and then they laughed

When it hit 80 degrees last week my kids insisted it was boiling hot and needed to swim.  So - we pulled out the tot pool which barely fit them all.  I added some hot water so they wouldn't become popsicles.  Hannah still froze in about 5 minutes and zipped off to a warm shower.   Abe persevered and enjoyed himself.   Max loved it and was the last one in the pool though ended up shivering.
A few days later we blew up the big pool with about 4 inches of water. Max wanted nothing to do with the tot pool after that... ONLY ... he's so not safe in water.  It quite freaks me out.  He puts his face in and inhales even with only an inch of water ... soooooo ...

a few days later we switched to the sprinklers which leaves no fear of drowning. My heart can rest easier.  Phew!
One of the things I love is watching a child do something for the first time - like Max getting clobbered by sprinklers. He's shocked at first, then laughs, then screams, then runs away to mom and dad, then heads back in, and laughs so jolly once again.  Don't worry... we didn't have him running around in a saggy diaper for long.

It's also fun to see kids do something they haven't done in a long time. I love the utter delight on their faces. Pulling out the pool after a long cold winter is sunshine to their hearts.

I hope this summer we have lots of those sincere chuckles, giggles, and hearty laughs that accompany childhood and simple pleasures.