DIY Sandbox

This is a quick 1-day project my husband and I came up with back in December that I am just getting around to sharing with you.  It all began at nap time on a Saturday afternoon.  We were hanging out in the garage in order to not make noise in the house and wake the baby.  Yes, we are THOSE first-timers.

We had taken apart the steps up to my old turtle enclosure=claw foot bathtub.  Sadly "departed" pet turtle of mine, that I had for 10 years all through my college years and early married life.  Her name was Frankie and I had her since she was a hatchling.  I so loved that turtle :-(  She would have lived for another 25 years if "natural causes" hadn't interfered.  It was a horrific thing to watch and I won't put you through the details of her passing-ANYWAY, moving on...

Easter 2011

Sorry y'all, but we already gave the tub to a friend in the valley who was going to turn it into a planter bed.  But the wood from the steps was ready to be recycled into something new:

I forgot to take pictures of the box construction, but I think it is simple enough to figure out.  The picture above was taken after the majority of the work was completed (and "Nap-Time" had obviously run out, since there are little feet shown here) but I digress.

We bought this chalkboard oilcloth (how cool is that?) at our local hardware store.  Until this point, we had been clamping it to a cheap plastic adult size table, and would have to have the baby on our laps in order to let him draw on the table.  But putting down at his height, AND covering a useful lid for the box, was a much better solution.

Staple down all four sides- starting with opposite sides first, then turn the board 90 degrees and finish the remaining two.  The corners took a bit of origami folding action, as shown above.

We also screwed in two blocks of wood in the corners to help guide the lid to a snug fit to the box.

Next step: fill with sand and toys and begin play!