Bigger play stuff for bigger kids!!

Once again, a post about my kids growing WAY TOO FAST!!! The past few weeks we have passed on most of the kids outdoor play stuff. The swing set would come off the ground when they went too high. The playhouse and the climbing gym were now only used as a means to jump the fence. The kids had to sit outside the little turtle sandbox, so there was enough room for their arms to manipulate the sand. The had to duck WAY down to get in the little playhouse. Their knees came up to their armpits on the teeter-totter!! FINE!!!! So they ARE growing!!!

Here's one last look at the play area of the past. Ah the memories!!

And now for the "new" play set of the present. After much debate and shopping, we gave up on the idea of a big redwood play structure. The ones we would want for the kids cost around $10,000 new. WHATEVER!!! And even the "lesser" versions at places like Costco are a chunk of change for something the kids are already getting too big for. The structure itself is HUGE--but the play equipment it comes with isn't for big kids. Our yard isn't really big, and we were not excited about having to restain it every year, or having the tarp roof fly away in our wind storms. So...it was decided, we would go with galvanized steel. Still--a BIG chunk of change for a new one. So, you know me--on the hunt for a bargain!! Every play set like this used online sold in a matter of minutes. I was missing all of them. Then one day I could just feel it--I knew it would be there. Online for only 19 minutes when I called on it. I sent Darin for it after work. He and his brother Dave got it out of the ground, no problem. But the large amount of cement on the bottom of the poles was bit of a problem!! They had to rent a jack-hammer to get it off!!

After a few rainy weeks, and a week of the kids waiting for out own cement to cure--it's now ready to go!! We repainted the red to make it shiny and new. The previous owners had let their dogs chew on the blue belt swings. That makes for a scratchy ride for a kid with shorts. Darin picked up two new swing seats at Lowe's for me. Nope--they would NOT due. They were a much lesser quality than the original old ones. The original ones will last forever and could hold more weight. So, I IRONED them out. I am serious. I laid those plastic/rubber seats down on my ironing board and I melted the stuff smooth again. We put little covers on the ends of the steel so wasps can't build nests in there. We sprayed the slide with a good coat of Endust, and it is as slippery as new!!

It has it all--monkey bars, regular swings, a trapeze bar, rings, and a big slide!! It takes up very little yard space. And I am happy to say we did not spend the $2,000.00 that the very same item costs new right now from the very same company!! Just a mere fraction of that!! SWEET!! Next on the "list" is to build a BIG sandbox and a playhouse big enough for the kids to actually stand in!! Ah, the never-ending projects!! All worth it for the little munchkins!!