Monkeying Around.

I love staying at home with my little one. I think that if you are lucky enough to be able to do it, you absolutely should take advantage of these years that are so precious. These moments that won't last forever because they grow up way too fast and soon enough, they will be in school all day long. I love our mornings of getting ready and eating breakfast together, our days of reading together and our outings, and our adventures of new art projects and playing around outside.

Having said this, I also love nap time. Jacob's nap time, that is.

And it's not because I get tired of playing or reading or taking care of my little man, it's just that sometimes even momma needs a little break. And even though I always think about using nap time for productive things like finishing the laundry or cleaning the kitchen, I usually end up settling down by my computer, editing images from recent sessions or updating this little story.

And while I have learned many things during my eighteen months as a momma, I have learned that the little ones sleep better after lots of busy activities.

Enter, Monkey Joes. A little place we discovered the other day that, for a small fee of $5, allows you to bring your child into a bouncy (totally safe) zone. And bounce they did.





Occasionally tackling each other only to get right back up and do it all over again.











And after a much needed nap (success!), he was back and more excited than ever when he learned we were going outside...



He thought it was funny that I was laying down on the deck photographing him, so he just got right down there and did the same thing.





I always knew I wanted to be able to stay at home with my little ones, but I wasn't quite sure if I was going to love it, to really love it like my mom loved stayed home with the four of us.



Turns out, it's everything I imagined it would be....



And I really, really love it, more than I ever thought possible.