Science

The children have been investigating various things under their microscope.  Here they are scraping out cheek cells.

Sarah ripped out some hair to study:

Marty was interested at first, but then she dozed off on the microscope bag:

Growing up

My kids are happily playing in the tub this morning.  They used to do that all the time, and now it's been months since they've been in there together. Sarah is a scientist who concocts various medications for a sick seal.  Noah is the veterinarian who administers it.  I'm savoring this sweet, innocent moment, because I know this may be one of the last times they play together in the tub.  They'll soon be too big.

Wacky Monday

There's really nothing like starting off a Monday morning with the police at your front door.  It wasn't even 8:00 a.m. when the doorbell rang.  We were huddled in bed reading a book.  Since I was wearing my pajamas with feet, I sent a child to the door while I listened from the hallway.

Big booming voice: "Is your Mommy or Daddy home?"
No answer.  Running feet.  "Mom, it's the police!"  What? Police! No time to put clothes on.  I open the door, and sure enough, a big cop gives me a quick head-to-toe glance.  Sometimes I really wish I was one of those people that took a shower every morning and got dressed in normal clothes.  This is one of those times. 

Before my mind can even finish imagining one of my loved ones dead, he gets right to the point.  Our elderly neighbor was found wandering the streets with his walker, and the police just wondered if I had any contact information.

Whew. Think I'll get dressed now.

My favorite time of year

 Two handsome guys mowing in the sunset

Sweet potato pudding, inspired by a book about a slave girl in the 1800s whose mama made sweet potato pudding for Christmas. We might start making it every fall!

Playing in the leaves, chilly nights, getting dark at 5:00 p.m., baking, apple orchards, pumpkins, harvest moons, I could go on and on....What are your favorite things about fall?

Cat puke

With a title like that, is anyone actually reading this post?

Yesterday, a realtor scheduled a showing for our house, so we had to abandon it early in the morning.  When we left, everything was perfectly clean and in order. When we came back, there was cat puke in the middle of the living room.  I wonder if it happened before, or after the showing?  Or worse, during?

Then this morning, Mike walked into the living room early while it was still shadowy and hard to see clearly.  There were some duplos scattered around the floor, and he reached down to pick one up that was in the doorway.  At least he thought it was a duplo, but he was surprised to discover it was squishy.  Cat puke.

Twins and queens

Noah was helping me take the cold sheets off my bed and put on the fleece ones.  He asked, "Why do your sheets come with two pillowcases and mine only comes with one?  I'm the one with a TWIN size bed.  Shouldn't I get TWO pillowcases?"  He's so logical and literal.  I told him that I'm the queen in the queen size bed, so I get two pillowcases.  He put his cheek down on the soft sheets and said, "I feel a snuggle coming on...." 

Unexpected guests

We were just starting quiet time this afternoon when the doorbell rang.  The neighbor girls had just gotten off the bus and discovered that they were locked out of their house.  We cancelled quiet time and had a tea party with banana crumpets instead.  The girls were wearing pajamas and told me it was Pajama Day at school.  I told them it was pajama day at our school too, so we had our tea party wearing pajamas and using English accents.  It was lots of fun!

I was going over vocabulary words with the older girl for a test she's having tomorrow, and I had no idea that Sarah was taking in every word.  I asked the neighbor girl, "What is the word that means 'a person responsible for a wrongdoing'?"  Sarah immediately blurted out, "Culprit!"  One of the other words was "confidential".  After the neighbor girls had gone home, Sarah was whispering something to me, and Noah asked what she was saying.  Sarah told him, "It's a confidential conversation between me and Mom."