Built a raised garden bed with 6yo - total disaster but she loved it

Dec 51 min read

So I decided we'd build a raised bed together this past Saturday. I'm a software engineer, not a carpenter lol. Got the lumber at Home Depot, figured "how hard can this be?"

Well. My daughter Emma spent more time arranging the screws by size than we spent actually building. The thing is... wonky. Like, seriously lopsided. But she hammered in three whole screws herself and was SO proud. We planted tomatoes and she checks on them every single morning now.

Worth the embarrassment of my neighbor seeing that crooked mess in my yard. 10/10 would do again.

12 comments467 views

Comments(12)

TTom R.RegularDec 5

honestly though even a wobbly raised bed is better than nothing and she'll remember doing it with dad way more than if you'd just hired someone. the imperfection might actually be the best part

TTravis N.RegularDec 6

lol software engineer trying carpentry is a mood. I did the same thing with a bookshelf and it's slightly crooked and my daughter calls it 'the tilty shelf' now. We water the plants in that bed so much because the slope makes it fun

CCarlos M.New DadDec 6

Post a pic of it in the weekend missions thread! I guarantee other dads will relate. The 'beautiful disaster' projects are always the best ones

CChris R.RegularDec 6

This is peak parenting though - your expectations vs reality. You wanted a perfect bed, you got a memory with your kid instead. Emma's gonna remember 'the time dad and I built that thing' not 'that bed was structurally sound'

MMarcus L.RegularDec 7

The fact that she loved it even though you didn't execute perfectly is literally the whole point though. She got to BUILD something with her dad and that's what matters. The wonky wood is part of the story now

DDwayne S.RegularDec 7

lol the confidence of "how hard can it be" before realizing lumber + gravity don't care about your day job. But real talk, the fact that she loved it is what matters. That's the whole point

CCliff B.RegularDec 7

What happened?? Did the bed collapse or

CCarl L.RegularDec 7

Did Emma help pick out what to plant? Because honestly the whole raised bed thing is just an excuse to get dirt under your fingernails together. The vegetables are secondary

FFred J.RegularDec 8

Did she help pick out the plants for it or is that phase 2?

MMax R.RegularDec 8

This is wholesome. One time I tried to build a bookshelf with my 7yo and it was objectively terrible but he talks about it like it's the coolest thing we've ever done together

RRick J.New DadDec 6

the "I'm a software engineer not a carpenter" energy is relatable lol. Did you end up fixing it or does Emma still use the disaster bed?

JJames H.RegularDec 6

This is the vibe. My daughter asked me to build something last week and I was like "we might mess it up" and she was like "that's ok dad it'll be fun anyway" and I felt like I was learning from her