Monday Musings

Outside My Window...
We're expecting rain this week, though right now it is chilly and sunny. The leaves are falling off the apple tree, and the cherry tree is almost completely bare. Time to cut the hydrangeas and a few other plants back to near ground-level!

In My Yard...
The Girl helped me out a lot yesterday. We "winterized" the chicken hutch, cleaning it all out, rearranging the roosts, putting a new "roof" in place (okay, a big sheet of plywood), and we dug a small drainage ditch to help reduce the amount of puddling when it rains. The Girl then cleaned the guinea pig cages, and we moved them from their semi-sunny, semi-shady spot on the back patio to the garage for the winter, where they will have more warmth, and protection from the rain.

In My Home...
Would you believe we are still getting rid of stuff? I guess years of being almost a packrat takes a while to undo. I am just so sick of so much stuff everywhere! And I finally have M and the kids fully on board. If it is outgrown, or a baby book, or a baby toy, or something that was given to us that we don't really care for, etc., etc., it has got to go. Yes, we're keeping some things as keepsakes, but not very much, only the really special items!

In My Kitchen...
I love getting three meals from one roast chicken! We had roast chicken and yummy veggies one night, chicken pot pie (made by M) another, and tonight we're having chicken soup. I made the broth pretty much this way (no feet or gizzards though), and it made the entire house smell absolutely fantastic yesterday!

Crafty Stuff...

A rare picture of the elusive M!

I finished M's scarf and started one for The Boy. I'm already about halfway through. M bought me a new sketchbook and some pencils, to encourage me to get back into drawing. After an accident at the park (details below), I am also putting together natural car and house first aid kits, so I want to make this all-natural substitute for Neosporin. And I want to get started soon on some goodies to give away at Christmas... I just have to decide what to make!

In Our Homeschooling...
I am trying to decide if maybe The Magic of Reality, wonderful book though it is, is too broad a focus for a block study. There are just so many tangents and points of interest... I don't know. Maybe something smaller, like The World in a Drop of Water would be easier to actually implement? We're reading from The Magic of Reality, but we're not really doing anything with it, you know what I mean? Hmm... I also challenged The Boy to work on another photo project or two, and I have an art project from The New Augsburg Drawing Book in mind. I also want The Boy to practice guitar at least a few times this week, and maybe M will have The Girl's guitar ready soon too!

So, the Accident...
At our Friday park days, there are a couple of moms I like to go for a quick walk and talk with, while other moms, who prefer to hang out and chat, keep an eye on the kids. We took off on our little loop, and before we got very far, my cell phone started ringing. It was J, The Boy's best buddy, letting me know there had been a " terrible scootering accident". We all immediately headed back, and there was my boy, sitting on the ground, gripping his foot, surrounded by concerned friends. He and his buddy somehow crashed into each other (something about someone's wheel getting stuck in the mud next to the paved trail, and the other unable to stop in time), and through The Boy's shoe, half his big toe nail got torn off. There was blood everywhere, and he was sobbing. Luckily, we have very well-prepped mamas, and they doctored him up in no time. Arnica tablets under the tongue every 15 minutes for pain and swelling, lots of fresh water rinsing, application of yarrow powder and bandaging. The Boy was totally bummed because he then missed an in-house fencing tournament on Saturday, AND he won't be able to try out the teen/adult fencing classes until it has healed a bit more -- there is a lot of toe use in fencing! However, he is healing beautifully now. This whole incident has made me aware that I need to be better prepared, not just assume my friends will cover things when there is an accident.

Hope you all have a good week!