I love when my children gasp and point out some beautiful aspect of nature. A sunset, a cloud, a full moon. These days in our area the trees are blazing with colorful leaves, and even the storm gusts did not manage to blow them all off. I point beautiful leaves out to my kids to remind them to look closely at nature and to appreciate the beauty in it. I don’t know if they really need to be reminded, but I know that sometimes I do. I remember collecting beautiful leaves as a child and ironing them in between wax paper to preserve them. I had forgotten the simple pleasure in that activity somewhere along the way, and it wasn’t until a few years ago when my own children were old enough to do it that I remembered. It becomes an entire activity that gets us outside on a leaf collecting expedition, before going in for some creativity. We then tape our creations to the window to display our pretty fall decorations.