Day to Day.

A big mess of day to day photos. This is truly what our days look like right now. I can't help but feel so happy and proud as I sort through the pictures. Our birds are so HAPPY. I believe this is what childhood should look like. Especially in the summer. Days filled with play outside. At the park, in the fields, gardening, running, climbing...Play play play. Time spent with friends, almost siblings. We are a family.

The birds play so many games. Games with names such as "fishing poles and babies", "hot tub", and "runaway cookie". These are just a few of the game titles I have heard, and I certainly don't understand the intricate rules, but sometimes can catch the gist of it. I know in "fishing poles and babies" that the kids spend a lot of time talking in baby voices. I know in "runaway cookie" that the cookie is baked, and then escapes from the oven, again and again and again. The rules and games and characters change and morph with various days, age groups, environments, and moods. Some days we orchestrate games, like "duck, duck, grey duck" , or "follow the leader", or "wolves and bunny". Some days we have extra structure and rules and I have to be strict, like on field trips and bus rides. But some days, some days we run free.

We are Wild. Loud. Messy. Dirty. Laughing. Yelling. Running. Jumping. Falling. Hiding. Chasing. PLAYING. Breakfast in the yard. Lunch on the porch. Sunscreen. Scraped knees. Bug bites. The smells of summer. Grass. Thunderstorms. Dirt. Mud. Flowers. Sweat. Does anything smell better than a child all sweaty and sunscreen-y and dirty after a day outside? There is something sweet and very specifically summer about that smell. I love rubbing their backs as they fall asleep at nap. Deliciously tired after a busy morning. The sounds through an open window. Bees. Lawnmowers. Kids. Giggles. Cries. The tastes. Honeysuckles. Chives. Basil. Dill. Berries. Beans. Corn. Cucumbers. Kale. Tomatoes. Lemonade. Water. Anything fresh from the garden.

We limit the rules here as much as we can. We encourage their freedom. We try to let them work it out on their own. Solve their problems. Use their words. Move their bodies. Negotiations and compromises. We let them BE and create and experience. Childhood is precious. I really believe that. It will be gone in a blink, and once it's gone, you can't get it back.

Honestly, there are moments where I am exhausted to the point of tears. And times when my patience is tried to the end and I might snap. But in the next instant a child can have me busting out in genuine laughter. Heart overwhelmingly full with love and gratitude. Grateful that we get to share these summer days and cherished moments. Thankful for our blessings and good good life. We hope this is a time that our birds will remember. Happy and peaceful. The joy of being a child. And,eventually, a joy they will pass on.