I'm delighted to have teamed up with Wayfair for this summery version of how to get creative in the garden with a baby.
Stanley's at an age now (20 months) where he's happiest outside - which is lucky because as part of our ongoing home renovations there's been a lot of work to do out there. He's just a little bit too young to play games with any kind of rule or technique but he loves to go off by himself to explore or 'help' us with our jobs. Over the past few months in order to get our garden summer ready I've been turning tasks into games and getting Stanley fully immersed where I can. So far he seems to love it, today with Wayfair I want to share some of the ways I've been getting creative in the garden and still getting jobs ticked off my to do list.
Create areas to explore - As I said Stanley really loves having a little areas where he can wander off too, whether that be searching for bees (his bee category is quite broad) or looking for the neighbours dog. His favourite place of all is in the veg patch sitting on a bench, he likes to lead me over so I can sit next to him and we spot birds, planes and cats together. I bought this metal bench from Wayfair last year and its been a fantastic buy. The same style isn't available but I love this turquoise version and I'm thinking of adding this white metal bench to another corner and some patio chairs near our dining room, these metal heart chairs remind me of a place saw in New York a few years ago and my friend has these cool woven chairs that we both love (for different reasons).
Get them involved - We've been adding raised beds for flowers and veg around the garden and this is where Stanley has loved to get involved. With Stanley's help we built this raised planter - he just loves to watch anyone build stuff and also been adding raised beds. We have been using spare building materials but I think these raised garden planters are a fantastic value buy or this wooden planter is really child friendly. For me it's really important for children to get messy so he's been helping fill beds with soil, dig in our seedlings (I have lost a few) and water the plants (his favourite!).
Create simple activities - I try not to make it all about jobs so have been including a few items that look good and can be reused after. Any kind of water activity immediately gets his attention, now that the weather has perked up I've been using items like this galvanised planter filled with bubbles and toys to keep him entertained or been using colourful throws/tablecloths to pull him around the garden which he thinks is the best thing - I love this cotton patterned throw and this patterned tablecloth. At Stanley's age they change and develop so fast I want to invest in products that have a use around the house when he moves onto the next stage where he can play more games.
Invest in a few key toys - Now that summer is starting to establish itself and the garden is under control I've been looking at bringing in some child friendly activities. I really don't like wasting money on items that only have a few months use so have been looking at items that will last. Waiting in the wings is a sandbox with cover , having a sandbox that can be covered up at night and also provides some sun protection is a real winner and I know we'll be using it for years, there is also a train version that I think would blow his mind! Second on my list is definitely adding a wigwam play tent he's just started to play hide-and-seek so having a secret hide out will keep him entertained. The slide at toddler group seems to have a magnetic pull for children of all ages, it's time we bought a slide for the garden like this Smoby funny slide which can be turned into a waterslide.
I really hope that this post has given you some inspiration for garden activities for little ones. A huge thank you to Wayfair for sponsoring this post, all photos, words and opinions are my own.
Psst - you can see how our garden looked when we moved in here
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