messy, beautiful, perfect

Yesterday I was working upstairs in the loft.  Juniper needed to poop while Hazel was nursing.  I helped Juniper heave herself onto the toilet, Hazel popped off and tried teething on the toilet seat edge while Juniper jumped off the john, still needing her bum wiped, and I had one boob hanging out.  Our everyday.  No one ever claimed parenthood was glamorous.  Life is messy...perhaps that's what makes it so beautiful.  

:: Last week, we blew off election-day jitters with home improvement projects and a jaunt down to the river where we fished and went "on a jungle adventure to look for alligators!"   

We are in Juniper's land of make-believe almost 24/7 now.  The other morning the girls and I went for a short hike in the woods behind our house.  We looked for winter bear dens, fed some bears (a.k.a tree stumps) lots of wild strawberries (rocks), lettuce (grass) and a bit of snow.  I envy Juniper and her little world.  I *remember* that about childhood.  It's magical.  I hope she gets to keep her world for a long, long, time.

^See the "bear" and her "den"?^  

^Whispering so we don't wake the bears.^  (And yes, she was wearing a warm coat but insisted on removing it.)

Me: "Juniper, see these sharp needles?  This is a hawthorn bush."  

Juniper: "Mama, see this snow?  This is Juniper snow."  No matter what we say, it comes right back at us.

 ^Pssst.  She's sporting some mama-made wool mittens, fresh off the needles.^

:: We had such a slow, sauntering fall that I'm ready for--and loving--this latest shift into colder, whiter days.  We are getting snuggly with warm coco and a list of homemade gifts to work on: beginning with squirrel-shaped dog biscuits.  

In the next eight days we'll celebrate one of my favorite holidays, two family birthdays and one young friend's.  

Life.  Messy, beautiful, perfect.