runs, but since I can't fit everyone in it, it's been in the backyard and the BEST. FORT. EVER. they are always climbing in it and pretending to drive and fight pirates and everything. In the spring I'm sending it to my dad's to get fixed up, and I know the boys will be HEARTBROKEN. time to build a real fort.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea for sand! We have a swing set and the girls LOVE to swing. They will play for hours! But we dont have sand. This might be a great way to have some without it being all over the yard!
ReplyDeleteWe have a big wooden swingset and a large trampoline, both purchased when my older two children (now teens) were smaller. To be honest, we could sell them and it wouldn't bother Short Pants and Pita Pocket a bit! They both much prefer to move wood, dig in the dirt, run in the woods, play in the sandbox, etc. The other week they were using the garden hose to tap maple syrup from a cedar tree. :)
ReplyDeleteI would have loved to have a bigger yard. Ours is fairly small and doesn't have interesting natural features. We inherited a small play house, but Anna doesn't play in it often. Generally speaking, the best part to have in the backyard is a playmate - then she always finds something to do.
ReplyDeleteThe only reason We decided to buy this house it is because the backyard is huge and has a big barn that my husband loves. We do have a swing set we got it at wallmart at the end of two summers ago on sale..believe it was a great deal.We also play with balls,we paint outside a lot, we do yoga outside,we play tag,simon says,we also have a infaltable house in summer we blow it up,we set up a little pool and lots of picnics...all this in summer time.On winter time we use the swing set mostly.
ReplyDeleteWhile mine like the play structure, their favorite thing is to wander on "adventures," climbing trees and going on "journeys" through the bushes, etc.
ReplyDeleteMy husband insisted on buying a swingset for our kids because he has such fond memories of the one he had as a kid. She plays on it every single time she goes outside. She likes to swing, the slide and sometimes she just climbs up and down the ladder over and over, up and down, up and down. We also have a sandbox which is just an old plastic pool, but that is in our garage. My daughter also plays in the plain old dirt outside. We also have a dog that she plays with outside. And chalk, she loves to write with chalk on the slab in our backyard and the driveway. When she gets a hold of the waterhose she will go crazy. And we have a nextdoor neighbor who is older and is introducing her to more complex imaginary play :) oops, long comment!
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