When two dads get together with their kids (without the moms) it creates a whole new environment for kids to play. I went to Craig's house for an evening of street adventures. We arrived and walked through the garage. The twins excitedly noticed all sorts of new toys with wheels. We spent 10 minutes inside then straight out to the streets for an evening of new adventures.
On the way home from Craig's I realized how Easton and Layla should have worn helmets. Luckily nothing bad happened and all is well. Other than that I consider the evening to be a step in the right direction for extending the twins a little more trust and chance to play with toys which I consider to be slightly dangerous. Enough disclaimers... now on to the experiences.
The first thing out of the garage was the battery powered convertible. After Craig's kids did a little demo Easton and Layla were jazzed about getting a turn.
Easton was cool driving around in the convertible even though it was pink. Completely unrealistic for a grown man, but for a three-year-old it was the best day of his life. Once he figured out the forward and reverse lever they drove around in the car with a new sense of freedom.
Kayla demo'd the scooter so Layla jumped on the chance to use the self-propelled toys as well.
There's only been a few recent experiences where I've seen the lights go on with such intensity. The twins do well with pretend matchbox cars and such, but this was the real deal. Then the quad came out of the garage...
I couldn't believe how quickly he figured out the pedal, forward / reverse controls and steering. After my 60 second explanation I did a little testing. I said, "If you push the pedal it goes. If you take your foot off the pedal it stops." He said, "OK." I said, "What do you do if you want to stop?". He said, "Push the pedal!"
Like any good father my response to his completely incorrect response was, "OK, great! Go for it!"
The huge smile on his face says it all. I already know Easton is one of those hands-on kind of kids where he learns by experience and doing something more than hearing words.
After a few minutes of tearing up the street he said, "Daddy, I want to go faster". So I showed him the turbo button, which is pressing the pedal AND twisting the grip at the same time. And awaaaaaay he went! This is Easton's turbo look.
Layla preferred the pink car to the red quad. Partly because the color and partly because she was able to take neighbor kids on tours of their own neighborhood. She's a natural born leader. She'll always have a fall-back job no matter what career she chooses: Tour guide!
The real key to the fun was two motorized vehicles. If only one were parked in the garage I would have declined the entire adventure. That's one of those key learnings from years of adventures with twins.
The neighbors joined in the fun and one of the girls loaned her pink quad to Layla. She took it for a spin and took the opportunity to boss some other kids around as she led the way.
Easton and Layla both had their own quad and freedom to rule the street. Several neighbor boys and girls littered the street with their own scooters and battery operated toys. I laughed because the twins rode side-by-side and followed each other around. There wasn't a competitive act or word. Just good fun together and that's what best friends are all about.
The next day we did what we can't do in Phoenix right now... go to the park. The mornings are cool so I took the opportunity for some alone time with the twins. Easton's strength is building quickly and he's taking an interest in climbing things which he used to shy away from. He worked his way up and down the ladder steps several times before realizing Layla was doing something more interesting than what he was doing.
Layla found a translucent, faded, plastic bubble in the playground equipment. They wanted to play peek-a-boo because nothing gets a better laugh than peek-a-boo even at this age. Turned out to be one of my favorite pictures in a long time.
The twins have always been fascinated with the rocking toys at parks. There is a long history with this funny prop plane rocker toy. I'm just happy no one has lost a tooth due to the vigor of rocking and the difference of their rhythm.
Eventually their batteries wore down enough for them to just hang out for a few minutes. With an entire park at their disposal they chose to share a plastic tube toy. Easton looks older than three years old. I think he looks five, but since these are my first two kids I have no idea what a five year old is supposed to look like. Either way he's a good lookin' dude (or so he's been told by several people).
The 4 Webbs joined Neill and Jenny to watch their grand daughter Aimee play baseball. Not softball... She's the only girl and a pitcher on an all boys league fast ball team! Talk about inspirational. She made the all-star team so we gladly braved the heat to cheer for her team.
After the game we picked up Ouma for lunch. As we tossed ideas around nothing sounded especially tantalizing. Then out of nowhere Layla said, "I know.. How about sushi!" Kendra and I are suckers for any sushi invitation even if it is from Layla. The twins did a great job of learning to use chopsticks.
Easton made an extra silly face while I tried to capture his new skill. Wish I could remember what he was chanting or groaning as we congratulated him.
The fountain outside provided a good backdrop for an Ouma group hug and photo opportunity. Easton is loving the Ouma time and takes every chance to soak it up.
Poor Oupa's been fighting a virus so he's missed out on some of our quality time, but he'll be back in action soon. We have a busy few days of vacation coming up so we'll all need as much rest and relaxation as possible.
See you soon!
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