Weekend

It's birthday time around here!  Molly's birthday this week, Jane's next.  With two outdoor parties coming up, the weekend was consumed with getting the yard ready. 

I saw the Jane differently this weekend.  It was like we fast forwarded 5 years.  We were outside all weekend working.  The other neighborhood kids were out.  They are older, most around 2nd grade and they are all boys.  I guess Jane was bored enough at home that she invited them to come play with her.  It was so funny to watch her initiate this.  From our front yard she yelled to one and waved him over.  She's seen him around but never said more than hi before.  Now she was telling him about herself and inviting him to play on the swingset.  Down the hill they went, out of my sight.  I figured I'd give them their space.  He seemed shy and my presence may scare him away.   They spent more time down there than I thought they would.  And I was happy Jane had a friend.  Later, she was crossing the street by herself to join the boys in a ball game.  For a moment, she didn't seem much like the almost 4 year old she was.  I'm thankful for her outgoing personality and ability to make friends so easily.

Molly is my little dare devil.  Fear doesn't live in that child!  She and Jane were playing on the swingset. I could hear them talking to each other, though my back was turned to them.  I guess I was so engrossed with what I was doing that I didn't notice they had went out the back gate.  There's a tiny little creek beyond the gate.  Most of the time there's not much water in there.  However, it had rained inches just the day before so the creek was pretty darn full.  The next thing I hear is Jane yelling that Molly went in the creek.  I took off down that hill so fast, finding Molly just standing there in that water up to her thighs.  She was quite proud of herself.  Thank God this is a very small creek. But I learned my lesson!   That gate needs to stay latched unless I've got two eyes on them! 

Of course then I needed my camera.  So the pictures below are what followed this little incident.  They were pretty much done wading in the creek by then though.

Sunday was warmer and the girls went swimming.  Molly went in for the first time with her floaty- in the deep end, giggling up a storm every time she felt her body floating.  Jane's been loving the pool and wants to swim everyday.  I'm pretty sure now that Molly's had a taste, she'll be begging to go in too!

It was a productive weekend, but I look forward to some fun next!
 

 (The sticks are magic wands.  They were yelling Bippity Boppity Boo 

and turning each other into toads!)