"Best Day Ever!!" ~ Two 5 Year Olds

Don't Fence Me In!

 "Dad, can you come down here and help me out with something?"

That was the question that Lukas posed to me as Mrs LIAYF and I sat on our deck after we had just finished dinner.  We had seen some tree branches rustling back and forth and were not sure what exactly he was up to.

"Are you trying to break off a tree branch?"  Mrs. LIAYF interjected but Lukas just shook his head side to side with a sly smile.  "Okay then" I said dubiously, "Give me a couple of minutes and I will be there to help you out."

And with that Lukas was once again down the steps in a flash.  Soon, we could also hear that he was talking to his buddy from next door, another slightly older 5 year old who has recently been his partner in crime.  They seemed to be plotting something but we couldn't tell what it was.

And then the grunting started.  First softly, then labored.

Now, Mrs. LIAYF and I were engaged in our own post dinner conversation, and thus not quite tuned in to what was going on.  So, it took us a couple of moments to look at each other with puzzled looks on our faces before jumping up and heading down to the source of commotion.  At the same time, our neighbors emerged from their adjacent house as well.

It was at that moment that we all witnessed the final concerted yank from one side and labored push from the other.  And with the collaborated effort a large board broke joyously free from the fence that separated the two boys homes.

And as the 4 adults looked on, processing what we had just witnessed Lukas and his friend started to jump for joy, raising their arms over their heads in triumph.   "Yay! We did it!"  Lukas shouted as he jumped about, smiling broadly.  "Best Day Ever!!" added his accomplice, who was also beyond elated.  Before, there had been a slit not quite wide enough to pass back and forth from house to house.  Now that was no longer an issue.

Shaking my head I grabbed the board, looked at my son with an amused but disapproving look, then tossed it under the deck, presumably for the foreseeable future.  "Can I go over and play?" he then asked Mrs. LIAYF and I.

"Not tonight", was the answer.  "You guys really should have asked us first!."  In reality, I have to admit that we had been promising to open a path between the yards for a few weeks, but hadn't done it yet.  I guess their patience had just run out.  It's a reminder that a few weeks can seem like an eternity for a 5 year old.

"Tomorrow?"

"Maybe." was our response.  "We'll discuss it tomorrow."

Of course, since then the boys have been back and forth numerous times, having a blast playing with each other.  Most of the time they even follow the rules and ask first.

Despite the gaping hole in our backyard fence, I guess it was a pretty good day.