Ok. I have got to preface this post by saying that never did I think I would share something like this on my blog. One, I like this place to be full of pretty inspiration. Two, I swore I would NEVER buy this thing! Never!
Well, if you too happen to be a seasoned parent…you know to never say never. And that brings me to the absolute best purchase we made last summer! (and because its currently the cheapest I’ve EVER seen it, I knew I needed to share it with you!) It was worth every.single.expensive.penny!! Seriously. And if you happen to have kiddos…you too may want to consider this thing.
I know! I can hear you saying you.would.never.buy.this!
Here me out. While not worth the investment for all, here’s why it made sense for us : We happen to live in town, not a neighborhood, so we don’t have a neighborhood pool. We do have access to county and city pools for a daily fee, but they’re not convenient in proximity or hours opened. And while there are community pools and tennis clubs we can join, they all have years long waiting lists and come with big fees. So…two years ago, 2018 my twins were 3 and I saw this thing online. At $500 (it’s currently $309 here!) I couldn’t justify the cost, but as summer dragged on and on and they grew ever too big for those smaller pool options, this one stuck in my mind. Well, fast forward, to last year…right about this time, and I saw it happened to be on sale, about 20% off for $400. Having a new three month old baby, I knew trips to the city pools would be limited, so I justified the cost, hoping that if we maintained it properly it would last more than one summer, bringing the usage cost down. So, I bit the bullet and bought it, which thankfully I did when I did it, because it quickly went back to full price.
Here’s why it turned out to be even better than expected! When it arrived last March, obviously it was still too cool for water…they love playing on this thing dry as well…think like those blow up bounce houses. In fact that’s how it works, blows up like a bounce house and you leave the blower (that’s included) attached to keep air in it. The best part is it only takes like two minutes to blow the whole thing up! It comes with stakes to keep this thing grounded. And to help protect this item along with the grass, I purchased this tarp and put it underneath (based on other reviews a tarp is a grass saver!). Then of course come summertime, it provided hours…more like full days of fun! There’s a spot to connect the hose up top which sprays water on the slides, making them watersides. And that little bucket fills up to then spill out on the kids. My kids loved it, their friends loved it and I loved it because they loved it! The quality was great and it was used continuously from March through October!
Now for the true downsides. Because you have to leave the blower on to use it, it isn’t the quietest thing. NOT crazy loud, but not a thing you sit next to and peacefully listen to the birds chirping. It’s BIG! And while it did come with a storage bag, there is no way I could get that thing wrapped up to fit it in. It does require maintenance. And if not dryed out properly before storage, I can see how mold on this thing becomes an issue (most negative reviews discuss this.) After each water use, we’d drain the water then blow it up again to dry in the sun for another hour or two. We used a cleaner on it twice last year to give it a good cleaning. And it ended up looking like new! And hands down the pros outweighed the cons!
So, again, may not be worth it or needed for you and your family. But if you’re looking for a backyard alternative THIS thing may just be it! And currently $309 here, I promise the price will go up, so I’d pounce on it if you’ve been eyeing it! Also to note, manufacturing recommended ages is 5-10 years old. My kids were 4 and half last summer. It worked for us and I felt safe with them using it, but that was a personal choice. And while it is big, there’s a weight limit of 350 lbs. I’m not sure it’s large enough for 10 year olds, but again, I think it just depends.