Is the children's garden at Quail (San Diego Botanic Garden) in Encinitas finished? Last time I was there, they were working on it.

-Ron-

Begin by mapping on paper the usage of the back yard, including any natural pathways. Think carefully about sun exposure and how you can use it to your best advantage, and the areas where you need to control the exposure.

Hardscape should come first, with materials that mix well with your house materials, style, and colors. Budget and practicality are important.

Your two year old twins will go through many childhood phases rather quickly, and your garden is small, so it makes sense to use an adaptable scheme and limit the number of segregated areas. My own kids had a paved area, a grass area, a dirt area, and a non-traditional "playhouse/fort" area built under an existing patio cover. This allowed for a multitude of play activities only limited by their imaginations. We had a planting area in the sunniest spot where I grew giant sunflowers and tomatoes, nothing fancy. When they were little we were on the go all the time, and actual gardening was a fairly low priority.

To summarize: children are easy to please.

Research on kids' play is quite clear that the best play is creative play. Play structures or toys with just one particular use are constraining to the youing ones.

Sticks and water and potential hidey holes lend themselves to endless imaginative games. Wherever they can, children gravitate to sticks and water and stones. If you provide sticks and water in your yard, rest assured that the little ones will take apart whatever charming enchantment you devise, and play endlessly with the basics.

That said, a circle of sunflowers with a circumference large enough for the children to hide inside is quite charming.

Sandbox's were my favorite... the sand can be molded to what ever you want to make- castles -roads or to hide buried treasure.

Stick with the classics, sandbox, swing set and a place to run around. Some type of circular path is great for that.

I'd plant a garden for them, have a sand area and a cutting garden for fresh flower they can cut for Mommy. :) I'd also do an herb garden. You can take them to a local paint your own pottery place to pait little ceramic tage that you put in the ground to label everything. We grow gardens in pots all over our deck because we live in the city and don't have enough room for much of a garden.

Instead of an established "garden," I would consider incorporating edibles into your regular landscaping,. There's no need to set aside space specifically for edibles, especially if you have a small lot. It will be more adaptable as they get older, and it will be less maintenance for you now, especially if you add a drip irrigation system. I would set aside an area for each where they can grow plants of their choice.

I agree with everyone, though. A winding stone path, a sandbox (unless you have roaming cats!), a lawn area and a "fort" will go far.