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Yep. I’m here to tell you more things we love for a good pool day. I’ve already covered what to pack in the pool bag and dinners to serve poolside. Now, let’s get into our favorites for the pool time itself. We’re unbelievably lucky because my parents not only have a pool, but a pool with a giant, twisty water slide. So honestly? We could get by on pool time without a dang thing. But long hours spent in that big box of water mean we don’t mind investing a little in some accessories to make it even more enjoyable. Here are some of our all time top picks.
Floats!
Everyone looks for different “stuff” in a pool raft. Me? I like one where I can dip my toes in and float around without having to get “too wet” … in the pool. Yah. I know. A cupholder is a huge bonus, so this is my favorite pool flotation device. I love that it comes in a pack of two because my mom, who has similar pool raft priorities, has one also!
Buy on Amazon: Pack of 2 for $28.99
For slightly more more contact with the water, I LOVE the novelty floats from Big Mouth – they are great for summertime photo opps as well.
In addition to the donut, we also have the pineapple and a big pink lemon. They have held up surprisingly well over the years, even through the waves and sand at the beach!
Buy on Amazon: $19.99
When you really have absolutely zero interest in getting wet, these raft type setups can be extremely helpful. They really come in handy at the lake for hours of sunning/floating, but unless the kids are alone in the pool, the size is a bit too much for most pools. HOWEVER, when they ARE alone in the pool, my kids use this to build pool forts and to try to land in when coming down the slide.
I won’t lie, I kind of think we need this “stuffed” alligator float – brings me back to my childhood, where everyone had an inflatable alligator in their pool!
Games!
Basketball and volleyball are two no brainer pastimes for the pool. We got this hoop last year and used it plenty. We went to pull it out the other day and discovered the base frame was missing, so we’ll definitely be figuring out some kind of solution for that so we can keep using it, because it’s a favorite!
We are also considering upgrading instead and a friend recommended this one – might have to give it a shot (see what I did there?)!
For the latter activity, we have this less expensive volleyball net set up, but we get kind of lazy about weighting it down so that requires a lot of moving it back to the shallow end. Just a warning!
We added this Skee Ball-esque game to our collection last summer and it’s pretty fun! The only trick is finding a good way to store the little inflatable tossers because they are easy to lose.
I have seen multiple mom influencers posting about this Watermelon Ball, and I think they’ve finally convinced me. Looks like fun and I think my two are now the perfect age for it. Add to cart!
No pool toy chest is complete without a good set of diving sticks and/or rings. These can be used in multiple ways and have provided hours of fun for both our kids.
These are not the highest quality water guns/water cannons, but they are reasonably priced and they get the job done. So far, they have been pretty difficult to break, which is a serious bonus. My kids like to use them to try to pop bubbles that someone else is blowing over the pool surface.
This is another toy we’ve had our eye on for a bit – we thought it would be fun for the pool, lake AND ocean. But I’m just not sure how well it will hold up. We might just bite the bullet and try it this summer.
We have a BUNCH of these squishy balls and they are great for throwing around. They work well with the inflatable Skee Ball too!
Annnnnnd yet another ball – these are fun because they skip on the water – you can come up with all kinds of games with them!
Last, but not least … how about an underwater stingray boomerang? These look awesome and I am strongly considering adding them to our summer pool toolbox.
What did I miss? Do you have any pool faves we should consider checking out?
Less & More: The WFH Mom Edit 
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