Backyard gifts that earn their square footage
Outdoor gifts have a different test than indoor ones: do they actually get used after the first weekend? These picks did, year after year. We skipped trampolines (great but expensive) and bounce houses (loud) in favor of things that fit in a garage.
A summer classic. Sixteen feet long, double track. Holds up to teenage cousins.
Quality starter bike with training wheels included. Coaster brake, beginner-friendly geometry.
Big enough for two kids, cover included so cats stay out. Plastic so it lasts.
Pretty 16-inch playground ball. Heavy enough to actually bounce, painted with bright patterns.
The scooter every kid wants. Folding T-tube, light enough for a four-year-old to carry.
Adjustable wood handles, real cotton rope. Skip-counting practice that does not feel like math.
Climbing structure with a slide. Indoor-outdoor, eight square feet of floor space.
Soft rubber edge so kids can catch it. World-record-setting throwing distance.
Step on the bladder, plane launches twenty feet. Refills available.
Toe-protecting water sandal. Worth the splurge if there is creek-stomping in your future.
Fills 100 water balloons in one minute. No knot tying. Magic.
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