Our first real project in the yard was building a sandbox. I’m still waiting and observing before I tackle a lot of other projects, but I knew a sandbox would get immediate and prolonged use. I still remember playing in our large sandbox while I was growing up. My siblings and I would build volcanoes and elaborate landscapes. and then fill it up with water from the hose.

I choose a spot that wasn’t too close to the house, so that the there was a lower chance of tracking sand in. It had to be easily observed from inside, so the kids could go out and play and I wouldn’t have to come with them. And it also had to be away from anything prickly (and we have a variety of prickly things throughout the yard).

After choosing a spot, I just stared digging a bit to get an idea of what I wanted. To make the sandbox, I wanted to use material we had on hand. So I gathered some of the various items we have been saving for such projects and formed a good idea of what I what we were going to do.

And it kinda sat in a big pile for a week, because I can drag my feet when it comes to heavy digging. Luckily my husband is a harder worker than me, and in just a short amount of time he had it dug out and ready for sand.

We use logs for the sides (found on site), and sheet piles for the rear retaining wall. The sheet piles were from a construction job my brother-in-law was working on. (Construction garbage can be very useful for landscape projects.) The logs were secured with stakes and screws.

Then we dumped in a truckload of sand. We had a bit too much sand for the box, so we might have to adjust later on, but it works for now.

Like I anticipated, this did get immediate and frequent use. My oldest son had hardly ever asked to go outside; I’m always pushing him to go out and play. But he asks me to go outside all the time now, and he and his little brother sit and the sandbox and do what little boys do for hours.