i heart botanical paint*

Last night while we were preparing for Cedar's nightly rhythm, I said to him..."when you wake up in the morning, there will be a surprise!" His face lit up with a smile wider than usual " a soupwize??" he asked. Of course he was suddenly inspired to walk up the stairs and into the bed. As I held him until he fell asleep, he kept saying "soupwize" and then sighing.  Once he fell asleep and I went back downstairs, I said to Boho Boy,  "if he remembers when he wakes up, then he is far too smarty for a 2 year old!" Guess what happened. As soon as he opened his eyes this morning, he looked at me and whispered "goo-mownin! soupwize, mama??".

I wasn't sure what he was going to think about it. I had a feeling he was imagining and dreamed all night about some cool car or train but what I handed him was a gift that Boho Boy's dear friend and previous assitant (when he was a Librarian) gifted to Cedar right before we moved. It was a wooden birdhouse...waiting to be painted and hung on one of our trees. We are blessed with a plethora of beautiful birds that visit our neighborhood. We wake up to melodies every morning and we were told that the man living in this home previous to us had many bird houses throughout the trees. I wasn't sure Cedar would be into it, although I know he loves to paint on his easel. When I handed it to him and told him that his surprise was that we get to go outside and paint this birdhouse, he was totally delighted and my heart melted.

So, I brought his table and chairs outside in the late morning, under a tree and we took out our Glob natural paints for the first time. These paints are pigments made from fruits, vegetables, flowers and spices. They smell delicious and the colors are gorgeous. I think the bottles are so pretty I want to use them to decorate!

This morning, painting with him under the tree, listening to acoustic music and the birds singing and saying hello to our neighbors passing by...was one of the most favorite mornings of my life. We just sat there quietly painting together. Comfortably in silence. I enjoy his company so, so much.

{cedar's fisherman pants were made especially for him by my friend em...who added a darling patch with trees! i have a feeling cedar will always have some sort of tree theme in his life}