Last night, I was brushing my teeth when I suddenly remembered something my youngest ds had said many years ago. We were sitting in the car, waiting on a particularly long train when ds said,
"It would take a lot of pounders to pound that train."
Now it would make more sense if you knew that "pounders" back then were tape measures! Ds said they told you how many "pounds" something was. Cut the guy some slack, he was only 3 years old!
His real fascination at that age was a tire pressure gauge. He found them fascinating, and brought one to every show and tell at preschool. We'd frequently check the tire pressure on the van when I picked him up after school. This led to quite often getting asked if we had a flat tire. LOL
Ds is now 13, and growing like crazy. He's hit quite a growth spurt this summer, and is shooting up like bamboo. I've also noticed he is getting broad through the chest and shoulders. He's definitely not a little kid anymore. Ds was complaining during the summer that he had outgrown his shoes. I told him that we'd get him some when school started, as he only wore them once a week anyway, to church.
Poor kid wasn't kidding about the shoes. Dh took him to the shoe store, and ds had grown two shoe sizes. I should have seen it coming, all the food he inhales these days has to be going somewhere.
Ds already has his future planned out. He wants to go to DeVry and learn to design video games like his older brother. He's definitely heading to the right field, computers are taking off these days, and it seems video games are as well. At least at my house they are! On the first day of school this year, he had to write where he wanted to go to college, and what he wanted to do for a living. He of course said DeVry. No one knew where the college was located, except for ds.
Thank You Father for the gift of this young man who has gone from talking of pounding trains to planning out his future. He's a clown, a child with a great heart, and a good head on his shoulders. At least most of the time. He's also the worst bedtime staller I've ever met. I love him dearly, Father, and thank You so very much for the gift of him. Please watch over him, and guide him in Your ways. Amen.
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Psalm 127:3
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Saturday
My mom once told me that all the emails I sent her titled, "Saturday", always start with the words, "I'm so exhausted". Once again, that has proven itself true. It has also been a rather interesting day, one that has me feeling very accomplished.
I had an outreach with the zoo that had me leaving the house quite early this morning. I arrived at the college where the event was to be held, and settled in. I always enjoy working with the other docents, it's fun to chat with them during slow times, and it's nice to have someone reach over with a paper towel and clean mess off your leg, or gently say, "actually, that animal is from Africa, not Europe." Hey, no one's perfect!
The day wore on, we had an ongoing flow of people coming by, enough to keep it interesting without getting overwhelming. I decided it would be fun to hold the hedgehog-harmless enough, right? It's just a hedgehog. So I don the heavy gloves, and scoop up Harley. It's fun to show people how they roll up in prickle balls, and become impenetrable. Harley would also peek his cute little face out between my fingers like he was shy.
I'd had him for a while, and Harley was resting in my lap. Nothing big going on, I was just relaxing, listening to everyone talk. All the sudden, Harley latches on to my wrist, and won't let go! Let me tell you, hedgehogs have 36 very sharp teeth, and bites HURT!
When a hedgehog feels threatened, they will "pop" up in the air to give a predator of mouthful of prickles. Harley kept popping with his teeth firmly embedded in my wrist. It was enough to bring tears to my eyes. The worst thing is that there were 4 other volunteers there, (and one with more experience than me), and no-one knew how to detach this thing from my arm.
I thought maybe if I put him back in the carrier, he'd let go. But someone had come by and put 4 bbq plates on the carrier, so that was out. The only thing I could think of was to rush him over to the water fountain, and douse him in it. A guest followed me over and hit the button for me. (very hard to do when your hands are tied up with hedgehogs. Hips don't work well.)
Harley released the second that cold water hit him. Relief! My wrist had multiple teeth marks where he had bitten me, in an area about the size of a quarter. It hurt so much, but no blood drawn. After putting Harley in jail, (his carrier), I sat down, and said, "There goes having a hedgehog for a pet! One volunteer later said she would have dropped him. I guarantee, if I had tried to drop Harley, he would have been hanging from my wrist by his teeth.
When I told my boss about the bite, I told him nothing unusual had happened, he was resting one minute, and bit me the next. Mr. H said, "Welcome to hedgehogs." Nope, not having one as a pet. EVER. I'll stick with ferrets, and guinea pigs. They are more my style.
After the zoo, ( I got 6 hours today!) I met up with my dh for a fun evening out. Okay, well it was nothing glamorous, he'd been driving, and I'd been holding animals for the zoo, but we had fun together. We ran a couple of errands, and grabbed a bite to eat.
Then we went home, and had a nice time talking about everything on the way. We got home, and the house was so hot. Not what we wanted after a long hot day at work. Time to clean the a/c unit. Actually, cleaning the coils isn't too much work, it's putting it back together that's the hassle. I think it took longer than cleaning the whole thing.
Our last chore for the day, and by now it was about 8:30pm. We needed to repair our pool gate. Sometime back, a dog had broken through the lattice, and broke a big hole in it. Eventually, the bottom of the gate had broken off completely. Not only was this a hazard for neighborhood children, it wouldn't confine the dog either. So after a bit of trimming and nailing, we have a strong new gate. Just in time for my niece's visit next week with her little ones. I'm so excited! Plus, we have a fenced in area to let the dogs run. Thank you honey!
By this point, dh and I were hot, tired, sweaty, and covered in bug bites. I told him we should strip down and jump in the pool. He started in the house for towels, and I said, no, just get in the pool. What a refreshing treat after so much work, and such a long day. Of course the kids thought we were crazy, ( or something), but who cares. Nothing beats relaxing in your pool after a day of hard work.
At this point, after all the hard work we've put into our pool, I think it must be full of Holy water, as we have sure cleaned the h*ll out of it~ Have a great evening!
Chela
I had an outreach with the zoo that had me leaving the house quite early this morning. I arrived at the college where the event was to be held, and settled in. I always enjoy working with the other docents, it's fun to chat with them during slow times, and it's nice to have someone reach over with a paper towel and clean mess off your leg, or gently say, "actually, that animal is from Africa, not Europe." Hey, no one's perfect!
The day wore on, we had an ongoing flow of people coming by, enough to keep it interesting without getting overwhelming. I decided it would be fun to hold the hedgehog-harmless enough, right? It's just a hedgehog. So I don the heavy gloves, and scoop up Harley. It's fun to show people how they roll up in prickle balls, and become impenetrable. Harley would also peek his cute little face out between my fingers like he was shy.
I'd had him for a while, and Harley was resting in my lap. Nothing big going on, I was just relaxing, listening to everyone talk. All the sudden, Harley latches on to my wrist, and won't let go! Let me tell you, hedgehogs have 36 very sharp teeth, and bites HURT!
When a hedgehog feels threatened, they will "pop" up in the air to give a predator of mouthful of prickles. Harley kept popping with his teeth firmly embedded in my wrist. It was enough to bring tears to my eyes. The worst thing is that there were 4 other volunteers there, (and one with more experience than me), and no-one knew how to detach this thing from my arm.
I thought maybe if I put him back in the carrier, he'd let go. But someone had come by and put 4 bbq plates on the carrier, so that was out. The only thing I could think of was to rush him over to the water fountain, and douse him in it. A guest followed me over and hit the button for me. (very hard to do when your hands are tied up with hedgehogs. Hips don't work well.)
Harley released the second that cold water hit him. Relief! My wrist had multiple teeth marks where he had bitten me, in an area about the size of a quarter. It hurt so much, but no blood drawn. After putting Harley in jail, (his carrier), I sat down, and said, "There goes having a hedgehog for a pet! One volunteer later said she would have dropped him. I guarantee, if I had tried to drop Harley, he would have been hanging from my wrist by his teeth.
When I told my boss about the bite, I told him nothing unusual had happened, he was resting one minute, and bit me the next. Mr. H said, "Welcome to hedgehogs." Nope, not having one as a pet. EVER. I'll stick with ferrets, and guinea pigs. They are more my style.
After the zoo, ( I got 6 hours today!) I met up with my dh for a fun evening out. Okay, well it was nothing glamorous, he'd been driving, and I'd been holding animals for the zoo, but we had fun together. We ran a couple of errands, and grabbed a bite to eat.
Then we went home, and had a nice time talking about everything on the way. We got home, and the house was so hot. Not what we wanted after a long hot day at work. Time to clean the a/c unit. Actually, cleaning the coils isn't too much work, it's putting it back together that's the hassle. I think it took longer than cleaning the whole thing.
Our last chore for the day, and by now it was about 8:30pm. We needed to repair our pool gate. Sometime back, a dog had broken through the lattice, and broke a big hole in it. Eventually, the bottom of the gate had broken off completely. Not only was this a hazard for neighborhood children, it wouldn't confine the dog either. So after a bit of trimming and nailing, we have a strong new gate. Just in time for my niece's visit next week with her little ones. I'm so excited! Plus, we have a fenced in area to let the dogs run. Thank you honey!
By this point, dh and I were hot, tired, sweaty, and covered in bug bites. I told him we should strip down and jump in the pool. He started in the house for towels, and I said, no, just get in the pool. What a refreshing treat after so much work, and such a long day. Of course the kids thought we were crazy, ( or something), but who cares. Nothing beats relaxing in your pool after a day of hard work.
At this point, after all the hard work we've put into our pool, I think it must be full of Holy water, as we have sure cleaned the h*ll out of it~ Have a great evening!
Chela
Friday, July 1, 2011
Allison the Sad Chicken
Allison was a beautiful chicken that lived on a happy farm in a lush countryside in the Midwest. Allison loved her happy farm. She had lots of other chicken friends, and the farmer took great care of them. There was lots of green grass, and trees for shade. In the distance there were grand snow-capped mountains.
Allison should have been really happy, and usually she was. One thing bothered her though. When the other hens preened their feathers, they would lay down nice and smooth. The farmer would run his hands down the chickens’ backs, and comment what pretty feathers they had. However, no matter how much Allison preened, her feathers refused to lay flat. They poked out, and curled, and refused to mind Allison’s beak.
Poor Allison felt so very ashamed of her feathers. She often hid in the barn, under the hayloft where no one could see her. She would sit and wonder why her feathers weren’t as pretty as the other hens. Why didn’t her feathers look like Stacy’s, or Fern’s, or Heather’s? The other girls tried to be nice, and say they liked the way her feathers looked, but it didn’t help how Allison felt.
When the hens went out to sit in the sun, and gaze at the mountains, Allison stayed in the barn. When farmer John threw treats out for his chickens, Allison didn’t feel like joining them. Sometimes she’d talk to the other hens when they came in the barn to sit on eggs, but mostly she just kept to herself.
One day, Allison noticed a big trailer in front of the barn. What was Farmer John doing? There was a lot of commotion while something huge came out of the back of the trailer. Allison fluttered up to the top of the stall door and had a look. What was that big thing? Suddenly, a big neigh sounded in the barn!
“Meet Kate everyone! “Farmer John proudly proclaimed to all of us. By now all the animals had crowded around the barn to see what was going on. “Kate is a draft horse! She is going to be helping me in the fields, to harvest crops for your food.” He continued.
The animals were amazed at how beautiful Kate was. Her beautiful white coat glistened in the afternoon sun. Her hooves were huge! They were the size of the tray Farmer put out full of food for the chickens. Kate was so tall! She looked as tall as the tallest trees in the yard.
“Hello everyone “said Kate. “I am so happy to be here. This looks like a really nice farm, and the mountains are so majestic. Farmer John and I will get a lot of work done in the fields to bring everyone good food to eat. Then in the evenings, we can sit together and talk over dinner.”
Farmer John went inside to eat dinner while the animals got acquainted. Kate wandered the barn yard, and talked to all the animals. She met the sheep, the goats, the cows, and the geese. Of course she met all the chickens. They were worried about her big hooves of course, but Kate set them at ease.
“Don’t worry, ladies. I am very careful of my feet. I will set them down gently, and feel for feathers before I drop my hoof. You are my friends, and I don’t want to hurt you.”
After looking around the farm, Kate wandered back in to the barn. She went to eat some yummy hay the farmer had set out. When she grabbed a mouthful, she startled Allison, who had fallen asleep in the hay!
“Oh my goodness!” exclaimed Kate in surprise.” I didn’t see you there, I’m so sorry. I just wanted to get something to eat.”
“It’s okay; I guess I fell asleep here. I watched you arrive, and was just amazed at how pretty you were. And well, how big you were. By the way, I’m Allison.” She commented to her new friend.
“May I ask,” Kate inquired, “why aren’t you out in the barn yard with the other hens? They found some great food out there.”
“Yeah, I know. It’s just...” Tears welled up in Allison’s eyes. “Well, my feathers aren’t as pretty as the other hens. They don’t mind my beak, and poke up everywhere. I try and try, but they just curl everywhere. I’m not pretty.”
“Oh Allison, Honey, you are a very beautiful hen.” Consoled Kate
“I am?” asked Allison
“Oh yes, Allison, you are beautiful. Your feathers are so curly and cute. They have personality! You have curly feathers because you are a sizzle chicken. God made their feathers to curl, not lay flat. He must like curly feathers, on the farm where I was born; there are lots of chickens like you. The farmer, Luke, loves them. He calls them his curly girls.” Kate explained.
As they were talking, Farmer John walked up to the barn.
“Hi Kate, I see you have found a new friend in the barnyard.” He commented happily. “What a pretty hen! I haven’t seen you around much. Where have you been hiding? I love your curly feathers; they don’t look anything like the other ladies. You should come out of the barn more often; your feathers are much too pretty to hide.”
From then on, Kate helped the farmer in the fields, and Allison joined all the hens in the warm sun and lush grass, and proudly admired the mountains. She often thanked Jesus for her beautiful curly feathers.
Chela
Friday, June 17, 2011
Bullfrog Revisited
College kid caught the bullfrog!! I can't believe he did it. He is so fast, I guess years of skateboarding have given him good reflexes. We had been out cleaning the pool, vacuuming and scooping out leaves and such.
Dh had scooped up a net-full of leaves, and when he dumped it, out hopped this big black thing right towards him! The poor guy was too startled to do anything, (and no-one else was anywhere near close enough) so back in the murky water went our bullfrog.
We decided to call it quits a while later, due to dwindling daylight, and lightning. We poured in 6 jugs of chlorine, then college kid resumed trimming bushes. We noticed the frog popping up frequently, I assume to try and get out of the chemicals. College kid noted his movement, and waited like a hungry heron with his 10' pool pole and net. Up came frogger, and down came net! We had us a bullfrog!!
College kid immediately dunked him in some fresh water to remove the chlorine. He was so gentle with his little buddy. I noticed frogger wasn't black like I thought, more like a dark green. (similar to an alligator, actually) His belly is such a pretty mottled grey. He wasn't nearly as heavy as I expected either. He was really calm as we held him and admired his beauty. Doing some research, we've learned that bullfrogs are the largest frogs in N. America. They can eat birds, snakes, and other frogs. Our little buddy was 11" long, stretched out.
It was late by this point, so we had to decide what to do with the guy for the night. A ten gallon aquarium wasn't going to work, and everyone nixed the idea of the bathtub. So we put him in a large dog crate with as much water as it would hold. (a surprising amount)
This afternoon, we took him to the lake and released him. He'll have lots of friends, food, and natural vegetation. Perhaps he will contribute to future generations of froggers. It's a bittersweet time for me. I'm glad he's out of the pool. I didn't mind him, wasn't afraid or anything. But the chemicals we have to dump in there aren't good for him. So I'm glad he's away from that. But I miss him, miss looking out my bedroom window to see him sitting in the skimmer, or on the top step of the ladder. I miss wondering when the next time is he'll pop up to see us.
Still, it's for the best. He is a wild animal, and needs to be in his natural environment. Best of luck out there, Frogger. Thank you for all the fun, excitement, and stories you gave us.
God Bless,
Chela
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Music
This is one of the neatest things I have ever seen. At first glance, it looks like a simple cabinet, perhaps from a grocery store. Nothing fancy there. However, if curiosity gets the better of you, and you put your hand in the empty space inside it, it plays music! So what can this be?
An Infrared Harp! It has infrared light beams running up and down across the harp. When your interrupt the beam, the computer senses this and causes music to play. Of course infrared light is not visible to humans, so we see an empty cabinet. There are high and low notes to play with as well. I couldn't stay away from this at the science museum, it was my absolute favorite thing ever!
Chela
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Ferrets
Someone on an internet forum asked why they shouldn't get a ferret. I did my best to talk them out of it. I just wanted to let the poster know what they were getting into!
ferrets, ferrets, ferrets. I don't even know where to start. They steal things. Lots of things, and stash them in your furniture. Things like coins, keys, leather, FOOD!! Ours was very much into stealing food, crackers, cookies, pop tarts, an entire sleeve of them. Oatmeal cream pies, you name it, she stole it. A friend of mine had 7, and would take them to work with him. They put their heads together, and stole 10 York Peppermint patties from the counter, and stashed them under the couch.
Ferrets can get into ANYTHING! Like potted plants? Forget it! They can climb up to them, and will dig all the dirt out all over the floor. Like your cupboards and drawers neat and tidy? What if you opened your silverware drawer to find a sleeping ferret? Like to sleep? If your ferret hides so well you can't find her, (even my dog was fooled quite a few times), she will want to play at 3 am. Nothing like waking up to a ferret nose in your ear.
They can easily slip out the door, and go un-noticed for hours. It's a lot of work and stress trying to find a ferret outside. They require a lot of people time, especially if you only get one. Our ferret quickly learned that the ferret war dance gained her fruit loops. She was always attacking our feet. If you get multiple ferrets, they put their little weasel heads together, and cause double the mischief. They also only have two speeds-full steam ahead, and sleep. Full steam ahead? They don't want to be held, there is trouble to be had!
But mostly, they will steal your heart, and never give it back. They simply don't live long enough.
ferrets, ferrets, ferrets. I don't even know where to start. They steal things. Lots of things, and stash them in your furniture. Things like coins, keys, leather, FOOD!! Ours was very much into stealing food, crackers, cookies, pop tarts, an entire sleeve of them. Oatmeal cream pies, you name it, she stole it. A friend of mine had 7, and would take them to work with him. They put their heads together, and stole 10 York Peppermint patties from the counter, and stashed them under the couch.
Ferrets can get into ANYTHING! Like potted plants? Forget it! They can climb up to them, and will dig all the dirt out all over the floor. Like your cupboards and drawers neat and tidy? What if you opened your silverware drawer to find a sleeping ferret? Like to sleep? If your ferret hides so well you can't find her, (even my dog was fooled quite a few times), she will want to play at 3 am. Nothing like waking up to a ferret nose in your ear.
They can easily slip out the door, and go un-noticed for hours. It's a lot of work and stress trying to find a ferret outside. They require a lot of people time, especially if you only get one. Our ferret quickly learned that the ferret war dance gained her fruit loops. She was always attacking our feet. If you get multiple ferrets, they put their little weasel heads together, and cause double the mischief. They also only have two speeds-full steam ahead, and sleep. Full steam ahead? They don't want to be held, there is trouble to be had!
But mostly, they will steal your heart, and never give it back. They simply don't live long enough.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Remembering a great rooster
Most people have the same reaction when you mention a rooster. They think they are mean, dirty, noisy little devils that will attack you with no warning. I felt the same way, until I met Goober. We saved him from an untimely death after he trespassed to scratch up a flower bed. We almost didn't keep him, we didn't need another rooster! But keep him we did, and never regretted it.
Roosters will dip their wings to court a hen. They dip a wing, and dance for her. It's quite an impressive sight, unless you're the object of a rooster's affection. The next step he'll take is to start spurring you, and that hurts! Almost every rooster I've ever met has eventually dipped his wing at me. I've been spurred more times than I like to count. But Goober never dipped his wing to a person. He never thought about doing a courting dance to us, and he never spurred. Even young children, who roosters see as easy targets, never had to worry about him.
We got to the point where we stopped worrying about Goober, and really trusted him. He was just amazing. There was frequent conversation regarding Goober, and his personality. We were so lucky he was gentle, because he was so big!
If you can imagine this beautiful red rooster wandering around the farm yard, grumbling up a storm. And grumble he did! About everything! He wanted corn, he wanted his girls, he liked to grumble! It was a delightful part of his personality.
I'd like to say Goober loved us, but it may have been that we were keepers of the kibble. Goober always met us at the gate, and followed us around as we did our chores. He loved his corn, and his sunflower seeds. Around food came his only aggressive tendencies. He'd get along okay with his buddy Flyer, but would chase him away from the food. He wasn't aggressive towards us with his food, though.
When we let the hens out to free-range in the yard, Goober would get so excited! He would do his happy dance, and dip his wing to all the ladies. He watched over them so well. Any predators flew over, and he would issue a warning growl to tell the hens to take cover. If there was a disturbance in the yard, Goober would run over to see what was going on, and if it needed his assistance. He didn't miss anything.
Goober's hens lived in a separate coop with their own roosters. We let the hens out during the day, and put them back up at night. Goober slept in a separate area. We'd call all the hens in, and Goober would come in with them. He didn't want us to see him, so he'd hide in the cabinet in the pen. As big as Goober was, it wasn't hard to see him, really, but he always tried. When we shooed him out, he'd grumble all the way.
Goober was definitely one in a million as far as roosters go. I don't think I'll ever meet one as gentle and as full of personality as he was. I'll never forget running my fingers through his tail feathers, watching him free range in the yard with his hens, or hearing him grumble. Your spirit will live on, Goober, thank you for taking care of us. We'll miss you.
Roosters will dip their wings to court a hen. They dip a wing, and dance for her. It's quite an impressive sight, unless you're the object of a rooster's affection. The next step he'll take is to start spurring you, and that hurts! Almost every rooster I've ever met has eventually dipped his wing at me. I've been spurred more times than I like to count. But Goober never dipped his wing to a person. He never thought about doing a courting dance to us, and he never spurred. Even young children, who roosters see as easy targets, never had to worry about him.
We got to the point where we stopped worrying about Goober, and really trusted him. He was just amazing. There was frequent conversation regarding Goober, and his personality. We were so lucky he was gentle, because he was so big!
If you can imagine this beautiful red rooster wandering around the farm yard, grumbling up a storm. And grumble he did! About everything! He wanted corn, he wanted his girls, he liked to grumble! It was a delightful part of his personality.
I'd like to say Goober loved us, but it may have been that we were keepers of the kibble. Goober always met us at the gate, and followed us around as we did our chores. He loved his corn, and his sunflower seeds. Around food came his only aggressive tendencies. He'd get along okay with his buddy Flyer, but would chase him away from the food. He wasn't aggressive towards us with his food, though.
When we let the hens out to free-range in the yard, Goober would get so excited! He would do his happy dance, and dip his wing to all the ladies. He watched over them so well. Any predators flew over, and he would issue a warning growl to tell the hens to take cover. If there was a disturbance in the yard, Goober would run over to see what was going on, and if it needed his assistance. He didn't miss anything.
Goober's hens lived in a separate coop with their own roosters. We let the hens out during the day, and put them back up at night. Goober slept in a separate area. We'd call all the hens in, and Goober would come in with them. He didn't want us to see him, so he'd hide in the cabinet in the pen. As big as Goober was, it wasn't hard to see him, really, but he always tried. When we shooed him out, he'd grumble all the way.
Goober was definitely one in a million as far as roosters go. I don't think I'll ever meet one as gentle and as full of personality as he was. I'll never forget running my fingers through his tail feathers, watching him free range in the yard with his hens, or hearing him grumble. Your spirit will live on, Goober, thank you for taking care of us. We'll miss you.
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