At breakfast yesterday, Brioni asked David to rig something up so she could fly “all around everywhere”. Apparently, she was remembering the ladies who suspended themselves from the drapes of cloth at the Chinese New Year celebrations we participated in this past February.

I was amused at her fanciful notions, but even more delighted when David brought some hardware up from the shed to rig a rope swing and suspension sling in our living room!

David tied wire to some heavy-duty cloth to make the sling, and we persuaded Brioni to lie in it. Then David hoisted her up. Brioni’s bravado quickly melted, and the ride didn’t last long.

But all day, we played with the sling, swinging baby-dolls in it and getting used to the idea. By evening, the girls were ready to give it another try.

Calista, 2yo, July 2010
Later, Calista was willing to give it a go, even before David got home.

Aisha, 5yo, July 2010
Aisha was just strong enough to pull Calista off the ground.

David, July 2010
David is so clever in improvising this flying apparatus! (Here he's holding one of the girls up.)

Aisha, 5yo, + Brioni, 3yo, July 2010
Once she got used to the height, Brioni found it a lot of fun.

Brioni, 3yo, July 2010
David rigged a second rope so Brioni could swing back and forth while she was suspended in the air.

Aisha, 5yo, July 2010
After seeing her sisters in the sling, Aisha finally worked up the courage to have a turn at "flying".

The flying swing wasn’t too hard to set up. All you require are a strong beam, some rope, cloth, and a D-bolt or pulley.

Why don’t you give it a go?