Posts from the ‘Snapshots’ Category

Get Ready

Here at Heart House, we are getting ready for what promises to be a very busy summer. The garden is planted and we should be picking the first fresh zucchini in a day or two. The  school work is winding down. And we are getting ready for lots of fun this summer – summer reading programs, field trips, 4H classes.

We will be participating in another tour of duty with Starfleet Fiber Arts Corps. The Heart household received many honors in the spring tour of duty. PBC was promoted to Lt. Commander and I have achieved the rank of Commander, though there may be another promotion in store for me soon. We both won medals for completing all 18 missions during the tour. And our ship, the USS Alpaca, won the title of Flagship for the next tour so we are excited to begin the Deep Space tour with that honor.

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Pi R Square

My kids love holidays, especially the geeky ones. Wednesday, was a bigger celebration than Christmas at the Heart House. It was the birthday of Albert Einstein (of e=mc² fame), Frank Borman (one of the first astronauts to circle the moon) and Billy Crystal (aka Miracle Max from The Princess Bride). If that wasn’t enough, it was also National Potato Chip Day and Learn About Butterflies Day. In addition, Google posted a special doodle honoring origami expert, Akira Yoshizawa. But the thing that really made the day for my kids was that it was Pi Day. In honor of such a monumental day, I would like to share the Pi pie that we made to celebrate.

Dandelion Bouquets

One of the oddities of life is that the value of an item is often determined by circumstances, rather than the item itself. A baseball, for example, is worth a few dollars unless it happens to be a baseball that Babe Ruth signed.

Take, for example, the dandelion. In one’s yard, they are considered weeds. There are dozens of treatments available at your local garden center for the prevention and removal of dandelions. Some people spend hundreds, even thousands, of dollars removing these pesky yellow flowers.  But let those dandelions be presented to you by a little child and suddenly they become a rare gift. More precious than the rarest rose. I have been given many bouquets of flowers over the years but the ones that are most precious have been the ones picked from the yard by the hands of my loving children.

Elevensies

My kids and I have been reading through The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkein together. Thanks to our hobbit friend, Mr. Bilbo Baggins, we were introduced to the lovely tradition of elevensies each day.  My family has decided to adopt this hobbit tradition as our own. Each day, we take a break from work and school to enjoy a cup of tea and, perhaps, a snack. I read a section of The Hobbit while we sip our tea. It has been a nice way to recharge our minds and enjoy some family time together. If you have never tried elevensies, maybe it’s time you did.

Too Busy to Blog

Between Timmy, the garden, the dead freezer, last week’s problems with car glass, computer issues and the kids, that is how my life has been.

So let’s catch up, shall we?
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Humbled, Heartbroken but Hopeful

In case you weren’t aware, Alabama was hit hard by a series of tornadoes earlier this week. I spent the biggest part of two days without electrical service so I am only just becoming aware at the degree of devastation but what I have seen so far is heart wrenching. Last count, over two hundred people lost their lives and thousands have lost their homes. At least 3 tornadoes have been confirmed. A number of neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble. So much destruction. My heart breaks for the families who have lost so much.

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Rerun

Between Christmas preparations, sick kids and knitting, I have had little time to post. It’s Christmas eve night, I am listening to the rain pour down on the roof and wondering if I can finish just one more Christmas knitting project. Doubtful, but fortunately, the family is cool with IOUs.

In light of the fact that I am still working on Christmas knitting, I am going to share with you a post from last year that you might enjoy. Hope you will forgive me for the rerun. I think my feelings are still about the same for all these songs. My current favorite Christmas album is Andrea Bocelli – My Christmas. Give it a listen if you haven’t.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas.

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Christmas Music
originally published 23 Dec 2008

The thing that I am most happy about this Christmas season is that soon radio stations and stores everywhere will stop playing Christmas music. I would be quite happy if Christmas music were limited to the week before Christmas. There are some songs that are particularly irritation. My kids and I have come up with a list of the most annoying songs of the season.

Top 10 Most Annoying Christmas Songs

• 10. I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus (particularly the Michael Jackson version)
• 9. I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas (this one happens to be my hubby’s favorite which is probably why the kids hate it.)
• 8. All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth (the whistling version is worst)
• 7. Twelve Days of Christmas. There are only so many types of poultry that should be put in a single song. This goes double for any of the variations like the Redneck version, the Canadian version, etc.
• 6. Christmas Shoes. I don’t particularly like tear jerker songs but this one is just too sappy. What else could go wrong for this poor kid – he gets struck by lightning on the way to the hospital with the shoes. Seriously, the only kid with worse luck is Harry Potter.
• 5. Do they Know It’s Christmas, Happy Christmas (War is Over) or any Christmas song with a political agenda. Save the politics for the other 364 days of the year, please.
• 4. Jingle Bells – Barking Dogs version. Root canal is more pleasant
• 3. Little Drummer Boy – especially the version by the Vienna Boys Choir
• 2. Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer Grandmothers everywhere should boycott the advertisers for every radio station that plays it.
• 1. My Favorite Things – Because it’s NOT EVEN a Christmas Song

Any Christmas song sung my Madonna should also be included in this group. Hope you have enjoyed our little countdown.

Next post. Christmas Knitting.

Random Ramblings

• Of Christmas
  We are visiting the in-laws soon so I need to wrap their Christmas presents. However, SmallFry’s fondness for tape has left me with a little problem. There is no tape to be found in the house. Do you think it would be considered cruel or insulting if I were to glue the wrapping paper to their presents? Would I be invited back next year? My friend GG says that it would make a great experiment in human behavior. What do you think? Should I try it in the name of science?
• Of car repairs
  We have the misfortune of owning a Jeep Liberty. One of those with the window defect which makes the windows fall into the door without warning and for no apparent reason. We have owned the vehicle for a little over a year and we have had 5 repairs on the windows, two in the last three weeks. Note: This amounts to one more repair than the number of windows in the vehicle.

  Thursday we got the vehicle back from it’s most recent visit to the repair shop. Yesterday while visiting some friends, I was recounting the tale of the most recent repair adventures. We were laughing over the thoughts of me driving with one hand on the steering wheel and one on the window. I assure you, this is not an easy or safe way to drive. How do you signal that you are planning to turn? How do you turn on the wipers or dim the lights?

  During this conversation, it started raining. Really raining. The kind of rain that would have made Noah’s neighbors start building their own arks. My friend turned to me with the most earnest expression and said “I hope your windows are up.” We all burst into hysterical laughter. When I could breathe again I replied, “So do I, man. So do I.” But with that silly Jeep, you never really know.

• Of rainstorms
  The good news is we made it to the Jeep and the window was still up. The bad news is that we were all drenched. When we made it home, I stopped the Jeep in the driveway so I could get the mail. I hurried across the road to get my mail, stepped into a puddle that soaked my jeans to my knees and reached in the mailbox to find…a stupid sale ad. I stepped knee-deep in ice cold water for a sale ad. Some days you just can’t win.
• Of ladybugs
  Everyone thinks that ladybugs are wonderful bugs but I would like to share a few little known facts about ladybugs that show a different side of the little nuisances.
  Fact 1 – Ladybugs like to hibernate indoors and together. Unless your home is extremely well insulated these little buggies can find a way into your home for a winter snooze.
  Fact 2 – Ladybugs stink. When threatened ladybugs give off a rather disgusting odor to convince predators that they taste bad.
  Fact 3 – Ladybugs are small and move rather quickly into places where you do not want them, particularly in areas of high humidity.
  Fact 4 – Contrary to popular belief, ladybugs can and do bite when properly provoked. Trust me on this.

  These ladybug facts bring me to my final rambling. Yesterday, I gathered my jeans and tee-shirt from the dryer and went to the bathroom for a shower. I placed my clothing on the back of the toilet while I showered (we have a really small bathroom so that is the only “shelf” available). I enjoyed a lovely hot shower and got dressed. I went to my room to put on my shoes and noticed a weird feeling on my leg. A rapidly realized that I had a ladybug in my pants. After a hurried apology to the kids (that the kids said reminded them of Dean from The Iron Giant), I shed the jeans but not before the aforementioned ladybug felt properly threatened. Yup! I got bitten and stinked. I hate ladybugs.

  Next post, I will talk about knitting.