The Nest

This is Celeste and her two bffs. They're standing next to "the nest" they created for the birds in the neighborhood. You can't really tell in the pic, but they're allowed to pick the flowers (the weeds) from our yard and tape them to the nest. They get so excited about this! They spend nearly every afternoon together and think up all sorts of wild ideas. They even formed a band. Celeste is the vocalist, and the other two play the guitar and the keyboard. They call themselves "The Ocean Waves." It's hilarious.

I think this kind of play is so good for their developing imaginations. I'm a firm believer in turning the tv and video games OFF and letting kids play and explore and discover. It forces them to use some creativity and ingenuity rather than expecting constant entertainment. I try to be authoritative as a parent, but when it comes to play, I usually take the "let them be little" approach. I let them run around in the grass barefoot, catch frogs and crickets (as long as they don't bring them in the house), play outside in the rain without an umbrella, and jump in puddles. I let them be kids! So what if their hands and faces get a little messy!

But yesterday, I had to intervene. Jakey was playing outside and helping the girls make the nest. I had to run inside for a minute to get Jarom, and when I came back out, he was walking around the neighborhood holding a PLUNGER. He was pretending it was a big flower, and he wanted to put it on the nest too. I'm sorry, but THAT I will NOT allow! I couldn't help but laugh and wonder what the neighbors must think. But they had kids once too, so hopefully they understand.