Yes, just when you thought the sandbox-citement was over – it continues. We chatted all about how we built the base of the box here and how we made the lid with a locking system that secures it to the fence here – but it still wasn’t done. That’s the funny thing about DIY in general – you might expect a kitchen reno to run across 35+ posts and to last four months, but you never think that something like a simple sandbox will be a three part process. On the other hand, sometimes projects that we think will be really complicated end up being no sweat and we wonder why we put them off so long – so I guess it all balances out in the end. Anyway, when we last left our heroine, she was enjoying her freshly completed box – cover and all.
But the next day, as we disposed of all of the empty play sand bags and put two extra ones in the car to return them, Sherry noticed this warning on the back of the bags.
To anyone having trouble reading it, it says: This product contains small amounts of crystalline silica, a common mineral found in natural sands and stones. Excessive inhalation of respirable silica dust may cause cancer and lung disease. Avoid breathing dust. Wear approved respirator in dusty area.
Cancer and lung disease? Wear approved respirators? Isn’t this labeled “play sand” and meant for sand boxes with children who sit in that dusty mess and pour it everywhere? With red flag officially raised, we turned to the Internet to see why the heck a bag of something meant for children would have a warning that it can “cause cancer and lung disease.” Soon enough, Sherry came across a string of articles (like this one and this one and this one) indicating that the type of play sand that we bought may not be the ideal option to have our daughter romping around in (not to mention that Clara left her first play session with clothes and hands covered in a white chalky dust which retroactively freaked us out).
Although we all may have played in sand as children and we’re perfectly healthy (or are we? I guess there’s still time to find out, haha) the way sand is manufactured and where it’s found can change. So if you grew up playing in river or beach sand, which may have been more common than manufactured “silica or tremolite” sand, that would explain why the newer sand containing that potentially dangerous stuff is an issue today. Here’s a screen grab from WebMD with a particularly helpful summary that we found:
So we decided to make a sandbox switcheroo – just so we wouldn’t have to think twice about letting Clara play in there for hours on end for years to come. And frankly, our alternative rocks.
I’ll pause to record a point in my “rock pun” column.
I don’t know why I didn’t think about this before – my sister actually had a rock box for her kids a while back (they’re now tweens/teens and are way too cool for it) but they loved it back in the day. Obviously it’s NOT a good solution for kiddos who still put things in their mouth. Clara did that until about a year old, but now routinely plays with rocks and pea gravel wherever she can find it without ever trying to suck it down (true story: at Home Depot there’s an outdoor planting bed with pea gravel and she loves it more than the playground). Clara’s also less likely to leave covered in rocks and track them all over the house than she was with sand. So I started the not-so-fun task of digging out all of the sand (and hauling it in the wheelbarrow to be dumped in the woods far behind our house – the very back of our almost-an-acre property).
I wouldn’t put it on the top of my “most awesome DIY tasks ever” list, but it wasn’t that bad. Although it was kinda sad to see it all empty and barren when I was through. Pardon the tree’s muddled shadow in this pic (it looks like some sand is still lurking but we swept that baby dry).
Then we turned that frown upside down by dumping in what I will now call my inaugural bag of pebbles. Things were looking up!
But upon closer examination, things were also looking kinda dirty.
Now, I realize it seems kinda prissy to be surprised that rocks are dirty (“Gasp! And water’s wet?! The horror!”). And if we didn’t mind Clara getting a bit dirty, well, we wouldn’t be making a outdoor play box now would we? But the pebbles were all covered in a sort of gritty dust that just kinda bothered me. I felt lazy just dumping them in so dirty when I could easily remedy the problem, so I decided to give the rocks a quick bath in my wheelbarrow.
I felt kinda silly doing this at first, but when I drained my first batch and saw how much dirty water was coming out it didn’t feel like my efforts were worthless at all.
But enough rock washing. Let’s get rockin’ and rollin’ onto the finished product.
Remember the lid is secured to the fence with metal hardware to keep things safe (more on that here).
I used around 20 bags to fill the whole box to the point where it was pretty much level with the ground around it – meaning Clara didn’t have a big step on either side, and she’d have a few inches of depth to really dig into. Oh and the bags of rocks were actually cheaper than the bags of sand at Home Depot. They were around $2.50 a pop, so it was just under $50 to fill our 25 square foot box up. Not free but worth the peace of mind for us. If only we had seen the warning on the sand before opening it, we could have actually saved money filling things up with rocks from the start. Oh well, live and learn.
We also took this opportunity to mulch around the sandbox, er, rock box (excuse me) so everything would look a bit cleaner when we presented it to Clara (she was with her grandparents the afternoon we made the change).
As soon as she saw the rocks she was so eager to play, she didn’t even notice it wasn’t sand anymore. We expected a bigger “Where the sand go?!” reaction, but I guess it’s probably best that rocks instantly erased any memory or care for the old stuff.
All she cared about is that she could get her dig on.
Which actually was reassuring to see, since I worried the chunkier rocks might be harder to dig and scoop, but she’s had no problem – even with the flimsy dollar store shovel we got her. Plus she can scoop rocks with a shovel but also pick them up with her hands (not true with sand) so she seems to have a lot of fun with that. For example, she likes filling the front part of her truck with one rock carefully shoved through the window at a time. It’s the little things, right?
And luckily the rocks have proved to be less messy than the sand. Yeah, we may occasionally need a bath afterward – but the sand involved a rigorous pre-going-back-into-the-house-dust-off that the rocks have yet to require. Upgrade!
But in the end, as long as Clara is having fun – who cares how messy she gets? Oh and see those white things around the sandbox that sort of look like rocks? It sort of looks like there was lot of rock fling-age going on, but they’re just white petals dropped by our dogwood. We may be jinking ourselves, but so far Clara has been happy to keep the rocks in her rock box since we explained that’s their home and it’s where they need to stay for her to play with them.
Rock on, Beansie. Rock on.
So that’s the long circuitous story – told Hunger Games style, as a trilogy – about…
Have you guys ever done something and then decided to tweak or redo it in the final hour? Do some projects that you think will take forever end up being easier than you thought and then later you tackle some project that you assume will be super simple and that’s the one that randomly ends up being a bit more involved? Ah DIY, you’re a fickle creature, but we can’t help loving you.
Psst- Speaking of things you don’t always get right on the first try, we’re over here chatting about picking paint colors.
Pssssst- To read The Sandbox Chronicles from the beginning, here’s Part 1 (about building the base of the box) and Part 2 (about building the lid which secures to the fence for safety reasons).
Krystle @ ColorTansformedFamily says
I love the idea of a rock box! I had. I idea sand was dangerous but will keep that in mind for the future.
Fred Ggoff says
You really should consider something to secure the lids in the open position. Just leaning against the fence doesn’t appear secure enough. Just imagine the damage that could occur if one or both came crashing down when the box was occupied.
Other than that, a really excellent job and great call on the danger sand.
YoungHouseLove says
CHECK OUT POST #2! They’re locked in position and secured to the fence!
xo
s
Susie Wilson says
After you hosed down the rocks did you just put them in the box all wet?
YoungHouseLove says
Yup, we drained them and tossed them in. Then we left the top open on a sunny day for a few hours and they dried out like sand!
xo,
s
Elaine says
Just an FYI, we had pea pebbles instead of mulch when i was younger and my 3 year old brother stuffed a bunch up his nose and we had to take him to the Dr. to get them out… so just watch out for that! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for the tip! Will keep an eye out for that (we hear it can happen with food too, like peas, but so far so good!).
xo,
s
Amanda says
Haha speaking of getting things stuck up your nose — when I was little I got one of the Lego lights for cars stuck up my nose (the flat transparent pieces of Lego) and mom had to take me to the ER. I still remember her trying to get it out with tweezers but couldn’t! Ohh the joys of parent-hood I can imagine. Haha
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, oh man! You poor thing!
xo,
s
Wendy says
Apparently it can happen to adults, too, when completing ultramarathons.
Not sure exactly HOW it happened, but we had a runner “sneeze out” an S-cap at the 20th Bull Run Run (50 mile race) last Saturday.
His sinuses were bothering him, and boom- out it came, shocking him.
Not sure if it says anything about the sanity of ultrarunners and toddlers, but… hey… :-)
Nikki says
What’s an S-cap?
Wendy says
Nikki,
An S-cap is an electrolyte capsule that helps during endurance events to maintain overall health…(e.g. with cramping, with sodium levels, etc.)
http://www.succeedscaps.com/products/s_caps/
Rachel says
Thanks so much for sharing about the play sand! I’ve chickened out on a sand box thus far for our 3 year old. We just moved again (Army) & we should be here a few years so a sand box was on the to-do list. We already need to buy some pea gravel to re-stock a path & our son LOVES rocks much more than sand so, A Rock Box it is!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, good luck with it! Happy rock boxing!
xo,
s
Beth says
Does a rock box still need a cover? It seems like water might not be an issue anymore.
YoungHouseLove says
We figure it’ll be nice to keep leaves and debris and other falling-from-the-sky stuff out of it.
xo,
s
Kristin says
If anyone is interested, I’d like to point out what danger the sings actually warn from:It’s called silicosis, which is caused by very small particles of silica entering the lungs and doing damge there. It is similar to asbestosis. However, there is no reported case of a child getting silicosis from play sand, as the exposure time is most probably too small to do any harm. Workers in quartz mines suffer from silicosis after decades of working there, and as you can imagine, there is a lot more dust forming in a mine than when throwing some sand around.
That being said, I totally understand and agree with you with switching from sand to gravel! You also use no-VOC paint and all that stuff, so why take a risk when Clara can have just as much (or even more) fun with something safe! However, you won’t have to worry when she plays somewhere else with the regular playsand once in a while. Have fun, little bean & parents!
LauraC says
Oh man, very glad you caught that and warned all of us! Thank you. Sounds like you picked a perfect solution. The sand we got last year was from a local gravel company, and initially, I was kind of irritated because Josh got really large, coarse sand with lots of pea-sized rocks in it. Not what I was expecting/wanting. But it’s worked fine (Sophia loves to strain all the rocks out with a sifter) and it’s much larger than the sand you bought, so I don’t worry about it getting into the air and the kids’ lungs.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s a great solution!
xo,
s
meganleiann says
We actually made sure that the sand we got was safe for the sandbox, but I’m now considering switching to rocks just because the sand is a pain to clean!
Sarah says
Love the rock box!!!! My stepdad is an OSHA inspector and he recommends keeping play sand damp.
Erica Heng says
Love the rock box! So much cleaner than sand! Love your guys ideas. Just one other suggestion about safety. Have you guys considered putting hooks on the lid attaching it to the fence. so it doesn’t come crashing down on Clara’s little head. It’s hard to see how much of an angle it’s at. I would hate to see something happen to the little kiddos. Love your blog, ive been reading it for years!
YoungHouseLove says
Done! Check out the post right before this one – that was part of our process when we built it!
xo,
s
Skye says
Really guys? It’s SAND. Why don’t you make Clara wear a tinfoil hat all the time to protect her from radiation? In fact, just lock her in her bedroom so she never experiences ANY harm in the world. You realize that there’s about a MILLION percent greater chance she would be hurt in a car accident on your way to Home Depot than her contracting some rare cancer from playing in a sandbox? So overboard. Well, at least now she’s got freshly cleaned pebbles to play with. Woo hoo.
YoungHouseLove says
We know this switch isn’t for everyone, but this blog is just about our house and our projects, so that’s what we share! Just because Clara is more likely to get in a car accident than be hurt another way doesn’t mean that it’s not worth John and I taking the time to protect her when we can. To us it’s like saying don’t put sunscreen on kids at the beach since they can just drown anyway.
xo,
s
Meg@ Green Motherhood says
I greatly applaud you both for your dedication in keeping yours and Clara’s environment as clean and free of toxins as possible. People truly have no idea the depths that toxic exposure can go. I taught children with severe disabilities, I’ve seen it first hand.
I agree, “why not take every precaution possible?” You put her in a car seat to keep her safe in an accident, and you keep her away from substances that say they can cause cancer ON THE LABEL!
I hope by reading your blog others begin to see that there are little (easy) changes to make that can really help our children.
Your doing the RIGHT thing (but you knew that already :) )
Kathy says
Great answer Sherry! (BTW I love going through the comment section). I’m all for constructive criticism but I think Skye’s comment is uncalled for. Apparently from the pictures, Clara is enjoying her rockbox and that is all that matters.
Heather W says
Completely agree with the previous comments. I think to do what you feel is best for your child is your job as a parent. Why anyone else would care that you would go out of your way to replace the sand for YOUR daughter is beyond me. Clara is a lucky little girl!
Crystal @ 29 Rue House says
The comment is so overboard. Your sunscreen/drowning analogy is perfect. I don’t understand why people want to put others down for decisions they make (unless of course it was a $4000 toilet they were buying ;-). Since I’ve become a parent I’ve learned that when I think of something bad that can be avoided there is no other alternative but to avoid it. You guys are awesome doing what you’re doing.
Andrea says
I, for one, agree. You should plop a tinfoil hat on Clara. If anyone can pull it off, it’s The Bean!
Be sure you put hardware on the hat, though. Gotta keep her lookin’ legit. ;)
P.S. I’m totally building a Rock Box this weekend. I have a corner of the yard that refuses to grow grass and this is too awesome.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, good luck with your Rock Box Andrea! Don’t forget the hardware!
xo,
s
Penny says
I read this comment this morning and didn’t have time to write a reply (although I certainly had a reaction)-I’m 61 and there are numerous times that I’ve read or heard people in my age range make comments such as “we never wore seat belts, we never wore bike helmets, etc, etc, and we managed to survive” with the obvious implication that parents these days are overprotective and just “silly”. This comment strikes me the same way and my reaction is the same. Why in the world would you not do every single thing you can do to change the odds in your child’s favor, be it a bike helmet or rocks versus sand that has been shown to cause cancer?
Kala M. says
I think the rocks may end up working out better than the sand for a couple reasons. One they are less dirty especially after washing them off. And if you do have any water get into the box you won’t find yourself with a bunch of muddy sand.
Sadly there won’t be any sand castles but filling trucks with rocks can be plenty of fun. When we were little, my cousin and I mostly did digging and filling trucks even when it was dirt or sand we played in anyway. Clara will has many hours of enjoying her rock box ahead of her.
bridget b. says
whoa! how scary. i’m glad you guys caught that pretty quick.
i actually like the rock box idea better. the thought of cleaning sand out of my daughter’s super curly hair basically made the sandbox an impossible option, but i dig the idea of a rockbox.
i’ll have to add that to my list of fun backyard activities for this summer along with the mulched play area that i blogged about today. (http://623designs.tumblr.com/post/21325157275/model-home)
YoungHouseLove says
Fun! Love those!
xo,
s
Emily G. says
Pebbles make a way more satisfying sound when plopped in a bucket anyway. If you get a few different sized buckets in different materials she could have her own little rock symphony. A pebble in the bucket counting game perhaps? Pebbles are probably way easier cleanup if some happen to end up outside of the designated area and I’m sure it will help with the cost of keeping the box properly filled since you’re not dragging sand out on clothes and skin every time she plays.
Ali says
They should not be able to sell that sand as play sand. Looks like great fun, but I can see a mess of rocks outside the box and bark inside the rock box. It might have been cleaner to extend the rock to the outside area around the play box. Guess time will tell.
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, so far Clara has been great about understanding that the rocks live in the box and we have to keep them in there for her to play with them, but we’ll have to see how it goes down the line. Will keep you posted!
xo,
s
Johanna says
Just letting you know, my brothers and I grew up playing in rocks/pebbles.. I used to get them to eat it all the time and they’ve never been sick beyond the common cold.
I tell them it was because I helped them with their immune system early lol.
I remember playing in the rocks was awesome, there were tons of stuff to do with them. Matchbox cars were terrible in it though, jammed up their tiny wheels and they wouldn’t roll on the floor properly.
Guess my brothers were lucky I didn’t feed them those as well :P
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- that’s too funny!
xo,
s
Michelle N says
Rocks! I would have never thought about using rocks. Even though several playgrounds we go too have the the little pebbles. I love a sandbox but I’m all for easy clean up and I just hate sand in the house. Seems like it’s never ending. The sand can stay at the beach! haha
MacKenzie says
We built our not-quote-2 year old a sandbox this spring too. I read up about sand and was surprised at the pictures in the last post because I didn’t think they sold the fine stuff anymore, at least not labeled as “play sand.” The play sand we bought was much grainier and at first I wasn’t sure how we would like it but it still molds and forms very well and it isn’t dusty at all. As an extra precaution against the breathing issue, we made our cover with a wood frame and chicken wire – keeps the animals out but lets water in so our sand stays nice and damp and since ours has the same base of weed block, drainage isn’t an issue. If it does dry out, I mist it down when we start playing. But glad to know there is another option out there too!
Zoë says
ps When I brought this up with my husband, he did some research (he is a librarian after all), and sent me this: “Most of the NIH and CDC searches I’ve done only list risks for prolonged exposure in mining or construction settings. Also found this which has a link to “Safe Sand” or something like that. http://www.naturalhomeandgarden.com/Q-and-A/Safer-Sandbox.aspx” Looks like we’ll stick with our sand plan.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, we have heard great things about Safe Sand if you can track it down!
xo,
s
Amelia R. says
Maybe it’s because we’re on the west coast, or maybe it’s because our local hardware store (Jerry’s as opposed to a national chain) doesn’t carry the dangerous stuff . . . we had no trouble at all finding child-safe sand for our sandbox. I believe it was labeled “beach sand,” and there’s no dust or anything. It’s literally just like sand from the beach.
YoungHouseLove says
So lucky! I think the West Coast (Cali specifically) is more advanced about kid-safe stuff since warnings are required on more things by law (so folks want to stock things without warnings!). Hope it spreads to the East Coast soon!
xo,
s
Meryl says
Makes me giggle–we were thinking of putting in a sand box for our kiddo, but he loves the pea gravel we put down (just for general landscaping) so much that we decided we don’t need a separate sand box. Guess kids just love rocks!
Gaidig says
Our basement sure has been the project that was worse than we expected. We thought we’d be able to salvage the kitchen/bar, but we ended up having to rip it all out, then there was additional flooding, and I found myself wondering how it went all those years as a finished basement with no problems, then after the flood of the century, it was wet again after every rain.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh Gaidig, I’m so sorry! It sounds like such a pain!
xo,
s
Carrie says
When the neighbor’s put a sandbox in their side yard next to my parent’s side yard, my kids were ALWAYS in the neighbor’s sandbox and I hated it because it meant they were going to be filthy. Pea gravel is such a better solution.
LIZ says
Ok… so I thought the sandbox was cool. But honestly, I think the rock box is even cooler!!!! My son would go nuts over a rock box (We are constantly in our neighbors’ driveway playing with their rock garden)!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, thanks Liz!
xo,
s
julie says
So cute!! I made my “little one” a prom dress for the prom last Saturday, and on Friday night, we decided to start over, with the same dress, just sized differently…I had made an alteration and it didn’t work out, so I just hunkered down and started from scratch! I wanted her to feel fabulous and enjoy her prom!
Love the rock box!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, that’s amazing! What an awesome gift to give your daughter. Good luck!
xo,
s
Shauntel says
Love the rock box. But maybe I love that baby vocabulary more than anything. She is ridiculously cute!
Jordan@the2seasons says
Wow this is good to know for the future. I had no idea about the sand. Thanks for sharing.
Brenda says
Awesome, thanks for the great tutorial! A local farm we visit to pick fruit has a giant sandbox for kids to play in and they fill theirs with dried peas. It feels awesome to run your hands and feet through, half the kids lay in and roll around, haha. I have always thought that would be a fun filler for our own sandbox, now need to build one.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so much fun! We did a dried corn one once and loved it! Just wondered if animals would want to eat the contents of our sandbox! Haha.
xo,
s
kathie g says
I love Clara’s little pink crocks in the rocks :).
Stephanie says
I’m so glad I read this. After seeing your first post I thought about how much my little one would love a sand box for the summer. Now I know instead of sand we’ll do rocks. The box looks great and Clara is cute as ever.
Tracey says
Huzzah! Or does this situation dictate a booyah? Either way, SO glad you guys caught the play sand death trap warning. I never thought of pea gravel as an alternative… Just goes to show why you have a blog and I don’t! ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, thanks Tracey! You had us laughing with the huzzah vs. booyah thing. Haha.
xo,
s
laurie says
So awesome that you replaced the old sand with new rocks that are safer for her!
Also, I think the sandbox cover on the inside could use some art! That way, when it’s opened, there’s something to see. What do you think?
YoungHouseLove says
That would definitely be fun! Some folks recommended chalkboard paint too! We’ll have to see where we end up!
xo,
s
Grambie of 6 says
This reminds me of the backyard play area my husband created for our sons about 30 years ago,using pea gravel as a safe landing area for the swings. All went well until we spotted a neighbor boy with his pants down one day — “PEE gravel?”
YoungHouseLove says
Hahahahaha.
xo,
s
Madison says
So crazy, but I just read this article THIS very morning on our local newspaper’s website…and instantly thought about how you guys had just completed said sanbox!
http://morrisdailyherald.com/2012/04/17/sand-should-have-parents-concerned/a7xsmvb/
Glad you caught it as well, and made the change! Looks like Clara is perfectly adjusted! :)
Madison
YoungHouseLove says
So funny that just came out! We’re so glad we switched.
xo,
s
Beth says
Thanks for the post. We just put sand in our sand box this weekend and it was dusty. We didn’t think to check for a warning label on “play sand”. I just emailed my husband and I think we are going to switch to rocks or “borrow” some sand from the beach this summer.
John says
Great post! Are you ever nervous about Clara getting her feet cut while playing in the rocks barefoot? Are the rocks sharps by any stretch of the imagination? I love the idea of my little boys playing in a sandbox, especially because they can do it barefoot. Do you find the same applies to the rock box? Thanks!!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh no it’s really smooth pebbles- like peas! Hence the pea gravel name!
xo,
s
Allison says
If only my parents had thought of a rock box! My brother used our backyard sandbox for his “diggers” (aka Tonka trucks) and a play table in our family room for his Matchbox cars, but he spent most of his childhood sneaking pockets full of sand into the car table and my mom was forever bringing it back out and reminding him that sand was just for the diggers.
Anne says
i am LOVING the rock box! i will pass this on to my brother and sister in law who long ago gave up hope on keeping their kids out of the pea gravel garden they have. they love it! haha! this would be the ideal solution.
also, i am so glad to learn from your experience, when we get around to setting up an outdoor play area, i have no doubt we’ll follow in your footsteps and create a rock box of our own.
thanks again for all the inspiration! y’all ROCK! ;)
Sanja says
If anyone/anything ever convinces me to have a child, it’s going to be the videos starring Clara :)
Me, Ed and Pea says
Aw sorry you guys had to redo :( I’m surprised they’re allowed to sell that sand as “play sand”!! Unacceptable!
Cassie says
This was a actually the type of switch-a-roo I had expected reading the last post when I noticed you didn’t drill any rain-holes in the top. I didn’t expect rocks though, good idea! No sand castles seems a little sad though :(
A few years ago we used a small under the bed storagebox with a locking lid as our deck-sandbox. I hadn’t seen warnings then, but because of asthma in the family, I knew dry sand wasn’t good for the lungs and I had done some research. We were diligent that our sand was mixed up with water before our daughter played with it, and allowed to completely dry out occasionally to keep it mold free.
To be fair to home depot/etc, I don’t the sand is any different than that sold a few years ago, I think it’s just the warning that is new…. and all the studies are on people using sand in industry, likely with compressed air, not on children playing in a turtle sandbox.
I don’t think that the warning is a major cause of alarm as some people are taking it, but I do think we need to pay attention to what particles goes in our/our children’s lungs on a regular basis. I mean, there’s such a thing as ‘Baker’s Lung’ from baking with flour too much, but it doesn’t mean it needs to be banned from the stores. We just need to be informed and careful.
Lisa says
Perfect solution! My son had a sand and water table, and I put aquarium gravel in the sand side. He loved it and it was much, much easier to clean up when he mixed them together.
YoungHouseLove says
Such a fun idea!
xo,
s
Susie Wilson says
Thanks for the aquarium gravel idea! We’re getting a sand & water table for our daughter when she turns 1, and I didn’t want to do sand just because of the mess it leaves. Gravel is prettier anyway!
Dina says
Ugh… I just bought two bags of play sand this past weekend and I didn’t notice the warning on the bag. I’m assuming it is the same stuff because I bought it at the same store. We will be taking a trip back to get pea gravel today. Thank you for sharing this information!
RLB says
Another bonus to the rocks — you many never have to cut her nails again! :)
Riss says
I love how into your kid you both are. You give her surprises and fun things, but you also give her important rules, like not throwing the rocks. Its a good example of great parenting.
Jenn says
I can’t believe you put this post up now–Quelle coincidence! This weekend we got a sandbox for my son and bought the sand, and SAW THE WARNING ON THE BACK of the bags and FREAKED out. I was actually going to comment and ask you if you found sand that didn’t have that warning. Ours mentions that it contains an ingredient that California has determined may cause cancer. Not sure what we are going to do, but thank you for addressing this. My son throws EVERYTHING, so I imagine being pelted by little rocks and just don’t like that option at this point.
Micaela says
I was thinking about building my son a sand box; now I dont know what to do!, as I am also concearned he swallows the little rocks. I see them as choking hazzard! But maybe its just me! Every parent has its own concearns! Maybe I will look for beach sand, or just throw in dirt (meaning earth, sorry I do not know the word for this as my first language is Spanish)
Do you think it could work??
I have been following your blog for years! I love it!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes I think beach sand or river sand would be great if you worry your son will try to swallow the rocks. Clara used to put stuff in her mouth about a year ago but as she grew she decided that was yucky and hasn’t for a while. Maybe if your son gets a bit older he’ll outgrow that!
xo,
s
Whitney Dupuis says
Wow, that is scary! So glad you guys saw the warnings. Why would anyone think it was ok to market that as play sand?! We live on the Gulf Coast and my mom filled a cooler full of beach sand for us when we were little every time we went to the beach. We kept getting new sand every time so it was always “fresh”, but that is now illegal (sadly). I have been completely against buying sand since we live 10 minutes from so much of it, but I am glad I saw this post! I am thinking a rock box is the way to go.
Kim says
Wow, I never would have guessed that play sand could be dangerous! Thanks for the tip.
When I was little, my parents would give me an empty 2 liter soda bottle and I would put rocks inside and shake it. That smoothed the rough edges and made the rocks “pretty.” Plus, I liked the fun sound it made — it was like a big maraca. Man, such good memories!
YoungHouseLove says
Fun!
xo,
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