Little House in the Suburbs

Over the past couple months, I've been reading the Little House books to my girls and they're completely enamored with life in the big woods and on the prairie. So when we created an outdoor play area in the backyard, they quickly dubbed it their "little house," and much pioneer-inspired domestic play has ensued.

In creating this space, my goals were to make it natural and to spend very little money. First, we sectioned off a shady area in the backyard, using my neighbor's shiny white fencing as a backdrop and old, unused landscape timbers from our front garden. Straw from the local feed store became the floor. And tree stumps I found curbside in my neighborhood (I'm a notorious curb shopper) became a table and chairs set.

Next, I shopped my garage and found a kidsize wagon (a yardsale find from years ago) for hauling stuff around, and a former marketstand / kids' gardening bench that awaited its next incarnation.

I filled the stand's shelves with the only purchase I made...pots and pans from Goodwill. And the beginnings of a mudpie kitchen & bakery were born!

I have a lot more ideas for this space, and look forward to watching it develop organically as summer play goes on. I've been trolling my surrounding neighborhoods on garbage day, watching the curbs for a table like this for a sand element. And I'd love to create a nature art easel like this. A salvaged mailbox is on my list, as are buckets of shells and rocks ...

For more inspiration, check out this mud pie kitchen and this "little house" and these cool tire planters, as well as this sweet space. And if you've got some great ideas for a natural kids play space, please share!