Friday, June 17, 2011

trampoline


A few weeks ago Tom and I put together the girls' 5th Birthday gift --- their trampoline!!  Overall the set-up went well but there were moments I couldn't believe how differently we go about doing a project.  Tom can look at things and pretty much know where they should go.  I prefer to read every single word of the directions at least a few times, and work in a sequential order.  That combo made for some interesting moments : )  Afterwards I told Tom I didn't think we should ever be on the Amazing Race together, and he told me he actually thought the opposite, that we would be a great team and do really well on the show!  That really made me laugh .....  it's so funny to me how at times we can look at the same situation so differently.

Despite our different approaches and our different perspectives we did get the trampoline put together and the girls were SOOOOOO  excited to jump on it.  Then Tom told them they would have to wear their bike helmets while jumping.  Oh yes.

Now this is another example of how Tom and I can look at things differently.  I LOVE how thoughtful Tom is and especially how protective he is of his daughters.  He loves them so much and even the thought of them getting hurt is too much for him.  But I really didn't think Zoe and Ella needed to wear helmets inside of their enclosed trampoline.  He admitted it might be an extra cautious safety precaution but he didn't care, he had heard too many stories of kids getting hurt on trampolines and he figured the helmets would at least protect them from bumping their heads hard if they jumped into each other.  I felt very strongly about establishing a few firm safety rules too (only three or four kids jumping at a time depending on their sizes, no flips in the air or tricks where kids could land on their necks, no jumping without supervision, those sorts of things), but I wasn't feeling the need for helmets.  I did support Tom's decision though, and let him know he was the one who would tell the girls.  We also agreed they only had to wear their helmets if they were jumping together, and once we felt comfortable they wouldn't need to wear them together either.

Their reaction to the helmet news was priceless.  Both of their eyes got really big, they looked at Tom, then at me, and then back at Tom.  Then Ella told him 'but we don't wear helmets when we jump on Mia's trampoline' (I had a feeling this sort of connection would come up .... it did make me smile).  Tom held his ground, explained his reasons and told them to show how cool he thinks it is to wear a helmet while jumping on the trampoline he would jump first (partially to make sure it didn't fall apart), and he would wear a helmet too.

Since Tom doesn't own his own helmet (I know .....), he wore one of the girls', and after he finished some beer (love Ella's expression, she couldn't believe the whole helmet rule or that her dad was wearing her pink bike helmet with a big flower on the front) ....

.... the girls watched with anticipation ....


.... as their dad took the first jumps on our new trampoline!!

Zoe got a big kick out of it all.  I think to a while for Ella not to be distracted by her dad wearing her helmet ....

When it was finally their turn they had a BLAST!!!!


And it didn't take long before Tom realized they could indeed jump safely without wearing their sweaty little bike helmets ....




And jump they did, and have been --- multiple times a day, every single day, except when it's been stormy.  No head bumps yet but lots of smiles and laughter!!

8 comments:

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

What fun! We've been wanting to get one of those trampolines for a while now. I think it'll probably be next Christmas - with a pooling of the $ from relatives when we get one.

Mama Hen said...

That is a great gift! My daughter loves hers and when we put it together she was so excited! Just a bit of advice, I always say our trampoline rules every time she and her friends go in. They actually tell me the rules. I would tell the girls that you or other adults have to do the zipper. My sister had a trampoline and let the kids do it and after two years the zipper was ruined. I have had our trampoline for a few years and it is fine. Just a thought! Have a great Father's Day weekend!

Mama Hen

Annie said...

I know they are going to have lots of fun.

Have a great weekend.

PS: Happy Father's day, Tom!

Miss Dower said...

I just loved reading this. I love that Tom did that for his daughters. That just seriously warms my heart because not only would my dad have done the same thing, but I can totally imagine Scott doing that for our entirely future children! :)
That sort of chershment of his daughters will help them grow to believe that they deserve that sort of amazing love from whatever boys they come across. And THAT is a huge gift! (Even better than a trampoline) Please share with Tom that being dorky and protective is one of the things I love most about my own dad!

Mama Hen said...

Thank you for your kind comment. The zipper is always the first to go. Some go even sooner then two years if it is pulled and tugged on. It is a great rule to add, because you will have your trampoline for a long time. Another rule I have is no grabbing at the net. Kids like to grab it and poke fingers through. Easy to create a hole. Enjoy the trampoline. It is so wonderful to have! have a great day my friend!

Mama Hen

Taylor said...

What a good daddy LOL! Looks like a blast.

Rydley said...

Oh, this is too funny! Love the shot of Tom with the helmet! I'm sure Joe would do the same thing. Joe and I would massacre each other on the Amazing Race too. Glad you got the trampoline up - looks like such fun!!

Also, we love the Bell! Let me know if you want to meet up there sometime!

Unknown said...

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Trampoline parts