sand/water table questions

[amom526]

DS will be 2.5 this summer. he loves playing with sand and water. I am looking at those combo sand and water tables, and I imagine the sand just gets mixed up in the water and becomes an icky mess. has anyone had good or bad experiences with these?

We will most likely get a small baby pool, so am I better off just getting a larger sand box? I have nightmares about animals living in the sandbox or using it as a litterbox, bt I'm not sure this is a legitimate concern. How do you keep your sandbox clean?

TIA!

[sweet_pea]

We have this (http://www.amazon.com/Step2-Naturally-Playful-Water-Center/dp/B001PGTNK6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1366220898&sr=8-2&keywords=sand+table) sand/water table with a cover, which we put on every night to keep the cats out. It does have compartments for both sand and water but we have only sand in both. We do have a small pool for DD also, so that is where she ends up playing with water.

[acmom]

We have this (http://www.amazon.com/Step2-Naturally-Playful-Water-Center/dp/B001PGTNK6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1366220898&sr=8-2&keywords=sand+table) sand/water table with a cover, which we put on every night to keep the cats out. It does have compartments for both sand and water but we have only sand in both. We do have a small pool for DD also, so that is where she ends up playing with water.

:yeahthat: We have had the same one for about 4 years - it has held up really well. We use only sand in it now and have a separate small water table.

[barkley1]

We have separate ones as well. Tried both together, disaster.

[new_mommy25]

We had separate sand box and water table. Kids loved this one and played with it for years. http://www.amazon.com/Step2-WaterWheel-Activity-Play-Table/dp/B000641DPQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1366480276&sr=8-1&keywords=water+table

[Melaine]

We have a split one and have used it with water in both, sand and water, or just sand. I think it's nice to have the options with the two sides. I also am not a fan of sit-down sandboxes because they get so messy. I really like that they can stand up at the table.

[okinawama]

We have the one linked in the first response, and it gets used daily during the springs and summer. We too use either sand only or water only, never both when we use it.