Where to put swingset? long, but need advice from parents who have been there...

[ellairiesmom]

A friend of ours, who is an out of work carpenter is going to build us a wood swingset. I can design it to meet our needs both size wise & fun wise. My problem is we can't decide where to put it...

We live on a hill & have one side of our yard fenced in (8ft fence with gate-people can't see in from street), pretty level but no shade at all. And it a smaller space (30 ft long by 20 ft wide). The yard on the other side of the house is bigger, has lots of trees BUT not so level so it might need "work" beforehand. It is also not fenced in & on a corner that is pretty visible.

In discussing the option with friends & family, we are getting mixed opinions & can't decide where to put the set. Some of the things that come into play besides the above mentioned are:
-a few of the neighborhood kids play together (2 are our next door neighbors who we are somewhat friendly with & dd is very attached to playing with) & congregate on our front yard & unfenced side yard which is a hill. whenever they come into our fenced in area, they want to come in & out every 5 seconds & they can't open the gate themselves. it also means my young toddler is wanting to run back & forth with them & now I have a baby so I really want a play space that they want to stay in so I don't have to keep going back & forth with the baby.
-if i put it in fenced in area, i can run into the house if i need to while dd1 plays. but again, i am afraid the other kids will still come & go & that dd1 will be more interested in following them than staying in our yard & playing. the other kids want to be upfront on the sidewalk (they like to ride their tricycles down hill). i am wondering if a great swingset would keep them more contained??
-if it's on the unfenced corner side of the house, any kids can play on it-even if we aren't home. and i wouldn't feel comfortable running into the house with dd1 outside. but it would kind of be one big play area & right near the sidewalk/hill they like to ride up & down.
-if it's in my fenced yard-i will end up watching the other kids who come over because the parents tend to let them be out front without 100% supervision & use the time to get things done in the house. i just feel like my little one is too young to be left alone. (although, im not sure when i will feel like she is old enough to be left alone!)

the other big factors are that we have a sunroom & covered deck that overlook the fenced in yard. nothing overlooks the unfenced in yard at all except a couple of bedroom windows & we would also have to have work done if we want to make any sort of sitting area. it's one big hill.

sorry so long & confusing...just wondering what experienced parents would do & what advice they might have in general!!!

THX!!!

[daytripper75]

I would put it in the fenced yard and plant a tree at the same time.

[kerc]

I too would choose the fenced yard. You can move it if it doesn't work.

I'd ask friend to make some portion of it have a roof (playhouse?). Neighborhood kids can be taught to come one time and that's it, KWIM? And soon your baby will want to be out there with the big kids and IMO safety is key there.

[ellairiesmom]

Thx gals!

Yes-I def want a large playhouse structure on top with the sandbox on the ground underneath. He built one for their daughter last week just like that. I am also going to go a good slide & then 3 swings.

I wish we could plant a tree there or move one of the trees from the other side of the house (so many!) but we have this retaining wall our yard is sitting up on & it is in bad shape so we were advised by a surveyor not to plant any trees on that side...rooting issues.

I was looking at inexpensive canopies to put our backyard furniture set under as well so the baby & I can be in the shade while nursing.

The thing is-I don't mind the kids playing at my house. I just wish they would stay in one place. I find it's kind of hard to ask neighborhood kids to do that...DH & i talked about getting a couple of chairs for out front & kind of digging the back legs into the hill so they are level & we can sit out there to watch them play too. Our deck overlooks the front too but I feel like I am too far from her. To get to her if something happened would require coming back into the house & out the front door.


The worst part of it all was the other day when I was complaining about our set up to my Mom & she said "well-if I had seen the house before you bought it, I could have told you all that". Grrrrrrr. Normally I love my Mom, but nobody likes I told you so's!!!

lol

[mamaChe]

I would also choose the fenced in yard. Perhaps the swingset will entice the kids to stay longer. In a year or two they will probably be big enough to open the gate themselves, and like PP mentioned you can set limits to their in's and out's. You can always turn kids away if you don't feel up to watching them, asking them to get another parent over if they want to be there. That's perfectly ok to do.

Having a playspace for kids combined with an area for the grown-ups to socialize within eyesight (like your deck/sunroom) has done wonders for my family's stress level. Having an area for my kids to be outside while I start dinner inside has done wonders for MY stress level. If I had a setup like a swingset on the side yard I would feel trapped and frustrated too often to want to bring the kids out there to play.

Also, one more thing stuck out at me. Normally I'm not a real paranoid kid-protective person but I would not be comfortable with neighborhood children playing on my swingset, unsupervised, when we weren't home. Too risky for me!

Good luck with your decision!

[eepster]

Just another vote for the fenced in area.

[Kivgaen]

It doesn't really matter what everyone else says...

You already know what to do.

Take a coin. Heads for the front yard, Tails for the back yard. Flip it onto your left hand and cover with the right. Don't look yet.


Think about both options for a minute.


Now look at the coin. What did it say?


How did you feel about the result when you saw the coin? Were you relieved? Were you upset? Did you accept the choice as the "right" choice?

Answering the above questions will help you to make your choice.

[kittykat2481]

Originally Posted by daytripper75

I would put it in the fenced yard and plant a tree at the same time.

[fruitfulmomma]

Fenced yard with a tree or awning for shade.

[jeanine123]

Another one who would put it in the fenced in yard. Due to liability issues I wouldn't want it in an area where anyone and everyone could access it without supervision. I know, it's probably an overreaction and not something our parents worried about when we were kids but in this day and age, I sadly don't think you can be too careful. I would also immediately establish the rule that if the neighbor kids wanted to come and play on it they were welcome to but they had to stay in that yard, with the gate closed, after telling you they were going in there. There would be no running in and out. They need to play on the set until they are done and then leave. We have a lot of kids in our neighborhood and a large play set in our fenced in back yard. The kids mostly play out in front, at the end of the court we live on but every so often they come in our yard to play, after being invited. It's never been an issue for either them or my kids.

You can also pick up relatively inexpensive umbrellas at Target or Lowes, etc. You might also ask your friend if he can install some sail cloth shades over the area to help protect everyone.

http://coolshadesails.com/

[ellairiesmom]

Thx so much ya' all!!! I really did want it in our fenced in yard...nice to hear everyone agrees.

I guess maybe my post should have been more about "how to handle DDs tantrums when I say we are staying in our yard to play & not going out front" LOL!!!

[Kivgaen]

Originally Posted by ellairiesmom

I guess maybe my post should have been more about "how to handle DDs tantrums when I say we are staying in our yard to play & not going out front" LOL!!!

LOL... well I can't help you there -- I have the same problem.

Your DD will get old enough that eventually you won't worry when she plays in the front yard with her friends. My DS is at that age now where I trust him (to a certain extent) to be in the front yard without supervision. DD isn't quite there yet, but I let her out on a short leash with her brother. I check on her frequently, and if she breaks the rules (by going too far out of the yard) then I bring them both inside and front-yard play time is over. They like being in the front yard so they don't break the rules very often. (My DD is almost 4 now, and DS is 6, but we live on a very safe street)