Time on the playground

The first time I took Biscuit to a playground, he was still too small to climb the steps and ladders. I had to set him up on the platforms, then he could walk to the slide and come down. That was in the fall.

The following spring, we took Biscuit to the playground, and it was like he was a completely different kid. He took off running to the play equipment, climbed right up the steps, ran across the platform to the slide, and down he came. No lifting on my part. No help. He was on his own.

As he's gotten older, he has gained confidence on the playground. He takes more changes, and in turn, scares his mother more often!

There's this climbing wall that has a chain up the middle of it that a lot of playground have now. And Biscuit has mastered it. And it scares me to death. It's basically like repelling, except in reverse. He's climbing with his feet and pulling himself up with the chain. And I'm convinced he's going to let go and fall flat on his back.

Now, I have no evidence that this might happen. Biscuit knows what he's doing on this thing. He gets it. But any mom would know exactly how I feel. You think that if there's something bad that can happen, it probably will.

But it didn't. Biscuit climbed the thing like he always does, and I stood back fighting the urge to go stand behind him.

The slides are a completely different story. I would be fine with him going on the slides all day long. And this particular playground had about eight different slides -- short ones, long ones, curlique ones and bumpy ones.

Biscuit is still young enough to find pure joy in flying down a slide. He still makes slide noises. "Wheeeeeeee!" or sometimes "Yeeeeehaaaaaaw!" I think it's physically impossible for him to slide without smiling.

And Biscuit smiling makes me smile, too.