These
lyrics, from the Hippopotamus Song, are clearly lost on me. I fail to see anything glorious about
wet, dirty, sloshy product unless it is in the form of a face pack.
Two
thirds of this family unit enjoy the whole gardening experience, whilst it is
largely lost on me. The end results of manicured lawns and flowering beds I am
all for, but the actual arriving at that point is not my thing.
Now,
I am no Don Burke (for those of you who remember the 90s and the cottage industry of visually impaired knitters), but I wouldn’t have
thought that mowing the lawns and having a bit of a tidy up entailed water and
dirt. Apparently though I am grossly mistaken. In order to knock up a batch of
mud pies, one needs one vital ingredient...mud.
So
with a plumbers’ in hand (or tracky dack as the case may be), one set off to
engage in this all time childhood rite of passage, whilst I went in search of
the napisan.
Mud beats bum cream/pawpaw ointment/moisturiser as a sculpting medium/artist paint any day. And if you put her in a white outfit, this is very easy to chuck in a bucket of bleach! I think she's nearly old enough to make fairy gardens .......simply allocate a small area in a garden bed that is all hers. Because it's for fairies it has to be small (fairies are tiny!!) You can make little beds and chairs etc. out of scraps of cardboard, petals, leaves, foil and toothpicks. You first have to make a little 'cave' out of mud, preferably covered in leaves or moss. I can still remember making these and my darling brother would write tiny letters from the fairies. (With a tiny mapping pen dipped in lemon juice that added to the magic). Go on you two, go to it!! It's not only good fun but it confines the digging to the fairy dell area only!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful childhood memory, Valda. I just need to get over my dirt allergy and we should have a lovely time! Paul bought Lily a tiny little fairy from a fairy garden in Hanhdorf, just out of Adelaide, at Christmas. She can be our starting point!
ReplyDeleteMeredith you bring to life so vividly all those magical, joyful memories of the kids exploring, discovering and blooming. Valda, you reinforce my memories of a brilliant, creative professional who added joy to my life and the lives of the kids we worked with.
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