Daily Challenge, Day Three

The daily photo challenge continues.  It is most interesting to start seeing your day's events through a view finder.  What seem like "normal" moments become unique and interesting.  But it's taking some energy and focus!  Tomorrow will be a break day for me - my work place would be a really really really fun place to take some shots IF (BIG IF!!) I had the time and IF (BIGGER IF!) I was allowed to share the photos.  Alas, confidentiality reigns in health care although I'm itching to take the camera to work and look for photo ops that do not breach any confidentiality.  I am quite positive that there are capturable and beautiful moments in our facility amidst the chaos of caring for these aged souls.



 

I spent a good part of my day today on the school grounds with Son #2.  Alas, unlike Andrew, Ben's mantra of the day was "Mom, put the camera away, you're embarrassing me."  Good point.  Perhaps laying on my belly on the school ground taking pictures of grass and pylons was a bit over the top for this 12 year old.

 

;)

 

I didn't mean to stay at the school all afternoon.  It just happened.

 

Play Day at our school is open to parents over the lunch hour.  The school facilitates a pizza lunch that families can eat together in the school yard for K-6.  With Ben in Grade 6, this was our last year to participate in this so we got our lunch schedules together and hubby and I arrived on the school yard at just the right time. 

 

I have a hunch that Ben wasn't all that interested in us being there....friends were quite interesting, parents, not so much.  But I NEEDED to be there, to participate in this event for the last time.  Firsts and lasts mean so much to me. 

 

So we ate our lunch and Ben disappeared to do his thing.

 

....And we got visiting with this other mom.  And 2 hours flew by....

 

....On our way out of the playground, we got visiting with a teacher/friend....and a few more minutes flew by.....

 

....And by that time, I figured I may as well stay for the big finale of the afternoon - the class races.  For some reason, I love this event.  All the kindergarten girls line up and race across the soccer field.  Then all the boys do.  And so on through the grades up to the "big" kids on the field, the Grade 6-ers.  The kids all sit on the sidelines of the field and cheer their precious hearts out.  It's noisy.  It's happy.  It's encouraging.  And those little guys run with all their might.  And then the next grade goes, and they're a little bit bigger and run a little faster...and I remember that my kids were once that small and now they're not and it's good and I'm happy and a little tear slips out of the corner of my eyes.  They all return to their spots, waving purple "GOOD JOB" ribbons and the ribbons wiggle free from their chubby fists and they go chasing them across the soccer field.  The fast runners commit to winning.  The slow runners commit to finishing.  Everyone.  Is.  All.  Good.  With.  Being.  In.  The.  Moment.  The races end, the kids head back into the school with their teachers and the field is suddenly silent, just like that, it's over.

 

I will miss it.  But new and good things are coming.

 

I'm okay.  Big breath.

 

Here are my shots of the day:

 



 

I made THE best batch of rhubarb muffins for breakfast today.

I make these muffins every year.  Rhubarb season inspires me for annual "make again" recipes.  This recipe is from a fellow nurse and I just have to make a batch each spring.  Light and fluffy morsels of goodness.  I planned to make some yesterday but ran out of time.  This morning, they were done in time for my first cup of coffee.  Bliss.

Here's Ben at the ball toss station of Play Day.  I managed to capture the ball mid-air.  Lucky shot!  ;)

Little piggies in need of a new splash of paint.

Where did he get those?  I think he traded some pizza away for them!
...I want some too...

Blades of grass

Blades of grass, and now you can see the playground equipment in the background.  Macro setting.

Young cowboy

Pylons standing at attention in the long jump box

A tangled mess of bikes



Park your bike and get your face painted in the background.

 

And there are my 10 shots for the day!  Thanks for looking.  See you in a couple days!