Slope

I've lost track of how many times I've mentioned the "mound" in our garden in this blog, so I reckon it probably deserves to have a little post of its very own! Apart from anything else it's dead easy for me to find some pics to illustrate why it has been so successful, because it has been constantly in use since I persuaded Martin to create it five years ago.

Where did this hill come from?!

I know. It looks a bit nuts. It did take quite a lot of persuading to get Martin to build it for me! The trouble was, our garden was pretty much flat which was a bit limiting when your toddler wanted to climb or roll or hide. So when he asked me what he should do with a big heap of rubble and topsoil that he'd created from another building project I knew exactly what I wanted. He built a little wall with some stone we had in a shed, filled it with his building heap so that it formed a smooth slope, then finished it off with turf and grass seed.

From those very first days where the challenge was simply to crawl to the top or toddle down without falling over, and when getting yourself the right way round to roll down it took a great deal of concentration, it has been enjoyed in all seasons and in many, many different ways:

First snow-boarding lesson!

Sledge launch-ramp

Ready to roll.

If we can get them to the top we'll whizz down!

Home-made water slide.

Glider launching.

Start point for a million races.

Enough speed for bike tricks.

Teaching the runner duck to fly.

Jump point.

I can't find any pics of the kids hiding behind it, or rolling cars down a bit of gutter that they laid down it, or of me using it as a grandstand while I spectate on their football matches, but I hope you get the idea. Having a slope to play with gives lots of fun ways to practice a whole range of gross motor skills, and once they've mastered a little slope, they're well on the way to tackling something with a better view!

"We can see the whole world from up here!"

Snowdon? No problem!

I've linked it before, but here's a funny clip of Danny learning to roll down the slope when he was about 7 months old:

                                     

ps Just found this pic that Danny took of the drainpipe/slope combo that they drove cars down, apologies for the bad legs!

pps. Another update! Our mound has now been turned into a skate ramp- changing times! It is not beautiful, but it continues to be lots of fun!