Playtime

I have a younger neighbor with 3 children ages 5 and up. On Fridays she started meeting up with other moms and their kids to play an hour of soccer at a playground in town before the kids had to go to soccer practice.

I went last Friday and had a blast running with the kids and I even went to watch the kids do soccer drills after the 'free' play time.

I asked and was invited to come again this week. I'd pulled a muscle during the week but still wanted to go. I'd play to my ability.
There is something very inviting to be able to just go out and play. To me it was more like the games of kickball I'd played as a kid.

Last week we were the only people there. 4 adults and 6 kids. We laughed hard, played hard, and had a wonderful time.

This week something pretty neat happened. The original players were there. Another mom showed up.
Then a girl wandered in slowly and joined the game. Soon another boy stood off to the side and gazed at us on the field. He was asked to join in. From another direction another kid showed up, he joined in.

Two other kids took up places on the playground equipment and watched the adults against the kids and the chaos and laughter that ensued.
Someone in a vehicle stopped for a few minutes to watch also.

Playtime.
Just good ol' playtime. No electronic devices [I had to run to my car and grab my pocket camera so I could take this shot]. Just play.
Imagine that.
Kids and adults from 5 to 62 just playing.

Home again update

I got home fairly late in the afternoon on Sunday as I had a midnight shift Sunday night.

Update on the 'kids' and their apartment fire. Everyone was safe and sound. 
My son's wife had gone to the Red Cross and received some funds for replacing some clothes and some other assistance.
For the moment they are living in their mom in law's house/downstairs apartment which is now very cramped. 
With a two and three year old that are rambunctious that doesn't make this anything but a temporary spot to stay.
At the moment, they sleep on the floor.
There will be assistance for them to help pay the first month's rent and a deposit when they do find a place. That is what Sam [son's wife] is working on. Something they may be able to afford.

I went shopping early Saturday morning at places like Nice As New in Wausau. I took Lily and we did some power shopping.
We made out very well with the used clothes and got the kids prepared for an outing.

One last stop at a sporting goods store for some sleds and we were ready. 

I had a grand plan. Let them play their hearts out while mom and dad were at work and I could then take them back to the motel and sort through the donated clothing from my neighbor with them.

We could watch a movie and have some quiet time.

The plan worked.

After modeling clothes and winding down. We had some quiet time. I got a movie on the Kindle and turned the volume down so they would have to be 'quiet' to hear it.
Viola:

I can say that the next time I am asked to donate to the Red Cross or the Salvation Army, I will indeed do so.

At the moment, everyone has clothes and the donations for toiletries are coming in.
My son will be going back to see what else is salvageable soon. The building inspector doesn't want him in there until the structure above the apartment is deemed sound.

They were lucky. What do they need now for the future? Well, most of that is up to my son and his wife. They need to put their heads together and formulate a plan.

I thought I'd be helping with that or at least making suggestions, but apparently not. This is okay with me. They need to stand on their own two feet.

I'd like to jump in and give them advice, but the night guy at the motel and I were talking about that...grown children and advice.
He laughed and said, "We can talk until we are blue in the face...and still it may fall on deaf ears."

He couldn't have said it better. 
I went and helped out some.
I hugged the kids and Jer and Sam a lot... Lily too.

And I left Sunday at dawn.

I was 17 minutes from the Dells of Eau Claire, I was not going to miss a chance at seeing it with incredible ice formations.
But that is for another blog.

The Natural Playground

I happen to be very lucky that my neighbor needed someone yesterday on very short notice to 'play' with the kids.
I jumped at the chance.

We decided to take a hike down the hill road and when we got there, the kids decided that they'd like to go rock climbing.

I was a bit hesitant because the area I like to go in ... is a huge dry run.  This means that over many years, this is the path that flash flood waters take when heading towards low ground.
It is filled with tumbled boulders, roots, rocks, branches, and slippery surfaces.

I soon discovered that these kids were naturals.  They climbed, hiked ... and watched out for each other.
Yes, I did a lot of helping.

But what an adventure we had.

It was incredible to be able to share my 'secret' spots with the kids.  The spots that I like to go to with Morris sometimes just to sit and relax deep in a ravine surrounded by rocks.

I wish that all kids could have outdoor experiences.  We should toss the TV's aside, go outdoors and play, make discoveries, and challenge ourselves and the children.

Not for one second in 2 hours did the kids complain or say 'I'm bored.'
They were showing the rocky dry run to me with new 'children's' eyes.

We all found some cool rocks to bring home and as we headed back [1/2 mile] we discussed about the next time we could go out and hike again.

Soon we hoped.

Nature is the best playground ever.