The Day Frankie and I Wrote a Story

Apparently my last blog post was in December.

Oops.

Life happened. Coaching happened. School happened. Grandparenting happened.

Today, Frankie and I were sitting on the floor playing with a wooden truck puzzle. Each puzzle piece was a different construction vehicle. As he handed me each truck, we talked about what it was called and what it did. A dump truck. A cement mixer. A tanker truck. An excavator. A bulldozer.

As we talked about each vehicle and its job, we started imagining them all working together on the same construction site. Before long, we had a title for our story:

Beep Beep, We Have a Job to Do!

The truck puzzle that started it all.

As I sat there making truck noises and helping build a make-believe playground, I found myself thinking, this is exactly why I care about living a healthy lifestyle.

Not for a number on the scale.

Not for a clothing size.

Not even for a fitness milestone.

I care about my health because I want the energy and mobility to say yes when Frankie asks me to sit on the floor and play. I want to be able to crawl around, tell stories, build towers, and fully enjoy these ordinary moments that become some of life's sweetest memories.

So here's the story we wrote and acted out together.

Beep Beep, We Have a Job to Do!

One morning, the construction crew got a big job. They were going to build a brand new playground!

First, the bulldozer arrived.

"Beep beep! Out of the way!" said the bulldozer.

He pushed away rocks, sticks, and bumps until the ground was nice and flat.

Next came the excavator.

"Scoop! Scoop! Scoop!" said the excavator.

He dug a big hole where the playground would go and piled up lots of dirt.

Then the dump truck rolled in.

"Load me up!" said the dump truck.

The excavator filled the dump truck with dirt, and away it drove to take the dirt to another part of town.

Soon the tanker truck arrived carrying water.

"I brought water!" it said.

The workers used the water to help make concrete and keep the dusty dirt from blowing around.

Then the cement mixer truck came spinning into the construction site.

Round and round went the drum.

"I've got fresh concrete!" said the mixer.

The workers poured the concrete into the hole to make a strong foundation.

Just when everyone thought the job was done, another dump truck arrived carrying gravel.

The gravel was spread around the playground so children would have a safe place to play.

The bulldozer pushed it smooth.

The excavator helped place the last big rocks.

The tanker truck cleaned things up.

And the cement mixer truck headed off to help build another playground.

A few weeks later, children were laughing and playing on swings and slides.

The construction crew smiled.

"We did it!" they said.

And all the trucks honked their horns! Beep, beep, honk, honk!

BEEP! BEEP! HOORAY!

Maybe no one else will remember this little story. But I have a feeling Frankie and I will. And that's a pretty good way to spend a morning.