falling like blessed rain and the swallows return as the mission bells ring

Ethan and I found ourselves alone without plans on this beautiful, breezy Saturday evening. We also found ourselves without a single thought given to dinner at five minutes until six and so I borrowed a box of Bagel Bites from my mom's refrigerator, steamed up some Brussels sprouts and asked Ethan what he thought about a backyard picnic. Before I could finish the words, he was running towards the back door shouting "oooooh!" and that solidified the closest things we had to plans this evening. A picnic in our backyard on a quiet Saturday night, the only faint hints of noise coming from a neighbor's sprinklers and the barely audible sound of a dog barking in the distance. It was perfect.

The past week has been a blur, Ethan's random virus lending itself nicely to feelings of going totally stir-crazy cooped up indoors. It's simply been good to breathe the fresh air and subsequently hope that after this weekend, life can resume as planned. For days so absolutely filled with rest and recovery, I've found myself without the slightest drop of energy left after Ethan's bedtime approaches. I feel like my growing to-do list seems more daunting each day that goes by I haven't tended to it and then I'm left scrambling through the house declaring that I'm throwing everything out. Or, you know, I would if I had the energy (or time, or patience). Sometimes you need a backyard picnic to restore your sanity a little, to hear your almost two year old grab you by the hand and declare "Mommy Ethan best boy!" (Mommy is Ethan's best boy.) To lay in the itchy grass and laugh, to count bluejays on a neighboring tree. To watch a rapidly growing little boy with a tomato sauce beard run through the grass as the breeze blows his unruly locks around. These are the moments that I long for, live for; the moments I rely on to breathe restored energy into my soul.

On Friday evening, I was counting out quarters that I needed for a fundraiser my sister's dance studio is running. I gave Ethan the task of placing the coins I had counted into a tiny blue bag. Instead, he counted the quarters himself, out loud, numbers one through ten. It was a skill I hadn't realized he possessed, even though we continually count together during our tot school curriculum. I made him do the same for an audience of nonbelievers -- my husband and parents -- when we delivered the coins and then there it was again: "nine! TEN!" It's these little realizations, though they make my heart sing with pride and love in a human being I never knew was remotely possible, that cause me to realize he's growing up. These days are fleeting. The clingy ones, the tired ones, the cuddly ones, the ones with belly laughs and backyard picnics. They're all fleeting and I need to hold onto them until I inevitably can't, until the sun sets and rises and there are new memories to be made.

It's these little realizations that sting at my heart on Sick Day #3 when I watch the blue sky and green grass dance outside the window, a stark contrast to the still, dim confinement of our living room, and wish we were somewhere other than where we are. The truth is that each day will pass, each phase and each moment, regardless of if I beg it to or plead for it to stop. And as my almost two year old whispers an exhausted "love you, mommy" against his pillow, I realize how quickly it all does pass and just how tightly I want to hang onto each second, each memory, each backyard picnic and kiss goodnight, each random virus that holes us up inside while the world spins on around us.

proof is an answered prayer, but ain't it a pity

Two days ago, it was Earth Day and it was a great day. Ethan didn't really want to eat his breakfast -- strange, for him -- but I chalked it up to being excited about our new shift in tot school activities. When he didn't want to eat lunch or dinner and woke up Tuesday in the absolutely most miserable mood ever, I knew it was time to stop chalking it up to teething or general toddler weirdness and brought him into our beloved pediatrician. I was expecting to hear "ear infection" but instead it was a red, swollen throat oozing with pus. Ouch. It wasn't strep, just a pesky virus that was likely all my fault since just a few days prior, I had remarked to a friend how lucky Ethan has been to not have been sick in a few months. The good news is that Ethan really, really likes mashed potatoes, soup and popsicles so this whole thing has gotten to be a lot less agonizing for him. I can slowly see his personality starting to bound back and I'm hoping as the next few days continue to pass, his appetite will return as well.

Can I take a moment to gush how awesome Ethan's pediatrician is? I feel like we hit The Pediatrician Lottery. Even in all his misery, he soaked up some snuggle time with his favorite doctor -- who brought us back to her desk plastered with his photos and artwork, not that he's going to inevitably have an enormous ego or anything -- and select a sticker of his choosing.

Anyway, back to Earth day, because it was a good day. After making our paper plate planet Earth, my dad gave Ethan a tour of the Everglades. We're fortunate to have the Everglades practically in our backyard -- something that's easy to forget on days where it feels like the suburbs are sprawling and infinite around you. It was only fitting to spend Earth Day surrounded by the beauty of the Everglades, soaking in the beauty of nature.

It's hard to believe that Earth Day was only Monday, and that today is only Wednesday, because these past couple of days have felt so long. Today has felt so long. Ethan and I went on six red wagon rides around the block this late morning, trying to forget the fact that it was almost 94 degrees out in an attempt to quench our boredom. I'm anticipating the morning when my little dude's first word upon waking up is "snack?" and he bounds to the kitchen in an attempt to drown himself in blueberries, applesauce and oatmeal pancake. If that day is tomorrow, I won't be sad about it.

toddler art tuesdays

Hooray! It's time for another Toddler Art Tuesdays feature and I am so excited. This week's theme was:

I'm extremely excited because these kinds of art projects, ones that require you to seek out natural materials to make art with, are my favorite. These projects always help teach little ones that there is beauty in just about everything and, well, there's something a little magical about turning spinach into paint. (Spoiler alert!)

Ethan and I had a blast this week making our art projects using natural materials from the Earth (fitting since Earth Day was yesterday!) and I'm equally excited to see what the Twodaloo bunch have come up with as well! Don't forget to pop over to Twodaloo and check out what fun stuff they've gotten up to this week!

The first project was did was making BEACH ART.

At our most recent beach trip, Ethan and I collected some treasures that we spotted at the beach. We collected some sand, some shells, some leaves from the cascading trees that lead you down to the sand and some dry seaweed that had been washed all the way up to the top of the sand. (This was also a fun lesson about what kind of critters live inside living seaweed.)

Ethan discovered that he could make beach art two ways: he could use the items as stamps or paint brushes and he could glue them to paper. So we did both.

The end results were actually really pretty!

Of course, you don't need to live near a beach to make similar art. Something so simple as a walk outside your front door is likely to turn up all sorts of everyday treasures to make art with, from pebbles to interesting leaves.

The next activity we did was definitely hands down Ethan's absolute favorite. We made TIE-DYE T-SHIRTS FROM TURMERIC. We had done tie-dye before in the past using blackberries and this was a fond memory for Ethan. The word "tie-dye" has been (strangely) in his vocabulary ever since. When I first announced this activity, he was super excited to tie-dye again and asked if we could make a shirt for his Aunt Megan, too.

I'll admit that this activity with toddlers is a little chaotic, which explains my lack of photography of the events unfolding (note to self: make your husband snap away next time!). While a big portion of this activity involves the turmeric simmering on a hot stove, there are still several parts that your little one can do to feel helpful. Ethan helped me wring out the shirts in cold water before we got started and helped me select which rubberbands we should use:

From there, he helped me fill a large pot with water using a big measuring cup. We found the turmeric in the spice cabinet and he helped me scoop heaping tablespoons into the water.

The trick is to bring the turmeric water to a boil, turn the heat down to low, throw in your shirts and let them simmer for an hour to an hour and a half. We had plans that afternoon so ours only simmered for about 40 minutes, but they still came out beautifully. Agitating them with a wooden spoon every 15 minutes or so also helps keep the color even.

At this point, you rinse the shirts in cool water until they run clear and hang them to dry. We were dealing with an impatient toddler, so I hung them to dry outside (and forgot about them for hours, so they faded a little more than I would have liked in the hot sun!). Still, Ethan was so excited about this activity!

He couldn't wait to bring the shirts over to Aunt Megan's house for them to model together. (And she even liked her shirt! Impressing a teenager is not an easy feat.)

We finished off the week by making HOMEMADE WATERCOLORS. All of our watercolors came from natural items: spinach, tea, beets and blueberries.

Ethan really enjoyed the prep activity involved in this activity. We filled several pots with just enough water to cover the contents and proceeded to add the produce and tea. I cut open three teabags and let Ethan pour them into the pots for our tea paints.

Once the pots were filled (minus the blueberries, which Ethan happily ate half of as we worked!), I placed them onto the stove and brought them to a boil. Once boiling, I turned the heat to low and let them simmer for another half an hour. I poured them into glasses and let them cool while we ran the rest of the day's errands. Later that afternoon, Ethan got to use his homemade watercolors!

(Can I gush again about how cute it is once kids start naming their art projects?) The end results came out beautifully!

FAVORITE ART WITH NATURAL MATERIALS POSTS:

I thought I'd share some of my favorite natural material art project posts to shed even more insight. These posts are most definitely musts to check out before your next art session with your little ones! (Just click the pictures to be directed to the posts!)

Don't forget to pop on over to Twodaloo and see what beautiful natural materials artwork they've come up with!

So totally gorgeous, right?