When my parents and I get together, my Dad is often heard saying, “Kids don’t need toys“.
I think of this often, and when it plays out in my children’s lives, I like to document it.
Here’s an example.
My children have been spending the better part of their afternoons doing this.
I considered buying them a cheap kiddie pool, but just didn’t. Pools scare me, seeing as how statistics point out they’re more dangerous than handguns.
If I bought a kiddie pool, I would have to fill and empty it every day, and I would constantly worry about the toddler or 4 year old sneaking out the door and drowning in it. Not to mention it would breed mosquitoes (we don’t need any help in that department).
So I didn’t buy one.
And in the absence of a pool, my kids used ingenuity. They dragged Rubbermaid containers up from the basement and half filled them with water, pushing them together so they can all hang out.
Bathing suits are even optional, as evidenced by the two youngest (4 year old is in her undies, and baby is swimming in the nude).
The beauty of this system is that the containers are small enough that the girls can empty them easily once they’re done (whereas a pool would be too heavy).
I’ll take the kids to the pool this summer so they can properly splash around and practice their skills, but for general cooling-off in the heat and frolicking? This works just fine.
In his homeschooling handbook, Dr. Raymond Moore states that “kids need tools, not toys.” I’ve come to totally agree. DS (7.5 yo) gets a new toy, and after about a wk he doesn’t play with it again, sometimes for weeks, sometimes months, sometimes never. When he’s outside (which is a lot now that we’re out in a rural area) he picks up sticks, etc., and uses them for dramatic play as easily as he would use his stuffed animals inside.
For his b-day in November, I’ll be buying him some plants for his garden. Whatever Aunt and Grandma want to send him, fine, but DH and I have agreed that he doesn’t need any more toys.
PS – What a great idea – using a tub for a pool!