swings & bugs & things.

we did cross a few "adventures" off of our list this weekend. definitely a sweet time with my little boy who is one of my all-time favorite friends to spend time with. the other day, he picked his first "flower" just for me...[crouched down, plucked it from the grass, and held it up to me. it's the beautiful, spriggy one on the far left:]


i am discovering more and more just how truly and zealously he is A BOY...ceaseless energy, boundless curiosity, and a newfound fascination with rocks:


it used to be the swings. for a week or two in his life, nothing else seemed to matter but plopping down into that blue bucket seat and whizzing through the air. he'd wake up and the first word uttered would invariably be "Wheeee!" which was his way of saying, "swings before breakfast, please."

some days a few moments on the porch swing would suffice, but other days we'd find him, tiny feet perched on the low window ledge, nose & hands pressed to the glass, staring longingly at the swing-set (which we borrow on occasion) directly across the street in the yard of the Methodist Church. "Wheee! Wheee!" he'd be saying softly to himself. what mother on earth could possibly resist? ...so off to the swings we'd go, again.


suddenly & without notice though, his swing-enchantment has been replaced with an interest in these: jumping on crunchy leaves, inspecting rocks, poking around in the dirt, spying on ants, and other generally boyish activities. so that is how most of our Saturday was spent.

in the neighbor's yard, we found this old tree stump:


then we tromped up and down the sidewalk for awhile:

other than that, i hung this menu board in the kitchen (temporarily) to cover the unsightly (and huge) fuse-box next to the window:


and made up a recipe for a tasty bean salad to eat with last night's salmon:

salad:
1 can northern or cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
1.5 cups shelled edamame
2-3 roma tomatoes, finely chopped
2-3 scallions, sliced
1 jar artichoke hearts, finely chopped
a few dashes each of sea salt and cayenne pepper
a few ribbons of fresh basil (3 leaves)

(would have added if i'd had: a fresh ear of corn, de-cobbed; and some crumbled goat cheese)

dressing:
1 part wine vinegar + 2 parts olive oil (enough to fill a baby food jar about half-way)
1 tsp grainy mustard
3 dashes balsamic vinegar
s & p