Worms

On our walk home from school today, J ran ahead of us as he usually does.  E and I spotted a worm on the sidewalk, so we stopped to check it out, leaving J to stand alone in the rain at the corner about three-quarters of a block ahead of us.  It took E nearly five (wet) minutes to finally muster up the courage to hold it in her hand so she could proudly show her brother the slimy little creature.

And, just like that, we had an after school activity.  We spent over an hour out in the rain collecting worms.  In all, we found at least fifty worms and had so much fun doing it.  The kids were fascinated, and I took a trip down memory lane remembering all of the nights my brothers and I, armed with flashlights, went out to catch nightcrawlers.  Oh, sweet memories.

I wish I would have had a video camera with us to capture the moment, but I didn't.  I couldn't allow our experience go completely undocumented, however. When we returned home, I instructed the kids and their muddy, cute rain boots to stay outside while I grabbed the camera. 
J immediately responded in a respectful but assertive manner, "Mom, I know taking pictures is fun for you, but it's not fun for me, so I'm just going to go inside."

E wasn't quite ready to call an end to her wormy fun...

plus, she spilled the bucket.

The look she gave me after I called out her name eight times so I could get a picture of her face...see what I mean about the perfected screw-you expression?

There was a little sadness, but thankfully no one cried over spilled worms.

Now the sun needs to come out so we can go fishing.