I don't really have the time to write the story of "real life with boys" this evening, but the title seems like a good one to describe this day. Nathan was home from school, and so the day started with a bowl of cereal in our pj's (except for Mark, who had quickly gotten dressed and was all set for the day.)
Pretty soon after breakfast the boys asked if they could go outside to play. It was mild, and I had no other specific plans for the morning, so I agreed. Only thing was, they didn't want to go alone - they wanted me to come with them. So, as soon as I tossed a load of laundry in the washer, and cleared dishes from the table, I brought out a cup of coffee and a Bible and sat on the deck in my bathrobe to watch them play.
No sooner had I sat down, but Nathan handed me a walkie-talkie and wanted to talk with me while he roamed the yard. Mark wanted to hunt for hidden army men (that story comes later). It became apparent that they were competing for my attention, so I suggested we take a bike ride.
They were really eager to do this - Mark even fastened his own helmet all by himself. We set off down the street to the cul-de-sac to ride some loops with our friend who lives at the end. When this adventure was complete, we played "red light, green light" on the ride back to our house. The kids asked to play outside some more, and I agreed. We ate cheese and crackers in the tent, and then kicked the soccer ball around for a long time.
A bit later, it was time for lunch - leftover hot dogs, sliced, with leftover mac and cheese. Oh, they ate it up and asked for seconds on the macaroni! For dessert, I drove them over to Quick Trip to use their birthday gift cards from their Aunt Kate and Uncle Dub. We each ate a HUGE soft-serve ice cream cone outside. The weather was mild, but still a little bit cool - and by the end of the ice cream they were both shivering. So, we warmed up by washing our hands in warm water in the QT bathroom, and were then on our way.
Back at home, it was time for "quiet time,' after which Nathan played some songs from his summer VBS cd for us, and we all read Mark's new book together. It wasn't long before they asked if we could play outside AGAIN, and again I said yes. This time, we played a game we have called "hide the camping men," which involves the boys hiding a dozen plastic army men (green and gray) around the yard for me to find.
We played probably half a dozen rounds, before having to halt our search efforts for the evening. We had to leave a couple of guys MIA but hope they have good enough survival skills to make it through the night. There is a makeshift tarp-tent out there leftover from this weekend's birthday party if the find their way over to it for shelter. Nathan asked Greg to "please leave that tent set up a while longer, because we really love playing in it!"
Over a dinner of leftover poppyseed chicken and rice with corn on the side, Nathan proclaimed that he could eat every bite because he loved it all. We polished off the meal with some birthday cake from last weekend...we have had entirely too many sweets in this house...after that, baths and a reading from Prince Caspian of C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia.
It was a delightful day. I still have laundry to fold, and honestly I never got around to taking a shower, but I was as happy a mama as you could find today in my torn blue jeans and old t-shirt because today was a very good day with my little boys. I have struggled lately with realizing that they are already 4 and 6, and will never be little babies again. That chapter of our family life seems to be closing, and while I have known it was coming all along, the transition to the routine of school life has been a bit challenging for me. I thought I liked structure, and I do, but I guess I truly love days like this the very most. I love the hugs and kisses and chatter of my little boys, hearing them giggle, watching them play, feeding them until they are full (for a while, at least) and tucking them in to bed all clean after Monday night baths. So thankful for a day off from school, and a chance to enjoy the comfortable rhythm of home life with them with no distractions.
