Favorite Invention Friday!!!

I always loved that precious week or two in gym class, during the elementary school years, where they would bring out the trampoline. Remember having to stand around the outside while someone was jumping off of it...for their safety...in case they flew off? That part always scared me...what was I going to do if they came flying off in my direction? The only way that I would have somehow caught them or cushioned their landing would be if I wasn't looking and didn't see 'em coming. But I loved it when it was my turn. And I would have never dreamed that we would have our own someday.

It is a special day when the trampoline comes out of storage and is set up. As you can see in the picture, the kids can't even wait for the sides to be put up...or for warmer weather. And once it's up...it will be visited regularly...sometimes with a sprinkler underneath it when it finally does warm up. And the kids have a special memory of their dad halting dinner during a pretty good downpour outside, so that they could all go jump in the rain. It's a sad day when it is put back into storage, because that means summer has departed and winter weather is on the way.

Now I know that there have been many a child injured on trampolines. A co-honoree with the trampoline, has to be the tall side wall-thingies. I could never find enough third graders in the neighborhood to stand around it any time my kids wanted to jump. And we already know that I wouldn't have been very useful. Thankfully, we have been able to avoid anything major...just my husband being a bit sore after having overdone it when bouncing with the kids.