Sometimes I find myself wondering, "Is nature for real?"
The most beautiful and breathtaking sights my eyes have ever seen are usually found in nature. Seriously, one of my favorite things about riding the bus to and from the university was being able to sit and do nothing but watch the amazing trees go by my window...every day! I loved it. Now that I'm driving two little kids around, I do my best not to run off the road as I gaze at the trees. :) Just ask Koen how many times a week I pull off the road to point out another awesome tree. It's a lot.
Anyway, I love love love this time of year with all of its bright colors. What a palette! I'm crazy about these trees around our neighborhood. We check their progress each time we pass. Hard to imagine that one single tree can display so many different colors! There was one tree down our street that was so crazy bright red, it was blinding. No joke, it nearly hurt your eyes to look at it. I would have a picture but its leaves have recently fallen off. Check these others out...
This guy is massive! The photo hardly does it justice.
So, we were inspired to do some leaf art one rainy day this week. Super easy and very satisfying. The following supplies are needed:
some lovely leaves gathered on a walk....
some pumpkin crayons
(any crayons will do, but these were so festive and perfect for rubbing)
I made these crayons for party favors at Koen's birthday party. I picked up a bunch of old crayons at the thrift store, tore off their paper, and melted them in a Halloween muffin tin. Pretty fun, huh? We had a bunch left over.
oh...and it doesn't hurt to have a cute little helper...
Koen's favorite crayon, over and over, was the blue one. And I think he might have had just as much fun stacking the crayons as he did coloring with them.
O.k. Now we're finally down to business. Place the leaf under a sheet of paper and rub. That's all! Countless hours (well, more like one hour) of fun provided by nature.
Ta da! The finished product. We decided to send some of our artwork to our great grandparents. It might just be 'fridge' worthy, no?
Finn sat quietly watching us, smiling as usual. He's such a pleasant baby. Before Finn was born, we feared that after having an easy baby like Koen, we were in for paybacks with #2...an ornery, feisty, sleepless child. I don't know what happened, 'cause I think we hit the jackpot twice! :)
But watch out! This kid puts everything and anything in his mouth...fingers, socks, toys, whatever! Koen never did that, so we aren't used to it. I was busy walking the aisles of the grocery store the other day. When I looked down Finn had half of my grocery list in his fist and the other half was a soggy mess in his mouth...no longer legible, I'm afraid.
Oh, and meanwhile, Koen was down below driving the grocery car. You know, one of those horrible grocery carts with a kid's car attached to the front. I used to look at the parents pushing them and think, "Come on! Is that really necessary?" They are terribly awkward to maneuver. I almost took down an entire display of stacked wine bottles the other day! I hate those carts, but they really do come in handy with two kids in tow.
Anyway, where was I....oh yeah, Koen was sitting out of sight, riding up and down each aisle, grabbing items and putting them in his 'car'. When I peeked in to say 'hi', I discovered the mound of groceries in his lap. He got a sheepish grin, and said, "I'm just kiddin'!" Then he started to laugh as I pulled out all the stuff he had been swiping. I'm just glad I caught it before we left the store! Especially the chocolate covered malt balls! Little stinker. I guess I'll have to keep better tabs on him from now on.
Enjoy the season, and the trees in your neighborhood!
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