Last week, the kids and I headed to the new E. Carroll Joyner Park located in Northern Wake County to enjoy the early fall weather. We explored the trails, swung on the bench swings and peeked in the historic cabins. Laurel and Trevor were so delighted with the many fun things to do that they didn't even notice that there wasn't a playground and I was impressed with the clean restrooms. As we were walking to the butterfly garden, my kids spotted two sprinklers and immediately starting heading straight for the water.

I opened my mouth to tell them to stay out of the sprinklers because they would get soaking wet .Then they would be cold. One of them (probably my son) could slip and fall on the concrete. Oh, and I would probably get dirty glances from other parents whose kids wanted to play in the sprinklers.

I saw the excitement in their eyes as they looked at me in hopeful anticipation and stopped myself. We were heading straight home after the park and I had towels in the car to dry them off. And this was probably the last time for many months that it would be warm enough to play in the sprinkler. I reminded myself that being able to run through the sprinkler in your clothes on a September day is one of the perks of being a child. There were so many times I had to be the one to spoil their fun, for safety reasons, practical reasons and sometimes just convenience. Was there really a good reason to say no right now?

I took a deep breath and told them that they could play in the sprinkler as long as they promised not to complain about being wet afterwards. Both kids nodded in agreement as they quickly kicked off their Crocs and ran towards the sprinkler. My son’s mission was to get as wet as humanly possible and he succeeded with great gusto. My daughter spent the next 20 minutes creating graceful dances through the water.

From my perch in the grass, I watched the pure joy on their faces and as they ran through the water. I thought about how as adults we spend the rest of our life looking for that carefree feeling again that kids manage to find on a daily basis.

My son didn’t skin his knee. The people passing by only smiled at me and the kids. And my kids stayed true to their promise of not complaining about being wet. As we headed to the car, both kids had a huge smile on their face as they talked in detail about playing in the water. My son turned to me and thanked me for letting them play in the water. I smiled and reminded myself to try to say yes more often.

Jennifer appears Mondays on TriangleMom2Mom.