Accomplishing My #LawnGoals

LawnGoals-Alex

Ah, spring is here and that means it is time to put on my yard pants and get to work on my lawn goals. Each year before winter my wife and I get all of our kids’ toys and put them up so the yard is clear of anything that could damage it during the cold months. We put up houses, cars, sandboxes, slides, and more. It’s a lot of work preparing for winter, but it’s even more work afterwards.

This year I am attempting to crush my lawn goals by getting rid of our bare spots. This requires some prep work and tools and other materials, like grass seed and some straw. I could go the sod route but I chose to grow my own. You could use something like a Cub Cadet Garden Tiller to get your ground ready for your seed. I’m trying to grow some grass, but you could use a tiller to get a veggie or flower garden ready as well. It’s all about what your own lawn goals are.

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So after I get my ground worked up I enlist the help of the kids to start spreading some seed. We hopefully got it spread all over so that when it’s time for it to sprout I’m not left with some bare spots. Using a rake I sort of spread the dirt to smooth it out and get the kids to help start spreading straw. They are the best helpers and they did a pretty good job as well. It was fun listening to them point out spots they missed and wanting to make sure they did a good job.

With the seed and straw down it’s time to start getting the toys out and cleaned up along with getting the lawn ready for it’s first mow. We like to use Cub Cadet leaf blower to get the remaining leaves up and off the grass. Because of our large backyard it can take a little bit of extra time. The Cub Cadet helps speed up that process but sometimes we still don’t get them all but we do our best and once the leaves and sticks are all picked up it’s time to fire up the mower and get that fresh cut grass smell going.

LawnGoals-AbbySo now that we have the debris cleared I am ready to get things fresh. Like I said, my backyard is pretty big, so I’m not a fan of push mowing. It takes longer and I just don’t do as good of a job as when I’m using a zero-turn. I am really impressed with Cub Cadet’s RZT L/LX Series. I have tried one out and the comfort and ease of use really makes maneuvering around obstacles as efficient as possible.

Our backyard is our stay-cation. It is where we go to hang out when we want to go outside and just get out of the house. We can run around, let loose, and just have fun back there. Keeping the lawn ready for any sort of family adventure is at the top of my lawn goals list.

 

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#LawnGoals Sweepstakes

Do you have your own #LawnGoals? Enter to win one Cub Cadet RZT L 42 KH Lap Bar Zero-Turn Rider (ARV $2,399.99), hotel accomodations for two, and two tickets to attend an NHRA event this summer 2017! Click here to learn more!

  • To enter capture a photo or video of your yard, tell us how you bring your lawn to life and why your yard is #LawnGoals. Share the post on Twitter or Instagram with the hashtags #LawnGoals #Sweepstakes or visit www.cubcadet.votigo.com/lawngoals and upload a photo.
  • If your entry is approved, you’ll be entered for a chance to win one Cub Cadet RZT L 42 KH Lap Bar Zero-Turn Rider (ARV $2,399.99), hotel accommodations for two, and two tickets to attend an NHRA event in the summer of 2017.

Show us your #LawnGoals!

Be sure to follow @CubCadet_USA on social media!

 

Backyard Freedom

IMG_4755With the days not as hot as they typically are here in St. Louis we have started letting our kids go out into the backyard without much supervision from us parents. It’s one of those things that you have to start thinking about as your kids start getting older. You can’t have them coupe up in the house all of the time, but at that same time you can’t always be watching over them like a hawk. You have things you need to get done as well.

So we have a privacy fence and I think our neighborhood is pretty good so I’m not terribly worried about any wrong doing happening. When the kids are out back we open up a few of the windows towards the back of the house so we can here them if they start screaming bloody murder.

That has happened zero times so far now that I mention it. The kids play good out there by themselves. They run around and they wear themselves out. We have a playhouse, swing set, tree house, truck sandbox thing, and a few other things that they have reign over. Another thing I like to do when they go out back to play is I have a radio that I like to turn on some music for them to listen to while playing. I don’t have any research to back it up but I think they really enjoy having some tunes going while doing whatever it is they are doing out there.

There have been a few times where they go outside and then want to come back in after 10 minutes. While that kinda sucks because not much can get done in only 10 minutes, but it’s a start. The kids get that breath of freedom and over time they will want to go out back and play for longer and longer. Sometimes you have to take baby steps and sometimes those turn into leaps. Everyone has to start somewhere.

Having some fun in the backyard. #slowmotion #crazykids

A video posted by St. Louis Dad (@dadstl) on

I’m not one for wanting my kids to grow up too fast, but I’m also not wanting to have to keep them entertained all of their waking hours. I think backyard freedom is a perfect opportunity for the kids to gain some independence and also give us parents a much needed break. I’m not expecting anyone to just throw their kids out into the backyard unprepared. I’m just letting you know what works for us, and so far it has worked well.

I wouldn’t recommend doing this in the front yard. At least for us, the street in front is too busy for the kids to be alone out there. They stay away but I like having the piece of mind that some wacko isn’t going to come flying through my yard with their car. So the kids stay in the backyard.

What kinds of things do you do with your kids in the backyard? Do you send them out alone or do you venture out with them? Let me know below in the comments, I’d love to hear what others are doing in their backyard!