• Pandemic Christmas Trees

    When I found out that we wouldn’t be able to go to the forest to cut our Christmas trees like we traditionally do because the Christmas Tree Cut day was canceled, I wondered what we would do about obtaining a Christmas tree this year. But then, a few days later,…

  • Some Things I’m Loving

    The tile next to the door in our family room was finally installed last week! I have been waiting and waiting. I LOVE the pattern on the tiles so much, although my family loves it a lot less. It makes me incredibly happy every time I walk into the room.…

  • Some Things I learned in November

    At the cello I have been working on chromaticism. It’s so tricky. It was standard practice to soak clothing in urine as part of the process of doing laundry during Roman times. In fact, urine was so sought after and valuable that special cisterns were placed around cities on the…

  • Watching Thankful Videos

    On Thanksgiving all of the cousins shared videos of what they were thankful for on a group text. Well, maybe more accurately, all of the parents of the cousins shared videos of what the cousins were thankful for on a group text. Each video was a lovely representation of the…

  • The Devious Snail Celebrates

    The Devious Snail requested bagels for breakfast in the bathtub, calzones for lunch, and special ribs cooked by Dr. Peds, who luckily had the day off, for supper. The cake was a white cake topped with lemon buttercream frosting. The siblings ate breakfast in the bathtub and at the dining…

  • Thanksgiving Pudding

    Whatever would I do if I didn’t live in a northern climate where I could chill the Thanksgiving raspberry rice pudding in the snowbank on the back porch? The chilling process is every bit as much of a tradition as eating the rice pudding. As The Banana noted, “Why do…

  • Beaver Pond

    Our visit to the beaver pond to investigate what those busy little creatures have been up to as they prepare for winter led us to learn a lot more about fascinating beavers. What beavers can accomplish in just a few weeks is truly amazing. One of my favorite forest walks…

  • Cat Roller Coaster

    Saturday afternoon entertainment involved making a roller coaster for the cat using a laundry basket while I was folding my laundry. The cat was feeling surprisingly sanguine throughout the whole ordeal, and when they finally decided to set the basket back down, he just recurled himself into a different shaped…