Mud Pies

Mud Pie a la Biggie Wiggie

Remember back when you were young(er) and playing in the dirt was THE.BEST thing ever??  I do - and I remember the look on my Mom's face when we were done.  Part disgust, part happiness.  And never anger.  Unless we were dirty BEFORE we got to where ever it was we were to be.

We grew up getting dirty - splashing in mud puddles, chasing cows in the back pasture, feeding the chickens and fighting with the goats.  Never fought with the goose though.  He was mean, and we knew it!

So, we've been raising our kids to know that getting dirty is part of being a kid.  And an adult too, sometimes.  And today was a day for making Mud Pies, Biggie Wiggie style!




Mud Pies
Makes: however much you need and want!

Start with some primo dirt!

This is where I'd show you a splendid shot of the ingredients, all nicely laid out so you can plan your attack.  I regret (not really, but trying to be nice you know) that there will be no stunning photo of ingredients.  Why?  Because Mud Pies are made with one part skill (the kind you only get from being a kid that's allowed to get dirty) and ten parts imagination.

Make sure to get into all the edges!

The ingredients change with the seasons.  The mood.  The weather.  The child.

This is the Biggie Wiggie version.  It's tediously laid out seconds before it's created.  But, there's balance, and attention to details.  No willy nilly placements allowed in this experiment!

Today was a good day, spent making the kids feel like kids and the adults feel a little more like kids.  A play at the park, lunch out for home cut french fries, and more play at the park.  And when it was time to go home - it was still time to play.







As Mr. Hungry laid himself out on the living room floor to play Hot Wheels with Loo Lee, the big one and I attended to some creating, outdoors.  Because we all know that kids need (read: want) to be outdoors more!

It's getting harder and harder these days to entertain the kids, work full time, keep the house in order.  They are busy kids who want their Mommy and Daddy to play with them, colour with them, cuddle with them.  There are no video games in our house (yet) and we're happy with that.  They know what they are but for now - we try to get them to use their imagination as much as they can. 

Add clover, but check for 4 leafers!

A child that uses their imagination is a child that is learning - through play, through discovery...through getting dirty!  And one day they will look back and remember making Mud Pies with their parents.  I hope, at least.

And as we played, Biggie Wiggie and I, we're learning about each other.  What is important to her and what see wants me to know is important, I am learning.  What see sees around her - because she's always pointing something out that's new, I am learning.  To see the world through a child's eyes is to see for the first time, again.

Do you remember watching the birds fly, the ants crawl and the flowers bloom?  And just how long has it been since you stood quietly and just soaked up all that surrounds you?  Actually stopped your life and your mind for a moment, and looked around with new eyes? 

If you have to think - then you need to find a kid (borrow one if you have to) and go for a walk!  Throw rocks into the river.  Blow dandelion fluffs into the wind.

Remember what it's all about - that we lead busy lives and even if we have to remember to s-l-o-w d-o-w-n every once in a while - do so when you can!  Watch a spider spin a web.  Trace the raindrops as they roll down the window panes.  And if you're Biggie Wiggie - make yourself the muddiest, dirtiest, prettiest Mud Pie you've ever seen! 

Use your imagination - and look around you to find what goes into making YOUR pie.

Remember that Mud Pies should be made wearing your best clothes, and your best shoes.  You never know who's going to stop by!

Flip flops with diamonds!

And make as much as a mess as you can.  Use different ingredients, different textures - whatever your mind can imagine can go into your pie!








Because we're really making memories.  The sights, the sounds, the smells all bring us back to specific key moments in our lives that were special!

Growing up, the best memories never came from expensive trips or outlandish gifts.  The best memories came from family being family!  Playing outside, hiking, camping, creating anything that made us use our imagination!

Un-ripe cherries?  Why not!

When we talk of our youth, we tend to remember them as 'the good old days'.  Gah!  Were they really that good??  Of course!!

But are the memories really that old?  Probably - and hence the reason to get out, slow down and play with a child!  See, children don't care about the dishes, the laundry, the bills that need to be paid. 

They care about spending time with the people the love.  Doing something.  Anything.  With you!

Arrange elegantly .....

As long as we can spend time by their sides, kids will forgive us for continuing out busy lives of running from here to there and everywhere.

I was once told 'it's quality, not quantity that matters'.  I guess.  But I'd rather spend a whole LOT of quality time with our kids.  We can do that you know.

Not every day.  Not every week.  But if you can't find the time to slow down and enjoy the time with the kids - then I'm not sure you're trying hard enough.  And our kids are worth slowing down for every now and then.



Our kids are the future - our future and one day we'll set them free to tackly the big world!

Perhaps for some, that will be work or travel.  And others it will be raising a family - and teaching their kids what their parents taught them.



And for others it will be moving onto the discovery of the healing properties of the plants that surround us!  A cure for all disease, perhaps?  They key to the fountain of youth?

But whatever they choose, know that what you teach them today will be carried with them tomorrow, next year and for years to come!  You are the lights in their eyes!  You are the sun, the moon and the stars, today.  And you are the one who's going to help them grow into productive adults, that carry terrific memories of spending time together, getting dirty and creating memories.

Admire.  Best served with red kool aid, and a smile!

Enjoy the memories.

--The Cook (and Biggie Wiggie)