My kids are very close in age (16 months apart). When they were little, they were small enough to fit together inside a wicker laundry basket and we'd always play a little game together before bedtime. I'd hoist them in the basket high up in the air over my head and give them a "balloon ride" and sing that Lionel Jeffries song from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. They knew the song because that movie was on a seemingly endless loop at our house. Kids love routines--especially when they're so little. It was just all part of the safe little bubble that fathers create in families. My dad did similar things. He had a white canvas mail sack with a rope closure. My brother and I would fit inside (one-at-a time) and he'd whirl us around outside in the yard before he went off to work at night. When we got too big for the sack, he'd hold us by one arm and leg and spin us around so we could pretend we were airplanes. It was something moms wouldn't do then--not because it took physical strength--but because what if you banged into a tree with a kid or something?
Today, I'm flying the kids back to Wisconsin to visit my mom in Madison and my brother who lives up near La Crosse. I had a whole slew of half-finished things to post here but they'll have to wait. I'm working on some new sketches too.
That is the very essence of being a parent and of living and loving. I'd take my girls and scoop them in my arms and 'fly' them around the house endlessly. Doing anything for a giggle from a kid.
ReplyDeleteYou'll be hearing your fellow Cheeseheads whining about the heat and lack of rain. Some things never change, particularly in Wi.
ReplyDeletePlaying dominos non stop. Haven't been outside yet. The grass does look brown. That's how family catches up- a little game for during conversation plus the kids are liking it.
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