If you have a garden do your kids not use it much?

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If you have a garden do your kids not use it much?

Three under 10, they use it at the weekends in the winter/colder months and every day in the summer.

They have their own designated play area with a trampoline and water table and climbing frame they are supposed to stay in when I am not out there with them (we have a pond).

During the first Lockdown we were out there every day for lunch.

We have a big garden - live rurally.

My toddler is nearly two and so I lead by example. As soon as it is light we take coffee for me and juice for her and go and do some gardening, play on the toys, throw a ball for the dogs, say hi to the cows, dig in the veg patch and all of that fun stuff.

I encourage being outside all year round - no bad weather only bad clothes - hoping that continues as she gets older and more able to play independently outdoors. I really believe fresh air benefits children

We have a large for London garden and previously used it every day. It has a problem with it so instead we use our paved front garden drive. 2 cars length so not massive but far away enough from a quiet road. With the gates closed we can play, do chalk, scoot etc. At the moment we are out 3 x a day as long as it’s not heavy rain.

Quite a lot in summer. This summer we are outside lots and had the doors open pretty much all the time. Much less in the winter months but they still do. We have a lovely garden with playhouses, slide and climbing frame and big sandpit and their friends love it on playdates ( when we were allowed playdates!)

Yes, every day unless it's raining heavily

I'm glad I saw this thread! My two aged 6 and 4 barely use the gsrden which I think is a shame. ...and i wondered if it was unusual - judging by the thread perhaps not that unusual! It's pretty small though so not much scope to do much in but we are having it redone this year after an extension so will look to maximise playspace and get a few more bits of interest for them. I think it's nice for kids to be out in the summer

Ours is a mud pit for 8 months of the year. DD 6 uses it constantly when it's warm / summer time though. I just keep the door open and she potters about

In the spring/summer we use it all for time. It's like having an extra room. We cook and eat outside, play out there, grow fruit, herbs.

Thanks everyone

This makes me feel better! I yearn for a garden but I think I’d get most benefit from it- the kids at 4 and 8 love the park and it sounds like that would only increase. To get a garden we would lose being so close to the park they and all friends play in and also being so close to their school.

When my DS was small we lived in a listed building that had a communal front and back garden so it was really long. He was out there in all weathers because the other children were as well. Whilst the lack of privacy used to get to me sometimes (as we also shared a yard) he loved it! I also used to take him to the two large parks that were within walking distance. We moved and had our own garden and he was rarely out there even when he had friends over.

We moved again and he never went out there. When we move again I just want a small patch, enough for a washing line and a chair!

I think a lot depends on how easy it is to access it. My kids used to spend loads of time out there, from when they were tiny. But the patio doors from my living room open straight out into it, so they could get out there easily and I could monitor them easily.

If you can see the outdoors from the main room, it's more enticing I think.

When the warmer months are here we throw open the back doors and the patio becomes an extra room to our house. We cook out there on the barbecue, we eat outside, we have a lazy spa - there are chairs and places to sunbathe and large shady umbrellas, we have solar lights every where and a fire pit. It's like an outside extension and we all use it. I really miss it in the winter tbh.

We moved from a relatively small garden to a house with a large garden and it was the best thing we ever did. Ds particularly is an outdoorsy kind of kid, but we just didn’t have the space for him to do the things he wanted to do. He’s always spent a fair bit of time outside but now we barely see him.

@ListeningQuietly

Do YOU use your garden? Are you out there pottering all year? Do you have meals out there? Do you sit and read out there? They will follow your lead.

During summer DH and I were out in the garden enjoying the sun after work every single day. Our teens still preferred to be inside

CoRhona
When mine were teens I put in seating and chilling areas where they could hang out
(and a Wifi extender)
And if they had friends round, let them have their own space
it worked

Now they are older, they invite friends round for an evening to sit in the garden during the spring, summer and autumn