Sand + Water = Messy Boy

I bought Noah a Sand & Water Cart a couple weeks ago. The boy loves to be outside and we don't have anything for him to play with in our backyard.

I guess this is how little boys and girls in make-believe land play with their sand and water cart, it's so clean and pristine:This is how real little boys play with it:
He LOVES the thing. It is SO messy, but what can you do? I just let him have his fun, stripped him outside then took him straight to the tub to rinse off.
He put grass, leaves, and "flowers" in the water. At one point I left the back door open, went inside to get something to eat and when I returned, he was pouring the sand in to the water. It just makes me smile, he is ALL boy and I love it.

We've used it a couple times with water only. The kid loves to play in the water, whether it's washing hands, bath time, puddles, fountains, you name it. So of course, it was just as much fun sans the messy sand. Maybe next time I'll do sand only, then when I get brave again, I'll let him have both.