Spring Planting

It's May! Whoa, where has the time gone? I did not post one time in the month of April. Oopsie. We are busy as usual, and the weather here has been total shit. Pardon my language, but I feel that is the only way I can adequately express my feelings about the amount of rain and dark days we've had this spring.

Two days ago, it was another dark, rainy day, but there was a small break in the weather. It was about 4:30 on Sunday afternoon, and I asked Brayden if he wanted to do yard work with me. I wish I could have captured the enthusiastic "YES!" that I heard from the playroom followed by his little body bouncing down the stairs. We quickly put his shoes on and headed into the backyard. Earlier in the week, I purchased six bags of steer manure (yes, you read that right) to spread over the bare patches in my yard. Brayden could not wait to grab his rake and help me spread the manure.

Over the next 1.5 hours, Brayden talked to me nonstop. He loved being my little helper, even as the rain began to fall again. He talked about the flowers, the manure, the slugs, the rain clouds, the airplanes, and on and on and on and on. And on. My favorite phrases include, "Mom, aren't you glad I'm helping you spread this manure?" "Mom, we're so happy we're fixing our yard, right?" "Mom, I'm doing a great job!" "Mom, these flowers are beautiful!" He was such a little trooper, and he really did help me for 1.5 hours... in the rain.

We came inside, washed our hands, and I quickly made dinner. That night, I tried a new recipe - it was turkey chili but different from the one I usually make. When everyone else came to eat, I got the usual "ewww's and yucks" from Taylor and Matthew. But not my B. He took a bite, gave me a thumb up, and said, "Mom, thank you for making this delicious dinner! I wove it!"

Love. Him. To. Pieces.

Brayden with his buddies Sadie and Owen after school last Friday.