If you haven’t noticed, with the extreme heat in the area, we’ve been spending a lot of time in the pool since it opened this weekend. You may be wishing you had one at your disposal as well but there are some disadvantages. I’d say right now #1 on the Pros list beats all the others but it doesn’t come without work and lots of it!
Pros:
- There’s a pool in your backyard
- It’s a go-to entertainment tool for parties
- It keeps the kids busy during the summer
- Your kids are familiar with the pool/water
- You get a tan
- People come visit you
Cons:
- There’s a pool in your backyard
- You have to build a deck around the pool
- You have to buy furniture for on the deck
- You have to stain the deck
- You have to buy pool toys/floaties/goggles and usually every year
- You have to buy containers to store the pool toys/floaties in
- You have to go to the pool store fifty bagillion times
- You have spend fifty bagillion dollars at the pool store
- You get burned
- You have to have a lot of food on hand
- You have to wash lots of towels
- The towels take too much room in your hall closet
- Insurance goes up
- Stress level is higher with the kid/water combination
- You have to scoop algae/leaves/bugs/hair/unnamed things out of the pool, sometimes with your hands
- You have to vacuum the pool
- You have to cover the pool (unless it’s 101 outside and it’s hot enough)
- You have to clean your floor more often because everyone tracks in grass/dirt from walking in
So yeah, I think that’s my official complaint list on the pool. But right now, I wouldn’t give it up!
Jen says
I’ve always heard that the cons outweigh the pros, and I can relate to every one on your list. We have a pool at the grandparents house, so we just haul stuff over there and hang out. What drives me crazy is them asking EVERY DAY if we can go swimming. I think that would only be multiplied if it were in our backyard.
Jen’s last blog post..Prayer for Guidance
Jaynee says
Your con list may be longer than the pro list, but I still CAN’T WAIT to build a house so that I can also build my very own pool in the backyard! Everyday I drive by a house in our development that has a sparkly new pool in the backyard and I openly covet when I see the aqua blue water (their backyard is visible from the street).
Jaynee’s last blog post..Not So Good
Amy says
If we had to do it all over again, I’d do it again. It just doesn’t come without the work (and money and time)! The latest quote around here is “there’s no such thing as a free pool”.