Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Space Invaders

Apparently things like small boys and chickens draw neighborhood children to one's backyard.  Because my little ones are still ... well, little ... having stray kids wander into and out of our yard and house is uncharted territory.  These little space invaders are certainly not unwelcome, but their sudden arrival has left me mentally scrambling for a few ground rules.

First of all, it turns out that suburban chickens are rockstars with a rather loyal and attentive fan base.  The girls have reasonably tolerated their new stardom, but it was apparent that rule number one would now have to be required adult permission before entering the coop.  This new law went into effect after I overheard the following, "Hey, hand me that long stick so I can catch a chicken," and after a post prison break round-up when some little darling accidentally left a coop window open.  Spike, the bulldog, almost had himself a rather delicious chicken snack.

Also popular with people shorter than me is our growing garden.  It seems to be a real curiosity.  My always generous first born was leading the charge on Saturday happily picking and distributing our assorted vegetables, many of them still unripe.  While I most definitely love and want to encourage an interest in gardening amongst young people, I'll admit that a small part of me also wanted to beat them out of there with the afore mentioned long stick.  Instead, I put the housework aside, and offered a personal tour and sampling of those things that were ripe and ready.  It was so rewarding to hear one girl take her bag of goodies and say, "I'm going to make dinner for my family tonight!"  That comment alone atoned for any previous sins committed against the garden.  However, rule number two is now required adult permission before picking produce.

As the day wore on, I observed kids giving each other hay rides in the little red wagon, hunting for red strawberries, and feeding the chickens some greens that were a little past their prime.  I loved my messy backyard farm all over again.  

Rule number three?  Any kid is welcome at any time.

1 comment:

  1. You are describing my 6 year old exactly. Here's another rule you should add now: Parental permission is required BEFORE asking a friend to dine at your house. Enjoy your blogs, Christy!
    Deanna Buscema

    ReplyDelete

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