Outdoor Summer Fun

Stop the dreaded "There's nothing to play" before it even starts!

Author:
Shannon Breuner Nelson
Updated:
Dec 18, 2018
Original:
May 25, 2012

This year, without Vanilla Ice's help, we put in a new backyard. If you revisit my Vanilla Ice post, and this is hard for me to recap as I've tried to block it all out of my mind, we had unwanted Lake Nelson in one corner of the backyard each and every time that it rained due to serious drainage issues, a very small crumbling concrete patio that someone had LOVINGLY painted very lovely green and yellow colors, and weeds that made us look like we lived in the marshlands.

We now have a paver stone patio that's probably three times the size of the lovely crumbling concrete heap that previously dwelled in the same location, a new lawn, and garden beds lining our back fence where I am trying to grow something. Really, anything. If our home value does not rise, I'm going to be steamed.

But aside from all that, it should pretty much be a three year old's dream. There's space to run and play, she can ride her large collection of wheeled things all over the place, room to chalk galore. We really wanted to have the backyard done over other things in our house so that she could have a great summer and play, play, play.

And here we go. What does she say to me?

There's nothing to play with out here.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

If your kids are staring at you, waiting for something exciting to happen in your backyard, check out this list of ways to make your outdoor space the place to be this summer. And perhaps it will be SO the place to be, that your child won't utter the dreaded, "there's nothing to play with" phrase again until the first leaves begin to fall.

Use Your Noodle from Parents.com - and if this doesn't get you, check out my 20 Ways to Use Pool Noodles