Some parents aren't that bright...

The boys were using cardboard to slide down the stairs this weekend. After watching them a few times Mike got an ingenious idea (or dumb). I thought it was going to be a Christmas present and told my mom we were going to try and keep it a secret but Mike had other plans. It is a great idea, though dangerous for the time being but if you read Mike's post (because he wrote the rest of the post) then you will see what the problems are and what we need to change for it to really work. In any case, no friends are allowed on this until we've found the perfect solution.

I used to have a tool for this, but sold it with all my other tools. My solution--wrap some duct tape around a little roller to smear the glue. We had the tape, roller, and this glue, so they cost me nothing.


These hinges and hooks were about $2.50 each.



The 3/4 inch ply-wood was $24 (it was on sale) and the hard board was around $8.
The guy at home depot cut them both in half for me.


I glued the hardboard to the plywood--flipping one set on top of the other and loaded it up with
some heavy junk. Most of the junk came from the basement. Ugh...


Then I cut both pieces at 45 degrees where they would meet.


Here's Will showing Eli where we'll cut the smaller piece.

We put the hinges on the boards, then attached them to the stair case.


This is Will going down the slide.


This is Isaac helping put the slide "away". The little eye-hooks hold the slide out of the way.



Adrianne couldn't wait for me to start the video before going down. We have another video, but it won't load.

Justify Full
So, a lame post, but the slide is cool. The only problem is the stop at the bottom. I need to find a way to slow the kids down while they're sliding (perhaps the hardboard was too slick) or a good way to cushion the landing--I'm concerned that even 7 inches of upholstery foam will be insufficient (plus, it would cost me more than double what the rest of the slide cost). I'll let you know what we do. I'd appreciate any recommendations you have.


Comments

Lokodi said…
Man! You guys have got to be the coolest parents in the world! That is such an awesome idea. What made you think to do that? Seriously, totally awesome!

Lindsey
Jaclyn M said…
That is seriously a cool idea!! My kids would love it although I am sure one of them would break something lol

Jaclyn
http://adoptutah.blogspot.com/
Mommo said…
Hilarious! Try wrapping your kids in bubble wrap before sending then down the slide. Looks like so much fun. I would really like to see Adrianne going down the slide. ;)
Jess and Jen said…
That is hilarious...and way too fun! Those boys must be in heaven! -Jen
The Duke said…
I wish you would have had it done when I was there -- shoot, sliding down that thing would be so awesome on sore knees!! :) I thought you would going to do it for Christmas, too, but why not now? That really is a cool idea. If we didn't have a wall at the end of our stairs, I can see Henry and Ella going crazy because they already fly down our stairs on the bellies.
What a lot of fun.
Pitcher Family said…
you guys are awesome!!
Jess and Jen said…
I just showed this to my kids...they are ready to visit Colorado Springs again! You need to find a free couch on the side of the road and take the cushions from it! -Jen
Debbie said…
That is sooooo awesome
This made us all laugh. What a fantastic idea. What fun!!!
Papa Doc said…
You may not be so bright, but you are really awesome! The memories that those boys will have of mom and dad will be something to behold.

Like Mommo, I would like to see Adrianne go down the slide. Then I will know that it is really a family thing, and not just a crazy man thing.

Dad Clark
Michelle said…
Awesome slide. We should have made one years ago, my boys would have loved it.
politicchic6 said…
Yikes! In my family, someone would have broken something, for sure. We used to use huge cardboard slabs and slide down the stairs when my parents weren't home.
Honestly, as long as they follow the rules, they should be fine--no going down together, no going on without me knowing, no going down without padding at the bottom, and no going down with other people at the bottom.
Dad and Mom said…
Excellent basement engineering, a chip off the old block, I'd say!! I think a 45 degree bank, off vertical by about 30 degrees at the bottom and a slide down the rest of the way to dump them onto a mattress at the bottom of the steps would be great!

Gpa Steve
Frances said…
Cool! I told Brook he had to come see this post. What a fun idea.

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