Documenting Delight: day two hundred and seventy {careful selection}

Now that warmer days are ahead, I am aiming to decrease the inside crafty play and get my two to embrace our big backyard. Look out kiddies you are going to be hearing the phrase “Alright, everybody outside!”  a lot more over the next few months. While we have been tidying up our garden I have been thinking about outdoor play opportunities for Finn and Harper. We have lots of grass, a sandpit, a new see-saw, a veggie patch, no trampoline (*gasp*), water tray table and a ball pit. It’s a great starting point but I am looking for ways to encourage their love of imaginative play, to support it in an outdoor setting.

Harper has recently made a new friend, and during a playdate with her mate Evie  I was inspired by the creative outdoor playspace that Evie’s mum, Jess, has created for her two young children. One feature was a mud pie kitchen located in a gorgeous hidden corner of their backyard. I had seen a few pictures here and there on Pinterest but it wasn’t until I saw the kitchen in action that I knew it could work in our backyard.

Jess pointed me in the direction of the local second-hand goods store Tiny’s Green Shed as a way to gather a few cheap items to get the kitchen up and running. For $20 we got an old wood tv cabinet (which I plan to turn into a kitchen stove), a big bag full of metal pots, pans, cake tins, spoons and jugs….oh and somehow a wine rack was snuck in by Lachie. Pretty good value I thought.

Harper took the kitchen equipment selection seriously. I would hold up my suggestions and she would say “Nah, not good enough”, place her head down and continue hunting.

I think we may have a op-shop expert on our hands.