I have noticed that since becoming a mommy… that the entire world suddenly seems like a potential safety hazard to my children. Danger lurks around every corner; every car is driving much too fast, every bypasser is probably plotting to steal them, & every park or puddle a cesspool of only god knows what. Sometimes I am seriously convinced that if any kid on the planet is going to get cancer from touching a dirty rock – it will be mine.

& Yes, I DO know how ridiculous I sound. But c’mon! Am I the only one?! I can’t be the only paranoid freak in the world. I don’t usually ACT on these crazy thoughts, but they are there.
The point is – as a mother it becomes so easy and habitual to just say “no.” “No, you don’t need any candy,” “Don’t touch that, the entirety of Wal-Mart is disgusting,” “You’d better not get those shoes wet!” It’s a sad truth that sometimes I tell Jace “no” almost before he’s even finished talking.

BUT this has made it all the more fun to watch the delight light up his face when I tell him “yes!”
It has been raining here a lot lately in the good ol’ Sunshine State. & what little boy doesn’t love a nice puddle?!

Yes, those are Thomas galoshes. & They are quite possibly the cutest things on the planet whilst on my drenched son’s feet. “I like rain Mommy!” I was once, a lover of playing in the rain myself, so we played together. 🙂 “Where is the rain coming from, Jace?” “THE SKYYYYYY!”

Then, I was reading an article the other day about how good drawing and painting is for young kids. So of course in my attempt to achieve my self-awarded “Mother of the Year” trophy  – we painted!

Now Jace is his father’s son, because at first he was very upset that his hands were dirty & kept crying “NAPKIN! NAKPIN!” Yes, I am aware that this is somewhat freakish for a two year old. Try bringing this kid to the beach, do you have any idea how hard it is to keep ALL traces of sand off of a two year old at the beach?! As if I wasn’t crazy enough on my own, I am probably the ONLY mother at the beach who can’t let her child off of the towels because he’ll have a meltdown over his sandy hands.

 Needless to say, he warmed up to the toe, ahem, finger painting idea. Apparently soft squishy paint is nothing compared to the terror that is sticky gritty sand. Dually noted, whew. He painted with his hands, he painted with his feet, he painted with paint containers (“circles, Mommy!”) he painted himself, he painted Mommy, he painted his huge roll of paper, & he painted my lanai floor. THEN I hosed him off in the backyard. WHICH HE LOVES! I promise! (;

& I would like to report that; our puddles were in fact cancer free, & that Jace survived any amount of paint he may or may not have consumer during our painting adventure. 😛

Unfortunately for Princess Zoey, the “no, no’s” are at an all time I-think-I’m-the-boss-because-I-can-crawl-now high. Oh well, I’m working on it. (;