Being outside is a real positive. Since being in lockdown and having limited places to visit and explore with the kids, we found our garden hugely important.
There are so many positive reasons for being outside. It reduces stress it helps with a better night's sleep and improves productivity.
Running, walking, jumping, climbing, swinging and throwing are things that can be done outside in the fresh air for a child to improve their motor skills.
Since being in lockdown, I have found it challenging to find the right balance when it comes to screen time for my kiddos. They love screen time, as does any kid, but too much screen time can often make them cranky and unresponsive to their home surroundings. Don't get me wrong, and I'm not saying to cut out screen time ultimately. I'm simply saying that my kids are much more responsive, positive and happy when outside.
I love my indoor garden, but our actual outdoor garden was something of a pain, and I found it rather daunting and too big of a task to tackle but being in lockdown, I found it was time to approach the garden and give it a bit of a mini makeover.
Working with plum play and the treehouse climbing frame was my motivation for creating an outdoor space for my kiddos and Craig and me.
I cleared space, cut lots of overgrown trees back, and used bamboo screening to surround and secure a crumbling fence.
The treehouse is tremendous, and they can climb paint on the perspex screen. There's a slide, and it's also helped improve communication skills when using the bucket rope.
It's also created an outdoor flower box with bee-friendly plants for the kiddos to learn when they need water and water them accordingly. We planted lavender as they are rich in nectar and the flower through June and July when the Bee’s need them most. The boys add dinosaurs because let's face it, a flower box is just dull without dinosaurs.
The last sunny day we had, Marcie, Bodhi, and Rowe brought their duvet covers down, draped them down the sides, and created a den underneath the treehouse. They had their lunch and dinner outside in their cave which was for them a great adventure.
The treehouse has been a fantastic starting point and has inspired us to make a disused corner of our garden for the kids simply by laying weed membrane down and covering it in child-friendly bark. The boys have their toy rock trunks and spend ages moving the bark, and Marcie has a shop making flower petal perfume.