And together we learn

Perfect autumn days

75 degrees. Deepest blue sky you've ever seen. Green grass, soft wind, changing leaves, growing kids. What's a mom to do?? Answer: abdicate all housewifely responsibilities and spend the whole day outside. It was one of those good mom/bad mom kind of days.

There's a neighborhood lake where you can rent paddleboats or canoes, a little dock, some fish. It's nice. We spent hours there, soaking up the sun. We laid on our tummies over the dock and looked at the fish. We watched the long-legged water birds stepping daintily among the reeds. We watched in amazement as hundreds of seagulls swirled overhead in an amazing lazy cyclone.

Then after naps we headed to the park, and that's where the bad mom-ness comes into play. I got a pizza and breadsticks and soda and NOT A SINGLE VEGETABLE and we had a picnic. And it gets worse. I kept telling them to go play so I could read my Martha Stewart Living. I DID push them on the swings, but then I sat on the ground and pushed the baby with one hand while focusing on the amazing things that the super bored can do with a pumpkin.

Good mom/Bad mom. My daily struggles.

Then we came home and after I put the baby to bed, we gardened. Most of the day was spent outside, and that's exactly how it should be on picture perfect autumn days. We'll be cooped up so soon with winter, so I want them to dig in as much dirt, ride their bikes as fast as they can, look for as many bugs, and turn as many cartwheels as they can now.

posted by Becca at 9:21 PM