He's All Boy

Caleb and I have been enjoying time together --
Time out in the wonderful Autumn weather of the Tennessee mountains. Sometimes we go to parks, sometimes we stay right here at my apartment complex.

Last weekend was one of those weekends when we stayed close to home. But staying close to home does not mean staying IN the apartment! Especially when you are all boy - which Caleb definitely is! And, especially when the weather is so delightful and the leaves are so gorgeous.

We went on a treasure hunt of sorts... On our hunt we found acorns. I hadn't seen acorns in over 30 years - until I moved here last month. Caleb, of course, stopped to pick up as many as his little hands and pockets could hold. He apparently had not seen acorns before either because he was full of questions about these odd looking items. He was especially fascinated by the "hats" that some of them had and the fact that others were bare - and their hats were found close by.

After climbing on the jungle-gym at the apartment complex playground, we discovered a white fence that separated us from a hill that sloped down to a small creekbed and lots of trees.

Being all boy, the creek, the fence, the trees and hill were an instant invitation to try out his throwing arm. All of those acorns and "hats" were not safe in his pockets for long. "Watch this, Nan!" he exclaimed with a glint in his eye that told me he was overjoyed with the gifts of nature and the promise of a way to interact with those gifts.

Being absolutely certain that I was, indeed, watching him, slowly and deliberately Caleb began pitching those acorns over the fence and into the creek. Sometimes he heard them hit a leaf and giggled. Once in a while, a chipmunk or squirrel would scurry out from under leafy cover. And on more than one occasion, Caleb was absolutely certain that his acorn had landed in the creek. "Did you hear that splash, Nan?" (Of course I hadn't but... who am I to say that he didn't?)

Yep, he's all boy and I am "all Nan"... and he and I are a great team. We each fuel one another's love for life and nature and make the most of every opportunity we have to share that love.