We have been dancing through spring the past couple of weeks. Days of intense Colorado sunshine and delightful toastyness followed by gale-force winds and little frozen raindrops pelting the windows. Green grass sprouting up here and there and little daffodils from my very own garden on the kitchen table ... and frosty windshields and frozen hands wishing for gloves. With each warm day, I'm fooled into thinking that we are finally out of the wintery-ness of March ... and then surprise! we have another chilly day and I'm looking for my warm socks and pulling out the tea kettle again. ...sigh... We'll get there eventually!
In hopes of wooing Lady Spring to make her official (and permanent) appearance, I thought I would share a couple of pictures of Ashley from four springs ago. I remember this day vividly ...
We had finally found ourselves with an authentic spring day and we seized the moment! I remember I was in the backyard weeding the flower bed (which now hosts the daffodils from above) and pulling out all the dead growth from the previous year. The kids (just the three of them at the time) were playing with a few random kitchen items that we kept in a bin by the back door. They had filled several pots with dirt and Ashley had a cupcake pan that she was carefully filling with rocks, dirt and twigs. Then the bigger kids asked for a bucket to get more dirt from the un-grassy area around the shed.
"Uh ... sure," I said, "Just be careful."
I was pulling weeds, the kids were digging in the dirt ... everyone was happy.
Then the kids asked for some water.
"Hmmm ... uhhhh ... okay," I said tentatively, "Just a little."
Famous last words.
You know as well as I do that dirt + water + kids = MESS ... and that is exactly what we got.
A gritty, dirty, slimy, slippery, delightful, wonderful, happy mess!
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| Notice that her socks are soaked ... and black. |
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| That's not her eyebrow ... that's mud. |
I love these snapshots! I love not only that Ashley is having a splendid time with mud literally up to her elbows and caked to her feet ... but that I relaxed enough to celebrate her muddy exploration and capture it.
I am not a mom who easily allows this sort of messiness. I do not do play-doh. I shy away from painting. And I cringe at the words: science experiments. All I typically see in those activities is the clean-up involved at the end of the fun.
Yes ... we can get the play-doh out. ~ "Now I'll have to sweep the floor and wipe down the entire table and seats ... and the kids."
Yes ... we can paint. ~ "Now I'll have to hose down the kitchen and the kids ... how did you get paint in your armpit?"
Yes ... we can make the baking soda & vinegar volcano. ~ "Outside only ... and you'll have to strip down before you go back in."
So ... as you can see, this springtime experience was quite astounding for me!
Something about the magic of their laughter, their squeals of pure delight and their utter joy in squishing that cold, gritty mud between their fingers (and toes) overpowered my desire for them to be clean and unsoiled.
Of course, after all this mucky, grimy fun we had to clean up. But strangely enough, I don't really remember that job. I know that the shirt and pants came clean (Lydia was wearing them just the other day) and I know that Ashley didn't sport that third eyebrow for long. So it must not have been as painful as I feared. The socks, however ... they went straight to the trash!
Here's hoping for more snapshots of my kids getting to be kids ... and not worrying so much about the work. But, I'm going to need your help with this one, God ...
You know how I feel about glitter. :)
I loved playing in mud as a child - I want to join her even now truth be told :)
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