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Play structure

Michael has finally been able to set up the play structure he built. It consists (so far) of a platform about 4 feet off the ground, a black board underneath in the back, and a slide. Michael did a great job of over-engineering, thus making it very very sturdy and suitable for rough play. It is also beautiful, with rounded edges on all the 2 by 4s. It is painted dark green (like a forest, says Eleanor) and varnished, so it is nice to touch.

It also turned out much larger than we expected. You would think that a math and CS geek together could figure out how much space it would take up in the room, but apparently not---you have to walk around the slide to get into the main part of the room. It does fit in perfectly with our haphazard decorating style.

The slide is very fast. Michael ended up varnishing the slide surface, and since it is fairly steep, you just zoom down. I think that Amanda might be slightly afraid of it, we'll have to work on that. Eleanor likes lying down on her tummy at the bottom and pulling herself up using only her arms---she sure is strong!

Right now there is no ladder going up to it. This is not a big problem, since the structure is right next to the stairs. To get onto it you just climb over the railing to the platform, or alternatively, climb up the outside of the stairs (between the railing and the slide). (You could climb up the slide, but it is very slippery.)

There is one other slight problem with it, and that is that there are no railings. Thus there is a regulation that children are only allowed on the structure when being directly supervised by an adult. Fortunately Eleanor is tall enough and sensible enough to not hurt herself too badly, and Amanda is timid enough to play quietly away from the 4 foot drop, and Luke can't get up either the stairs or the slide (yet). However, we'll have to get the railings built before we invite friends over to play. After that maybe we'll have a party!

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