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Today I went with my 5 year old son to a wild animal park in our town. We have a family membership and haven't gone since the Fall. We park our van and I step into a sinking pile of mud. My thought is "Oh my God will it be this way the whole time?" My son bounces out of the van and right into the mud with a huge smile on his face rearing to go. We head on our way and there are multiple mud puddles and mud piles that I gingerly try to avoid. My son happily jumps in each mud puddle to wash off the mud he gathered while skipping through the mud piles. We came across a man with a very long grey beard and looking a little unkept. My thought is I hope he's okay and I say a timid "hello" and my son says "hi! We're here to get some fresh air, why are you here?" He answers, "I got a job here and I'm working. Nice to meet you."
Children are interpreting the dance that Jesus did so many years ago. Do not judge others by their clothes and looks and enjoy every moment. I am so full tonight and I thank my little guy who has graced my life for only 5 years, but is so much wiser than myself. Had to share.
By the way, Mom (myself) was known as the "Biz" kid. I told my son I have now passed that baton to him and he didn't understand. I called him the "Tide" kid. I was so the biggest tomboy you'd ever want to meet. My bestfriends were 2 nextdoor neighbor boys and the other was a tomboy girl up the road. We were country and I'm still country. I just forgot about it.
Last edited by Homewardbound66; 01-09-2008 at 09:29 PM..
It sounds like a fun day, just what a little boy needed! Little boys+mud puddles= FUN!!
I never worried about how dirty mine got when they were little and sometimes I would have to hose them off before I would let them come back in the house but they had FUN!
Kids love being kids and getting old fashioned 'dirty'. Out society spends so much time trying to keep them sanitary...until they miss the whole point. Let them build up a few immunities with dirt and sunshine.
Good for you OP. I love when parents take the time to really let their little guy enjoy a great day!
Thanks for the comments and I have to agree with both of you - a day without mud is a day without sunshine. His jacket has been thrown in the washer 2 days in a row and one of those days he was stripped down to the underwear before coming in the house. Luckily we had some warm sunshine on the deck that day.
Letting my kids play in the dirt was like the biggest secret I ever discovered for happy kids, good naps, long hours of satisfaction and peace for both mom and kids. A lot of the other moms didn't think so, though, they felt it was more important to have neat and tidy and clean kids at the playground.
It got to be a regular thing at the playground, I'd be the one mom letting the boys play in the mud, then all the other kids would soon be gathered around joining in and then their moms would get mad at me for "breaking the rules" they'd had about no playing in the mud! It has always been more important to me to have the kids engaged and happy and exploring.
Children are interpreting the dance that Jesus did so many years ago. Do not judge others by their clothes and looks and enjoy every moment. I am so full tonight and I thank my little guy who has graced my life for only 5 years, but is so much wiser than myself. Had to share.
That is a wonderful paragraph Homewardbound66!
It humbles me, even on the worst of days, that my 4 year old boy knows no strangers. He just wants to say "HI, what's your name.." & so sincerely!
This is something that we must remember as adults.
Thanks for those thoughts!
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