Indian Summer?

The weather today was unseasonably gorgeous...nearly 70 degrees! Since I was home with the boys for the afternoon, we made the most of it by going out to swing in the backyard on our hand-me-down swingset. Then we thought it would be fun to make a teepee. Naturally, right?  :)  William has one in his preschool class and loves it.

It came together super quickly (I'm happy to report). We have a bundle of tall bamboo stakes that get used in the veggie garden during the summer. One piece of string at top, an old sheet pulled around (covered in paint splatters since it's a drop cloth ordinarily), and a couple of clothespins...and I think all three of us were impressed that within a few minutes we had a legitimate teepee in the yard!

 Josiah loves making goofy faces. 

 I believe a large deer had been speared at this point and was being dropped into the tent for supper. 

Seeing as my boys (Josiah especially) aren't much for make-believe play, the hunting and gathering pretense was quickly over. Pretty soon we'd filled it up with pillows, snacks, drinks, books, and coloring supplies. It was a fun little hideaway.

 I tried to get in a picture, but I need to work on my camera rock propping skills.

The best part was when the boys headed out and I stayed in reading for a while! (Jesse says he just wishes he could have been there to take a picture of the boys off playing and my legs hanging out of the play teepee. Ha!) Alas, my quiet time didn't last long. Within a few minutes I heard shrieks of laughter and saw this when I peeked out of the flap.

Yay for "Indian summer" in December!