1. This is the latest video by my friends Levi and Jesse from Drawn from Water.
Drawn From Water, Adopt from Drawn From Water on Vimeo.
I want to adopt one of these babies so bad. If I could figure out how to pay for the whole thing I would. In a heartbeat.
2. I walk very early in the morning around what is essentially a little treed courtyard beside my apartment. I go in circles, that way I can hear if one of the kids wakes up and needs me while I am walking.
Given the hour, I hear my neighbor’s alarm clocks when they start to go off as I pass by. This has raised a question.
How on earth is it humanly possible for some people to let their alarm keep going, for 5-10-15 minutes without shutting it off? Does anyone really sleep that soundly? And even if a grown up could manage it, who are these children who aren’t woken up by that sound?
My mind is completely boggled.
3. I was due this month. The realization has crept up on me. I have crying fits all over again. This is all I’m going to write about it because I would prefer not to write long mournful posts on the subject. Though I think it’s partly to blame for yesterday’s sad mournful post about the Girl. November might be sad. You have been warned.
4. I’m almost finished with a children’s book I’m writing. I love, love, love it. I also love that my SIL is illustrating it.
It is an attempt to show small girls that real beauty comes from the heart, in a way that will engage even very small brains. We have plans for a series. You can be sure to hear more about that as time goes by.
5. I have mice. I caught a glimpse of one on Friday, sneaking along my kitchen floor. My first thought was, “That must be an exceptionally large spider over there that I saw it moving from over here… oh crap that is gray and furry, it’s disappearing behind the trash can, find it, get it out NOW!!!” Then I dumped an almost sleeping Little on the couch while I went on a rampage behind the trash can. But of course, it was no where to be found.
I figure the colder weather drove it indoors. Though it’s not cold enough that my patio door next to my kitchen where it came in was closed mid afternoon. Pest control arrives tomorrow. In one week it has managed to poop all over the cupboard under my sink, on all my clean towels of course, gnaw a hole in the base board next to the dishwasher, and wreak havoc on my sanity.
I want it gone! But I don’t want it poisoned, because I have visions of it creeping somewhere completely inaccessible before it dies and smelling the rotting carcass for months on end. And I don’t like glue traps because I don’t want to find a mouse, dead, alive, or half dead in one of those. I will ask the pest control people if they come back to check the traps, in which case, I’ll just do my best to pretend I don’t know about them.
6. Sorry, this one is about mice too. I worked in a greenhouse one winter of my college days. They left poison out to control the mouse problem so every so often we would find dead mice between the rows. The mice we found were all deer mice, which are known carriers of the hantavirus. There was a protocol for disposing of the corpses that involved putting on mask and gloves, disposing of mouse, disposing of mask, and finally tossing the gloves so as to not get sick. I was the one to deal with every dead mouse found on my shift. My co workers were too squeamish. Lest you think that any of my previous comments on the subject are indicative of general ladylike delicacy. I am rarely ladylike. I, alas, do not faint either, except once, from blood loss in childbirth, which was in itself not very ladylike at all. Womanly, but not ladylike.
7.
I just found out that there is an entire free Charlotte Mason Curriculum at Ambleside Online, using mostly books that are available for free download as well. How cool. Especially for someone who wants to home school but worries about the cost. If you don’t know about Charlotte Mason they tell you about her teaching philosophy as well. Hers was the idea that young minds should be stimulated, with real literature, the outdoors, discussion, etc. There’s a whole lot more to it than that and you can find it if you’re interested.
HT to Notable Blogger
As always, thanks Jen@Conversion Diary for hosting these.
10 thoughts on “7 quick takes”
Regarding #2, my 18 year old daughter sets not one but TWO alarms. Very loud alarms I might add. And she seems to have the ability to sleep through them or get up, turn them off while still asleep, and then get back into bed. It is amazing.
Poisoned rodents WILL find a way to die in inaccessible walls. That happened to us, and I very nearly tore the wall down. I would have, too, if I could have figured out how to make it look like an accident!
I teach at a Charlotte Mason – style school, and I LOVE her philosophy. It is very practical and organic, and I like how easy it is to adapt for different type of learners.
#2–I would love to have that mystery solved, too! But in these days when I have three children under 5, there's a related mystery: How is possible that if a child coos in his or her sleep, beyond two closed doors, I will wake up–and yet when my husband's alarm clock (the 2nd most annoying clock in the world, I might add–it doesn't even beep a steady beat!) goes off, I don't even budge?
I wouldn't be able to sleep if I knew there was a mouse in my house!! They are so creepy!
I wake up with even the slightest sound. It drives me crazy when my husband lets his alarm go for longer than .67 seconds.
My 8 year old sets her alarm every night, and every morning, 45 minutes of alarm ringing later, I am in there shouting her awake. (Her bedroom is on a different floor than mine, so it's only when I am up and around and head to her level that I realize she is still asleep and the thing is still ringing)
I love your book idea, and that illustration is gorgeous!
I want to adopt some of those children, too. If you find a spare husband-material guy hanging around, tell him I'm in Russia waiting for him.
I love your blog, even when it is sad. Your words open ideas, places in my mind, and, sometimes, whole worlds. Thank you.
I can't wait to hear more about your children's book! The illustration you pictured looks lovely.
I am bad about sleeping through my alarm…not very long, but a few minutes at least. It's very quiet so it won't wake the little ones, and that's my excuse 🙂 Sometimes, the music playing will weave itself into my dreams. Or if there's some bantering morning crew, they'll become characters in whatever dream I happen to be having. It's actually pretty cool.
Not cool, however, is waking up too late to take a shower before the kids are ready for the day. I've got to figure out a way to wake with the alarm.
November was made to be sad. It's part of the natural rhythm of things. It's o.k.
Mice are amazing in their ability to dot every surface. So many times I've crouched in fear, is it mouse scat? Is it? Tell me it's just a piece of lint. . . .
I worked in a greenhouse, too — no mice there! But we have had some at homes, when we are near woods or fields and it gets cold. Stuff the holes they are coming in, with steel wool, and I'm afraid our best bet has been the big, heavy, super Rat-ish traps. I like them the best because they are quick.
Oh Carrien, I love that you are writing a children's book. I can't wait to read it- the illustrations look amazing too.
I'm excited about your children's book. I am also sad about your loss. I know this post was written ages ago, but I know the sadness is probably still there, and will be with you all your life, to one degree or another, so I pray.
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