The Treehouse Project...

Maybe it's my obsession with The Swiss Family Robinson, but I have always loved the idea of a treehouse. I love the idea that it becomes a safe haven and an escape from "the world" - at any age. I also think it would be pretty awesome to take broken pieces of a shipwrecked yacht and make a mansion in the sky complete with a refrigeration system as well as hopping on my ostrich for a quick jaunt around the rain forest, but I digress. 

Treehouses. Yes. I love them. One of my projects on my "if I were a billionaire" list is to create a non profit organization called the "Treehouse Project." It's an after school program for at risk youth - our building would be a "treehouse" and we would provide a consistent safe space for kids. How fun would that be!?

But since I am not a billionaire - I will settle for a smaller version in our backyard. Radley turns 5 (!) next week and Ryan and I thought that was a great age for him to have a treehouse. And so the building began.... 

Uncle Pete ordered the lumber (thanks for that discount!) and the boys started building Saturday afternoon. Radley was P-U-M-P-E-D!

I kept having to come up with distractions for him so they could get the project started. 

And wouldn't you know it, when he was finally "allowed" to go outside to help, he tripped over the electrical cord and his head found our concrete steps. He bounced back pretty quickly though (the boy doesn't know how to not smile for the camera).

Then it was time to work! Pete, Pops and Daddy decided to build a deck around the tree as the foundation and then place a house on top. Day 1 was all about design and foundation.

(I will admit, in my head this seemed like just nailing some boards together and badda bing there you go. I mean the houses on my "Daddy Projects and Honey-Dos" Pinterest board seemed easy enough). 

It's about 4.5 feet off the ground so the kids will also have a shaded and pretty awesome play area underneath. The boys were creating all sorts of ideas to use this space for, so I kept having to redirect their thinking to "one project at a time".

This boy was seriously giddy.

On Sunday he could not WAIT to get out there and help. He grabbed his long pants like Pete and Pops (and Daddy after some convincing), a hat and a "work shirt" and went to town.

I loved watching the men in my life (missed you Jody) teach Radley the value of hard work. It made me miss my PaPaw soooo much. He could do anything with his hands. ANYTHING. He smelled like hard work. His heart was softer than his hands were rough. He grew the most amazing vegetables and built the most useful contraptions out of, well, nothing. Our summers in Baton Rouge were filled with zip lining out of trees, building frames and eating home grown goods. 

I just know that he was smiling down on those boys all weekend, filling the thoughts of Jeremy and Dad and guiding them in this process. He gave them the most gentle breeze and the patience to teach the next little generation the values that he held so dear. 

I know it's cheesy - but I hope this house is more to him than just a play area. I hope it reminds him of how much he is loved and adored. I hope he thinks about the time and effort they put in to this for him. I hope it teaches him the value of sweat. And patience. And giving to others. 

And I hope it makes him smile lots, too.

It was also fun to watch my Dad. I love that he chooses to guide in silence. You can see the wheels turning in his head ready to make a suggestion but he holds back letting Jeremy and Ryan figure it out. (And they may not think that's what he's doing - but I do). He is also eager to learn new things and share new experiences with Radley. 

And bit by bit it started coming together. When all is said and done he will have a treehouse that is bigger than most kids' bedrooms (note: I wasn't thinking as big as the boys). 

It will have windows, a seat, a back entrance and some steps from the tree on the right onto the deck. We will probably add on here and there as he (and the girls) grow.

I know that it is going to bring years of smiles...

that it will be his shelter from his storms...

And that it will always remind me just how loved my sweet little boy is. 

And maybe, just maybe... we can add a refrigerator in there, too.

:)