Thank you to our guest author, Alana Steyn, Mud Mates
Mud Mates makes NZ-made wet weather gear and messy play gear that turns "not today" into "let's go." Alana is a Hawke's Bay mum who started with one pair of coveralls and built a whole range around one simple idea: the less thinking outdoor play takes, the more of it actually happens. She gets it too, some days the biggest barrier isn't the weather, it's just finding fifteen minutes and the energy to say yes.
Play: it doesn't need to be a big event. In fact, treating it like one is probably what's stopping you.
Too Busy for Outdoor Play? Here's What Actually Works
Some days you can't even find fifteen minutes to think, let alone plan an outdoor adventure. Between school runs, dinner, and the never-ending list of Stuff That Needs Doing, "get the kids outside" feels less like a nice idea and more like something else to fail at.
But here's what I've learned after years of running a business built entirely around messy outdoor play: it doesn't need to be a big event. In fact, treating it like one is probably what's stopping you.
Why It's Worth the Effort
Outdoor play does something indoor play struggles to match. Kids sort themselves out more outside, they argue over whose turn it is, figure out a game, run off whatever energy has built up all day (which in turn, makes bedtime a whole lot easier).
It's also one of the only bits of the day that nobody's actually organised.
And none of that needs a planned outing. It just needs the door open.
Stop Planning It. Start Defaulting to It.
The families who get outside the most aren't the ones with the most free time. They're the ones who've made it the easy option. Think low effort, high impact - fifteen minutes in the garden while dinner's cooking, or a walk around the block after school, still in uniform, backpack and all.
There doesn't need to be a destination either. You don't need to head to a park, a beach or a playground. Just walk out your door.
Make the Barrier Lower, Not the Bar Higher
If gear is sitting by the door, ready to go, kids reach for it without being asked. Same goes for the mud kitchen or a soccer ball, if it's already out and within reach rather than packed away in a cupboard, kids are far more likely to just run with it (literally).
You don't even need to organise anything once they're out there either. Half the time it's enough to just go stand outside yourself, coffee in hand, while they figure out what to do with themselves. You're not entertaining them. You're just proof that outside is worth going to.
The other thing that stops a lot of parents saying yes is the washing. Wet, muddy clothes mean more laundry, and more laundry means more reasons to say "not today."
Having wet weather gear handy and ready to pop on means kids can head out whatever the weather and stay dry, clean and comfortable, which usually means they stay out playing longer too. That's where Mud Mates comes in.
You don't need a free afternoon to get your kids outside. You just need it to be easier to say yes than no.
Alana Steyn is a Hawke's Bay mum and the founder of Mud Mates. What started as a single pair of coveralls has grown into a full range of NZ-made wet weather gear, messy play accessories, swim gear and more, all designed to make outdoor play more fun for kids and a lot easier for parents. You'll find the full range and blog at www.mudmates.co.nz
Shop online and use coupon FAMILYSPACES for 15% off storewide (excludes Mud Kitchens and Value Packs).
