rhythms and routine

Nathaniel and I have a lovely relationship.  An intense relationship, but also a tender and loving and connected relationship.  As we navigate our days together, without the distraction of 'out of the house jobs,'  grandmas to babysit on a whim, and seemingly more time than we know what to do with, it has been lovely to reconnect to past rhythms and routines that we both thoroughly enjoy.

Nate has always enjoyed cooking and being helpful in the kitchen.  I mistakenly bought a play kitchen for him when he was two but after a few months of play it was neglected, as most toys of his are, for a learning tower that allowed him access to the counter to help me with the real life meal prep that happened (almost) daily in our kitchen.  Now that he's four, our roles have shifted and there are quite a few meals that he can prepare on his own, with my help with heating only.  He has access to sharp knives, knows where ingredients are and can crack an egg with confidence.  Last night he made our quiche from scratch himself. Pride doesn't even come close to how he seemed to be feeling.  Dinner was, of course, delicious.

Nate also loves crafting.  He is not a solitary crafter- he prefers to work with company- mama preferably.  He saw me hand sewing labels for my zippered bags and asked if he could do some hand sewing as well.  We found an old frame and some burlap that he had been sewing on a year or so ago and made it good as new.  He spent almost an hour sewing a tent and path and experimenting with different stitch lengths only to take it apart to begin anew a couple minutes later.  His focus is intense and he is still easily frustrated- it helps to make me all the more mindful of how I model my own frustrations on projects- both body language and words.

It has been useful to reflect at the end of our days recently to see if I have included at the very least these two activities: cooking and crafting together.  Those days where we are able to connect through a shared love of an activity always have a clearly more peaceful and fulfilled note at the end of the day.  I am often able to get my own project in, read on my own, spend time on my computer or just have 'me' time when Nathaniel feels fulfilled through our connecting with meaningful activities.

Of course, as with all mothering, I know all this to be true today...we'll see what our 'truth' is tomorrow :)