pottery barn kids | stylehouse

Be sure to provide plenty of sunscreen for kids at the beach. Outfit each child with his or her own tote bag or backpack for carrying towels, sunscreen, snacks and other necessities. The following beach activities require few, if any, additional supplies:

All you need is a plastic bag and a watchful eye. Pick up every shell you see. Make a game of looking for other rare seaworthy gems like pieces of driftwood, sea glass or sharks' teeth.

A great bucket and a few cups in different sizes make molding sand castles a breeze. Help kids build a tower by placing buckets and cups of wet sand on top of each other, making them smaller and smaller until you reach the desired height. Use a stick to carve out details, and decorate with drops of very wet sand and seashells.

Backyard play should be spontaneous—and safe. Choose outdoor furniture that is naturally weather-resistant (not chemically treated) like our Chesapeake Collection and a generously sized umbrella, either on its own or paired with a table, so kids have a safe and shady place to eat. The following are classic backyard games:

Turn your sand box into a treasure trove by burying surprises for kids to find. A collection of shells from the beach, polished stones, even marbles (all available from craft stores) work great.

Play this game like the classic tug-of-war. But this time put a sprinkler in the middle of the two teams so the losers get wet!

Many children's games, like hopscotch and tag races, are ideal for sidewalk play in urban areas. Play it safe: kids will need sunscreen, and should be reminded to heed all traffic rules and never chase a stray ball into the street. A city park with ball courts or other paved areas is an alternative spot for playing the following games:

Kids love to shoot hoops!. Our inflatable basketball net comes with a real hoop and an inflatable basketball. Having it handy makes setting up court a snap.

Use our inflatable bowling set for this fun game. The rules are:

Line the pins up: one on the front row, two on the second, three on the third, four on the fourth.
Use a crack on the sidewalk to mark the start line.
Each player takes two turns rolling the ball to knock down the pins.
Keep score by adding up the number of pins knocked down each turn.


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