Home Depot (or Lowe’s) Fun and Games

Posted on 03 14, 2008 under The Manual by reviewdad |

5514.jpgPre-kids, Home Depot (or Lowe’s) was likely a store that if you couldn’t happily lose yourself in it for a whole afternoon, it was at least good for an hour of mild entertainment easy. Chances are that when you do go there these days, your trips are decidedly more abbreviated and surgical. For me, it’s painful. The thought of not being able to browse sucks…but there are things to be done and kids at home to attend to.

One Saturday a few months back, I woke up with the notion of trying an experiment. My wife was going to be heading out for her Saturday morning yoga class, I’d be home with my son and I needed a few things for a project I’d started the weekend prior but never finished. So my son and I would go to The Depot together. I know! Earth-shattering concept.

I thought, he’s my kid after all - perhaps he’d find that environment as interesting as me. And I was confident that with a little forethought and some improvisation (AND a cup of coffee picked up on the way), despite the early hour, I could make it a fun experience for both of us.

Now the whole notion of Home Depot is supposed to be supportively inspirational…from the orange-approned grandfather types with names like “Norm” and “Earl” to their marketing slogan “You can do it. We can help.” and walking though the door, sure enough, I was inspired. Usually giddy upon entering the store, this day I was further energized by the challenge of creating fun using the raw materials contained within.

Working from memory (PVC aisle #9, plastic trash cans aisle #2) and scanning left, right, up, down, I tried out a lot of ideas that day. Some were hits with my son (I’m defining “hits” as something that held his attention for more than 30 seconds AND which elicited at least a three smiles or two laughs), many were misses…lumber being one of the biggest surprises…but overall, we had a blast together.

Impressed with myself, I shared our experience with my wife who pointed out that some of the things we did at The Depot were not just enjoyable for us but also educational for my son. I know, there THEY go again having to boil down everything fun to assess the developmental value…these modern moms I tell ya! Is NOTHING sacred?! But she was right and it all made sense…so bonus - we play, he learns and I come home with something new from the tools department each trip. WIN, WIN, WIN. Beats the heck out of an hour at the local Play Zone!

Since that day, we’ve been back several times and the concept has undergone some refinement. So here are my recommended Home Depot fun and games…along with the educational value if you’re the kind of guy who needs to engage in that kind of rationalization.

Houdini Jr.:

Department = Locks, Door Knobs and Latches; Fun Factor = 4 (out of 5); Educational/Developmental Benefit = Problem Solving

A trip down the door hardware aisle is good for 10-25 minutes of fun depending on the age of the child. Our local Home Depot has “families” of door hardware on long rotating panels with knobs, handles and electronic keypads on both sides. Puling, pushing and spinning are great…but it’s bonus if the the electronic keypads are juiced up so that they beep and light up. For my 16 month old, it doesn’t get any better!

Carpet Sample Petting Zoo:

Department = Flooring; Fun Factor = 2 (out of 5); Educational/Developmental Benefit = Sensory & Color Experience

This one can be done from inside the cart provided your store has the right setup…the sample racks need to be high enough. Pointing to colors or feeling different textures can be good for 3-5 minutes in my experience… Not a real attention holder but a nice break and it provides you with time to gulp down a few sips of your morning Joe.

PVC Brass Band:

Department = Plumbing; Fun Factor = 3-4 (out of 5); Educational/Developmental Benefit = Improvisation

This activity is probably more appropriate for older kids for three reasons - one, it requires some eye/hand coordination, two, PVC tends to be bigger and bulkier so harder to handle and three, it’s likely to be a bit dusty (like most things at The Depot or Lowes) so it’s best if your kid’s beyond the “everything in the mouth” phase. Fit a few sections together and make some music. Don’t hesitate to use your sleeve to wipe the pieces down (it likely has food and snot on it anyhow!)… In my experience, 1/2 inch and 3/4 inch pipe works best.

Lights Go On, Lights Go Off:

Department = Lighting; Fun Factor = 3-4 (out of 5); Educational/Developmental Benefit = Cause and Effect

Be advised that this may piss off store employees who may or may not confront you. But parenthood’s all about risking the ire of others, right?! Pretty self-explanatory. If your lighting department is set up right, this can be loads of fun. Entertainment worth 5-10 minutes.

Color Time!:

Department = Paint; Relative Fun Factor = 1-2 (out of 5); Educational/Developmental Benefit = Colors

In and of itself, the wall of paint sample cards seems to have the same kind of attraction for young kids that the blue bug zapper light has for mosquitoes…they’re just drawn to it. Simple games of “find the color” take on whole new meaning when there’s 97 shades of red. My son also likes to “collect” the sample cards and take them home as souvenirs. Just limit your mess and the number you take with you to fewer than a lot and you should be able to exit the paint department without being hassled. Also, don’t be a dick - make way for people legitimately shopping for paint.

Welcome to the Jungle:

Department = Garden; Fun Factor = 2 (out of 5); Educational/Developmental Benefit = Learning about nature

If your kid is a little bit older…say 2-5, I’ve been told (and can imagine) that the Garden department can make for a pretty engaging trek through a “jungle.” It’s pretty easy to teach kids about plants (and sound authoritative) when everything you need to know is written on the plastic spike shoved into the soil.

So there you have it but before I wrap this up, I feel compelled, based on a long running debate I’ve had with a friend, to address the question of Home Depot vs. Lowe’s. I have not tried this plan out at a Lowe’s (where no doubt it would work equally well) but it comes down to this - Home Depot has those kiddie carts that are NASCAR cars for your kids to ride in. Need I say more?

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Viewing 6 Comments

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    I recommend saving the paint sample cards as your "reward" for a great trip out. This always bought us a couple extra aisles at the Depot. "If you don't get back here now, there won't be any Mickey cards at the end!". It's impressive what a little one will do for three lousy Mickey Mouse paint sample cards. I also recommend doing a clean sweep of those things every now and then through your house. They add up very quickly!
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    Home Depot might provide some educational fun, but you better be careful with kids in that place. It is hands down one of the most dangerous places you can bring your kid shopping. From home handymen wheeling around blind corners with heavy metal carts loaded up with anything from cinder blocks to 12 foot pressure treated 2' x 12' boards, to the sometimes careless Jenga-like towers of such things as generators or crates of porcelain tile stacked on the top shelves overhead; injuries in this place, when they happen, can be severe.

    'Wahoodad, you over-protective pussy!' you may be thinking. Not so fast. I'm talking about Home Depot in particular because I know people whose quick trip to the garden center for some new shrubs ended with their daughter going to the hospital--and ultimately having plastic surgery--when a wheelbarrow fell from the top shelf and hit her in the face. Fortunately it was a glancing blow and didn't hit her square on the top of her head, or she'd likely be dead.

    I also worked with a college-aged kid who took a job at Home Depot. They showed him how to use a forklift for ten minutes out in the back of the store on his second day, and within the hour he was loading things inside the store. He said this kind of 'training' was routine as far as he experienced. He was the first one to tell me--even before I had kids-that he'd never take a kid in there.

    'Bull,' you say. 'Isolated incidents.' Not exactly. Before I became a stay-at-home dad I worked in the insurance industry. Home Depot's loss runs for several years came across my desk as part of a proposal. Based on the number of stores and the number of employees, I wasn't surprised at the number of losses--but the severity of the losses and the descriptions of the incidents were absolutely frightening.

    All that being said, I'm in Home Depot with kids as much as three times a week. When I'm there, though, I am hyper-vigilant. My kids stay in the cart at all times. I look up at the shelving as I walk down the aisles and I'll take a different route if I see anything that looks a little off-balance or precarious on the upper shelves.

    I don't recommend avoiding Home Depot, and I agree that your kid can learn and have fun while you're there; but be a little more cautious and aware if you're in there with your kids. While I don't have any first hand knowledge of incidents at Lowe's, I treat a trip there the same way.
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    wahoodad - party pooper
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    WahooDad's cautionary tales are to be noted but I gotta think he's catastrophizing... I see parents and kids rolling out of my Depot every time I go and none of them are bloodied and bandaged. And I go a lot. Obviously you need to be careful with your kids...probably a bit more at a place like The Depot more than say, Sears but isn't that freakin' obvious?! My recommendation - the Doors department. That's loads of fun. Nice post!
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    To TheBabblingHousewife

    As far as me being a party pooper, guilty as charged (at times).

    To DavidReynolds

    Yes, I'm illustrating a worst-case scenario here, but it's based on facts. I never said that I saw parents and kids bloodied and bandaged coming out of HD on a regular basis AND I said that I go there as many as three times a week.

    Being more careful with your kids at Home Depot than at other stores may seem to you "freakin' obvious"; but I've seen kids using the lower lumber racks as forts while dad checks out fence posts, older kids taking advantage of the smooth cement floors on their Heelys (despite the big sign when you walk in that says "NO HEELYS"), and toddlers reaching into cartons of metal new-work electrical boxes. So, I don't think there's any harm in suggesting that people pay a little more attention when they are in a store that has a reputation for being hazardous to customers. Just check out this article, one of the many I found after Googling "Home Depot accidents":

    http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003...

    Yes, the article is 5 years old, but I haven't noticed any drastic changes at any of the several different Home Depots I've been in over the past ten years.

    Again, I go to Home Depot a lot with my boys. Just a few weeks ago we spent almost two hours there selecting some flooring, and we did the whole petting zoo carpet sample thing with our 2 1/2 year old. I'm not avoiding the place even though I know it is dangerous. I also read "Fast Food Nation" and still go to McDonalds, Burger King, etc. Just as I limit my kids' exposure to fast food, I don't feel like limiting their time in what's been called "the most dangerous store in America" based on injuries to customers is such a bad thing.
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    Wahoodad makes a very good point (actually, several...) about safety and the safety mindset you need to have when taking your brood to The Depot. To paraphrase 80s band Roxette, "Hold on tight, you know [it]'s a little bit dangerous."

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