The past few weekends we have been using our new firepit in the backyard.

At first we got it to roast marshmallows and do something different with the kids on a Saturday night. What we’ve actually gotten out of it is so much more.

Two weekends ago my Wife and I held a secret meeting away from the ears of our little ones.

“Maybe we should get a fire pit?” My Wife said.

“Hell yeah - that would be awesome and the kids would love it” I replied.

So off to bunnings I went to pick up a fire pit, marshmallows and skewers. I even managed to grab some free firewood from a place just down the road. Score!

That night we all sat around the fire, roasting marshmallows, toasting our tootsies and petting our dogs who were more than happy with their warm spots on our laps.

We sat as a family talking and sharing and it was just brilliant.

This is the stuff of ‘real connections’ and this is what builds memories for me and for my children.

As I sat gazing into the fire and looking up at the stars it struck me how ancient a human tradition sitting around a fire actually is and how natural and right it felt.

Almost nothing could be further from the world of social media.

The thing I loved about it the most is that we were creating, not consuming. (except for the marshmallows!)

Creating memories, music with the guitar, laughter, learning and most of all - we were building and creating our family.