cake, mud and footed pajamas.

watching my youngest live fully into his first full day of summer vacation yesterday made me all sorts of happy.

it began with a little bit of chocolate cake and a whole mound of raspberries.

then digging in the backyard. 

                                   really. digging. 

then turning on the hose to make a pint sized lake and river.  hence mud everywhere: on him, on his brother, on the backyard door now smeared with his sweet muddied handprints. 

after a quick attempt to clean up, he ropes his mom (me) into playing school with him 

(apparently he already misses it).  he has me instruct him that it is time to have art class. the art lesson has to do with drawing an insect with pencil, crayon and marker. this one throws himself into his "school work" and produces a spectacular frame-worthy piece.  

next up, science class:  my little man returns to the mud pit (which I am now afraid to go see) for his "science class experiment."  I watch him for a bit as he takes photos and writes notes on his scientific theories about the project  -at this point I am pretty sure his science experiment must be on 

                                                 water, erosion, 

                                     and most certainly, mudslides.  

finally, covered in glorious mud from head to toe, he slips inside, past me and into the bathroom.  I go in there when I hear the water on. he is already stripped down and in the tub. he has decided it is now time to take a bath, because, you know, that is how you get clean when you are covered entirely in mud. 

                                                                                                  I fear the bathroom may never recover. 

after helping him fill up the tub, I let him play in the water while I do some laundry and clean up the kitchen. when he decides he is finished, he wraps up into a towel and scampers into his bedroom to find some clothes to put on.   I am picking up the living room when he emerges out of his bedroom in cozy flanneled footed pajamas (yes, indeed, the christmas kind), fixes himself a well deserved snack, then asks to play a bit on the iphone. 

all before 

noon.  

a morning well lived. 

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what is putting a smile on your face today? I would love to know! 

 happy begets happy. and, oh boy, does this world forever need all the happy it can get. 

xxoo