Can we all give a little collective woohoo that we’ve finally had a couple of weeks of consistent warm weather? And that it’s time for the summer, kids playing outside and no more days of having to grab a jacket before leaving the house?
So I’m loving that it’s nice out now. And I actually did a search here on Mommies with Style for “outdoor toys” to see what I had reviewed in the past and it got me inspired to both mention a few old favorites and some new ones too.
A cheap, plastic pool. I’m gonna give some sage Mom advice from a Mom who is going on her 8th summer of having kids. Don’t spend the money on a fancy plastic pool with slides and bells & whistles that inflate in all directions. Chances are something will pop by the end of the summer and if it doesn’t, it’ll be moldy and gross and you won’t want to store the thing all winter. Each year I now get my kids a cheap, plastic pool that we only keep for one season.
You can get them for as little as $10 at your local Toys R Us or Walmart. This Intex Pool for $19.09 at Amazon is the kind I’ll get for my boys this year as it’s big enough for them to have some fun in but cheap enough that I won’t feel badly when I toss it at the end of the summer.
A sandbox. When you can’t be at the beach, bring the beach to your back yard! If you want to go all out, this KidKraft Backyard Sandbox looks amazing.
It’s normally $299.99 but it’s on sale on BabyAge.com right now for $164.99 with free shipping!
Don’t want to spend that much? This Step2 Cabbie Sandbox is $59.99 at Toys R US. Whatever you do, make sure you get one with a top! The sand can get icky overnight if it’s not covered (plus I always envision some wild creature in the middle of the night thinking it’s a litter box and we don’t that!)
A fun sprinkler. Some things don’t change with time and turning on the hose and hooking up the sprinkler for the kids on a hot day never gets old.
There are a ton of cute sprinklers for kids on the market that will do all sorts of fun things when they turn out.
This Melissa & Doug Sunny Patch Grub Scouts Sprinkler is $13.88 with free shipping on Amazon.
A stomp rocket. A good friend gave Nate his first stomp rocket toy (the Marky Sparky Blast Pad) almost three years ago and we’ve been through several sets since. I’ve gotten it a number of times and usually always pay $30, even on Amazon, so seeing it for sale for $20.99 with free shipping on Amazon, I know it’s a good deal.
Everyone loves this toy. Who wouldn’t love blasting a rocket in the air? Even the adults get going with this when they’ve had a beer or two when we have people over… get the Marky Spaky Blast Pad on Amazon for $20.99 with free shipping.
What’s your must-have for the kids in your back yard?
Brings back memories of someone I know having such a delightful time running through the sprinkler in the backyard at 220 with Doree and Totten . . and Limpydoo having as much fun watching!
Stomp rockets are a huge hit at our house! Now if only they could stop launching them into the neighbor’s yard….