...just wait until you have grandchildren!
A couple of weeks ago I made just a simple statement to my 4 year old grandson. "When we go to your great-grandmother's for thanksgiving, you and I will go out in the field and build a fire, maybe roast a marshmallow."
So for two weeks, he daily talked about that fire! We got up on Thanksgiving and planned our day. First, we had to go to the nearby woods and find a couple of perfect hickory sticks for marshmallow roasting. (It may have been the first time in his life he had walked in plowed ground or in woods.) When he found the right sticks, I cut them with the Sarsquatch. Then we had to drag up a couple of fallen pine tops to my mother's lower yard. Chopped them to length with the Sarsquatch. By this time his parents, 17 month old sister, Kim and Grandma Kathy had gathered as well. Laid the tinder and small sticks and let him light it. Of course, the marsmallows had to come out and be seared in the blazing hot fire, long before it had burned down to suitable coals, so everyone ate black-charred marshmallows. Then the other adults went in the house to prepare the meal, and the fun really started. The 4 year old and the 17 month could throw pine straw, leaves, and pine cones in the fire and poke around in it with sticks without constant admonitions to be careful, since only indulgent grandpa was there.
After the Thanskgiving meal, I went down for a nap, then woke up to find that my son had dragged up more fuel and had stirred the dormant coals back to life. They kept that fire going until after sundown, and I just sat back against a handy tree and enjoyed watching the whole family engaged in various fire-related activities.
It was a simple idea, but turned out to be one of the best ones I ever had. He is already talking about the bigger and better fire we will build when we go back for Christmas.
A couple of weeks ago I made just a simple statement to my 4 year old grandson. "When we go to your great-grandmother's for thanksgiving, you and I will go out in the field and build a fire, maybe roast a marshmallow."
So for two weeks, he daily talked about that fire! We got up on Thanksgiving and planned our day. First, we had to go to the nearby woods and find a couple of perfect hickory sticks for marshmallow roasting. (It may have been the first time in his life he had walked in plowed ground or in woods.) When he found the right sticks, I cut them with the Sarsquatch. Then we had to drag up a couple of fallen pine tops to my mother's lower yard. Chopped them to length with the Sarsquatch. By this time his parents, 17 month old sister, Kim and Grandma Kathy had gathered as well. Laid the tinder and small sticks and let him light it. Of course, the marsmallows had to come out and be seared in the blazing hot fire, long before it had burned down to suitable coals, so everyone ate black-charred marshmallows. Then the other adults went in the house to prepare the meal, and the fun really started. The 4 year old and the 17 month could throw pine straw, leaves, and pine cones in the fire and poke around in it with sticks without constant admonitions to be careful, since only indulgent grandpa was there.
After the Thanskgiving meal, I went down for a nap, then woke up to find that my son had dragged up more fuel and had stirred the dormant coals back to life. They kept that fire going until after sundown, and I just sat back against a handy tree and enjoyed watching the whole family engaged in various fire-related activities.
It was a simple idea, but turned out to be one of the best ones I ever had. He is already talking about the bigger and better fire we will build when we go back for Christmas.
