Breaking Ground: The Sandbox Project

My boy is a digger.  To accommodate this hobby (and save my flower beds) I decided to dig out a little corner by the patio and fill it with sand.  There's a spot where a little right angle is already built into the side of the patio and walled in by the garage on the other side, leaving me with only one side to box in.  This will be the site of Sam's new sandbox.

Turns out I'm kind of a digger too.  I loved the physical exertion and the satisfaction of watching the pile of dirt grow in proportion to the depth of the hole I was digging.  Sam's rapt attention and exclamations of "Wow!" every time I emptied a shovelful served to make it an all around satisfying endeavor.

Though the eventual plan is to fill the hole with sand and put a nice cover over it, I'm pretty sure Sam would be equally happy if I just left the hole and piles of dirt as they are.  What is it about rooting around in the soil, working up a bit of a sweat and creating something that is just so satisfying?  I'm happy to see that our little boy seems to be equally enthralled with the process.