Life's a beach

I'm not sure if this is a commentary about courage or naivete. But I find it interesting that our overly cautious 4-year-old insisted on wearing a life jacket before dipping his toes in Cloquet's newly opened "Beach," while his 2-year-old sister gamely slid down the slide into the cold water over and over and over and over.

I lost count of how many times I waded into the chilly water to catch her as she came shooting down the slide. The water was thigh deep on me, which means she'd go under water if I didn't grab her right before the big splash. Eventually I recruited Jeff to replace me at the bottom of the slide.

It was when I resumed my post as toddler catcher a few minutes after this picture was taken that Sydney received a chilly reminder of her own limitations. She positioned herself at the top of the slide before I made it to my spot at the bottom. Despite my warnings to "Wait, Wait! Wait!" she started the slippery descent. With a dive, I grabbed her arm... but not before she went completely under water.

She cried a bit as I pulled her out. Clearly she had never considered that possible consequence. I assured Sydney she was fine and reminded her why she needed to listen when Mommy says wait.

Sydney once again climbed the steps to the top of the slide. And that's when she stopped. One look at her face and I could tell she was waging an inner battle of nerves. I assured her I was ready and would catch her. I told her this was an example of getting back on the horse, an analogy she of course didn't understand.

Finally she let herself go and came swooshing down the slide. I caught her just as I had every other time except one and carried her to the edge so that she could do it again. I was proud of her willingness to continue. And that's when she chose to replace me as her official catcher, calling out, "Daddy, come!"

In other words, Sydney didn't interpret this as a lesson in her own limitations. To her, it was an example of Mommy's limitations.