Tractor Adventures

We've had our trampoline for a year and a half, and have always talked about burying it to ground level.  This summer we decided to finally do it.

First we had to stop watering our grass.  It had to be completely dry so the tractor wouldn't leave tracks.  I won't lie, it totally stressed me out watching our grass turn to brown over the last week and a half.  I've been told it will come back (I really really hope it does) and that it's easier than having to fill in trench marks left by tractor wheels.

The tractor arrived Monday morning.  The boys were all up early, and even went out on the back patio to wait for the tractor to come.  When it came driving up into our backyard, all the kids gathered around to see.  The tractor driver, Perry, was one of the nicest men I've ever met.  He let the kids ride in the tractor with him, and was so incredibly patient with them the entire time.

Once the outline was marked in paint, it was time to start digging. Even I was watching in fascination as he took the first shovelful.

And here's an awesome part-if you look closely at the picture above, you will see that Aaron is pulling the lever to dump the dirt.  Perry let the boys pull that lever each time he dumped the dirt.  How awesome is that? 

Nate had to take a quick potty break.  As he was getting back in, I snapped this picture.  Do you see that smile on Perry's face?  This is how he was all day.  We've got a lot of kids, and they all wanted turns in the tractor, so there was a lot of stopping to let kids in and out, and through it all Perry was kind and happy and smiling.  I really loved the guy, and so did the kids.

 Time to switch places-Nate's turn to pull the lever to dump the dirt.

 

Josh's and Owen's turn.

Even Savannah wanted to ride in the tractor (and so did her friend Quinn).

Time to take the dirt to the dump truck waiting in the front yard. 

After lots of trips to the front yard with dirt, it was back to more digging.

When they weren't in the tractor, the boys were on the swingset watching and waiting for their next turn.

The digging went on for about 4 hours, which translates to lots of turns for everybody (even the neighbors). 

And the icing on the cake was when Perry offered to let a couple of the kids ride with him in the dump truck to dump the dirt at the gravel pit.  Josh and Nate had been Perry's biggest fans during the day, so I picked them to get to go.  They slid up on the big bench seat in the dump truck, and Perry let them pull the cord to honk the horn, and I knew that this was a day they would all remember for a very long time.  I'm so thankful to this kind man who made this such a wonderful experience for my kids!