Simple Things

It is the little things that make me smile. Here is one from this week...

When I was little, I always dreamed of becoming a teacher. Mostly it was a dream of office supplies...and colored chalk. Do you remember those awesome chalk holders that the teachers would use to draw circles in math class? Drool! And I would do secret flips inside when I would end up with a teacher who was cool enough to use fat chalk instead of the skinny white sticks that most teachers used.

By the time I became a teacher, however, the world had mostly moved to white boards with horribly smelly markers and cleaner that left me with headaches for days afterwards.

If I had known that I would only need to be at home with my littles instead of in the classroom to finally live my dream of chalk. And rediscovering my love for chalk with my boys has been even better than I could have imagined because our chalk time is often combined with Clayton current favorite game, "wa wa."

Have you ever used wet chalk? If you have not, do it...right...now.

I just cannot get over the way the wet chalk puddles up when you draw with it on a spot of wet concrete, allowing you to blend the colors together, swirling them like paint. And when you draw with it on a dry patch, it starts out wet, but dries immediately, while you watch the color lighten and the texture smooth out.

We have been playing quite a bit of "wa wa" lately, now that the weather is warmer, and I spend the entire time crouched on the concrete with a piece of chalk in my hands. I never imagined that chalk could be this good...