Creating A Garden The Kids Will Love!

We have been trying to decide what to do with our garden again. We are always trying to do stuff to our house and we are never content with just taking our time and don’t like waiting to do things. We should learn to walk before we leap as this is our first home and in reality we have only been here a year and a half. Not many fully decorate a new home in that time and do all of the garden. We are clearly too impatient!

We have accomplished a lot so far in the home and the garden is definitely not a bad garden and is already starting to resemble what we want it to look like. We have built a deck and a shed and have a little playhouse with slide and a trampoline in there. We have been putting grass seed down when we have had some thinned out areas of grass in the garden and filled gaps. So we certainly aren’t doing too bad that’s for sure.

The one thing I would really like to sort however is my son’s little area to play. As I say he has a slide and trampoline etc, and some outdoor toys and he has a bike but there isn’t a designated area that he can have just for him. I really want to sort this soon since he isn’t getting any smaller and I keep picturing this little play area that is safe and fun for him.

The costs to create an area like this can be quite high and it’s not necessarily filling it that is the problem. It is the foundations, i.e. what the toys and equipment go on. I want an area that isn’t grass (and mud) and I can’t decide on the surface materials. There are so many options and all have their positives and negatives. Some are idea but the cost is so high and some are great cheaper alternatives but not as effective or nice for my toddler to be playing on.

We seem to keep gravitating to the same things when it comes to the flooring. One is artificial grass, which can be the cheaper option depending on where you buy from and the amount of work that needs doing before it is laid down. Another is rubber mulch which is basically like rubber bark that you sometimes see in kids playgrounds. The rubber bark is so much better than the real bark as its’s not as harsh and doesn’t scratch skin (I remember walking bare foot on it as a kid, ouch!).

One of the big things I had to factor in when looking at the different flooring options was how easy it would be to maintain. I want an easy life so I don’t fancy giving myself more of a job by picking something completely awkward. I started noticing the different flooring used in places such as the park and my sons nursery as I am assuming these would need to be pretty low maintenance. Rubber or tarmac seemed to be the preferred choice in both, so I am thinking that they would be the better option so you can easily maintain your play areas.

I have no idea when I will actually start the kiddie bit in the garden as I keep saying I am going to do it but then never get round to it. It’s just adding to the huge long list of things I have to do or want to do! And there are definitely bigger things to think about right now. Like the fact that I am writing about this 3 days before my wedding….and I am just about to start a new job!

Has anyone created any great play areas in their garden? What did you do? I need inspiration!

This post is in collaboration with Soft Surfaces