Let Them Play!

Earlier this week the kids and I hopped in the car and drove about 2 hours to my Granny, their Great Granny’s house. We do this a few times a year, and everyone has a blast! I love watching my boys play at Granny’s the same way I did as a kid – because they do! At Granny’s house we don’t need TV or Screens or a million and one toys to have a good time – we just need Granny!

We spend most of our time outside, if it’s nice enough out or in the garage. With outside play, anything goes. We kick soccer balls into the closed garage door, we use a tipped over garbage can for pitching practice, we decorate the garage and sidewalks and driveway in chalk, we go for walks, we run, we pretend, we go to the park. But in the fall, the fall is when the true fun happens. Because in the fall, there are leaves. So many leaves!

It didn’t matter that Alex has a broken arm and that Granny’s knee wasn’t working quite right – there were leaves just SCREAMING to be played in. We raked them, we kicked them, we filled buckets of them and we dumped them! We laughed, we cried (leaves in the eyes….), we had fun! And most importantly, we made memories! The memories I have of playing in the leaves at Granny’s house as a little girl are vivid – and I hope that they will be the same for my children. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a Great Grandma, especially one who is still able to roll around in the leaves with them. We cherish these little trips, these moments, these memories.