The Swing Set!!

One of Chad's friends was looking to get rid of their swing set.  His kids were getting older and he had other plans for their backyard.  Chad immediately said he would be interested, but we needed to decide where to put this massive swing set.

After some serious discussions, we settled on part of the wooded area, in our backyard, that was directly behind the porch of the house.

In order to put the swing set in that area, we needed to cut down quite a few trees.  So Chad got out his chainsaw and got to work.  He cut down 16 trees, and had to remove all of those stumps.  That was no easy feat, which meant he had to rent a stump grinder, and he got to work.  Thankfully, Grandpa, Mee-maw, Aunt Sarah, and Quinnie were up for the weekend, and Grandpa helped chop up and haul away the trees.  He was a big help.

Chad and his friend delivered the swing set, in parts, on a rainy day.  It was quite muddy and we set all of the pieces in the cleared portion of the woods, and then waited for it to dry out before assembling the parts together.

A few days later, Chad got to work on getting everything set up.  It was quite an undertaking because the pieces were so big and heavy, but he did a great job.

Lauren and Charlie LOVE it!!!  We have spent many afternoons/early evenings out on the playground.  Now, with 100 degree temperatures, we have been staying cool inside, but cannot wait for the weather to cool down so we can go back out again.

Lauren has gotten a lot of practicing in swinging by herself.  She still needs to work on pumping her legs, but she is getting there.  Charlie can't quite swing yet.  We bought two big kid swings instead of a baby swing, and he is not quite ready to sit by himself and hold on.  But he loves to swing on his belly and can get himself going pretty good.  I have a feeling he will be swinging, on his bottom, in no time.  Both kids love climbing up into their "clubhouse", playing on the slide, and trying out the monkey bars.  Lauren is able to swing out to one bar but is working hard to make it all the way across.

Chad and I are excited by the exercise the kids get and enjoy the exhausted kiddos we have at the end of the day.  This swing set was a wonderful idea and I hope we make good use of it for many years to come.