No Boundaries

We live in the city...or at least on the edge of the city, pressed happily against the vast ocean. Yet, when we face the ocean the concrete jungle still lay behind us, waiting to swallow us up once again and in the city we are always on our guard because, really, that's just the way it is.

But in South Dakota, there was no endless sea of concrete, no fences, no boundaries. For days Harrison went outside and played in the yard, or out in the hills in a sea of nature. And he was content.

This day was spent planting wheat...

First you have to pick it.

Then you dig a hole for the "seeds".

Then comes the water...

And mark the spot because, really, the hard ground looks the same everywhere!

Then come out the next morning to see if anything has sprung forth!

Better yet, chase grasshoppers, just like mommy used to do as a child...until they spit on her.

And what ever you do, don't think about traffic and smog, crowds, TV and video games, chain-link fences and BOUNDARIES.

Because sometimes a child just needs to be... a child.




Hosted by Lisa and Cecily

SOOC | Encouraging Creative Play

When I grew out of my toys my mom put many of them into storage for the day when I would have my own children. Let me tell you, 30 years takes a toll on things when they get packed, unpacked, moved from here to there and ultimately, left in the elements. Not everything made it and the most damage/loss took place after my mom passed away some 16 years ago.

Finally, those toys {albeit only a handful now} are in our hands, being played with - just as my mom envisioned so many years earlier.

Unfortunately, I tossed a Little People house, schoolhouse and, sadly, a castle  because of the damage from not being stored properly(the later I probably could/should have saved; but the  pressure of limited time pushed me to toss it); but what he doesn't know doesn't bother him, right? (The castle still bothers me...)

 

 

But what is so wonderful about having these toys here in our home is that he has spent hours playing with them, making up little lives and conversations that are NOT birthed from any movie, TV, Lego or video game characters.

He is playing with these timeless toys the way toys were meant to be played with...

  By using his imagination.

It's quite an imagination.

Straight out of the Camera

SOOC - Beautiful Days

He's five years old. Five years going on 14. I know, I said that when he was four.

But it's true.

And it's exhausting work - molding a boy who will some day become a man.

So today was just another fun day out. Off to the Museum of Natural History to see the butterflies. And there's nothing more like music to a mom's ears then when the words muttered from a child's mouth are, "I love the Museum!"

He also dug for fossils...

Pet a tortoise.

And ran into (or from) a baby T-Rex that got loose in one of the exhibit halls!

Best of all, we got into the car to head home, and I got to hear three more unprovoked words that swelled my heart with joy, "I had fun."


I did too sweet boy, I did too.

SOOC Saturday

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Easter... {SOOC Saturday}

Today was the annual Easter Egg Hunt that our church hosts at a local park.

I'd say Easter's off to a good start.

Happy Easter everyone!

Legos Have Taken Over My Brain!

Harrison inherited a box load of legos - literally - from Big Brother a few months ago. I finally bought a container and organized them, sort of.

Suddenly he was busy for hours! Who knew it only took a box of random Legos to occupy that constantly ticking mind of his (well this and the unceasingly building with blocks). Heck, I would have pulled them out earlier!

After playing with the endless stream of Legos, I took a look at all the bits and pieces daily scattered acreoss the floor and decided it was time to put some of the sets together. I waded through the pile of  Lego booklets only to discover the only actually instruction books still left were for the sets that were obviously missing the most pieces, everything else was advertising. Bummer.


So I did the next best thing...

I went online! [I ♥ the internet!]

After looking at pictures of completed sets in the little "envy" booklets enclosed with every Lego set, Harrison and I were able to determine the set number. (I determined the number, he happily yelled, "That's the one!!" with each discovery.)

Minimal surfing produced instructions and part lists for several sets, so we I built this:

And this...

...and even this.

I can honestly say that I now have a personal relationship with Legos; I never dreamt that I would get to know Lego pieces so well.

Apparently, this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship...


Check out Slurping Life for more pictures - Straight Out Of the Camera.

SOOC Saturday - "It won't let go!"

As I sat at my desk this morning I hear disgruntled moaning and grunting from beyond the sofa. "Harrison, what is it?"

"AAUGH! I've got something stuck on my bottom!!"

"Well come over here let me help you get it off."

"I can't! It' won't let go of me!"

What??

I go over to help him get something off his bottom that wasn't the sticker I had envisioned.

Oh, no...

I scooped him up and requested assistance from daddy - it even made a suction cup sound coming off! Am I living in a live-action cartoon?

Then he went and did it again.

"Mommy, take a picture of me!"

Sigh.




Check out more images Straight Out Of the Camera.

Best Shot Monday - Straight Out of the Camera

This picture popped up in my computer slide show this weekend. I opened it and kept it up all weeken've left it there are look at it.

It amazes me. So I went to he folder where this picture resides. I had forgotten about these pictures.

It was right after his first haircut. But the little curls grew back one more time.

He was 15 months when we moved into this house. Still so tiny then...

How did he go from this...



To this?
Oh, I just love this boy with every part of my being. He is amazing. Spirited. Bright. Outspoken. Independent. Loving. Smart. Beautiful. Gentle. Stubborn. Talkative. Contemplative. Funny. Loud. Full of kisses. Comic. Fierce. Needing. Respectful. Polite. Brave. Energetic. Complex. He helped me rediscover myself.

And in less than four short months he is going to be four years old.


Did I blink?








Tracey has more Best Shots - check them out.


And for more Straight out of the Camera, go say hello to Melody.

SOOC Saturday - Jumping on the Bed

I admit, I am a believer of jumping on the bed. Maybe much to the chagrin of my friends with children Harrison's age who come over to visit. I allow him to jump on his bed and on my bed. (but not on beds at other people's houses and he understands the rule. Although he tries to break that rule sometimes...)

I jumped on the bed; in fact I jumped on the bed well into my 20's. If the bed can hold up and the ceiling is high enough - I will jump. It gives me a feeling of freedom, it connects me to that inner child buried deep under all the adult responsibilities and concerns.

For Harrison, it's a rite of passage, as he transitions from infant/toddlerhood into childhood, he experiences the joys and freedom of jumping on the bed. I love the laughter and giggles as he flies up and down, dives into pillows and rolls in the mound of blankets and comforter. It's one of those moment of Pure Joy.

Pure Joy that makes childhood what it is - "an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again.”

SOOC Saturday is hosted Melody at Slurping Live.