Backyard Boys

Back in the day a long, long time ago, in a time when I was going through my very, very rebellious stage, my sweet mother in total frustration wished upon me a child like myself. At the time, I didn't think that having such a child would be such a hassle. Funny and smart and super cute~ that's me, right?

I think back on that time when I had no idea what I was doing and realize that I was a horror of a child. And my mother's wish came true~ more so than I ever imagined.

While there is a lot I'd love to cover about that one, this post is about one part of me that my mother always let me get away with, mostly because I think she needed her sanity. To say that I loved being outside is an understatement. I wanted to ALWAYS be outside. I would let myself out and go exploring our backyard, neighbors backyards, and all the parks around town. This is the part of my that all of my children have inherited. It is also the part that scares the living daylights out of me.

Not that I think that going outside is a bad thing~ it's wonderful (when you have a fence)! Which is something that we don't have.

This leads us to our issues: Brennan and Nolan love being outside.

Brennan is old enough to understand the dangers of cars and knows to ask before going anywhere, so the issue is not with B. It's with Nolan. Nolan can open the doors (so we had chimes put~ the alarm beeps quite loudly when any door leading outside opens). I can't count the number of times that he has let himself into the garage to play with his outside toys! And when I take them outside, Nolan wants to explore EVERYTHING! I can barely keep my eyes on him! So, it's gotten to the point that we don't go outside unless Dad is there to help watch the boys while I take care of Ian.

Last week, I took the boys outside to play with our friends the Hande's. Nolan had a ball with Colin and Brennan loved running around with Olivia. Ian just watched and laughed at everyone around him, but I could tell that he wanted to be a part of it, so when our friends went home, I stayed out with the boys and put Ian in the swing.

He absolutely LOVED it~ he's another one like me!

Holding on for dear life~ but still thinks is funny

Nolan climbing up to Daddy~ his leg has healed very well

It was such a beautiful night that we decided to stay out playing until dark. Ah, the days of childhood. Notice that Nolan is NOT on with the big boys

Ian looking at everyone jumping without him. Oh, how he wants to be big!

Ian's first time in the swing was a success as was keeping Nolan corralled in the backyard. Stay tuned for more "Just like Mom Moments!"

*so yes, I realize that I told a long story to get to some pictures. the story was mostly for me and my kids, but thank you for reading it all*