Lots of *poke*

Lucas has been working, arranging, tweaking, and carefully building a wood pile for his fire for weeks now.

It started when we had a fire one Saturday evening. Lucas stood back a ways, taking in the heat and the crackling and the awe of it all.

That next week he was a boy on a mission. He asked Justin for a good spot to start a wood pile. Then he got to work gathering sticks, rocks and leaves (these were the ingredients he determined would be best for his fire).

Lucas' fire--the beginning stages.

To build a good fire, each stick must be carefully placed by an expert fire-builder.

Day after day, when we went outside, Lucas set out around the yard gathering sticks. His wood pile slowly grew and became quite impressive. So impressive, in fact, that Justin decided it needed to be relocated to the back yard.

He stepped up his game then, and enlisted help from our Radio Flyer wagon. He would load up his wagon full of rocks and sticks and pull it around the house to his fire. Then he would use a shovel to unload it all.

One Monday while we were home together, Lucas came in from being outside with a request. "Mommy, can you find me a long thing and a sharp thing? I'm going to cut some limbs."

Of course, I couldn't give him what he wanted, but he didn't let it go. All day he reminded me that I needed to find him that long and sharp thing. Then, as soon as the boys got home from school, he decided I wasn't going to pull through so he enlisted their help.

"Hey boys, do you know where a long thing, and a sharp thing is? I need it to cut those limbs outside."

I've never seen such a hard working three year old.

All that work finally paid off yesterday. After a day of Christmas parties, food and fun, the boys and I got home around 4 and Justin let Lucas know today was the day he could light his fire.

Christmas came early for a little Voigt boy.

He was so incredibly proud of his fire. I sat in a chair near it and he stood at a distance, admiring the flames and how big it was. Every now and then he'd comment, "Look at that *poke*" or "That's a good fire".