Tag Archive for: diy

How to Make a Stock Tank Pool

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Have you ever thought about making a stock tank pool for your backyard? My husband and I learned through a lot of trial and error how to do it, and in this blog you will find detailed step by step instructions including a video that will make setting up your own stock tank pool a breeze!

Swimming in Our Stock Tank Pool (2017)

Swimming in Our Stock Tank Pool (2017)

With five young kids seven and under, we prefer staying home and finding ways to entertain ourselves in a simple, safe, and cost effective way. This stock tank pool has been an amazing addition to our yard for both us and our kids and provides countless hours of entertainment. When the temperature is above 70º F (we’ll even settle for 60º F on an early spring thaw), our kids will play in it for hours every single day. This is our fourth summer using it, and has held up beautifully. (*Note: I originally wrote this blog when we first made our pool in 2015, but I update it every summer to include any changes or modifications we’ve made, including 2018 where we replaced the hoses and installed real plunger valves.)

Another early spring swim on a 60 degree day!

Swimming in our stock tank pool in mid April 2015! Brrrr…

They love sitting in their round doughnuts bouncing up and down, riding around on pool noodles, jumping off from the ladder, and just splashing around. My husband and I like to find a way to float and relax. When we close our eyes and feel our bodies bob around in the water, we can almost envision that we’re floating on the shores of some tropical island…until Elliot does a cannonball that is! (Check out all of our backyard summer fun ideas here!)

*Video note: We don’t typically run the filter while kids are swimming in it. The suction is incredibly strong and can be quite shocking if you accidentally press your butt against it! 🙂

When we started researching pools last summer, I was almost tempted to buy a 12 foot Intex pool, but after reading reviews about patching pinholes and knowing that my kids like to play rough (which it couldn’t sustain), I didn’t think it sounded like a good idea.

Growing up, my Aunt Sue always had a round stock tank pool that she placed on a deck in her backyard. She always kept the water crystal clear with a filter and had it set up on a little deck. It was beautiful! We had an oval shaped horse trough pool growing up, but we never really kept it clean, and it turned into a holding tank for the tadpoles and turtles that we would catch in our nearby lake. It was still really fun though!

I scoured the Internet for some good directions for making a stock tank pool and could only find really cute pictures (that often showed crystal clear water with no filter…not possible!) without many good directions, so I hope that in this post, I can be a little more specific. Needless to say, we learned how to do everything wrong before we learned how to do everything right, so hopefully, if you’re looking to make your own stock tank pool, you can avoid some of the pitfalls we had and do things right the first time around!

Stock Tank Pool and Sand Filter Filled with Water

Stock Tank Pool and Sand Filter Filled with Water

Materials

    • 8 Foot (diameter) Round Galvanized Steel Stock Tank Pool: I would have liked a 10 foot, but they didn’t have any at our local Tractor Supply Store and the 8 foot has actually been just perfect. They are typically 2 feet high – which is pretty much shorter than anyone who is really good at walking, so it’s safe for toddlers! We bought ours at a local farm store for $350, but if you want to buy something online, Amazon has 6′ diameter stock tanks available. Stockyards Ranch Supply in Colorado also has them online, and you can call for a delivery quote.
    • Sand Filter Pump: You don’t have to have a pump if you’re okay with just emptying the pool when it gets dirty or using some chlorine or bromine tablets, but I highly recommend buying one for the long haul. It’s great for filtering out algae and debris, has a 24-hour timer with preset cycles for automatic operation, is low maintenance (you only need to empty out the sand every 5 years), and has a six-function control valve that lets you filter, backwash, rinse, recirculate, drain, and close the system. We bought the filter for a 16 foot diameter pool. It filters 2,450 gallons per hour, and it does a very nice job, but we still need to add shock treatment or drain it completely several times over the summer. They also offer a 12′ filter that cycles through 1,600 gallons an hour and a 10′ filter that cycles through 1,050 gallons an hour (*FYI: a 10 foot stock tank pool holds 1,100 gallons of water). *Each pool filter also comes with two connecting hoses, but if you need to buy replacement hoses (like we did because they became full of algae), you can do that too.
    • Pool Filter Sand: We just used some sand from our sandbox, but this type of sand was recommended by our pool filter system manual.
    • *Additional Filter Systems:
      • Saltwater System: It pretty much makes its own “natural” chlorine. You could use this in addition to the sand filter for optimum performance.
      • Cartridge Filter Pump: If you’re looking for the cheapest option, you could get this cartridge filter pump, but you’d have to replace the filters every two weeks. I’ve heard that these don’t last very long, but it’s a cheaper up front cost.
      • Floating Dispenser and Bromine Tablets or Chlorine Tablets: (Bromine is safer than chlorine…slightly.)
      • Pool Water Shock: Kills bacteria and algae in one big shock of chlorine. (Because of the dangers of chlorine, we try our best to avoid it. We’d prefer not to use any of these methods, but we have used the pool shock a time or two when things got bad…mainly because we didn’t use our pool filter properly…it did a fine job of killing the algae, and then we just avoided the pool until it all evaporated, 24-48 hours.)
      • Liquid Chlorine: We recently purchased (in 2019) an Intex 15′ x 48″ Metal Frame Above Ground Pool at Menards because it was HALF OFF and the older kids (ages 8 and 9) have been BEGGING us for a bigger pool, and I finally learned about the miracles of liquid chlorine! Follow the directions and use a pool testing kit (you can get something cheap like this or more comprehensive and expensive like this…we opted for cheap), but basically for a 1,100 gallon stock tank pool, you’d put in about 6 oz (so half a beer bottle) to start things out, about 1 oz every night for maintenance, and then 6 oz once a week. When we just had the stock tank pool, I was fine to avoid chlorine and just empty the pool when it got green, but now that we have a 10,000 gallon pool and all around less time on our hands, I’ve been chlorinating both pools and it’s been a dream.
    • Plunger Valves: Unfortunately, the plunger valves pictured below are no longer available on Amazon. These plunger valves appear to be similar, but beware that while many people were very happy with their purchase, about 32% say they didn’t receive all of the parts listed. (I also found them here on ebay with great reviews.) These other plunger valves have good reviews, but they don’t include the part you’d need to attach to the inside of the pooI. When we originally made our stock tank pool, we just went to the plumbing section of the hardware store with a tape measure and bought some connecting pieces that had threads with a 1.5 inch interior diameter and 2 1/8 inch diameter and attachment pieces for the inside of the pool. We got it to work with a lot of trial and error and epoxy, but now four years later, we’re redoing it properly.
      Hoses and Plunger Valves for Stock Tank Pool

      Hoses and Plunger Valves for Stock Tank Pool

      I recently had someone ask for alternatives to the plunger valves, so I’ll share what we did originally, although I must say that it did not work very well! They would constantly leak and we had to add a lot of epoxy and other adhesives. I suppose if we had used something like these rubber rings, we could’ve gotten a better seal.

      Exterior View of Connecting Hose (2014)

      Exterior View of Connecting Hose (2014)

      Interior View of the Connecting Hose (2014)

      Interior View of the Connecting Hose (2014)

      Original Stock Tank Pool Set Up (2014)

      Original Stock Tank Pool Set Up (2014)

    • Drill: You’ll need to drill two holes (each with a 2.5 inch diameter) into the pool if you’re going to attach a filter. As convenient as a cordless drill can be, we have had much more success with drilling projects that need a lot of power to use a corded drill like this. You’ll also need a hole saw kit to attach to your drill.
    • PC-11 Epoxy: I accidentally hit one of the plunger valves with the snow blower this winter (2019) and needed something heavy duty to reattach the plastic pieces. The guy at the hardware store recommended this marine grade quality epoxy, and let me tell you it is a MIRACLE WORKER!!! How have I never heard of this stuff?!?!?! (We even used it to fix our leaky pump on our washing machine…amazing!) In case you’re wondering, I’ll include what I used from the video below. It has held up nicely, but if I had to do it all over again I would use the PC-11.
      • Plumber’s Epoxy: This stuff is waterproof and great for filling in all of the gaps. Two packages should do nicely.
      • Waterproof Epoxy: Paint this around all of your attachment pieces. Go really heavy on this and do 2-3 coats all over everything. 4-6 packages seems overkill, but better safe than sorry!
    • *18′ Intex Pool: If all of this is just sounding like too much (really, it’s not that bad), then maybe you’d be better off just buying the complete package…and why not get the dream set up! This pool looks rather appealing and has everything ready to go! 🙂

Check out the video below for a detailed description for creating your very own stock tank pool! This is my first video on my new Embracing Motherhood YouTube channel, so please like, subscribe, and be on the lookout for more videos to come soon!

Directions

  1. Get the pool to your house! We bought our 8′ (8 foot diameter) stock tank pool from our local farm store. They would have delivered it to us for a fee, but my husband knew someone with a trailer so they strapped the pool down and drove it (slowly) to our house.
  2. Prepare the pool location. You want to find a place that is level and not close to too many trees that will annoy you with their random leaves cluttering your pool. When we made our sandbox, we put an extra load of sand where we wanted our pool, and it made an excellent base. (You don’t have to do this, it’s just a nice touch.) You’ll also need to be close to an electrical outlet (the cord for the filter is quite long). We have a shed right next to our pool location, so we run the power cord through the shed window.

    Laying Down the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

    Laying Down the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

  3. Set up the pool filter. This seems a lot more complicated than it really is, especially after you watch the instruction video, but bear with it, it’s not that bad. Basically, you’ll need to put it together and fill it with sand. You can put it on a base, but we never did, and it has worked just fine.

    Pool Filter for the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

    Pool Filter for the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

  4. Cut two holes in the stock tank pool for the filter tubes. You’ll want to position the holes about 2-3 feet apart from each other in about the middle of the top half of the pool walls. Measure the outside diameter of the attachment piece that will fit through the hole before cutting. It should be 2 1/8 inches wide. We used a corded drill and a drill bit with a 2.5 inch diameter which was slightly bigger than the attachment pieces, and it worked perfectly. (The first time we made our stock tank pool, we measured the inside diameter of the tube which was 1.5 inches, so the holes were too small. Making the holes slightly bigger was a huge task that we finally took on four years later. This is why in the older pictures of our stock tank pool, the tubes are covered with lots of extra adhesive and towels!)
    Stock Tank Pool (2014)

    Stock Tank Pool (2014)

  5. Attach the plunger valves and secure with epoxy. The big round end with the filter goes on the inside of the pool. *Originally, I used plumber’s epoxy and waterproof epoxy, which has held up nicely, but if I could do it all over again, I would use PC-11 epoxy which is designed to be underwater and withstand massive amount of pressure. To use the PC-11, mix the epoxy from the two containers together (using popsicle sticks and some cardboard), apply liberally around the attachment pieces, and let cure for 24 hours. **If you want to follow what I did in the video, roll out a nice long snake of plumber’s epoxy and put it around the top part of the threads. Roll another big snake of plumber’s epoxy and put it around the top part of the threads on the attachment piece that will be outside of the pool. (It’s a good idea to wear disposable gloves for this…I learned that the hard way!) Press them together (having an extra set of hands for this is pretty crucial), and then start twisting until they are connected. Use a big wrench to get it really tight! When completely hardened, paint with waterproof epoxy on every single part that could leak and let cure for 24 hours. Nothing should move! These plunger valves will stay permanently connected to your pool, but you want to be able to detach the hoses for cleaning purposes so don’t put any epoxy on the hose attachment.

    Stock Tank Pool with Plunger Valves and Sand Filter (2018)

    Stock Tank Pool with Plunger Valves and Sand Filter (2018)

  6. Attach the pool filter tubes and fill with water. You’ll want to let the epoxy fully dry for at least 24 hours before filling with water. If you notice any leaks as you fill the pool, you’ll have to drain it, let it dry, and troubleshoot. Sometimes the threading on one of the hoses can be off a little bit. Also, when you turn the pool filter on, you’ll have to release the small valve on the top of the debris catcher (near the intake) to release the air and allow the filter to work.

Stock Tank Pool Maintenance

  1. Keep the junk out. We made sure to establish some rules with the kids about not putting sand or other debris into the pool and put a little foot rinsing bucket (or a small pool) in front of the ladder. I also like using a pool skimmer regularly to fish out any stray floaties and occasionally I’ll use the vacuum attachment for dirt that settles on the bottom. But seriously, we don’t get too strict here because it’s no fun if you start getting paranoid about every speck of dirt that might get in. *After some reflection: I think the ideal situation would be to place some patio stones with small rocks inbetween around the pool to keep grass out, but by the time we get around to it, I think the kids will have outgrown the pool! 🙂
  2. Run the filter. Pay close attention to the owner’s manual for your filter and run all scheduled maintenance. We did a poor job of this the first year we had our pool, and as a result, the tubes filled up with green algae as did the filter, and it became very hard to keep clean. I highly recommend watching the instruction DVD that comes with your filter, but basically, you’ll keep it on filter all of the time, turn it on to the clock setting (24 hour timer) every day and backwash/rinse as needed when the pool looks dirty. *Note: Always shut off the filter pump before turning the filter valve or it could damage the gasket or internal filter parts.
    • FILTER: Keep it here all the time, except when backwashing, rinsing, or wasting.
    • RINSE: Use this setting for 15 seconds after backwashing to rinse the sand filter tank.
    • *RECIRCULATE: A filter bypass setting to use if your filter is broken or leaking.
    • BACKWASH: Use this setting to reverse the flow in the filter and send water out of the waste line. Make sure valves are open and the cap is off where it says DRAIN on your filter.
    • CLOSED: Put here to close off the flow from the pool if you need to work on the filter for some reason.
    • *WASTE/DRAIN: Another bypass filter setting if your filter isn’t working properly that sends the water out of the waste pipe. This is a good way to lower the level of the pool if need be.
  3. Clean the tubes. If you’re like us and have a lot of grass getting into the pool, you’ll want to make sure you clean out the tubes every time you do a backwash. The small tube that is a part of the filter gets clogged with grass pretty easily and can lead to some pretty severe algae problems.
  4. Drain it. After the first fill up during the first year of having our pool, it stayed pretty clean and clear for about 6-8 weeks. Then, it started to get a little green looking, and then like the next day we couldn’t see the bottom of the pool! When this happens, all of the shock treatment in the world won’t make a difference, and it’s better to just drain it. To drain the pool, unscrew the tubes from the filter and pull the plug out from the bottom. It will make the ground nice and swampy for the afternoon, but the water will all drain away eventually.

    Draining the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

    Draining the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

  5. Power wash it. Having a good power washer like this is useful around the house for so many reasons, but for cleaning out a dirty pool, it’s simply the best! You won’t get every little speck, but it will dislodge most of the gunk, and the rest you can get with some cleaner and a scrub brush. (If you really want to go crazy, I recommend a gas power washer like this!)

    Power Washing the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

    Power Washing the Stock Tank Pool (2014)

  6. Yearly cleaning. When you’re done using the pool for the season, detach ALL of the hoses (including the small one on the filter) and clean them. The sand in the filter only needs to be replaced every five years, but we empty it out every season because it makes it easier to move and store for the winter. Finally, tip the pool upside down. We let the kids jump and play on it when it’s upside down, but we are very clear that they are not to step on the plunger valves. There was a small leak that started in the seam at the bottom of the pool, but we just put some waterproof epoxy on it, and it’s been totally fine.

Additional Pool Items

  • Pool Ladder: This is the one we got, and it’s quite a bit taller than our pool, but our kids love jumping off from it into the pool. It’s also really good for keeping the baby from easily climbing into the pool.
  • Solar Cover: This could work great to keep debris out of the pool and to warm the water. If you get this, I don’t think you need a pool cover. *We have never used either, however, because it really just seems like too much of a hassle.
  • Pool Skimmer: This is GREAT for getting out grass clippings, small leaves, and any other little floaters.
  • Pool Vacuum: This is great for getting sediment that settles to the bottom of the pool (especially if you have kids tracking a lot of sand into the pool).
  • Life Jackets: These life jackets are our favorites for the little ones (30-50 lbs) and are great for teaching kids the mechanics of swimming. Our older kids are learning how to swim, but still like life jackets like these.
  • Swimming Diapers: As much as I love to have my kids run around naked in the summer, I don’t like them peeing and pooping in our pool!
  • Flotation Devices: This pool isn’t big enough hold anything too big, but our kids have enjoyed some basic round tubes. We have also enjoyed getting some fancy full body floating devices for a really tropical experience!
  • Pool Noodles: The kids have enjoyed playing with these in the pool more than anything! Scott and I like tucking one under our neck and one under our ankles and floating like we’re in the middle of the crystal clear waters of some tropical resort!
  • Diving Rings and Sticks: Once kids can hold their breath underwater, these diving rings and sticks (with goggles) make for a lot of fun!
  • Foot Rinsing Bucket: We like putting a large rectangular bucket in front of the ladder so that the kids will rinse their feet before going in. We have also used a small mini pool for this as well.
  • Slide – We picked up a slide like this at a garage sale and attached these wooden legs. The kids have loved it!

In Conclusion

If you want something sturdy and fun that will allow you to enjoy hours and hours of backyard fun in the summer sun, I highly recommend getting a stock tank pool with a sand filter set up. If we had gone with one of the cheap Intex pools of a similar size, we would constantly have to nag the kids to be gentle and then it would probably still pop a hole at some point anyways. This has stood up VERY well (on our fourth season of using it now) to lots of roughhousing, and I’m hoping that it will last for years to come! Check out our other ideas for making a fun backyard experience for young children here. If you’re looking for a detailed explanation for setting up a stock tank pool, check out my YouTube video here!

How to Make a Stock Tank Pool

How to Make a Stock Tank Pool

*2019 Update: This is our fifth summer using our stock tank pool, and while the little ones (ages 2, 4, and 6) still love it, our older ones (ages 8 and 9) have been begging for something bigger so we got an Intex 15′ x 48″ Metal Frame Above Ground Pool at Menards because it was half off. I really need to write a blog post about the dos and don’ts for setting this up, but for now know that the most important advice is to MAKE SURE IT’S LEVEL!!! (Also, yes, we moved, and we brought the stock tank pool with us!)

8 Foot Stock Tank Pool and 15 Foot Intex Pool Upgrade (2018)

8 Foot Stock Tank Pool and 15 Foot Intex Pool Upgrade (2018)

8 Foot Stock Tank Pool and 15 Foot Intex Pool Upgrade (2018)

8 Foot Stock Tank Pool and 15 Foot Intex Pool Upgrade (2018)

15 Foot Intex Pool Upgrade (2018)

15 Foot Intex Pool Upgrade (2018)

18 Foot Steel Frame Above Ground Pool (Update 2024)

18 Foot Steel Frame Above Ground Pool Upgrade (2024)

*If you’re going with an above ground pool, I highly recommend the steel frame version. Notice how we put blocks of wood under the feet to prevent them from sinking into the ground. Also, you can see our stock tank pool in the background to the left which is now turned upside down and used as a base for our slide. 🙂

How to Make a Stock Tank Pool

How to Make a Stock Tank Pool

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DIY Backyard Ideas for Summer Fun with Young Children

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15 Ways to Make Your Backyard a Perfect Park for Kids

These are the ways that we have transformed our backyard into a super fun and engaging backyard haven for our five young children. We have about an acre of fenced in land behind our house, and with everything we have created, built, and purchased, we are very content to just stay home and enjoy ourselves.

I believe that children should be free and have autonomy to choose their own activities and be independently entertained. I also believe in giving kids as many natural settings and experiences as I can to help them develop their creative and imaginative minds. By incorporating these things into our yard over the past three years, I think we have done just that.

1. Sandbox

When we moved into our house three years ago, building a sandbox was the first thing we did, and our children LOVE it! They play in it every single time we are outside.

Our Sandbox

Our Sandbox

2. Stock Tank Swimming Pool

We wanted a durable swimming pool that all of us could fit in that wouldn’t break the bank, and this stock tank swimming pool has been perfect! Learn how we made stock tank pool here.

Stock Tank Swimming Pool

Stock Tank Swimming Pool

3. Garden

Our kids love every aspect of gardening from preparing the soil, to planting the seeds, to harvesting the garden. It’s a lot of work to put it in, but I love maintaining it and reaping the benefits. Read about the benefits of gardening with kids as well as to see the gardening tips and tricks I have here.

Ruby Picking Beans in Our Garden

Ruby Picking Beans in Our Garden

4. Obstacle Course

Our kids love challenging themselves with this simple obstacle course put together with nothing more than some old tires, boards, and a few screws.

Our Backyard Obstacle Course

Our Backyard Obstacle Course

5. Teepee

I got the idea for this teepee from the one my mom made in their field and from the one at Blanford Nature Center in their natural play area. Every year we add more sticks, stalks, old vines, etc. to it, and the kids love using it for imaginative play.

Our Backyard Teepee

Our Backyard Teepee

6. Stepping Stumps

This was another idea I got from Blanford Nature Center. Whenever we see someone chopping down a tree, my husband races over with his pick up truck to collect the stumps. The kids love walking back and forth on them and jumping into the sand that is piled below.

How to Make Stepping Stumps

How to Make Stepping Stumps

7. Hills

The first hill we made was unplanned. As we were digging up the sod for our sandbox, we decided to pile it up making a little hill. We were surprised at how much our little ones loved running up and down it, so we got some dirt and added a few more. This slide has also been a really fun touch.

Our Big Hill

Our Big Hill

8. Tent

I love setting up an outdoor tent in the spring, summer, and fall as both a holding tank for blankets, toys, and books, as well as a retreat for anyone wanting to duck away from the wind, cold, sun, or people.

Our Backyard Tent

Our Backyard Tent

9. Sports Equipment

I love having a basket with a variety of sports equipment that the kids can use freely. We have soccer balls, jump ropes, hula hoops, frisbees, baseball bats and balls, rubber kick balls, and more.

Sports Equipment

Sports Equipment

10. Swing Set

We initially got a swing set like this at our local shopping market, but we always wanted a big wooden structure like this. As luck would have it, we knew someone getting rid of one for free! It took three guys seven hours to take apart and put back together, but it has been perfect for our older children.

Swing Set

Swing Set

Wooden Play Structure

Wooden Play Structure

11. Battery Powered Cars

For a brief time in my childhood I remember having a battery powered car, and my brother and I LOVED them! We now have an dune buggy, jeep, and mini four wheeler for our kids, and they get used every time we go outside. This is the 3rd summer we’ve had them, and with the exception of some new rechargeable batteries, they have held up very well.

Julian and Ophelia in Battery Powered Car

Julian and Ophelia in Battery Powered Car

12. Water Pouring Station

In the winter, I have been brave enough to bring this inside, but in the summer, it is so nice to have the mess outside! My little ones play with this water table every day. I like having some kind of table (like this tool bench) nearby to hold the cups, teapots, buckets, and other pouring supplies. I also love having it near the sandbox so they can incorporate sand into their water play.

Water Pouring Station

Water Pouring Station

13. Playhouse

Having a playhouse encourages all kinds of imaginative play. The kids love this one especially because of the little seats, windows that open and shut, and small door. We usually pick a spot for the house to stay for the season because it kills the grass underneath, but you could always move it around.

Playhouse

Playhouse

14. Mini Kitchen

With the mini kitchen, we also have a kids sized picnic table, mini grill, and baskets of play food and plastic dishes. The kids love preparing pretend meals and feeding us hungry adults.

Elliot and Julian Playing with Our Mini Kitchen

Elliot and Julian Playing with Our Mini Kitchen

15. Basketball Hoop

Our daughter Ophelia has particularly enjoyed this basketball hoop. She stands on a little stepping stool and the balls are collected in this little wagon. And of course we have an adult sized hoop as well. We debated laying some concrete, but have enjoyed simply having the ability to shoot baskets.

Basketball Hoops

Basketball Hoops

In Conclusion

Occasionally, we do like to go places, but mostly we just enjoy staying home. Between the 26 learning stations we have inside and the fun we’ve created outside, our kids are never bored and neither are we. Here’s a video of us getting our yard ready for summer last year. You can really see how much things have changed!

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What’s So Bad About Phthalates?

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What's So Bad About Phthalates?

I’ve done a bit of research about phthalates to know that they are bad, but I wanted to dig a little deeper to see just how bad and learn more about the possibilities for exposure.

My Health Journey

As a health conscious mother of four (soon to be five) and also on a pretty strict budget as a stay at home mom, I’m always trying to balance out health and cost. I first of all try to serve my children as much nutrient dense food as possible while at the same time try to eliminate as many toxins as I can. That being said, stress causes the release of the hormone cortisol which leads to inflammation, free radical damage, and a weakened immune system, so I try to avoid that by not getting too paranoid about things that can affect our health.

I believe the best health journey is one that is continuous and involves baby steps. Once, I tried throwing out everything processed and only purchased organic whole foods, but the cost was overwhelming and something we couldn’t support on one income. (Also, organic isn’t a magic label freeing us from all toxins.) So now, we do what we can, and I’m always trying to just focus on the next step rather than the final destination.

In this series of articles, I would like to explore some of the toxins that are lurking in our everyday lives, explain what they are, how they are hurting us, and discuss how they can be avoided. I hope that this research will serve our family as we continue our health journey, choose better and safer products, and try to live the best life that we can every day for both our current and future health.

What are Phthalates?

Most phthalates (pronounced f-THAL-ates) are plastcizers that are added to plastics (such as vinyl flooring, raincoats, shower curtains, plastic toys, and IV drip bag tubes) to make them more flexible and harder to break. They are also added as a dissolving agent (solvent) and fragrance carrier to many personal care products including soaps, shampoos, deodorants, and laundry detergents.

*On a side note, phthalates are not commonly found in things like plastic wrap, food containers, and water bottles…although these plastics do contain other dangerous chemicals that can leech into your food and beverages that I will discuss in future articles.

Finding Phthalates on Labels

If you’re a label reader (like me), the scary thing about phthalates is that under current law, they can simply be labeled as “fragrance”, even if they make up to 20% of the product.

If you’re looking at your labels, you may notice different acronyms and names:

  • DBP (di-n-butyl phthalate) – used in nail polish and other personal care products
  • DEP (diethyl phthalate) – used in personal care products, such as deodorants, perfume, cologne, aftershave lotion, shampoo, hair gel, and hand lotion
  • BzBP (benzylbutyl phthalate) – used in vinyl flooring, car-care products, and personal care products
  • DMP (dimethyl phthalate) – used in insect repellent, plastics, and solid rocket propellant
  • DEHP (di-phthalate, bis-phthalate, or 2-ethylhexyl phthalate) – used as a softener in PVC products, such as IV bags, tubing, and other medical devices

*In 2008, the U.S. Congress passed a law calling for the phthalates DBP, DEHP, and BBP (benzyl butyl phthalate) to be banned in all toys (including teething toys) and bedding intended for children 12 and under. There are, however, no regulations on phthalates in toys made in China, and they have been tested to have very high levels (28%-38%).

Why are Phthalates Dangerous?

While most studies reflect the effects of phthalates on animals, the results have been disturbing enough for people to start taking notice. Most adults will metabolize phthalates through the digestive system and excrete them via feces or urine, but this isn’t really possible for fetuses in the womb and particularly dangerous for the immature digestive system of infants and young children, so they are most at risk.

While more research is needed, animals studies show that low exposure to DBP phthlates (found in most grocery store cosmetics) can damage the reproductive system of males and that DEHP (used to soften plastics) is toxic to the developing fetus (especially at high exposures such as experienced by those undergoing medical procedures). Other studies show that,

“there is a potential for phthalates to impact birth outcomes, including gestational age and birth weight, fertility (lower sperm production), and anatomical abnormalities related to the male genitalia,” states Maida Galvez, a pediatrician and director of the Mount Sinai Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit in New York City.

Phthalate exposure is also linked to asthma, the timing of puberty, childhood obesity, and other health conditions such as breast cancer.

How to Avoid Phthalates

While I don’t think it’s practical or possible in this day and age to chuck every man made material possession and move deep into the woods to be free from human influence or innovation, there are some ways that we can start to eliminate our phthalate exposure both gradually and practically.

  1. Look for phthalates or fragrance on labels. Avoid anything with “fragrance” or any mention of any type of phthalate. Instead of using air fresheners, just put a few drops of essential oils into a spray bottle filled with water.
  2. Look for phthalate-free labels. This may seem like kind of a no-brainer, but it is a pretty good way to find things that are free from phthalates. 🙂 Look for phtalate-free labels on cleaners and cosmetics especially.
  3. Check the bottom of plastic bottles and choose those labeled #2, 4, or 5. Avoid #3 and #7 because they may contain phthalates.
  4. Use a french press for coffee. The plastic tubing and high heat in coffee pots are a recipe for high phthalate exposure.
  5. Don’t buy plastic toys from China. If you buy children’s toys in the U.S. (made after 2008), they cannot contain phthalates, but even still, you might want to steer towards wooden toys like these wooden teethers that my friend makes! And don’t buy plastic toys from China (or other countries) where there are no regulations on phthalates.
  6. Know where your milk comes from. Even organic milk may have passed through plastic tubes (with DEHP) on the way from the cow to the bottle. The fatty acids in milk basically pull the the DEHP out of the plastic tubing and into the milk. We actually get raw milk from a farm (that we have visited) where the milking is done by hand and never touches plastic of any kind.
  7. Sweat more. Sweating helps your body to eliminate phthalates twice as effectively as elimination through urine. So, adults can exercise more or visit the sauna!
  8. Be careful when painting. Most paints have DBP to help them spread better, so make sure there are no children are around and the room is well ventilated, or look for natural paints without DBP.
  9. Choose non-vinyl options if possible. For example, you can check out these non-vinyl shower curtain options and these PVC and phthalate free raincoats at Puddlegear that will not produce chemical off-gassing bringing phthalates into your environment. *These options are expensive and things I would save for more advanced elimination.

Conclusion

The people most at risk from phthalate exposure are unborn babies and infants (especially males), so it’s especially important for pregnant mamas and parents of young children to be aware of things that contain phthalates. During human studies, women have tested higher for the type of phthalates found in cosmetic products, so women are typically at greater risk as well. So before slathering lotion on yourself or your baby, spritzing on some perfume, or washing your clothes, check your labels and know what you’re putting onto and into your body.

Like I said before, I don’t think it’s worth the stress to get super paranoid about every possible danger in life because we’re all going to die one day anyways, but by taking thinking of it as a health journey instead of a health destination, we can continuously choose one thing at a time to improve in our lives that will help not only our current health, but our future health, and the health of future generations as well.

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4 Ingredient Slime Putty

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We are always looking for quick and easy art projects, and this one fit the bill! Ruby actually found this recipe on YouTube Kids, and we just so happened so have all of the ingredients to make it laying around! This recipe was an instant hit with the kids, and after playing with the first batch, they wanted to make a variety of colors. This was quick and easy to make and the kids have really enjoyed playing with it…which is a win, win, win!

silly putty colors

Slime Putty Colors

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Dump out the glue into the bowl. Tip those bottles upside down and get out as much glue as you can!

    elliot adding glue to make slime putty

    Elliot Dumping Out Glue

  2. Mix in the food coloring. Start with a few drops, stir, and then add more as needed to achieve your desired color.

    elliot adding food coloring to make slime putty

    Adding the Food Coloring

  3. Make the borax mixture. Fill up a cup with warm/hot water and mix in about a teaspoon of borax. Let it sit/stir it until it dissolves.

    mixing borax and water for making slime putty

    Mixing Borax and Water

  4. Add the borax mixture to the glue. *This part is really tricky and very easy to mess up! If you add too much of the borax mixture, it will turn to a hard blob, if you don’t add enough, it will stick to your hands.
    adding borax mixture to glue to make slime putty

    Adding Borax Mixture to Glue

    You want to add just a little bit, stir, stir, stir, add a bit more, stir some more, mix with your fingers (about 2 minutes), then only add more if it’s still sticky. Trust me, add less than you think you’ll need and you’ll be just fine.

    mixing slime putty mixture by hand

    Mix it By Hand

  5. Final Slime Putty: The consistency should be soft and stretchy, but not sticky. (Although, if you do what Elliot is doing below, pieces WILL get stuck in your hair, and watch out, because this stuff can get stuck in carpet and on clothes too if you’re not careful!)

    Elliot Wearing His Slime Putty on His Head

    Elliot Wearing His Slime Putty

  6. Play with your goo! Stretch it, pull it, roll it, and have fun! Store it in a ziploc bag when you are done so that it won’t dry out.
    Elliot Rolling Out Slime Putty with a Rolling Pin

    Elliot Rolling Out Slime Putty

    *Now that you’ve got your Borax out, you might want to whip up a batch of some homemade laundry detergent!

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How to Start Your Own Blogging Website

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13 Tips for Creating Your Own Website with Blog

I’m not claiming to be the master in all areas of web development here, but I have learned A LOT about what to do and what not to do when it comes to creating my own blog through my work here at Embracing Motherhood. (My sister owns a web development company called Curly Host, and she has been my patient guru through this whole process which has helped me a great deal!)

I started out just wanting a platform to blog about motherhood and to keep track of the wonderful and amazing things I learn along the way, and now I’ve got a complete website that is actually generating a modest income. So without further adieu, here are my 13 steps for starting your own blog.

1. Brainstorm Ideas

Grab a piece of paper and a pen or pencil and just start creating a mind map of all words that you would use to describe your website. (You could also use a mind mapping application like this.) Don’t worry about organizing your ideas at this point, just free associate the first words that pop into your brain when you think of your website.

For me, my initial brainstorming web included words like: pregnancy, birth, natural birth, healthy food, nutrition, recipes, food science, fitness, teaching, parenting, lesson ideas, homeschool, young children, stay at home mom, and so on.

2. Find Your Niche

Once you have a broad idea of where you’d like to go, find some other websites or blogs out there that are covering the topics that you are hoping to explore. I enjoyed finding several mothering, nutrition, and education websites and following them on social media to get their latest content. I would read their latest blogs, peruse their sites, notice things that I liked and didn’t, and thought about how I would try to define myself in my own way.

You will be constantly honing your writing style and finding your voice as you write. It is not something that will happen overnight. If you look at some of the earlier blogs I’ve written (mainly about health and nutrition), you’ll notice that my voice and style are different than they are now. Once I started getting an audience, getting feedback from others, and seeing my content live, I was able to see what things were working better than others. I learned how to create a certain flow that people could skim and scan through by adding quotes, headlines, lists, numbers, bolded and italicized text, and images so that a reader could get the general idea without reading every word.

3. Come Up With a Name

Now that you’ve brainstormed some ideas and done your research, it’s time to start thinking about a name. Same as the original brainstorming session, get a piece of paper and a pencil and just start writing down every possible name you can think of, no matter how crazy or silly, just get it out there. I think it’s a good idea for your name to be a pretty obvious representation of what you want to write about, but you can just go ahead and make up a new word too. Basically, you’re looking for something short, simple, easy to share with someone verbally, and something that has a nice ring to it.

Once you’ve narrowed down your list to a few favorite names, start doing a Google search to see what comes up. After I had my heart set on Embracing Motherhood, I discovered that the domain name embracingmotherhood.com was only available if I wanted to spend $4,888 so I did what you really shouldn’t do, I used a hyphen…embracing-motherhood.com.

LeanDomainSearch is a great way to brainstorm ideas with available domain names. Once you have a name you think you’d like, run it through Domainr to see if it’s available. Also check out social media platforms like FaceBook, Instagram, and Twitter to see if your name is already being used. *Check out some more great tips for coming up with a name here and here.

4. Purchase Your Domain and Hosting

Now, because my sister is helping me out, she helped me buy my domain name and does my hosting for me. She uses a company called BlueHost. This company is great, and I would recommend going with the plus package that gives you unlimited storage and will run you $5.95/mo. When you sign up for hosting, it will walk you through registering your domain name as well (for free). For an extra $2.99/mo. you can get Site Backup Pro that automatically creates a daily backup copy of your entire site. If you’re creating a lot of content, this is a good idea.

5. Design a Logo

This might be something that you want to save for later, but I enjoyed getting mine done early on. My sister Andrea knows a freelance artist who helped me design my logo, but there are many different logo makers online. This one is pretty good and will cost you from $20-$100 and this one is pretty great too and will only cost you $39. (Beware, many sites that claim “free logo design” will actually make you pay for the high-res image.)

As you pick a logo, keep your color scheme in mind. Because I was wearing a purple shirt in the profile picture I chose, I ended up using purple for my main color. Then I used green as my accent and went with a rainbow pattern of colors because I like rainbows! I hope to keep working on my design in the future, but right now I’m more focused on content. 🙂

6. Pick a Blogging Platform

There are many different platforms to choose from such as Squarespace (7 pages for $12/month), Webflow (20 pages for $20/month), Weebly ($8/mo. for unlimited pages or free with limited services), or a free blogging platform like Tumblr or Blogger.

But I HIGHLY recommend going with WordPress.org. (WordPress.com is also an option, but you cannot connect to affiliate programs such as Amazon Associates so I would advise against it. Once you secure your domain and hosting, you can download WordPress and get started. They have some free themes ready to go, but after checking out many many different themes, my sister highly recommended going with Enfold for $59. This is what I use, and I love it! Everything is drag and drop and there is a great online support forum. (Just log in with your WordPress info and search for your question or write a new one. I have used this many times, and always gotten excellent support.)

There are two ways you can get familiar with WordPress. You can just dive in (like I did), and look online when you have questions (just do a very specific Google search). Or, you can check out this WordPress for Beginners Blog or watch this great tutorial series to learn everything you’ll need to know before or while you’re playing around with your own site.

7. Customizing

Once you get your theme, you’ll want to customize it to work for you. This part can seem really overwhelming and is probably where you’ll need to do the most amount of learning/research, so you might want to skip this step and come back to this later.

  1. Hide Your Site: As you’re building your site, you might want to hide it from search engines. To do this, go to the “Settings” option on the left toolbar, select “Reading”, and the click on the box that says, “Discourage search engines from indexing this site”. You might also want to install a plug-in like this that will give a “Coming Soon” message.
  2. Theme Options: On the left toolbar, you’ll see a gear shaped icon with the name of your site. You will want to go here first and click on every option to set things up and get familiar with what you can do. When I was learning about WordPress, I spent a lot of time here changing one thing at a time, looking at things live (on the top toolbar, click on your site name with the home icon, and click “Visit Site”), and tweaking it until I liked what I had. This is where you’ll add your logo, set up your social media icons.
  3. Widgets: On the left toolbar, under “Appearance”, you’ll find “Widgets” (along with themes, menu, etc.). Widgets are a great way to customize the look of your blog. For my sidebar widget, I have a search tool, my picture, my affiliate’s disclosure, a subscribe widget, popular posts, and recent posts. In my footer widgets, I have four columns for my social media profiles.
  4. Plug-ins: Whenever you want to add something specific to your site, there’s a plug-in for that. Just like with everything else, you’ll want to play around with different plug-ins to see what you like/don’t like. *Now, don’t get crazy with the plug-ins, sometimes they can be the reason your site starts acting crazy, and you’ll have to deactivate them one at a time to figure out the problem. Here are the plug-ins I love:
    1. Askimet: Stops spam
    2. Broken Link Checker: Tells you on your dashboard page where all of your broken links are
    3. Pinterest Pin It Button: I always pin my own articles and have gotten a lot of hits this way.
    4. Print Friendly and PDF: Provides a button that allows users to easily print your blogs.
    5. Stop Spammers Spam Control: Prevents spammers from leaving comments

7. Organizing

If you’re like me, you’ll want to have a framework of organization for your content before getting started. It’s a bit time consuming to do this on the front end, and so you may just want to write 20-30 blogs or build your content before you worry about organization, but then you’ll have to go back to each blog to add categories, etc. So, here’s what I recommend, but as with everything, you have to do what works for you.

  1. Create Pages: You’ll first of all want a home page (some people like their blog to be their home page, but not me, it feels too random). Then create pages for all of your main ideas and link them to your home page. (Mine are: Home, All Blogs, Parenting, Teaching, Mom Talk, Health, How To, and Guest Bloggers) Start by using the “Advanced Layout Editor” to create a “Page Template”. Basically, everything needs to be in a layout box, then you can put a “Text Box” (under “Content Elements”) inside of a layout box to create a header. Then, you can add a “Magazine” or “Blog Post” layout to put under that and it will automatically put all blogs with a matching category there. Watch this tutorial to learn more about creating pages.
  2. Create Categories: These are how you’ll organize your blogs. Under “Posts” on the left toolbar, select “Categories” and just create categories for all of your main ideas. You can also create subcategories by selecting a “Parent”, but I wouldn’t recommend doing this at first. Now, when you write your blogs, just select which category they belong in and you can sort them to the appropriate pages.
  3. Create a Menu: Now that you have your main pages, you can organize them into a menu. Under “Appearance”on the left toolbar, choose “Menu”. There, you can add what pages will be on your main menu.
  4. Write Some Content: Once you have a general layout, you can start writing some posts! It may take awhile to find your voice and your writing style, but don’t worry about that at first, just start getting some content out there so you can see how everything works together.

8. Adding Images

When I first started writing a blog, I was so sad that I couldn’t just do a Google image search and use whatever photos I wanted. 🙁 How easy would that be??? But thanks to Creative Commons, there are lots of free works available to use.

  1. Use Your Own Pictures: It can be so tempting to buy stock photos, but using pictures that you have taken gives your blog a much more personal touch, and it won’t cost you any money!
  2. Attribution: When you use someone else’s photo, even if it’s “Creative Commons”, you should give attribution according to the specifications of the image. If I use an image within my blog, I’ll put the attribution right under the photo saying something like: Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons, Pearson Scott Foresman, 2008. I’ll also link my photo to the original source. You can also credit the image source at the end of your blog. Here’s a good article with more information about giving image credits.
  3. Canva: Canva is a very simple photo editing program that allows you to custom design images with text. This is what I use to create my featured images for my blogs (845 x 321 pixels are the dimensions you want for a featured blog image with sidebar). I like it because there are suggested dimensions for a variety of social media and other outlets many basic templates available, simple tools for adding text, and basic tools for modifying your image. You can even search for a particular image and purchase it for $1.
  4. Photo Pin: Here, you can search millions of Creative Commons photos and easily add them to your blog posts. A photo attribution link is provided for each image.
  5. Flickr: Start by clicking on “Explore” and then search for the type of image you’re looking for. Look at the image description to see if it is “Creative Commons” or free to use, if so, attribute the image according to the author’s request.
  6. Wikimedia Commons: This is my favorite place to go for free photos when I need them…usually to place within my blog. Just search for what you’re looking for and make sure to attribute according to each photo’s request.
  7. Pixabay: This is a great place to search for free photos, and they don’t require any attribution!
  8. Shutterstock: If you are willing to pay for some really high quality images (usually $1-2), this is a HUGE resource.
  9. Pexels: Great stock photos and videos for free use.
  10. Vimeo: You can find free stock videos here.

9. Search Engine Optimization

You probably won’t be concerned with this at first, but if you can keep these tips in mind as you create content, then you won’t have to go back and rewrite everything. :).

  1. Write Good Content: This is kind of a no brainer, but if your writing is good, easy to follow, and useful, you’ll have a higher chance of people reading it, sharing it, and linking to it. The more popular a blog post is, the more likely it is to show up on a search engine.
  2. Make Your Topic Clear: Clever titles (and click bait titles) aren’t as useful as clear titles that emphasize the main idea of your blog post. Then, make sure to state the main idea of your post in the first sentence and repeat key words throughout.
  3. Alt-Text: When you upload photos, make sure they have an accurate name that describes the image (this can’t be added later), then set the alt text so that it spells out any text used in the picture as well as gives an accurate description of what the photo is. This helps webcrawlers to find your content in search engines more easily.
  4. Categories: If you group similar content based on content, category names are a great organization tool that recommends similar articles in your website.
  5. Tags: As you create tags for your posts, think of what people will type into their search engines. Also, include your categories.
  6. Link Building: The more people who link to your site, the higher search engine ranking you’ll get.
  7. Networking: By having guest bloggers, doing guest posts for other websites, and teaming up with others selling similar or complementary products/services you can increase your traffic as well.

*Read more about search engine optimization here.

10. Social Media

Social media is a great way to get your content out there and advertise your website.

  1. FaceBook: This is a great place to network and share your content.
  2. Twitter: Another great platform to share your content.
  3. Instagram: A visual platform to share your pictures associated with your website.
  4. Google Plus: Helps your content to show up in Google searches more often.
  5. Pinterest: A great way to get your content shared in a visual format.
  6. YouTube: Think about starting a YouTube channel to share your content.

11. Amazon Associates

If you are going to be linking to products that people can buy on Amazon, you’ll want to start an Amazon Associate’s account. Watch the tutorial here to learn about the program in more detail, but basically, you can earn a percentage (which starts out low, but gets higher when more items are purchased) when people click on your links and buy your recommended items. The really cool thing about this program is that if people search for and buy other items once they’ve entered Amazon via your site (even items you haven’t recommended), you’ll still earn a percentage. This is called a “third party sale”. *On a side note: the cost of the product remains the same as if the customer would just do a regular Amazon search.

Amazon approves accounts on a case by case basis, and you’ll need to get a certain amount of clicks on your links in order to remain in the program. You also have to make sure you clearly disclose your affiliation or they could terminate your account. (Check out my disclaimer here. I also have a disclaimer link on every blog.)

12. WooCommerce

Woocommerce is the best way to set up a shopping platform. It’s free, easy to set up, and easy to use. Once you install the plugin, it will walk you through the install. I recommend creating your own shop page so you can customize it, but if you don’t, it will automatically create one for you. Once everything is installed, all you have to do is set up your products. If you have any questions along the way, check out Woocommerce Docs.

Setting up shipping was the hardest thing for me. I tried setting up a variety of shipping options, and in the end just decided to include the cost of shipping in my product and offer free shipping on everything.

Another option if you’re looking to have all of the work done for you (calculating shipping, printing shipping labels, sending customers tracking information, etc.), you might want to consider opening an Etsy shop and linking to it on your website. The benefit of using Etsy is that it can provide a platform for you to share your product, but the downside is that it doesn’t offer as many options if you plan on growing. Check out my Etsy shop here, and feel free to copy my shipping policies, etc.

13. Nitty Gritty Stuff

  1. Cite Your Sources: This isn’t English 101 requiring MLA format, but be courteous and find a way to link to the sources that you can use. You can link to the name of the author and/or title of their work, link to some key words in your text, or have a link called “source” in parentheses at the end of the information you’re paraphrasing. If you’re citing something word for word, make sure you put it in quotes and thoroughly cite the source.
  2. Grammar Police: Think about what tense you want to write in (past, present, or future) and stick with it. Find a pattern for personal pronouns (“you” is informal, “one” is really formal, or you can stick with your experiences and just say “I” or “we”). When referring to gender pronouns, you can try to make the plural form work, alternate between he/she, or take turns with each gender.
  3. Policies and Disclaimers: You might not want to worry about this until later, but it’s good to cover your butt and have these thing covered. Check out my terms of use, disclaimer, privacy policy, comment policy, and more in my About Me section.
  4. Make Yourself Present: Find a good picture of yourself to post and have a place for a personal bio. People like to know who is creating the content.

In Conclusion

I’m not going to lie, having my sister as a web developer at Curly Host has definitely given me an edge as I’ve created my own website, but I hope that by offering these tips, I can help to give you that edge too. I certainly don’t know everything and have a long ways to go before I reach my final goals, but I hope that by sharing my experiences with creating my blog, I can help others out there who are starting from scratch.

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How to Make a Mud Pit for Summer Fun

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Embracing Motherhood How to Make a Mudpit for Summer Fun

“You want to make a mud pit…on purpose…in our yard?!?” I can imagine your spouse yelling as you try to present the idea of creating a mud pit in your backyard, but hear me out…

Having Fun in Our Mudpit

Having Fun in Our Mudpit

We kind of made our mud pit on accident when we were trying to cover a dirt hill with sod (which is a story for another blog post), and in the process, I noticed how much the kids absolutely loved playing on a hill of pure dirt. They would climb up it, roll down it, dig tunnels through it and holes in it, and basically get really, really muddy. We would have to strip them down before they entered the house, and it created a lot of messy laundry.

Well, the hill was eventually covered with sod, and the parts that weren’t covered sprung up with grass and other foliage, but the hole that we dug the sod out of still remained, ready to be used. We originally were going to make another sandbox on top to mimic the one we liked at Blandford Nature Center, but well, we kind of ran out of money and were looking for a cheaper alternative.

I had a bunch of leftover seeds and plants from planting our summer garden and the kids were still begging for another dirt hill, so I went to work digging and made a dirt hill surrounded by a moat, surrounded by a path, surrounded by some plants. We stretched three hoses connected together to allow water to flow to the furthest regions of our yard, and walla! Mud pit!

Materials

Directions

  1. Plan It. Find a space in your yard that will be just perfect for a mud pit…preferably away from any pools you have, not right near the front door, but close enough to a water source.
  2. Dig It. Using a pointy shovel, dig out small squares of sod. You can use them to build a small grassy hill if you’d like. Just place the sod pieces on top of each other. Eventually they will settle in and make a nice little hill. Our kids love playing on ours!
  3. Shape It. Try to give it your mud pit some character. Build it up high in some spaces, level it out in others, use your imagination, and try to visualize how your kids will use it. I really think having a moat type structure is a good idea because it traps the water in and makes it more usable.
  4. Use It. I highly encourage all play in the mud pit to be conducted with bathing suits on! This way, kids can be sprayed off with a hose, jump through a sprinkler, or jump into a kiddie pool to get clean afterwards! With a few shovels, buckets, and watering cans, this mud pit has entertained our kids and their friends for hours.
Playing in the Mud Pit

Playing in the Mud Pit

Conclusion

Yes, making a sandbox or setting up a stock tank pool are definitely cleaner projects, and ones that our kids have enjoyed very much, but there is just something so primal about a mud pit that I think all kids should have a chance to experience. Being able to interact with nature, feeling the cool mud with its abundance of free electrons boosting your immune system, getting completely filthy, and creating, digging, and exploring the properties of mud are all hallmarks of any good childhood.

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How to Make Stepping Stumps

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How to Make Stepping Stumps

Making stepping stumps is a fun and easy project that will provide a fun and natural play area for your children (and a fun little place to sit and rest as well). Children love things that are just challenging enough with an appropriate amount of risk and danger. They also need to be able to play unsupervised and interact with nature. These stepping stumps may become an ongoing yard project that you continuously add to (like it has for us). We are always on the lookout for more stumps. It makes for a fun scavenger hunt while we’re driving! 🙂

Materials

  • Stumps: When I was driving my husband’s pick up truck out on some country roads, I found several stumps of varying height that had been nicely cut from a fallen tree. Then, when we were coming home from Ruby’s spring concert, we spotted a few more, loaded them in the back of our van, and brought them home!
  • Shovel: You want one with a point that you can really step on.
  • Gardening Gloves: These are optional, but be warned, you will end up with dirt under your fingernails!

Directions

  1. Make a Plan: Try to envision the full potential of your stump arrangement. If you’re like me, you’ll want to leave room to keep adding on as you find more. I am hoping to copy Blandford’s meandering circular pattern that starts with shorter stumps and works up to taller stumps, but there are many other things you could do like placing the stumps haphazardly in one big configuration or making a straight path that’s very symmetrical. You might even make them almost flush with the ground and use them as a pathway from one place to the next. I encourage you to type “stepping stumps” or even “stepping stones” into Pinterest for some more ideas.

    Blandford Nature Center's Stepping Stumps

    Blandford Nature Center’s Stepping Stumps

  2. Dig a Circle: You’ll want to dig a circle larger than each stump. If you leave the sod intact, you can use it for another project like making a hill or making little grass stepping circles. After taking out the sod, dig down enough to bury about one-fifth of the stump. Make sure the dirt underneath is nice and soft to level out the stump.
  3. Level the Stump: After placing the stump onto the loose dirt in the hole, wiggle it around until the top is level. Then sit or step on it to help it settle in.
  4. Fill in the Dirt: Pack the extra dirt around the sides of the stump and step on it to really pack it in.

In Conclusion

Having stepping stumps is just one part of creating a backyard full of natural and fun ways to play. Once you see how your kids interact with the stumps, it might give you more ideas for extensions in the future. I hope to gather some shorter stumps so that it extends much further and begins and ends with descending stumps like a staircase.

Our Stepping Stumps One Year Later

Our Stepping Stumps One Year Later

Check out some of our other backyard projects:

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How to Make a Backyard Obstacle Course

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Embracing Motherhood How to Make a Backyard Obstacle Course

This backyard obstacle course is the simplest thing I have ever put together, but the kids LOVE it and play on it constantly. I’m always rearranging it, changing it, moving it, and adding new components to keep it fun and interesting…all using things that we have lying around or that I can find on trash day. 🙂

Children love things that are just challenging enough, and they need opportunities to play unsupervised with just the right amount of risk and danger. That is why I like setting up my obstacle course in an arrangement that isn’t too easy or too challenging. While I do enjoy cheering them on from time to time, I am happiest to see them play with the obstacle course independently. If I notice that it isn’t getting played with, I know it’s time to move it around.

How to Make a Backyard Obstacle Course Embracing Motherhood

How to Make a Backyard Obstacle Course

Materials

  • Tires: When we get new tires, I save the old ones. I also keep my eyes open on trash day to pick up any old tires that might be thrown away. *We cut holes in the sides of the tires so that they won’t hold water (which can be a breeding ground for mosquitoes).
  • Long Skinny Pieces of Wood: These are for the balance beams. It’s nice to have them varying lengths and thicknesses. 2’x4’s work great, but you can make anything work.
  • Blocks of Wood: These are for the base of the balance beams. You’ll need 2-3 that are the same height for each balance beam.
  • Wide Boards: These are for placing on top of the tires. You can make any size work. I like using long and narrow pieces. We had particle board laying around, so that is what we used, but you can use any type of wood. You can treat the pieces of wood if you’d like them to last longer.
  • Drill: This is for drilling holes in the tires. We added a circular attachment to our drill to make a bigger hole.
  • Screws: You’ll use these for the balance beams.

Directions

  1. Balance Beams: Attach blocks of wood to the ends (and middle if the board is long or weak) of your long skinny pieces of wood with long screws.
  2. Preparing the Tires: If you leave tires out without drilling holes, they will collect water and it will become the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. By drilling 3 large holes on the side, it will prevent water from collecting. We drilled holes on both sides so we wouldn’t have to worry about which side was facing up.
  3. Set Up: There is really no right or wrong way to set this up. You might want to have everything in a straight line, arrange it in a circle, or place individual pieces scattered throughout the yard. I like arranging the pieces in a circle because it encourages children to complete the course repeatedly. By putting tires underneath the edges of the long boards, it becomes a fun platform for kids to stand on and it also doubles as a bench for sitting and can even be used as a makeshift table during an outdoor picnic. I’ve also had fun putting a tire in the middle of a board to create a sort of teeter totter and on one end of a board to create a ramp.
  4. Rearrange: Whenever the kids stop using the obstacle course (or every 2-3 weeks, whichever comes first) I like to rearrange everything. This helps to prevent the grass that is underneath from dying and keeps it fun and interesting for the kids.
Rearranging the Obstacle Course

Rearranging the Obstacle Course

In Conclusion

The sky is the limit with this style of backyard obstacle course! I hope to keep collecting more tires to make some stepping tires and add some teeter totters (by placing one tire or two stacked up) in the middle of a long board. You will want to tailor your obstacle course to meet the specific dimensions of your yard and abilities of your kids, but the important thing is to make it just slightly challenging and have fun!

Check out how we’re getting our backyard ready for summer with our sandbox, stock tank pool, garden, teepee, stepping stumps, and more!

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The Importance of Growing Up with a Garden

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The Importance of Growing Up with a Garden

Gardening is a fun way for the whole family to eat nutrient dense food and enjoy the outdoors at the same time. Neither my husband or I are professional gardeners by any means, but by growing our own garden for the past few years, our entire family has learned a lot, enjoyed some good food, and had a lot of fun in the process!

Last Year's Garden Embracing Motherhood

Last Year’s Garden

I am excited to write this article as I reflect on our past gardens and start planning our garden(s) for this year! (We’re thinking about having three gardens this year: The area above for tomatoes and peppers, an area next to the house for herbs and lettuce, and an area by our teepee for corn and beans.)

My Brother Jarrod and I Enjoying a Garden as Kids

My Brother Jarrod and I Enjoying a Garden as Kids

Benefits of Gardening for Kids

There are many different benefits of gardening with kids. These are some of the benefits that we have noticed.

  • Learn About Life Cycles: Why read about the life cycle of a plant when you can grow one? By planting seeds, watching them grow, and caring for the plants, children become heavily invested in the life cycles of their plants.

    Elliot Planting Seeds Embracing Motherhood

    Elliot Planting Seeds

  • Learn About Photosynthesis: Photosynthesis (how plants get energy and grow) and cellular respiration (how humans get energy and grow) are two of the most basic and primary functions of life, yet we gloss over them very simply or hardly even mention them at all. If children can learn about such concepts in depth at a young age, they will build a lifelong understanding that will prepare them for even greater scientific understandings in the future.
  • See Where Food Comes From: No, food does not come from the grocery store! By seeing the time it takes for the plants to grow and finally harvesting the fruits of their labors, children will have a deeper appreciation for where their food comes from.

    Ruby and Elliot Picking Beans Embracing Motherhood

    Ruby and Elliot Picking Beans

  • Helps a Picky Eater: Even the pickiest eater can’t resist a tomato warmed from the sun or a freshly picked bean. I love watching my kids devour the fruits and vegetables they pick from the garden.

    Elliot Loves Eating What He Picks from the Garden

    Elliot Loves Eating What He Picks from the Garden

  • Connect with the Earth: If simply going barefoot on the earth’s surface (earthing or grounding) can boost the immune system by providing the body with an abundance of antioxidants (free electrons), imagine what actually digging in the dirt can do?

    Ruby Barefoot Picking Beans Embracing Motherhood

    Ruby Barefoot Picking Beans

  • Get Some Sun: Sunshine provides the body with much needed vitamin D, boosts the immune system, helps skin conditions, gives you more energy, and boosts serotonin levels, just to name a few of the benefits. So get out there in the sun! If I’m not worried about sunburn, I don’t worry about sunscreen, but if we’re going to be out for a long time and I think that by kids might get a burn, I like to use this sunscreen.

    Ruby Getting Some Sun in the Garden Embracing Motherhood

    Ruby Getting Some Sun in the Garden

  • Help with Chores: Kids really do love to help with chores, and this is pretty much one of the funnest chores to do! By working in the garden, they will learn the joy of helping out around the home in a very fun and hands on way!

    Elliot Putting Scraps in Our Compost Bin

    Elliot Putting Scraps in Our Compost Bin

  • Get a Green Thumb: In my experience, gardening is a skill best learned about by doing. By jumping into gardening without much knowledge, we have learned about the best planting times, different varieties of plants, what plants grow best together, how to prepare the soil, and so much more. By gardening with our children from a young age, they will enter their adult years with this knowledge tucked securely under their belts and a joy to accompany it.

    Ruby Planting Seeds Embracing Motherhood

    Ruby Planting Seeds

How to Grow a Garden

Now, I’m sure you can find a better expert than me to learn about all of the intricacies of gardening, but for what it’s worth, here’s how we garden. 🙂

  1. What to Plant? I like planting things that are easy to grow and that the children will have fun picking and eating. I like planting lots of tomatoes to make my tomato purée that I will freeze and use year round, many different kinds of beans that the children love picking, lettuce and herbs (cilantro, parsley, oregano, basil, and dill), peppers, cucumbers, carrots, sunflowers, corn (new this year), and maybe a few carrots and green onions.
  2. Start with Seeds: Starting in April or May, we like to start growing some seeds indoors in pots. Seed packets are fairly cheap (I picked up some organic seed packets at Walmart for 97 cents a piece.) and are way more cost effective than spending a few dollars per established plant. Once it’s above freezing at night, they can stay outside. I hear beans like to be planted when it’s still a bit frosty out.

    Sunflower Seeds Embracing Motherhood

    Sunflower Seeds

  3. Choose a Location and Prepare the Soil: Our original garden location (as seen below) is nice because it’s close to the house, but it is very damp which caused many of the plants to get a fungus last year. It also doesn’t get the best sunshine. This year, we are going to get a long hose, bury it, and set up a garden in the far corner of our yard near our teepee. For our original location, we used a rototiller, but in our new location, we’re digging up all of the sod by hand, so we’ll see how we manage without a tiller over there! I’m sure there’s lots you can do with fertilizing the soil, but we don’t do more than dumping the contents of our compost bin into the mix.

    Preparing the Soil for the Garden

    Preparing the Soil for the Garden

  4. Planting: I have made the mistake of planting things too close together (they’re so little at first), but then they grow too close together and compete for nutrients, so this year I will spread them out a bit more.
    Planting the Garden

    Planting the Garden

    Tomatoes from Last Year

    Tomatoes from Last Year

  5. Watering: In the past, we have used an arc shaped sprinkler, but I’ve since learned that it’s not good for the plants to get so much water on their leaves (because of the fungus) so this year, we will be putting in a soaker hose system (hopefully).

    Watering the Garden

    Watering the Garden

  6. Weeds: Weeding is really my favorite part of gardening. It’s very therapeutic and calming. I usually just pull out the weeds by hand, but every time my husband mows with the bagger, I collect the grass clippings and spread them out over the garden floor. This really helps to prevent weeds from growing.

    Using Grass Clippings to Prevent Weeds

    Using Grass Clippings to Prevent Weeds

  7. Composting: This is an excellent way for children to learn about recycling and to really see first hand what decomposition looks like. We dug out a square in our yard, added beams and boards around the sides (just like making a mini sandbox), and covered it with hinged doors with handles.

Getting Kids Involved

We don’t ever force our children to work in the garden. Whenever we’re going out there to work, we always invite them along, and if they refuse, that is perfectly fine. In the past, our kids have mainly enjoyed the planting and the harvesting process, but now, our oldest daughter Ruby (6) has been VERY helpful preparing the soil and getting things ready. She really enjoys talking about the planning of the garden now that she has seen it through to completion a couple of times. 🙂

In Conclusion

Growing a garden is truly a family event that is bonding in so many ways. I love working in the garden with our kids during every single stage. And when it’s harvesting time, the children see first hand the benefits of all of their hard work.

Check out some of our other backyard projects:

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How to Make Flower Hair Clips

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Embracing Motherhood How to Make Flower Hair Clips

My six year old daughter Ruby and I have learned how to make these fabulous flower clips together. We really love doing crafty projects together and these have been really fun and fairly easy to make. In the picture below, I really felt like my hair clip took my basic black dress ensemble to the next level. I felt super beautiful and fancy and got lots of compliments on this lovely accessory.

At Jarrod and Francesca's Wedding

At Jarrod and Francesca’s Wedding

I’m always looking for fun and creative things to do as a stay at home mom with four young children, and I thought, I can do this! Once I got all of the materials, it was easy to just start cranking them out.

Materials

  • Fake Flowers: I found mine by clearing out my local thrift stores. Look for the colors that you’d like to play around with and go for a variety of sizes and shapes. I tried not to spend more than a few dollars for each bundle. I have also found some great fake flowers at dollar stores like the Dollar Tree.

    Fake Flower Bundles

    Fake Flowers from the Thrift Store

  • Hot Glue Gun: You can pick one up at your local dollar store, or get one here.
  • Hot Glue Sticks: I ordered a big bag of 100 of them here. You’ll go through them surprisingly quickly! It probably takes about one glue stick to do two flowers. I’ve also found some even cheaper ($6) at Walmart in the craft section.
  • Clips: I like using these metal clips, but you could also get some that are shorter or some that have teeth.
  • Leather or Jean Fabric: I got some jean fabric for the backing because it was what I found at the thrift store. Mae Belle used soft leather. For my next batch, I’m using some cream colored canvas.
  • Melted Marbles, Beads, Buttons, or Jewels: These are for the center. You can go for more of a festive look with the jewels, an eccentric look with the buttons, or a subtle look with the clear melted marbles. You could even use the centers from the fake flowers. There’s a lot of room for creativity here!
  • Extras: Mae Belle likes using feathers as accents, and I think this looks really great! I’ve also saved some of the green petals from my fake flower bundles that might look nice. If I get really adventurous, I might use some of the little accent flowers that I’ve found in my flower bundles.
  • Paper Cutter: This is much easier than cutting all of the fabric rectangles by hand, but a pair of scissors will work just as well.
  • Small Toy: You just need something to use to push down the petals after you put on the hot glue so that you don’t burn your fingers. Whatever you use will get ruined! I used a unifix cube and it worked really well.
  • Large Book: You’ll need this to press down the petals after you glue them together. You might want to make a paper bag cover for the book because it may get ruined depending on how sloppy you get.

Directions

  1. Take Apart the Fake Flowers: This is the least fun and the hardest part of the whole process. First, pull off the heads of the flowers. They should pop right off. (Save the petals for accents if you’d like.) Then, take out the center of the flower. This might take a little wiggling. (Set these aside too.) You can choose to gently peel off any remaining plastic on each layer, or leave it on to make the petals a little stiffer. I personally like to peel off all of the plastic so that the petals will lie flat. *Some fake flowers had fake water droplets. Some of them peeled off easily, but with others it started to rip the fabric, so I left them on.

    Taking Apart the Artificial Flowers Embracing Motherhood

    Taking Apart the Artificial Flowers

  2. Sort and Arrange the Flowers: I like keeping all of the original flowers stacked together and then put all of the same colored flowers into large ziploc bags. When I’m ready to get to work, I like to spread all of my flower options out on the table, and then when I’m done, everything goes back into the plastic bags.
  3. Pre-Cut Fabric: Using your jean, soft leather, or canvas, cut 2½” x 2″ rectangles (2 per flower clip). I like using my paper cutter for this, but you could just use scissors too.
  4. Create a Design: There are lots of different ways to go about this. I like using about 3-5 flower petals, and I like to create a color theme with similarly based or complementary colors. But you could use only one color and stack lots of flower petals for a ruffled and elegant look as well. This is the part that is really fun! Get creative! I like to lay out my entire design before I start gluing.

    Flower Design Embracing Motherhood

    Flower Design

  5. Bottoms Up: Start with the bottom flower and hot glue the back of it to the piece of fabric. Always start with as little hot glue as you can. It dries quickly and too much will ruin the look of the flower.

    Gluing the Bottom Layer Embracing Motherhood

    Gluing the Bottom Layer

  6. Press It Down: After you attach the petal to the fabric, you’ll want to press it down with something. This is why I suggested gathering a small toy. I used a unifix cube because it’s what was close by, and it worked great.

    Pressing Down the Glue with a Unifix Cube Embracing Motherhood

    Pressing Down the Glue with a Unifix Cube

  7. Layer all Petals: Next, you’ll center your next petal on top of the first. Each petal has a circle in the middle that you can line up. Mae Belle told me that she likes to run a piece of wire inbetween all of the holes to keep all of the petals centered and together. I tried this method and it just didn’t work for me, but it might be something that you want to try.

    Layering the Petals Embracing Motherhood

    Layering the Petals

  8. Press Under a Book: I sometimes do this after every new petal that I put on depending on how much it’s sticking up, but you’ll at least need to do this once at the end. Whatever book you use, the cover will probably get covered with hot glue. So either make sure it’s a junky book or cover it with an old paper bag or something.
  9. Attach the Clip: This part is a little tricky. You want to position the clip so that the handle part is facing up. (When you position the clip this way, it will easily go in and out of your hair. If you put it the other way, it will get stuck and rip out a bunch of hair when you try to take it out, and that’s no fun.) Open the clip and set it against the piece of fabric, outline the fabric on the edges and underneath where the clip will go in the center with hot glue, set the clip on the hot glue (Keep it open!), and then quickly put another piece of fabric on top. Press down firmly until it dries.
    Keep the Clip Open as You Put on the Hot Glue Embracing Motherhood

    Keep the Clip Open as You Put on the Hot Glue

    Place the Second Piece of Fabric on Top Embracing Motherhood

    Place the Second Piece of Fabric on Top

  10. Center Piece: Try playing around with some jewels, beads, or melted marbles until you get the look you are going for. It just takes a dot of glue to hold it down. You could do this part before putting the clip on, but it’s hard to press it down flat once the jewel is on.
  11. Finishing Touches: Looking from the top down, make sure all parts of the petals are securely attached. Add any more dots of hot glue as needed. Add any feathers or other special accents that you’d like.
    Finished Product Embracing Motherhood

    Finished Product

     

    Embracing Motherhood How to Make Flower Hair Clips

    How to Make Flower Hair Clips

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Hi, I’m Stacey Maaser,

author of Embracing Motherhood! I am a stay at home mother of 5 with 7 years of teaching experience and a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction. I am passionate about teaching my children, feeding them healthy food, learning the truth about things (not just what is popular opinion or counter culture), and sharing what I’ve learned and experienced with others. Thanks for stopping by!

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