what do you do on a hot summer day with a 3.5 year old and an almost 2 year old?! why, eat watermelon under an overpass, of course! seriously though, every day we try to keep busy and one of our favorite activities is taking nature walks. usually with tyler in tow, but for this outing, it was just the three of us as i had some errands to run afterwards.
can you spot mr. dragonfly in the above photo??
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not quite sure what caught kate’s undivided attention here! there was nothing interesting going on over to the left…
kate’s dress is from old navy and jack’s crocs are found here!
watermelon juice dripping down chubby little chins on a summer day! nothing better than this for this mama!!
up above our heads we noticed this cool creation! of course i had to google it! this magnificent work of art was created by organ pipe mud dauber wasps. this nest DOES look like organ pipes, don’t you think? these wasps are very docile and do not sting and are good to have around as they feed mainly on spiders!!
one interesting fact we learned: the female wasp builds these tubes and after she puts a paralyzed spider in each tube she lays an egg. the larvaes hatch and feed on the spiders. i’m just beyond fascinated with them!! go check out the above wikipedia link to learn more about them!
after we finished up the watermelon and oohed and ahhhed over the wasp nest, we walked around looking for more cool nature stuff. and boy did we hit the jackpot! we spotted a BABY ALLIGATOR standing still in the middle of the road! we cautiously approached it…
and realized it was a rubber toy!! haha! i flipped it onto its back and it said: MADE IN CHINA. so funny! the kids kicked it around and we walked on giggling away! we live by the georgia coast and we’ve seen alligators before wandering through our neighborhood lagoon, so nothing out of the ordinary, but seeing a baby one would’ve been just amazing!
i wish i knew what these blooms are called. they are SO pretty! and remind me of watermelons! i asked kate if she thought there were animals living in the forest. so she walked over to the EDGE (not a step closer!) and tried to peer in to see. such a cutie!
well, i’d say that was another successful nature “hike” – afterwards, ran errands, dinner, bath, bedtime story, bed, then this mama had some fun mama time editing these photos with sweet boy tyler tucked in by my feet!! hope everyone had a great day too!!
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Awwhh! They are so cute! We love watermelons too. Perfect for hot summer days. Photos are beautiful! Have really enjoyed them.
Thanks Christine! You are so sweet!
oh my gosh, your photography is AMAZING + i love how you curate your blog posts!! this looks like such a sweet day, and those blooms are so pretty! love this post so so much <3
Thank you SO much, Paige! I am just so in love with your web site – so clean and pretty. And your photography is just amazing!
Oh I liked the photos and your writing way, you make me craving watermelon
Haha! I’m craving this watermelon smoothie: frozen watermelon, honey, mint + basil leaves all blended together. So refreshing!
Looks like great summer fun. That baby alligator does look so real to me but I would freak out on seeing the wasp nest.
Right??! Before I googled and found out those wasps were quite safe (who would’ve thought!!) I was gathering my kids like a crazed mother hen and chasing them out of the area! Watermelon juice dripping everywhere and all!
I seriously love how you take all of your pictures. You have such a talent for photography I always enjoy all of your posts.
Thanks, Ally! I am enjoying all of your recipes on your page! I’ve bookmarked so many to try!! I love how healthy and yummy they are!
Love this post & the photos, as well as the way you write the story, it’s really enjoyable to read & I admire your photography skill too 🙂 the kids are so adorable, I love kids, so reading post like this made my day 🙂
Thank you, Yin! You are so sweet!!
I love doing nature walks with my kids. It really is fun to discover things outside. Your day sounds like it was a perfect summer day. Watermelon is a perfect treat for summer. Your kids are adorable. Great pictures, too!
Thanks, Jessica! Hope your sweet kiddos have a fantastic back to school!!
Tamalyn, your photos always look so beautiful! Love these candid shots! The kids sure look like they’re loving the watermelon 😃 If you can’t eat messily as a kid when can you! Glad to hear those wasps aren’t the stinging kind, they scare the hell out of me!
Jaz x
Right?? Let them live a little! Nothing some wipes won’t fix! 😆
Wow, I absolutely LOVE your blog, your photos, your children are adorable.. I LOVE EVERYTHING lol. I love to eat watermelon during the summer, it’s delicious. <3
Aww! Thanks Jennifer! That is so sweet of you!! Hope you have a GREAT day today! Love that BOSS outfit on your little guy!
It sounds like you had the most amazing day. Sometimes the smallest things create the best memories. I absolutely love the photos!
You’re pictures are absolutely beautiful! And your kids are amazingly cute. I do love a good piece of watermelon on a hot ay. Though I’m not sure I would have been brave enough to get near enough that alligator to learn that it was a toy!
Our whole family love having a watermelon as our dessert so perfect most especially in hot weather like summer.
First of all, your photography skills are amazing! I can’t wait for my baby girl to grow a bit and do more activities.
Okay not only are your photographs literally the essence of summer but also the way you captured every emotion was incredible. I am glad you guys had a great exploring day between the baby alligator and the wasp nest lots of exciting stuff to see.
Wow love the pictures very well captured
I love these photos! There is nothing better than watermelon on a hot day!
Your photography is so beautiful. I love how artistic it is!
I love your photos! <3 I love watermelon it’s perfect for summer! and I like your blog 🙂
These photos are absolutely stunning and of course, the subjects have a lot to do with that. After seeing them, I now want two things. The first is to find an ice-cold watermelon and chill it, and the second is I’d love to know what camera you shoot with. I’m sure it all comes down to talent but I tend to blame my cameras instead of owning up to that, lol.
Oh Terri, you are so funny!! For these photos I used a Nikon D3, but for all my travel photos I’ve been using the Nikon D7200 lately – smaller and easier to carry around! I think more than the camera body, it’s the LENS that makes the biggest impact. My favorite lens to use is the 35mm f1.4G from Nikon. Camera bodies come and go, but good lenses are an investment that keeps its value!! I’ve had my lenses for over 10 years!
Your kids are so cute! Watermelon is my favorite fruit, I love how sweet and juicy it is!
Wow this is the cutest blog aesthetics I have seen in a long time. I love how you make it very personal and it is curated journal style!