Slide stopping

The girls and I headed to the park after dinner to enjoy the last bit of sunshine before bedtime. The air was cool and crisp but just warm enough that we didn't feel chilly. Miriam watched intently as Rachel climbed up the tube-slide—she wasn't quite sure how to manage it and kept sliding down after making it up half-way.

Diana posed a question on Facebook today—whether or not it bothered people when children climbed up slides instead of merely going down. It bothers some people; it doesn't bother others. I'm in the non-bothered camp. This playground would be a most annoying for those trying to teach their children not to climb up slides because in order to get to the actual slide you have to climb up this steep yellow tube that Miriam believes should be fully classified as a slide. It's just that steep.

Rachel can barrel up it, no problem. 

Miriam can only make it up about 3/4 of the way before she slides back down, even when she holds onto the peep holes.

I climbed up to the top so that I could give her a hand for the last little bit.

I love the look on Miriam's worried little face in this picture—"She's right behind me, isn't she?"

Rachel tends to get rambunctious upon occasion. Lately we've been having more rambunctiousness than not. It makes Miriam nervous.

Miriam has discovered how to go down slides by herself—without flying off the end. That is to say, she can stop herself at the bottom now. She's still a little short for this slide and has to turn around and climb down backwards but at least I don't have to sit at the top and wait for her to climb up and then hurry and jump down and run around to the slide so I can catch her anymore. Now I just sit at the top to help her up.

When I praised Miriam for stopping herself before I could even catch her, Rachel had to show me that she could stop herself at any point while going down the slide. 

"Look, Mom! I stopped!"

"Look, Mom! I stopped again!"

"I can stop more times! Wanna see?"

I'm not sure it's possible for Rachel to feel validated enough. But she is very good at stopping on the slide. I'm not sure if she noticed that I noticed how good she was at this today because she was so busy trying to get me to notice her that she seemed to fail to note my notice.

So, my dear future Rachel, when you read this, please tell past Rachel that I notice her and I think she's simply amazing at stopping herself on the slide (among other things).