If there’s one thing the children have loved since they were first able to walk it’s collecting leaves. Wherever we are and whatever we’re doing the children will find leaves to pick up, hold onto and ultimately take home with us, wanting to keep them safe forever.

Both Little Man and LP love to pick up leaves. They’re like homing pigeons where leaves are concerned and even if there are just one or two on the ground the children will find them, picking them up and saving them from their life on the floor.
Those leaves will get scrunched up into pockets or held tightly, waved like flags and then put somewhere for safe keeping – the bottom of a pushchair, the footwell of the car or the change bag. But, the one thing the leaves always have in common is that, as much as the children love them, they are inevitably forgotten about – found crispy and broken days, weeks or even months later.
But, the children don’t mind. Whatever time of year there’s always something to pick up and collect. When winter rolls into spring they’ll pick daisies to make a chain, shoots of grass and dandelions. Their leaf collecting will turn into flower collecting and they’ll be equally as happy – and the flowers will be discarded much like the leaves when something else attracts their attention.
I can’t imagine a day when LP and Little Man don’t notice every time detail of the world around them, picking things up and collecting them. They have done it since their first steps and I know they’ll keep doing it – looking, investigating, saving and collecting. Our two little magpies.
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Jenni says
This is lovely and something Im sure my little man will get into x
Laura @ Little Ladies Big World says
My two are exactly the same, I often find pockets full of them….or washing machines!!
Laura @ Little Ladies Big World says
My two are exactly the same, I often find pockets full of them….or washing machines!!
natalie says
My girls are the same – they collect leaves, conkers, flowers, shells the list goes on. I often have pockets full of random bits they ask me to look after! #ordinarymoments
Tasha - mummy&moose says
This is so lovely and a reminder that something so simple can make the small people so happy.
We found a flowerpress on a car boot sale years ago and Bess (who was a daisy picker at the time) was absolutely overjoyed when we sat down and pressed some. I must dig it out for Moose.
Colette says
Mine are all about sticks at the moment – Amy especially!
Sherry says
It’s so funny what they hoard isn’t it? Ours won’t let me get rid of those awful leaflets that routinely get dropped through the letterbox. Sorry I missed last week x
Mary Smith says
I love how kids see treasures in every part of life. I love how they cling to stones and leaves like they are so precious – You should have a competition for your kids to find the biggest leaf haha x #ordinarymoments
Beth @ Twinderelmo says
It’s funny you have just written this as I found an old changing bag and it’s filled with crispy broken leaves!!
Nicole | thelittlestdarlings says
I love finding kids treasures. Lucas is obsessed with sticks… although his pronunciation of “sticks” is a little off. haha
Katie @mummydaddyme says
It’s funny how they are all exactly the same isn’t it? They all love jumping in puddles and they all love collecting leaves! I remember being the same as a child. x