Sticks, stones, snail shells

Little boys, or maybe kids in general, are such magnets for things we take for granted. Dex is a curious one and every time we go for a walk, he always picks up a small object or two as a memento -- a smooth pebble, an acorn, part of a snail shell, a small broken bit from a plastic toy, a leaf, a twig, a dead bee.

"Would you like to show that to Daddy."
"Yeah," he'd always say.

So he'll clutch the object in his little fingers (he hasn't discovered pockets yet) for the rest of our stroll for me to pry off from his warm little fist once we get to the house. Jon's gotten used to the sight of these offerings at the front step. Usually after a day, I can sweep them off the porch and Dex wouldn't miss them, but the dead bee was a source of fascination for days.