Wednesday, May 10, 2017

An Hour at the Pond

Monday the little girl asked if we could go to the pond.  I wasn't doing anything of importance, and the time spent with her in the previous week hadn't been much.  Her dad was off work due to rain, so my babysitting services weren't needed.  Cliff and I always ask her dad to bring her for a visit on those rainy weeks because we miss her; so we did have her for four hours, on two different days.

The pond isn't a long walk, but she wanted to take a baby doll and a blanket and a carrier and... well, I tried talking her out of that because I knew who would end up carrying all that stuff:  me.  She then suggested I pull her, baby, and all the paraphernalia that goes with motherhood, in the little red wagon.  That makes the short walk a little more difficult for a senior citizen, but I agreed.


So there we were, at the pint-sized pond.


We got as close to the water's edge as my compromised knees allowed, and sat down right at the waters edge.  Cora got handfuls of damp soil, squeezed them into a solid hunk...


and threw them into the water.  We discussed how the smaller hunks of mud said "plink" (spoken in a high-pitched voice) and the larger hunks said "plunk" (in a deep, low voice).


She had to dump a little bit of dirt from both shoes.

We'd been there awhile when a frog began croaking across the small pond, and another to our left answered back.  After their chorus had gone on for awhile, a very small croaking began, almost at our feet!  I shushed the kid and pointed at a spot about four feet in front of us and said, "Listen".  The tiny frog croaked again.  We couldn't see him, but the grasses around him vibrated with each little noise he made.  It got to be too much suspense for a curious little girl, and she reached toward him.  He jumped into the water, a frog less than two inches long, stretched out.  Check out the frogs' croaking on this video.



Finally she was ready to go back to the house.  Her parents' horses decided to check things out as we made our way home.


That's the kid's pony, Dixie, in the background.  The family spent last weekend riding, and this child rode without her mom having a lead rope on Dixie.  For those who might be concerned, she was wearing a riding helmet.  

How can it be possible the infant we began babysitting is almost four years old?

5 comments:

  1. The wonders of sitting at the water's edge are amazing, aren't they? She's a real cutie. I understand how much you love her.

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  2. What a beautiful and fun way to spend a day. The pictures tell it all. A child's delight in the simple things help to make us remember that we too need to take the time and enjoy them too.

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  3. I hope you realize just how much of what she learns with you and Cliff she is going to pass on to her own children some day. Can't you just see her in 20 years' time, taking her own little one to a pond and explaining how the chunks of mud sound? I love to see a child being a child and encouraged to think and explore and experience! I wish all children had those kinds of opportunities.

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  4. How fun to take her to the pond and experience all the pond has to offer :-) You truly are teaching her so many new things too.

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  5. Time spent with cherished little ones. Makes the world right again. :) Love these pictures!! Sincerely~ Andrea

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