Last night, as a family, we roasted hot dogs & marshmallows. Just us. Usually, we do those things when we have company. It was a joy to simply do it by ourselves. It showed the children that they are special enough to do this when we don’t have company, when we don’t have to… just because. Because we need to spend time like that on our own.
We needed that. We needed to have some laughs on our own. And we did laugh. The kids had fun plucking a few lilac blooms and showering one another (and their parents) with lilac petals. We had fun watching the fire burn. A marshmallow fell into the fire and expanded to about 10 times its size and became a great source of wonder and amusement. The kids gathered twigs and threw them into the fire, trying to ignite the sticks. They tried to light their sticks and pretend they were Olympic torches. They had fun being themselves and enjoying the moment.
Then the kids put on the pj’s and we snuggled down in the basement to watch a DVD. It was the Muppets. It was silly. Again, we had moments of laughter — and also moments of confusion as the show seemed strange at times. I watched it as a kid– and never thought it was weird back then. The kids now know who Kermit, Gonzo, Fozzie and Miss Piggy are, and of course, what “ma-na-ma-na” is.
We sure needed that time. I hope that evening will stay in my children’s hearts as a postive family memory for years to come.