That's all folks.

So i'd like to share some gardening tips with you, well not the sort that will help your garden grow bigger and brighter but rather the ideas iv'e come up with for entertaining kids in the backyard.

This modern world of ours is quite different from the one I grew up in. My son has known how to say DVD and Ipad for at least a year now and he is 2 years old! He fully knows how to navigate the Iphone and I mean getting in and out of applications, scrolling through photos and taking photos himself. Are kids smarter or are we lazier? and do we just think they are smarter because they can use technology.

Anyway I still insist on having his birthday party in the backyard with a gazebo and just the toys we have at home. As I said in an earlier post my son is not particularly interested in helping me in the garden. Kids however, love water, but what about our water restrictions?

I overheard a kid say to his mother at the park " what's that?" he was pointing to a sprinkler, his mum said " it's a sprinkler" he then said "can we get one at home?" and the mum said "no darling we are not allowed"

When I was a kid my mum used to hold the hose out and we would run back and fourth, it was great. I mean we would have preferred to go to the pool but it was still fun, we would look at the rainbow the reflection made.
Now we can only fill up the plastic pool a little bit, and when Eden is enthusiastic about watering plants I tend to stop him after about 3 water cans full, because I feel so guilty for using water.

So a few fun things to do outside that don't involve water. (or not much water)
well... I invited all his friends over for an amazing treasure hunt (it was a magic one), well that's what I told them but basically I had some coloured icy pole sticks which I stuck around the garden and the kids collected them and put them in a bucket. Go mum!!
hey come on they loved it. and all you need is a packet of icy pole sticks!
(You could do it with marbles too.)

Digging for treasure is another one! with marbles or figurines.

Growing grassheads.
all you need is:
stockings, rubber bands
seeds, cup, texta
water

all you do is to cut the foot out of a stocking, stuff it with grass seeds, tie the bottom off with a rubber band so it's round like a ball moisten the ball with water, draw some eyes on, stick it in a cup and voila! in a few days you have a grass head. Genius!!

build a bonfire, (maybe not in summer)

plant a herb garden
many steps here, some involving trips to nurseries (see earlier interview with Gus)

build a leaf stack
get a stick
get some leaves
stick leaves on stick
Leaf stack!

make mud pies - ingredients dirt and water, hey not much water. Mix dirt and water, eat.

collect flowers for plant press! if you don't have a plant press just use a heavyweight book

So there you have it. Backyard fun for the Aussie child imposed with water restrictions.