A Barn Raising…

Our bird keeping son, Simon, bought a barn.

It came in a kit with everything included –  rather like an IKEA delivery only with more technical instructions –

I couldn’t make head nor tail of the blueprints,

I didn’t need to because I wasn’t the one putting it together.

Hubs and I, looking for any excuse to spend time with our grand-daughter, headed on out to Caddo Mills a few days after delivery and rolled up our sleeves.

My main job was to keep the work zone Sophie-Proof, which involved steering her in the direction of the goats or chickens when things got a little more than a toddler could manage…

Almost a  little more than three strong men could manage judging by the language…

BarnRaise

But they did!

When they weren’t wielding steel girders – heavier than all three of us by-standers – Sophie pattered, bare-foot, across the smooth cement slab picking up anything I’d left on the ground in my haste to make it a safe-ish place…

She found a spanner that was heavy and I watched as she excitedly brought it to me.

My little helper!

BarnSophie

The way she passes things over can be a danger in itself, the casual hand off of a little one who has no idea of timing had my toes cringing inside my Doc Martens!

“Where are your work boots little Soph’s?” I asked as she trotted towards me.

Her little feet wouldn’t have enjoyed a 2.5lb spanner being dropped on them.  I took it from her before she had a chance to lose her grip – a beat too soon – and stashed it off the ground.

I finally cleared the space of everything except a box of industrial nuts and bolts which she sat down to examine, one at a time, before randomly scattering them!

BarnRaise2

The simple pleasures of a one year old.

I learned a lot that barn-raising day;

How to delight in the ordinary,

the fleeting joy of a feather,

a tape measure,

a flower,

a piece of cord,

a French fry,

a creepy crawly,

all picked up and quickly inspected before being discarded – or popped in her mouth!

But most of all I learned that my knees and back aren’t as supple as they were when I was fielding dangerous objects for my own toddler family!

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ElRay

2020-12-11 15:48:14 Reply

Knees may not be as supple but you are more beautiful than ever! LM

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