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Tuesday, August 02, 2011

Wordful Wednesday: A Trampoline?

It wasn't until I had kids, that a whole new world of worry and decisions opened up to me.
I remember when Eldest was born, the nurse came in and asked if she was going to use a soother.
I hadn't realized that parents actually decided this?

Didn't babies come with soothers attached to their onesies?
And once I quickly checked my two dozen"how to parent" reference books on hand;
I was even more confused.
I hadn't realized there were such strong opinions on the issue.
My sisters and I had both used soothers?
Was it wrong to use a soother?

It was the first of many many decisions that caught me off guard.
It took a few days before we said yes she will have a suckie.
By the time Youngest was on the scene?
I had fourteen packed in my overnight case to the hospital.
I hadn't realized, when we finally decided yes, how happy I would be with our decision.

This same crisis seems to happen over and over.
It doesn't change, no matter how long you've been parenting.
I always thought that after you had had a few years under your belt, the decisions would flow from some special fountain parents drank from; that would make everything crystal clear.
That hasn't been the case.
Over the years, I have laid awake at night wondering if The Agronomist and I were making good choices.
One such decision, was one I felt very strongly about.
We would never have a trampoline.
When we first started a family a close friend was a doctor.
He hated trampolines and quoted the statistics of broken bones and stories about trampoline injuries at the ER.
That was all it took.
I knew we were making the right decision.

As the girl's got older however,
it seemed every single family we knew had one.

They loved jumping on them.
They asked us pleeeease if we could get one.
It was the soother decision all over again.

Finally after a full year of pretty pleases,  against my better judgement;
we bought a trampoline.
Unlike many backyard's we have strict rules.
Some days they are more enforced than others.

Unlike the soother,
instead of a few days, it took a few years for us to say yes to the trampoline.

And like the soother,
it has been one of the best purchases we have ever made.
The girl's love their trampoline.
It is used several times a day during the summer, by all of them.

We are so happy we "jumped" onto the trampoline bandwagon.
During this unseasonably cool summer it has been a godsend,
each and every week.

Is there something you've changed your mind about?
And have been happy you did?

Please.... no trampoline horror stories.  
I don't think I can single handedly pull that sucker out of the back yard : )

xoxo,

PS These photos were all taken by the girl's of each other. I loved each and every one.
All 400 of them : )

For the first time, I will be linking up with
Life Made Lovely Monday (even thought it's Tuesday : )
and 52 weeks Of Happiness and as usual I will be linking up with Sweet Shot Tuesday
PhotobucketSweet Shot Day

Along with Wordful Wednesday with Project Alicia and Live and Love Outloud!
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30 comments:

  1. We were given a trampoline and love it. My older two would have loved having one, but we wouldn't get one then. I understand where you're coming from. (Soothers? We call them pacis or pacifiers around here.)

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  2. Yep, yep, yep...raising kids is such a complicated business! lol

    And your girls got some great shots...the light is gorgeous!

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  3. Great trampoline pictures, taken by the girls!

    In much the same way, I changed my mind about allowing my boys to play varsity football. To be honest, every game made me nervous, but they loved it so much that I couldn't stand in the way.

    Sometimes, within reason, you've just got to let them take their chances and live the lives that matter to them.

    (Ain't always easy, though!)

    ;)

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  4. No trampoline over here! WE have been begged but we have avoided it so far. We do have skateboards here though and they are just as popular for ER visits so I am told!
    Also...we thought we'd never have a dog...we gave in...not so sure still if we were right to do that.

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  5. We have one. Mostly because we moved into a house that had one already built into the ground. And it was $1. But we would have bought one anyway. My kids jump on it everyday...even in the winter. One of the best $1 spent.

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  6. Sweet post!! We have been contemplating the trampoline for a while now...! Visiting from Sweet Shot Tuesday :)

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  7. What lovely pictures! And the trampoline has been a very HOT topic of discussion in our house... with me being the dissenting vote. And yes we also have a very good friend who is a doctor, a pediatrician to be exact. I am starting to cave but they don't know that, ha ha! So what are the strict rules you have in place? I would love to know as it will help the decision making process a bit easier... :)

    (this summer we have been having unseasonably hot and humid temperatures so our pool has been used extensively!)

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  8. We used to have one, but when we moved we left it. The kids used it more than the pool! Turn the hose one when it's hot....it's a blast!

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  9. How fun! I don't think my kids even know what a trampoline is...yet. But I want to know where I can move to get away from this Kansas heat that makes me want to cry we're at 110 right now... I'm jealous of your cool summer!

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  10. That looks so fun! Don't you just love when you make those great decisions? As a mom, not all the decisions we make are great but when those good ones come along, it's like a little slice of heaven! Love the pictures!

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  11. I loved these pictures! Childhood joys often come with the pricetag of worry for the parents!

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  12. You got some fab action shots. Too bad our motion theme is over for the Crazy Days of Summer. lol.

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  13. Found you at Leigh Vs Laundry and came right over. Loved your thought provoking post! We never had a trampoline but I know families who have large tramps in the backyard. Most have strict rules though for safety!
    BTW, loved the photos by the gals!

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  14. This is the only absolute truth in parenting: wondering if we make the right decisions. I always wonder if I am not messing them up, thank god by the time my third was here I learned that sometimes you have to trust yourself.
    Your pictures are gorgeous!

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  15. these are the best action shots ever! fantastic job!

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  16. Their pictures are amazing! I don't have any trampoline horror stories for you, but if you'd like to trade some cooler weather for unearthly hot, I'd be happy to do so!

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  17. I love the wild hair in the third photo! Great action shots all of em.

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  18. Lovely trampoline shots.. my boys will certainly love jumping on it if we had one.

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  19. Lovely photos. The hardest thing is letting go.

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  20. I'm 54.....my children are grown up....over the years, I've changed my mind about nearly everything!!!

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  21. Great photos. We did not allow a trampoline for our children but when they grew up they bought one
    and put it in my back yard. Now their children(my grandchildren) use it all the time. Life is forever changing and we change with it!
    New follower from wordless Wednesday. Hope you follow back.

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  22. I fought the soother for a few months and than my husband insisted we try it. JDaniel loved it and stopped screaming.

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  23. Love those action shots.They are terrific! :)

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  24. We wrestled with the exact same dilemma -then finally caved around 10 years ago. The tramp was used and used and even made the move to our new place with us, ready for any little visitors to jump on it.

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  25. high five to the girls for their photographs - your words so eloquently summarized the process of parenting, the evolution that we take as children grow and we add more to the bunch :)

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  26. Those tough parenting decisions never end, do they? Love these shots! I imagine weeding through 400 of them was quite difficult.

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  27. Many years ago, my husband - Mr Safety - said we probably shouldn't get a trampoline. Well... the numerous Canadian Tire points that had built up on our card just begged to be used one week while he was on a business trip... so off I went to buy my busy three-some a trampoline. I definitely don't support rebelling against our well-meaning husbands, but sometimes a mom just has to keep those little ones busy and tired!
    By the way... the surprised husband that found a trampoline set up in his backyard after returning from a business trip became one of the biggest cheerleaders for trampoline parties!
    Mom knew best....
    welcome to the wild world of bouncing!
    joanne

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  28. Such great pictures. I love the softness and the action mixed together!

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  29. I love pictures.

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  30. What trampoline do you have?

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