I am loving all of these summery outdoor and backyard posts but they're also making me a little sad because we live in the south and temps are already reaching 100 degrees midday and our backyard is quite wooded and gets very buggy and mosquito-y in the summertime!

I'd love to enjoy my backyard with my toddler but how am stumped as to how to do it without harmful chemicals, bug sprays, foggers, etc. Any ideas?

@Mhartman, for mosquitoes you need to remove breeding sites as best possible. Anywhere where standing water can collect is suspect. That will definintely cut down on the number of mosquitoes but won't totally eliminate them. Protecting yourself and family with a proven mosquito repellent should also be done. Don't bother with the home remedies found online. Research shows that most have little to no effect. See the CDC website on repellents for more info.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/mosquitorepellent.htm

Love this! I have to laugh a little at that last picture. Cats and sandboxes do not mix. I'm definitely clicking through to see the rest of this backyard conversion. I LOVE when people create functional spaces like that.

@Mhartman, we deal with the same issues (we're also living in the South). On top of that I'm allergic to DEET, so no hardcore bug sprays for us either. We use the Badger Bug Balm and All Terrain Kids Herbal Armor. Eliminate standing water and also use the "mosquito dunks" in things like birdbaths, etc. Keeping the lawn mowed and keeping areas that tend to get overgrown at bay helps. Installing bird houses and bat houses can help, as they feast on the insects in the evening. Unfortunately you can't control what happens in your neighbor's yard, which could be a major source of neighborhood mosquitos.

As for the heat, we play in sprinklers or water tubs/kiddie pools to keep cool. Frozen bananas and grapes, as well as popsicles help!

I'm not sure if Pyrethin sprays are available to you guys over there but it's a natural product that I'm sure was developed here in New Zealand but has since been bought out by Raid and copied by Mortein. The advantage of these big companies now being involved is there are also outdoor versions available too. Check out http://www.raidautomatic.co.nz/
to see if you recognise it.
Also, perhaps a big mosquito netted gazebo (portable) would be a handy thing to place over a sandpit to keep out mosquitoes and neighbourhood cats.