Image by Here's Kate via Flickr

The country is still very much in the grips of winter, but the evenings are getting lighter and on the right day you can even catch a scent of spring in the air. Modern life moves so quick these days and when you have kids to look after the days seem to pass in the blink of an eye. Summer is the perfect season to get your little cherubs out of the house and into the garden for some fresh air and exercise. However, once you’ve pried them away from the TV, you then have to find something suitable for them to use outside to keep them entertained. If you are lucky enough to have a garden suitable to use then here are some of the top outdoor play equipment designed specifically to be fun and safe.

The traditional piece of outdoor play equipment has always been the climbing frame. When I was a kid a climbing fame seemed to be nothing more than scaffolding. Today there is an astonishing amount of climbing frames available, metal and wood varieties are available and there are a number of add-ons and extras you can buy to enhance the equipment further and make it more fun and interesting for your kids. I’ve always liked the look of the wooden climbing frames, they are nicer of the eyes and they look solid and safe, they also tend to be a bit more elaborate and can include slides, swings and a number of other features. Climbing frames help your children to develop key skills such as an intuitive understanding of 3 dimensional spaces, hand eye foot coordination and muscle development.

Trampolines have become a very popular choice for families to buy for their children. Again, there is a wide variety of trampolines available to purchase with sizes from 8 foot to 14 foot being the most popular. You can also get mini trampolines for younger children and to keep the big kids safe many of the trampolines can be bought with a net safety enclosure to stop them from falling off. Trampolines are a great way for kids to develop core muscles and timing, larger trampoline can be used by one or more people so they also provide a good tool to develop interpersonal and communication skills.

Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best and if your child has a bike and you have a large enough garden then the 2 will go hand in hand together and keep your child entertained for hours. Bikes can be a tricky one to buy for kids because they are relatively expensive and kids outgrow them. However, a bike represents the first taste of independence you child will have and will teach them balance and coordination skills as well as developing muscles throughout the body and not just the legs.

If you’re a big kid at heart then you may like this next toy. I have to admit I love having a go on a space hopper, and kids are the same. If you’re unfamiliar with space hoppers they are simply a rubber ball with handles which allow the user to sit on top without falling off and hop around on. A simple, fun and safe toy for kids of any age to enjoy.

In a similar vein to the space hopper, the pogo stick is an all time classic. Another fun and safe toy for your kids to use outside the pogo stick is a one stop solution for any up and down related fun. The pogo stick can also be used as a piece of exercise equipment, so don’t be too ashamed if you’re sneaking out into the garden after the kids have gone to bed to use it.

Alex is a freelance internet marketer and copywriter working a company that specialises in trampolines. You can find him on Twitter here @harvey1dash8.

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So far I’m surviving this week alone with the kids although yesterday it was quite a busy day. A neighbor boy and a girl came to our house to play in the pool. I must confess that I like to have the kids here enjoying each other, playing and having fun but it’s really noisy and I come to I point I can’t hear them anymore. One of the kids stayed to have dinner with us and I ended up the day exhausted.

I had a bad insomnia last night, slept only a few hours. I’m not sure but I think I forgot to take my night medication. I was so tired that I wasn’t sure about the pills and I was afraid to take them for the second time.

I like those quiet moments my kids have. One of their hobbies is to work with beads, from all sizes, shapes and colors. They make wonderful key holders, rings, necklaces, beaded lanyards, bracelets, etc. Most of the time I join them and make my own beads works. This is a great way to keep the kids entertained and quiet for a while.

We end up with so many bead necklaces and bracelets that no one has  arms and necks to wear them so we just undo our work and do everything again with different patterns and colors.

But quiet time is something very rare, what they really like is to jump into the pool and splash the water all over the place. I’m glad I have a big backyard and the kids can play safely and have a lot of fun.

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Image by hortulus via Flickr

The days are getting warmer and the need to be outdoors is increasing. However due to my father’s hospitalization / death / and all the paperwork we have to take care when a close relative dies, I can say that I’m exhausted. Emotionally and physically.

School is over and both kids are at home as well as neighbors whose parents are working and seek some company in my house with my kids. This is not helping me regain strength to keep up with my usual routine. I feel tired, sleepy and lethargic.

Now comes the weekend, my mother is coming to my house on Sunday to have lunch with us. It is the first time the kids will see my mother after my father’s death so I think, especially my youngest one, is going to make her a lot of questions.

Next week one of the neighbors next door is going camping (Iupiii) and I will have two less kids to put up with.

Monday and following days I have to start to live again. I intend to go to the beach and walk along the ocean with the kids. I didn’t do that in Spring because only a few people were on the beach and I was always afraid of thieves or rapists. I never learned self defense tactics so, I have to be extra careful. Now that Summer is here, many people goes to the beach everyday. Some just walk on the walking paths and now I’m more comfortable about going there alone with the kids.

The kids sleep most of the morning so I’m going to take advantage of that time to update my blogs and read other blogs. In the afternoon we have the pool at home and when the heat decreases we can go for a walk. The play park although a little far away maybe we can go there by foot instead of using the car. We exercise, save money in gas and help the environment. All in one!!

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The Autumn weather refused to show up and therefore we have been having hot dry days. Usually at this time of the year kids go to school and at the end of the afternoon they come home and stay inside. Due to the good weather, the routine changed…they arrive home and they go play outside.

I luckily live near a pine field and in a dead end street which allow the kids from the neighborhood to ride their bicycles freely in the street and take advantage of the pine field to play. If they were indoors they would be watching television and on the computer so being outside and in contact with nature is the best thing that can happen. The good weather is not going to last long so everyday that goes by it’s a new day for playing in contact with nature.

There are some end of afternoons that we spend gathering wood for winter even my youngest loves to do it. Walking through the vegetation, by the pine trees is something they really enjoy doing.

Letting the kids to be in contact with nature motivates them to discover new plants, new animals and new material. Do you know that we use mosses to cover sticks that we put on some flower pots to sustain some tall plants and small trees? You might think that it isn’t a special thing but the my kids love to do it.

Each day that goes by more children spend their free time indoors and this is something we should pay attention to and try to change. “Where the Other You Lives.” is a campaign launched by the Forest Service and Ad Council to create awareness of the need to reconnect children with nature.

The interactive website Discover the Forest has a lot of information about Where To Go, What to Do and Why. On this website you find many links to very informative sites that can be checked for additional information.

Nature is a precious thing we have that must be preserved and we must take advantage of the benefits it brings us. Contact with nature makes our kids motivated, interested and happy.

Discover the Forest

Every time you go to the forest to visit or play, take your camera with you and ask your kids to take photos. You know why? Because there are memories that you might want to remember one day and you can earn some money with your kid’s photos or artwork they might come up with regarding their trip.

Submit your kids work to The Discover the Forest sweepstakes and ask your family and friends to vote for them. You will be eligible to win a $100 or $1000 The North Face Gift Certificate and those who vote are eligible to win a $50 The North Face Gift Certificate.

Get your kids out and take advantage of nature.

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The first holiday week is over. I must confess we sometimes have a hard time with the kids because they are so stubborn but overall everything went smoothly.

Monday we went to a slide & splash park and the kids loved it. It has those big slides that my son loves and, without getting tired he slided over and over again. My daughter also loves the big slides but she is too young for them, so she has to stay in the smaller slides and in the swimming pool.

Some parks have skaetboard ramps with water but this one didn’t have, however it had a tunnel for those wanting to swim from one pool to the other.

On the photo on the right she was dancing along with a group that entertained the visitors doing some gymnastic and dancing. Although most people were doing the movements inside the water, she preferred to do it on the pool border.

It’s quite expensive to go to this type of slide and splash park specially when you only stay there for 3 hours. I don’t like to stay on the sun on the hottest hours of the day.

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Last night my son sang and danced at the school party. The class was just adorable and wonderful on the singing and dancing. People liked them so much that they had to dance a second dance that was not scheduled. The second dance was preformed also by the all class and it was Thriller from Michael Jackson. Imagine, the class, boys and girls with their hair like zombies and dancing like ones. It was absolutely wonderful.

Today the party continues although with older boys from higher classes and at night tents with Hot dogs, crepes, and other food are going to be available for those wanting to eat there.

Right now we are waiting for my nephew to arrive because the kids are all going to our swimming pool. I just want to take a nap but with the kids around there is no way I can so so. I’m glad the weather is hot, in fact too hot for wearing bodystockings but hot enough to spend the day outdoors in the swimming pool.

We plan on having dinner at school, my kids love hot dogs and I for sure will find something I like to eat there.

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Having a swimming pool at home means a lot of fun. But…there is always a but eh?

Having a swimming pool at home also means that I might have a lot of unexpected guests like neighbors, family members or my kids friends.

Having a swimming pool at home means that my kids have fun without us leaving the house.

Having a swimming pool at home means wet floor in the kitchen and living room when they leave the pool to go to the hot bath.

Having a swimming pool at home means I don’t have to spend money in golf training aids or tennis equipment.

Having a swimming pool at home means I save money in swimming pool entries.

Having a swimming pool at home means I don’t have to carry towels and food to the beach so often.

Having a swimming pool at home means I have more time to do my stuff while they are in the swimming pool.

Having a swimming pool at home means more good things than bad things.

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Before going to the mountain cabin we spend a whole day in the Zoo. We had to drive to the capital, find our way through the traffic to the Zoo, buy expensive Zoo tickets and there we go.

We had been there 5 years ago with Dani but as he was 4 at the time this was like a first time for him. I was a little afraid of Catherine’s reaction towards the animals but I was happily surprised to find out that she wasn’t cared at all. She was very well informed the days before our visit that all the animals were in cages or in closed environments so she didn’t have to be afraid.

I had the shows schedule so I tried to organize our time in order to be present in every show. First show was the Live Bird’s Fly where falcons, eagles and other birds fly freely on a restrict area following the keepers orders.

Then we went to watch the Sea Lion’s Feeding and this brought an interesting reaction on my daughter. During the presentation one of the Sea Lions comes outside the pool and distributes “kisses” to the visitors. My daughter was the first one to say that she wanted to touch it. She hadn’t the chance because there were too many people but she was really excited about it.

Afterwards we went to see the Dolphins show that also has sea lions and here she received a “kiss” from a Sea Lion, and she wanted more kisses.

Dani and I went to travel on the cable car that crosses the entire Zoo, I was not scared but Dani was always asking: What if this falls?

Overall the Zoo Visit was a very positive experience, Catherine was exhausted at the end of the afternoon so we went to McDonald to eat some fast food and drive back home.

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My vacation is over!

I’m glad we went to the Camping Park, we had a great time away from the traffic, busy streets, neighbors knocking at our door, malls and specially the house work.

This was our vacation house for 5 days. Two bedrooms, bathroom with shower, kitchen and living room, TV, fridge and a fan.

We spend a lot of time in the pool but the high temperatures prevent us from spending even more time in the pool.

With two active children it is almost impossible for me to rest. When one is quiet the other requires attention and vice versa.

I didn’t read the book I took, I was able to make 4 Sudoku’s puzzles and check two magazines.

On our last full day in the camping we were invited to participate in a Walk along the river through a tough vegetation. We walked for 4 hours, dad had to hold Catherine most of the walk due to the rough ground conditions, Dani hold himself very well and did the walk very happily. During the walk we were able to bath in three river beaches, we even jumped from ropes into the river…it was fantastic.

The walk ended up on a waterfall, in a absolutely beautiful green scenario from a very beautiful river and vegetation.  The view was breath taking!

I didn’t take the cell phone to the walk therefore no photos were taken. One of the guides took a camera but I’m still waiting for the photos to be emailed to me.

We ended up the walk with several scratches, feet and legs were the most scratched due to the vegetation.

As soon as we arrived at the camping park from the walk we all went to the pool to a deserved bath!

This was an excellent experience that I hope we can repeat soon. The only negative point…the bell from the local church bell giving the hours and half hours day and night.

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Today it will be the last day I will have access to Internet. Tomorrow morning we are leaving for a few days out of here, I’m really looking forward to it.

The Laptop will remain at home and my cell phone provider doesn’t provide Internet service so I won’t be able to check my email or read blogs.

I hope I regain energy during these days so that I can write more posts than I’ve been writing these last weeks.

I’ll see you all next week!!!

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My kids were requesting it for a long time so last Friday we had a Circus in town and the three of us (dad is not very fond of Circus) were there. Dani went to the Circus five or six years ago but he doesn’t remember it so I can say this was the first time for both.

I was a little afraid of Catherine’s reaction to the Tigers because she is afraid of cats and dogs (and other moving animals and insects) so when the Circus started and the tigers came to the cage I said to myself: this is it.

As soon as Catherine heard the initial music she started shivering, she hid her head on my chest and grabed my arms. The tigers came into the cage and she refused to look at them. It took me a while to convince her that they were like cats, just a little bigger and that they were not coming out of the cage. She started looking at them after a while and even smiled but she continued to shiver and grab me until the tigers left.

Then came the clowns, jugglers, dancers, snakes, crocodiles, ponies, ostriches, more clowns and other artists and she was thrilled with all the show.

Dani liked the show but as usual he was always moving from his seat, talking and well…the usual.

Circus is quite expensive therefore this was a show we won’t repeat for a while. I regret not having taken the camera to take a few photos but what really matter is what we saw…live.

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Big decision. As we have the beach 15 minutes away from here and we don’t have money to go to the south of the country where is warmer and better weather, we had decided to spend our vacation at home.

Camping was not on my plans, I have one very active kid and my daughter is only 4 so camping with a tent was out of question. A friend told me about a few camping parks in the mountains, where we can find cheaper prices because it is away from the coast. I did a little search on the Internet and we decided to rent a Bangalow on a camping park in a mountain, near a river and with a river beach.

Next Saturday we will be staying on a Bungalow for 4 people, with bathroom, kitchen, TV, fridge and also access to a big pool, soccer field, activity field and several possible activities like canoing, fishing, etc.. We will also have all the other facilities that a camping place has like a coffee shop, barbecue, laundry room and much more.

This is the first time we will be “4 on vacation”, this is the first time my daughter will be away from home so I don’t know how she’s going to react.

I hope we can have a quiet and relaxed time. Although I could, I’m not taking the laptop with me, I believe I’m not going to survive without it for 6 days. I’ve already set my vacation dates on Payu2Blog (I write for them on other blogs) because I can’t write any assignments on those days.

My son talked about taking is PlayStation 2 but…no, I said no PS2 are allowed there (I lied…I know).

What I’m taking are: board games, cards, puzzles, coloring books, activity books and magazines. Family activities, quiet and rest are the things I will be looking for.

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