When we renovated the house a few years ago, the backyard layout was somewhat manipulated, and we decided to use pavers to fill in the mini yard and the small side yard. While we've enjoyed it immensely, it leaves a bit to be desired for small children who are wobbly-walking and not walking at all.
I usually manage to pack up the kids and head to an outdoor park, playground or pool a few times a week. I'll be the first to admit that it's a hassle to get it all together, just for 45 minutes or so of fun, so I'm trying to embrace the luscious landscape that we have right here. Concrete and all.
I'm inspired by Emmie and her twin boys, and all that they do in their smallish yard and beyond. (Note: I will never, never manage to get chickens in my backyard!)
This afternoon, I put together a delicious picnic meal - hot dogs, pears, and yogurt! - and the three of us headed to the backyard. An old comforter provided a soft place to sit, and we ate alfresco, under the dripping wisteria.
In search of a favorite ball, we wandered down the side yard, and I realized that it was in desperate need of a weeding. I started pulling weeds, dropping them into an empty flowerpot, and eventually MyGirl and MyBoy got with the program and tried to help out. They couldn't grab them with enough force to extract them from the ground usually, but it was endearing.
Some things they were able to pull included:
- The hats off their own heads
- The hats off each other's heads
- Carefully planted perennials
- MyBoy was able to pull himself up to standing, while holding on my arm, in order to save his badly scraped knees (concrete pavers do not mix well with a crawling little boy)
- The shoes off their feet
It was a fun "outing" and reminds me that I don't always have to choose a child-focused activity, but should try to get the twins to incorporate them into needed adult-focused activities. Now, if I could only teach them to pay the bills ...
5 comments:
I want to teach mine to fold laundry (why am I always folding laundry, especially since if they're nearby, they just grab it and unfold it?) or do dishes. Shouldn't doing dishes be fun?
Sounds very sweet to all be in the backyard. I wonder if they have outdoor padding you could put over the concrete pavers, or like outdoor carpet or something. Or just buy them knee pads.
How sweet! You need to post some new pictures ;-)
That is so cute that they wanted to immmitate mommy! While I know I need to also treasure the first few months when my girls are tiny & new, I cannot wait until they are able to let their little personalities shine!
BTW...how do you like "Babyproofing Your Marriage"? I just ordered it yesterday.
You raise a good point about incorporating them into things. I struggle with that too, and sometimes I think twins lead an awfully child-centered life because in some ways they demand it. I almost never go shopping with my boys, and I'm sure I would if I only had one. Life isn't all playgrounds and kiddie classes. We're getting better at it, though.
What I wish I could teach my boys to do is change each other's diapers (though we're almost done with that!) and change the litter box. Oh, and pick up after the dog and clean the toilet. Can you tell I'm done with poop?
Your evening in the yard sounds lovely. We have an enclosed 20' x 20' deck that I need to make better use of; when evening rolls around, I'm often too lazy to put one kid in the backpack and carry the other down the steep flight of stairs between house and deck. It's worth it to do, though. Maybe tonight!
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