When we moved into our neighborhood, it was like taking a step back in time. All the way back to the '50s. As we stood in the front yard looking at the house the next door neighbor came to talk to us. "You're worried about the backyard aren't you?" he said. YES! It had a large pool that took up the entire backyard. At the time neither Zach or Wes could swim. And I envisioned my summer days would be spent under a heavy coat of zinc oxide on my nose with a whistle around my neck and a life preserver under my arm. The neighbor said not to worry - he had lived there several years with two kids (6 and 3) and their kids hadn't played once in the backyard - they all play in the street. The STREET?!?!? What kind of parent let's their kids play in the street. As I recall, that is on the top ten list of being a good parent - keep your kid out of the street.
He wasn't kidding. And I caved. And Zach ran with the pack of 10-12 kids ranging in age from 3 to 19. They yell CAR! and run into the yard when a car comes down the street. The big kids took the little kids out for games of Flashlight Tag at 10 o'clock at night during the summer. And I never regretted it.
But then came Syd two years later. And Katy 18 months after that. And there was a BIG age gap. Thankfully there were two of them and they entertained each other for years. And then the house 3 doors down sold. To a couple with 2 small girls. The oldest: same age as Syd and a tomboy. The youngest: a year younger than Katy and just as "girly" as Katy.
Two PERFECT matches:
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