I am so excited to finally get to share our new favorite backyard hangout with you!
A mud kitchen has been on my wish list for a long time and I’ve been saving pieces of “trash” for about as long, planning to repurpose them into an awesome new spot for my kids and their friends to get messy and have fun.
Almost every part of the mud kitchen is repurposed and I LOVE being able to give new life to unwanted or unneeded items around our house. The same part of me that gets a thrill finding deals at Goodwill gets a lot of pleasure seeing our own case of trash to treasure. 
Thankfully, my father-in-law and husband helped me get everything put together before our huge party this past weekend. I was really hopeful that some of the thirty or so kids running around our yard would get a chance to try out our new play area.
The mud kitchen is made up of several components– a dirt box, a double sink and counter area, a play kitchen, a kid-sized picnic table, and a turtle sandbox which is now a pool/clean-up area.
I wanted the mud kitchen to be a central area for play in our yard this summer.
The turtle pool is great for splashing around in, filling up water guns, and rinsing off when it’s time to go inside. The other parts are perfect for open-ended, create-your-own-fun, kind of play– my favorite kind of early childhood learning.
fake flowers from the dollar store are perfect for planting and replanting over and over
So far, we’ve spent at least a little bit of each day playing in the mud kitchen. And as much as I love seeing them have fun in it, I also just love any place that keeps all three kids occupied long enough for me to sit down and chill out for a bit.
The mulch and the size of the dirt bed (not big enough to sit in) has kept the area rather clean, surprisingly enough. The kids’ clothes get wet and somewhat dirty, but not really much more than their normal level of post-yard dirtiness.
Plus, if they get too dirty, I just hose them off along with the rest of the mud kitchen.
Check out the picture below to see how each part of the mud kitchen was repurposed. This was one occasion I was thankful for the “junk storage” behind our shed.
I also really love these river rocks turned outdoor play food. Gathering some rocks of our own is definitely on my to-do list next time we go exploring in the river.
Want more mud kitchen inspiration? Check out these 20 mud kitchen ideas.
Have you heard of a mud kitchen before?
Do your kids like playing in the dirt as much as mine?
What a great idea! I don’t know if my husband would go for it, but my daughter and her neighbor friend have made mud pies and pretend food using things all over our yard before. download chrome for windows xp
I LOVE this so much!!! My dirt-loving daughter is turning 9 this summer – have you had older kids play in your mud kitchen? And how long does it keep their attention?
All of my kids (ages 8 through 2) enjoy mud kitchens and could play for hours!
I.LOVE.THIS!!!
I’m currently mid project of my own for a little backyard fun! This is AWESOME! I love the little garden area for playing and planting faux flowers! And the rock food is a brilliant idea!
Thanks for sharing & for linking up to Favorite Things Friday with Simply Rachel & Hip Homeschooling! I’m always happy to see you here! =)
well, this is brilliant 🙂
Thanks Jessica 🙂 And thanks for stopping by and commenting!
Soooooo fun, Lisa!! Those painted rocks are genius.
I know! I can’t wait to get back to the river to collect rocks to make them.
This is fantastic! I love it! Is the kitchen sink plumbed in? I love the rock food!
Thanks for sharing and linking up at Favorite things Friday! Hope to see you again this week!
The sink isn’t plumbed in. We use stoppers and just fill it up with the hose when we want to play.
The rock food is a favorite of mine too 🙂
I LOVE everything about this! What a fun place for your kiddos to learn and play! My daughter would play in the dirt all day if I’d let her, might have to start saving my old stuff to make her one of these!
Thank you Paula! My kids are fans of the dirt too. This actually keeps them cleaner than just playing in it!
This is seriously SO adorable!
What a great idea! I don’t know if my husband would go for it, but my daughter and her neighbor friend have made mud pies and pretend food using things all over our yard before. Containing those antics would be great. I know my two younger boys would have a blast, especially the one who loves to bake and pretends to do that with “ingredients” outside. 🙂