Modern Mom: Wiggly Squiggly Squirmy Wormies

Five years later we’ve finally undertaken the landscaping project we were going to do as soon as we moved into our house. And truth be told, I’m glad we waited. Because though I’m nearly giddy about the new flowering bushes and the trees we planted, there is no way I would have been able to muster up an iota of excitement about the dump truck and bobcats that have been at our house for the last week. My kids, however, are in 7th heaven. I finally realize that they don’t merely point and exclaim, “truck,” every time we pass one simply because they know the word. They actually find them quite thrilling. Having them on our own front lawn? A fantasy come true.

And that’s not the half of it. Holding the worms and studying the ant colonies that have been unearthed during this project is one hundred times better than watching Animal Planet. Just because I get the willies when they excitedly show me their “wormies,” doesn’t mean I’m not thrilled that they’re finding the natural world exciting. My 6-year-old thinks he’s part of the work crew; he grabs his shovel every time the trucks pull up. Who knows, maybe if things work out he can have an internship next year instead of going to day camp. As for my little “Growing Scientists,” they now have their very own laboratory in their front yard. And in the minds of a 1, 3, and 6, year old, what could be more fun than that.