Anonymous wrote:Kids get tired of the same playground equipment at their own house quickly. They like new equipment, not the same thing over and over.
Consider if your kids are like ours. Our kids are in school so we figure they get enough there M-F and when we they go to parks on weekends.
This. Your kids play on friend's play structures because they are novel. They come home and say "I wish WE had something like that" and you feel guilty you can't provide.
Meanwhile, their friends don't care about their play structure. They used it a bunch at first and now they only ever play on it when other kids come over and want to play on it.
You could get a wide variety of yard toys that are easy to store and will get more use. We have a bunch of gymnastics mats for tumbling and fort building, plus a tire swing. Kids love them, they cost a lot less than a big playlet, and we can store them away when not in use.