See? Toldja.Monday, June 11, 2007
Timber!
Once upon a time, there were two trees in our front yard. 
They were very close together, and impeded each other's growth. They also dropped such a thick carpet of acidic needles that virtually nothing could grow. They also made most of our front yard shady (which was nice) and kept natural light out of our home (which was not).
So we decided to take one out. It would allow the other to grow better, open up the yard for other plants (such as blueberries, which will thrive in the still-highly-acidic soil), and let light into our house.
Daddy and Grandpa carefully made a wedge cut in the tree trunk, so that it would fall across the lawn--not hitting the house nor falling into the street...but if one looks carefully at the photo, one can see that the tree did not stand straight...
...and it did not fall straight either.
Thankfully it fell mostly on the sidewalk, baby privets (the beginning of our hedge), and the very edge of the road--only filling out as far as a parked car would have. Traffic was not detoured, and nobody called the police. Thank heaven!
Daddy and Grandpa cut it up quickly, cleared the road, and now we have light, space, blueberry bushes, and firewood for this coming winter!
Hubby and I were discussing, and he commented that while he knew it was best to cut the tree down (from the perspective of allowing the other one to grow better, also for lighting our home, planting our flowers, and just pure asthetics...), but it's still a little hard to realize that in a matter of 30 minutes, they had killed a tree that had been growing for 36 years...(yes, we counted the rings). Hopefully ecological karma will forgive us, as we planted a tree last year and one this year and plan to plant 3 next year...
They were very close together, and impeded each other's growth. They also dropped such a thick carpet of acidic needles that virtually nothing could grow. They also made most of our front yard shady (which was nice) and kept natural light out of our home (which was not).So we decided to take one out. It would allow the other to grow better, open up the yard for other plants (such as blueberries, which will thrive in the still-highly-acidic soil), and let light into our house.
Daddy and Grandpa carefully made a wedge cut in the tree trunk, so that it would fall across the lawn--not hitting the house nor falling into the street...but if one looks carefully at the photo, one can see that the tree did not stand straight...
...and it did not fall straight either.
Thankfully it fell mostly on the sidewalk, baby privets (the beginning of our hedge), and the very edge of the road--only filling out as far as a parked car would have. Traffic was not detoured, and nobody called the police. Thank heaven!
Daddy and Grandpa cut it up quickly, cleared the road, and now we have light, space, blueberry bushes, and firewood for this coming winter!Hubby and I were discussing, and he commented that while he knew it was best to cut the tree down (from the perspective of allowing the other one to grow better, also for lighting our home, planting our flowers, and just pure asthetics...), but it's still a little hard to realize that in a matter of 30 minutes, they had killed a tree that had been growing for 36 years...(yes, we counted the rings). Hopefully ecological karma will forgive us, as we planted a tree last year and one this year and plan to plant 3 next year...
Friday, May 11, 2007
May: a Photo Essay
W 's favorite passtime
S Smiles at the baby in the mirror (and shows off his fun new diapers--size medium--in colors!)
Sucking on his fists. Another favorite passtime.
Now that he rolls over, he gets quality floor time with the doggie too.
Flowers and lawn finally in in front. Those bits of color are 'wave petunias' each plant is supposed to turn into a 2-ft mound of color...we'll see how they go! They've already tripled in size in their first two weeks, so I'm inclined to believe they will live up to their reputation!
Veggie garden in in back. (including the vital 15 tomato plants!) AND the wonderful new clothesline hubby built for me! YAY!!!
Dutch oven pit and patio in back.
...and the locust tree hubby brought home...can you see the pinky-purple blossoms? It looks like a robe locust but apparently it's an Idaho Locust...whatever! It will give dappled shade to our backyard in summer and pretty flowers in spring. :-)
Sunday, May 6, 2007
"Flyboys"
And here is my first movie review!
This week DH and I saw "Flyboys." I don't recall having seen any previews for it, but dh had, and wanted to see it. I was very impressed with it!
"Flyboys" is about some young Americans who joined the French Air Force in WWI, prior to the USA entering the war. Airplanes were a brand new invention, and the ariel dogfight was adding a new demension to warfare. I particularly enjoyed the training sequence, where they taught the young men how to fly a plane prior to letting them actually go up; several of their methods were very amusing.
One of the young men was black, and some of the white boys were accepting of him while others were not--but they learned to work as a team in spite of previously-held ideas. One of the young men was deeply religious--I thought that modern hollywood would write a script that made fun of him for his faith, but in fact just the opposite was true. The other boys showed him the utmost respect, even when they clearly didn't feel the same way as he did. It's something I see so rarely in film that it really stood out.
Flyboys is rated PG-13, but there is a cumulative total of about 10 seconds of visuals warrenting this rating. There is no sex, no foul language, and the violence primarily consists of planes crashing down...except that there are a few brief moments where you see a burst of red as someone is shot (and then his plane spirals down...) The subject matter is pretty heavy--one pilot in particular really struggles with the fact of killing... I would not recommend it for small children because of that content...but I WOULD heartily recommend this movie. It's a good snapshot of history, presented simply and without apology. Add it to your WWI curriculum, and to your netflix queue!
This week DH and I saw "Flyboys." I don't recall having seen any previews for it, but dh had, and wanted to see it. I was very impressed with it!
"Flyboys" is about some young Americans who joined the French Air Force in WWI, prior to the USA entering the war. Airplanes were a brand new invention, and the ariel dogfight was adding a new demension to warfare. I particularly enjoyed the training sequence, where they taught the young men how to fly a plane prior to letting them actually go up; several of their methods were very amusing.
One of the young men was black, and some of the white boys were accepting of him while others were not--but they learned to work as a team in spite of previously-held ideas. One of the young men was deeply religious--I thought that modern hollywood would write a script that made fun of him for his faith, but in fact just the opposite was true. The other boys showed him the utmost respect, even when they clearly didn't feel the same way as he did. It's something I see so rarely in film that it really stood out.
Flyboys is rated PG-13, but there is a cumulative total of about 10 seconds of visuals warrenting this rating. There is no sex, no foul language, and the violence primarily consists of planes crashing down...except that there are a few brief moments where you see a burst of red as someone is shot (and then his plane spirals down...) The subject matter is pretty heavy--one pilot in particular really struggles with the fact of killing... I would not recommend it for small children because of that content...but I WOULD heartily recommend this movie. It's a good snapshot of history, presented simply and without apology. Add it to your WWI curriculum, and to your netflix queue!
Monday, April 30, 2007
Chocolate Cake
If you have not heard the Bill Cosby bit about chocolate cake, this will not be nearly so funny.
On Friday night we made a chocolate cake.
On Saturday morning, hubby asked Wolf what he would like for breakfast. With a gleam in his eye, Wolf said "Chocolate cake?!"
Hubby looked at him sternly and said "only if you sing the song."
Well, apparently we have taught our son well, because he gleefully burst into song "Dad is great, gives us chocolate cake. Dad is great..."
Daddy danced around the kitchen a couple of times to the music before getting Wolf a nice piece of (unfrosted) chocolate cake for breakfast.
Sunday evening Wolf came up to me and said "I have a song for Bear...'mom is great, gives us miiiiilk, mom is great, gives us miiiiilk...'"
See, we're teaching our kids good things! :-)
On Friday night we made a chocolate cake.
On Saturday morning, hubby asked Wolf what he would like for breakfast. With a gleam in his eye, Wolf said "Chocolate cake?!"
Hubby looked at him sternly and said "only if you sing the song."
Well, apparently we have taught our son well, because he gleefully burst into song "Dad is great, gives us chocolate cake. Dad is great..."
Daddy danced around the kitchen a couple of times to the music before getting Wolf a nice piece of (unfrosted) chocolate cake for breakfast.
Sunday evening Wolf came up to me and said "I have a song for Bear...'mom is great, gives us miiiiilk, mom is great, gives us miiiiilk...'"
See, we're teaching our kids good things! :-)
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Chester and the Prius
So, Chester died. Well, at least, he had a heart attack... Chester is our 10yr old toyota, and at 190,000 miles, he cracked a rod, and gave up the ghost. It was either a new engine or a new car...please understand that when I say 'new' I actually mean 'old-but-hopefully-slightly-less-old-than-Chester." There is no way we can afford a new car right now, and we prefer a somewhat used one anyway since cars depreciate so fast.
After exploring the options, we concluded that the $1645 for a heart transplant (ie--new engine) was the best option. After all, Chester is only 10, gets REALLY good gas mileage, and probably has a lot of life left in him...if only he can have a new heart. The shop guarantees that the new engine will have less than 30,000 miles on it, so that's practically brand new for us!
While we were out and about, looking at alternatives, we concluded that what we really want is a Toyota Prius. Yup, the hybrid. It is SO COOL!!! It gets, oh, about 60mpg. In town. (It's actually slightly lower on highway, since it has to rely on more gas for longer distances and higher speeds). We had drooled over hybrid cars before, but I think we've now made a concrete goal: next time Chester dies, we will buy a Prius.
Probably a used one of course.
The only thing better would be a true electric car, but after creating one, GM stupidly withdrew it...stupid stupid stupid. That company is working so hard to refuse to make the kind of vehicles that the public wants and that the environment needs. I hate stupid people.
Now I think I need to go put a load of cloth diapers into my energy-star washing machine and maybe I'll change another lightbulb to a compact flourescent, just for good measure. Somebody has to save the planet.
After exploring the options, we concluded that the $1645 for a heart transplant (ie--new engine) was the best option. After all, Chester is only 10, gets REALLY good gas mileage, and probably has a lot of life left in him...if only he can have a new heart. The shop guarantees that the new engine will have less than 30,000 miles on it, so that's practically brand new for us!
While we were out and about, looking at alternatives, we concluded that what we really want is a Toyota Prius. Yup, the hybrid. It is SO COOL!!! It gets, oh, about 60mpg. In town. (It's actually slightly lower on highway, since it has to rely on more gas for longer distances and higher speeds). We had drooled over hybrid cars before, but I think we've now made a concrete goal: next time Chester dies, we will buy a Prius.
Probably a used one of course.
The only thing better would be a true electric car, but after creating one, GM stupidly withdrew it...stupid stupid stupid. That company is working so hard to refuse to make the kind of vehicles that the public wants and that the environment needs. I hate stupid people.
Now I think I need to go put a load of cloth diapers into my energy-star washing machine and maybe I'll change another lightbulb to a compact flourescent, just for good measure. Somebody has to save the planet.
Thursday, April 5, 2007
Three Meme
OK, so, I didn't actually get tagged for this...but I saw it here and I liked it. :-) Besides which, three is my favorite number (and hubby's also).
Three Things That Scare Me:
1. the local drivers (who believe that a yellow light means "hurry up" and a red one means "hurry up more")
2. someting happening to a member of my family and my not being able to help or do anything
3. the dark (yes, still, even as an adult)
Three People Who Make Me Laugh:
1. my hubby
2. my sister K
3. my dog (oh yes, she's a people--just ask her!!!)
Three Things I Love:
1. my family
2. sunrise
3. a job well done and a good day's work
Three Things I Hate:
1. Walmart
2. Vomit
3. Hate itself--c'mon people, spread a little love around!
Three Things I Don’t Understand:
1. eco-UNfriendly people--how can you not care?!
2. why I had to lose three babies before I got to keep one
3. W's logic...or his jokes ("what's so funny about a joke? A JOKE!!! hahahahaha!)
Three Things On My Desk:
1. computer
2. ledger book with our finances
3. empty cereal bowl (yup, I was naughty and ate breakfast at the desk while nursing the baby and reading my email)
Three Things I’m Doing Right Now:
1. nursing my baby
2. listening to birds outside--I love spring!
3. procrastinating doing the dishes (I'm nursing the baby!)
Three Things I Want To Do Before I Die:
1. visit Scandinavia
2. own/run a Bed & Breakfast with my hubby
3. take an Alaskan cruise
Three Things I Don't Ever Want To Do:
1. skydive
2. ski
3. lose another baby
Three Things I Can Do:
1. sew just about anything
2. bake bread
3. ballroom dance
Three Things I Can’t Do:
[yet]
1. manage to get all the different parts of dinner to finish cooking at the same time
2. keep my mouth shut about stuff that matters to me
3. give up my faith
Three Things I Think You Should Listen To:
1. a baby's laugh
2. children singing (like this)
3. good advice from people who love you
Three Things You Should Never Listen To:
1. a baby's cry--pick him up and nurse him already!
2. insults or put-downs
3. songs with naughty words
Three Things I’d Like To Learn:
1. crochet (and better knitting)
2. better piano skills
3. how to be more non-judgemental
Three Favorite Foods:
1. italian
2. chinese
3. anything I didn't have to cook (I like cooking, I just get tired of it)
Three Shows I Watched As A Kid:
1. Mr Rogers
2. Square One (with mathnet!)
3. 3-2-1 Contact
yes, we were a PBS-only family. :-)
Three Things I Regret:
1. not learning piano a little better (I'm a rapid one-finger player)
2. not keeping a tighter budget, and the fact that we have two credit cards
3. I really can't think of anything else. I try to think about most things beforehand...so I rarely regret things...
Three Bloggers I'm tagging:
1. Lollymom
2. Katie
3. Kim
and/or whoever wants to, of course!
(please post a link to your post in the comments section...)
Three Things That Scare Me:
1. the local drivers (who believe that a yellow light means "hurry up" and a red one means "hurry up more")
2. someting happening to a member of my family and my not being able to help or do anything
3. the dark (yes, still, even as an adult)
Three People Who Make Me Laugh:
1. my hubby
2. my sister K
3. my dog (oh yes, she's a people--just ask her!!!)
Three Things I Love:
1. my family
2. sunrise
3. a job well done and a good day's work
Three Things I Hate:
1. Walmart
2. Vomit
3. Hate itself--c'mon people, spread a little love around!
Three Things I Don’t Understand:
1. eco-UNfriendly people--how can you not care?!
2. why I had to lose three babies before I got to keep one
3. W's logic...or his jokes ("what's so funny about a joke? A JOKE!!! hahahahaha!)
Three Things On My Desk:
1. computer
2. ledger book with our finances
3. empty cereal bowl (yup, I was naughty and ate breakfast at the desk while nursing the baby and reading my email)
Three Things I’m Doing Right Now:
1. nursing my baby
2. listening to birds outside--I love spring!
3. procrastinating doing the dishes (I'm nursing the baby!)
Three Things I Want To Do Before I Die:
1. visit Scandinavia
2. own/run a Bed & Breakfast with my hubby
3. take an Alaskan cruise
Three Things I Don't Ever Want To Do:
1. skydive
2. ski
3. lose another baby
Three Things I Can Do:
1. sew just about anything
2. bake bread
3. ballroom dance
Three Things I Can’t Do:
[yet]
1. manage to get all the different parts of dinner to finish cooking at the same time
2. keep my mouth shut about stuff that matters to me
3. give up my faith
Three Things I Think You Should Listen To:
1. a baby's laugh
2. children singing (like this)
3. good advice from people who love you
Three Things You Should Never Listen To:
1. a baby's cry--pick him up and nurse him already!
2. insults or put-downs
3. songs with naughty words
Three Things I’d Like To Learn:
1. crochet (and better knitting)
2. better piano skills
3. how to be more non-judgemental
Three Favorite Foods:
1. italian
2. chinese
3. anything I didn't have to cook (I like cooking, I just get tired of it)
Three Shows I Watched As A Kid:
1. Mr Rogers
2. Square One (with mathnet!)
3. 3-2-1 Contact
yes, we were a PBS-only family. :-)
Three Things I Regret:
1. not learning piano a little better (I'm a rapid one-finger player)
2. not keeping a tighter budget, and the fact that we have two credit cards
3. I really can't think of anything else. I try to think about most things beforehand...so I rarely regret things...
Three Bloggers I'm tagging:
1. Lollymom
2. Katie
3. Kim
and/or whoever wants to, of course!
(please post a link to your post in the comments section...)
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Singin' in the Shower...
As I sit here typing, W is in the shower singing at the top of his lungs a patriotic song they sing at school "We're the hope of America, stand and shout for America..."
It reminded me of something...
Today I was helping out in his kindergarten class, where they have a little bathroom right in the corner of the classroom. (I figure it makes sense for the kindergartners to have a bathroom right there--some of them are still on the two-second-warning level of potty training, and wouldn't make it down the hall to the main student restrooms.) Anyway, we were working on a craft when I heard singing...I looked around the room and could not see W, and realized he was in the bathroom. At home he will often sit on the toilet for 15-20 minutes, singing as he does his thing...sometimes he gets so wrapped up in his singing he doesn't seem to notice that he's finished his business and so he just keeps sitting there...singing his heart out... Well, it seems that he sings in the bathroom at school too. I wonder if the teachers notice?!
It reminded me of something...
Today I was helping out in his kindergarten class, where they have a little bathroom right in the corner of the classroom. (I figure it makes sense for the kindergartners to have a bathroom right there--some of them are still on the two-second-warning level of potty training, and wouldn't make it down the hall to the main student restrooms.) Anyway, we were working on a craft when I heard singing...I looked around the room and could not see W, and realized he was in the bathroom. At home he will often sit on the toilet for 15-20 minutes, singing as he does his thing...sometimes he gets so wrapped up in his singing he doesn't seem to notice that he's finished his business and so he just keeps sitting there...singing his heart out... Well, it seems that he sings in the bathroom at school too. I wonder if the teachers notice?!
Cloth Diapers
I just had to show off a little...both my baby and his diapers.
I made these in a similar pattern to ones I had seen, but the color combinations are all my own, so these are literally one-of-a-kind diapers. As W likes to remind us all "S, you have some of the cutest diapers in the whole world!)
And, for what it's worth, we have NEVER had a blow out with these. Slight moisture leaks at the legs, but never up the back or poop everywhere. Truly, a superior diaper!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
My Hubby
[daddy with newborn S]
My husband is so cool. He thinks I'm so impressive, and he loves to tell people how neat I am. The other day he told me about how he was telling one of his co-workers about how I made cloth diapers for our baby, and that I got "like 5000 snaps for $8." Truthfully, it was more like 2000 snaps for $20, but it's so endearing that he makes me sound so good. :-) I figure I'm just a mommy trying to do what needs doing and otherwise keep her head above water...but every now and then my hubby tells me I'm amazing, and it sure feels nice. Every mommy needs a hubby like that.
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