Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Wednesday

Continuing in our journey together through the week before Jesus' death, this actually happened Tuesday (two days before the Passover Feast), but I'll talk about it today (since nothing is recorded in the Bible for Wednesday).

Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present. Luke 22:1-6

The rat! One of the Twelve, Jesus' most trusted inner circle! How dare he? How could he? Let's back up a bit to an incident that happened the previous Friday in Bethany. Mary (of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus) took a jar of expensive perfume, and poured it on Jesus' feet, anointing him.

But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected,"Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." John 12:4-5

Why, indeed? Read on...

He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put in it. John 12:6

Oh. Gotta love that commentary from Jesus' favorite disciple. And then Jesus responded:
"Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial." Mark 14:6-8

In John's gospel, this little incident is reported in chronological order, so even before the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, but in each of the others, it's recorded right before Judas heads to the chief priests seeking to betray Jesus. I don't think that's a coincidence or a mistake. It seems that Matthew, Mark, and Luke all felt that the perfume incident was a direct antecedent to, and perhaps even a catalyst for Judas' betrayal.

I feel a little sorry for Judas. He gets a bad rap, but I think he honestly thought he was doing the right thing. He must have thought Jesus was a little crazy after the thing with the perfume--he must have felt like his teacher was losing it, and going to the chief priests, allowing them to take Jesus into custody, probably seemed like a prudent course of action. If Jesus is going insane, Judas must have thought, then it's for his own good that he be taken off the streets before he can hurt himself or others. Of course, it didn't hurt that the religious leaders were willing to pay Judas for his betrayal, given what we know about Judas' money habits.

Then there's this: yes, Judas had free will, we all do. Yes, Judas chose to do an evil thing. It was all Judas. But! God made Judas, created Judas from nothing, and God knew Judas' inmost thoughts, God knew what Judas would do when faced with that situation. Jesus knew that Judas would betray him and placed him in his inner circle anyway, because that was what needed to happen. The son of man needed to be betrayed, so that we all could receive forgiveness for our sins. It needed to happen, and Judas was the one chosen to do the deed. It was Judas' destiny. Now we can get all tied up in a discussion of predestination versus free will, but quite frankly, I don't want to do that right now. The point is, God knows each of us better than we know ourselves, and God placed Judas in that place, at that time, so that the scriptures would be fulfilled. I feel like, in some ways, we owe Judas a debt of gratitude.

Judas was sorry for what he had done. Matthew reports:
When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned [to die], he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. "I have sinned," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood."Matthew 27:3-4

Judas had no idea that Jesus was going to die as a direct result of his action. I like to think that God forgave Judas his sin. We know that God uses all circumstances, good and bad, to honor and glorify God, and it is certainly the case here. God used Judas' betrayal, his sin, to redeem the world. Thanks, in part, to Judas, we've been washed in the blood of the lamb, and made clean. We have been set free from the shackles that bind us to this imperfect world, and we are free to live the life of perfect communion that we were made for. Out of the devastation and destruction of our sins, the most beautiful things can happen. Only God has the power to do that.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

How to make seed balls

Seed-Balls (a.k.a. Seed-Bombs) are a seed distribution technique. Evidently, there are guerrilla gardeners out there, who make these and lob them over fences into neighbors' neglected yards, along the highway, or into vacant lots. The seeds are protected, from those who would eat them, by the clay, and sprout on their own once enough water has fallen to release the clay. I'm making them to give out as favors at my middle child's birthday party, and I could definitely see this being a great idea to do with kids for Earth day or a garden party.

This recipe is from http://heavypetal.ca/archives/2007/03/how-to-make-seedballs/, but there are lots of variations out there.

Mix 5 parts dry red clay, 3 parts dry organic compost, 1 part seed, and 1-2 parts water (just enough water to form a mix that will hold together). Pinch off small bits of the mixture and roll into 1/2 inch balls. Let them sit for a few days until they're completely dry. The Heavy Petal gardener used a 16 oz measure and said the recipe made enough for 300 (!) seed balls.

The red clay you can get from a well-stocked craft store or from a pottery supply store--remember, you want the powder, not the pre-mixed stuff. The seeds can be anything you want, although it's a good idea to include only native plants, or at least non-invasive plants, if you're planning to use these to re-plant the world guerrilla-style.

Here's a little more explanation about seed balls: http://heavypetal.ca/archives/2007/03/a-brief-history-of-the-seed-ball/

Tuesday

This week, that we call Holy Week, in which we remember and celebrate the events that happened in the week before Jesus' death, is the most well-documented week of Jesus' life. If it was me, with all this stuff going on, my mind would be reeling. I just can't get my brain around the impromptu parade of Sunday, followed by cleaning house at the temple and teaching all week, all while one of your closest associates is plotting with your enemies to get rid of you. I can't imagine how the tide of public opinion could shift so swiftly, that they were shouting praises to a king five days before shouting even more loudly for his death.

So, today I want y'all to think about something that our children's timeline Bible says happened on Tuesday of that week, but the other Bibles just say happened sometime between the triumphal entry and the last supper. Jesus was teaching in the temple, and the religious leaders thought he was dangerous and stirring up trouble (true, true), and so they were looking for a way to get rid of him, and they sent a spy to try to trick Jesus. Let me just stop here to say, what a smart man Jesus was. He knew they were trying to trap him, which, really anyone could have seen, but he knew exactly how to transcend the situation, and not get snared in their trap. Amazing.

Anyway, the spy asked Jesus if the Jewish people should pay taxes to Caesar. This is a no-win question because if Jesus said they shouldn't pay taxes, the Roman government would be upset, and accuse Jesus of treason, but if Jesus said they should pay taxes, the Jews would be upset, and not just because they didn't like paying taxes. I'm a little vague on this, but it was something about graven images being against God's law, and, of course, the coins used to pay taxes contained a graven image.

So what did Jesus answer? He asked the spy to show him a coin, and then asked the man whose image and name appeared on the coin. "Caesar," he replied, to which Jesus answered, "well, if this is Caesar's, give it to him, but make sure you give God what belongs to Him." (that's the Step-by-Step Bible wording, you've probably heard it with renders and untos in the past). The religious leaders were "amazed" by Jesus' answer (me too). They were so sure that they had caught him, but there was nothing they could say to that. Stay tuned, though, because those religious leaders just don't give up...

I've thought a lot about the second part of Jesus' answer: "make sure you give God what belongs to Him." It gives me tingles to read that, because the Roman coins were made in Caesar's image, with Caesar's name on them, but we, flawed and imperfect as we are, are made in God's image, and God's name is written on our hearts. Sure, the Caesars of this world can have their money, but God...God demands all of each of us: everything that we are, everything that we do.

Monday, March 29, 2010

Holy week, revisited

I'm not feeling particularly inspired or spiritual this holy week...I'm not sure why that is--perhaps because I've been too busy wallowing in self-pity because Hubby's out of town, and will be, through Easter and beyond. I feel like I should* be feeling close to God and meditating on holy things, but I'm not...so you're all in for a treat. I'm reposting my holy week musings from last year, hoping that rereading them will inspire me. Maybe they'll inspire you, as well.

*There's that darn "should" again...
* * * * * * * * * * *
Today is Monday of Holy week, the day that I traditionally think about Jesus going into the temple and overturning tables. I think this actually happened on the same day as the triumphal entry, which we celebrate on Palm Sunday, but today is the day I think about it. I love to think of Jesus that way. So often we view Jesus as kind of a pushover. That's not exactly the right word, but do you understand what I'm trying to say? Jesus was and is perfect. And he was always telling people to love one another and to serve one another, and that the last shall be first, and to turn the other cheek, and you kind of get the idea that he's not going to stick up for himself, and that we shouldn't stick up for ourselves either. But I love that picture of Jesus losing his temper and driving the money changers and dove sellers out of the temple. It reminds me that yes, Jesus is fully divine, and yes, Jesus is perfect, but that Jesus was also fully human. Just like me (except for the part where I'm not anywhere near perfect). Jesus faced the same fears and anxieties and temptations that we all face. If he could triumph over those, that gives me hope that I can, as well.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Oatmeal

I am pleased to report that we've perfected our cinnamon roll oatmeal recipe. In a blind taste test, 2 out of 3 tasters preferred the home made version--the third tester insisted that both were equally good. So here it is, just in case you want to make it yourself.

Place
1/3 c. quick oats
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
2 t. packed brown sugar
2 shakes from the salt shaker and
2/3 c. water
in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 60-90 seconds (we do ours for 75).

That's it. I also add a bit of skim milk (maybe 2 T.) and about 2 T. chopped walnuts to mine.

Enjoy!

Monday, March 22, 2010

Results

Well, I'm sure you've all been holding your breath waiting for the science fair experiment results, so here you go. As you know, Code-man's science fair project is titled, "Does Temperature Affect the Growth of Stalactites and Stalagmites?" Since real stalactites and stalagmites take thousands of years to grow, Code-man decided to grow crystals that form in the same way as cave formations. Cave formations grow as water containing dissolved bits of rock drips into a cave and then evaporates, leaving the rock behind--magnesium sulfate crystals form in much the same way, growing larger as the water it's dissolved in evaporates.

So Code-man made a super saturated magnesium sulfate solution, and placed it into two cups. Between the cups, Code-man draped a piece of string. The idea is that the mag sulf solution will move up the string though capillary action, then down to the dip due to gravity. If the water then evaporates before the drop falls, a stalactite will form. If it drips first, a stalagmite will form. Code-man set up three sets in three different temperature environments: room temp, refrigerator, and crock pot on warm with the lid off. We actually ran the experiment in the different temperatures twice, and didn't note any stalactite growth during our data recording period. I was frustrated by the lack of growth, so I set up another experiment. This time, all of the variables were exactly the same, except one: the string drape. I know they were exactly the same, because I draped two strings in the same set of cups, and even then, the difference in string drape was only about 1/8 of an inch. This time, in one hour we had about 1 inch of growth on one of the strings, and about 1/4 inch on the other (as you can see in the picture above, after 2 days, we have a column (a stalactite and a stalagmite that have grown together). It's about 5 inches tall). This, more than anything, convinced me that we were not going to be able to get meaningful data from our three different environments. Even if we did get something to grow, we wouldn't be able to tell if any differences were due to the temperature, or to the drape.

We did, however, make enough observations to draw a few conclusions. We noticed that in the cold environment, crystals started forming in the solution at about 4 hours in--the mag sulf didn't want to stay dissolved. From this, we conclude that if a cave is too cold, stalactites and stalagmites will either form very slowly or not at all, because there will be less rock dissolved in the water. In the hot environment, crystals started forming on the surface of the solution--meaning they were forming as the water evaporated--at about 10 hours in, and in the room temp environment, crystals didn't start forming on the surface until 24 hours in. From this, we conclude that stalactites and stalagmites are likely to form more quickly in a warmer cave, as the water will evaporate more quickly. Exciting stuff, eh?

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Day 4

Only one more day to go. You know, this is one of the most fun spring breaks I've ever had. The only thing that would make it better would be having Hubby along on our adventures. The weather has even been just gorgeous and spring-like. This morning, it was off to MOPS. I just have to say, I love my discussion group. I wish we could all hang together again next year, but I think they'll probably split us up. Good, I guess--that way I'll get to know some more amazing women. Now we've got more friends over (Derek again and Louie), and Bubby is finally napping...

The real test comes tomorrow. It's the perfect storm of bad spring break karma...the weather is supposed to turn colder, with rain and maybe even snow, and we're going to be stuck at home all day with no plans and no friends to distract and entertain us. Tomorrow Code-man needs to start growing his stalactites again, now that we know how to do it, and we (I) decided that we needed two full days of not going anywhere to keep an eye on them. What have I done? Maybe we only need one full day of not going anywhere, followed by twice daily measurements for a week...

Then it's the weekend, and back to school on Monday, followed by Hubby's return very late Monday night :-)

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Day 3

Day 3 of our exciting spring break Stay-cation found us making the trek to Club Just Jump, followed by lunch out and cookie hunting (sadly, there were absolutely no cookies in our house, and no chocolate chips with which to make cookies, either, last night when we were craving them).
Club Just Jump was lots of fun. It was hard to get them all to stop bouncing at once, so I settled for two out of three. For those of you who have been to Crazy Bounce, Just Jump is a lot smaller...like maybe 1/3 the size, but still enough fun for all of us. That obstacle course was nuts.

We spent two hours there, and those boys wore me out...up the slide, down the slide, up the slide, down the slide, through the obstacle course, up the slide, down the slide, through the other obstacle course three times, repeat! With about 15 minutes to go, I corralled all three of 'em in the bouncy basketball court, and laid my weary self down in a corner. Each time a ball bounced my way, I attempted a half-hearted basket, but I think I only made one.

Upon our arrival home, we washed the truck, which of course, necessitated getting out the hose.

I'm not really sure if it looks better now than before we started, but at least we made the effort. Then Code-man decided a little archery was in order. I really thought I had more time before I had to come up with family archery guidelines...

Up next, more fun tomorrow!

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Spring Break day 2

Day 2 of our Spring Break Stay-cation found us heading off to Nickelodeon Universe at MOA, and just in case you were wondering, no, I was not brave enough to park the Suburban in the ramp.

Sponge-Bob says "Think Happy." Logo was not thinking happy at the time of this photo.That's three kids we don't know, Bubby, Code-man, and Logo.

Judging from number of times ridden, I would say the Log Chute was our family's favorite ride.

They're in there...really.

And, proving, once more, that it is impossible to go to the Mall of America without running into somebody you know, we saw Louie, Alex(andra), and their mom, Andi today.

That's all for now...more fun tomorrow.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Thanks, Hubby

Pink!
For those of you who don't know, Hubby is currently away in North Carolina, drinking beer (he says he's coordinating the start-up of a newly installed filter, but I know he's just there to drink beer), for an extended stay. We, of course, miss him terribly, and he says he misses us, too. The flowers are sitting at Daddy's place at the table...not a very good substitute. Love you, Sawblock.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Spring Break Stay-cation Day 1: Grocery shopping followed by having friends over (and more fun planned for tomorrow!)

That's Derek, Code-man, Logo, and Blake.

Working man

Code-man is earning some money by taking care of the neighbors' dog while they're on vacation. Here's Code-man and Bailey this afternoon.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Science Fair Season

Yes, here it is again, Science Fair Season. At this point, I've managed to release my anxiety over the effort that will be required for a repeat of last years' success, and the anxiety caused by my 2nd grade nephew's awesome science fair project earlier this year, so I'm doing well. Yes, I know it's not about me...at least it's not supposed to be about me, but the competition is intense, and since I have a degree in biology, I feel like there's no excuse for my kid turning in an inferior project. Everyone knows that parents are judged by the success, or failure, of their children, whether that's fair or not (you know you've done it, too). But I've told myself in no uncertain terms (and continue to tell myself, as needed), that it's Code-man's project, and I will support him in its completion, but he is ultimately responsible.

Anyway, the title for Code-man's science fair project this year is, "Does temperature affect stalactite and stalagmite growth?" Really. He's going to grow cave formations. I would say, "where does he come up with these things," but I know where he came up with this particular idea. I'm impressed. So now my corollary to Code-man's project has been, "Creating a warm microclimate." Code-man wants to grow speleothems in three different temperatures. We've got cold (the garage) and medium (the house), but warm is a challenge. We decided to try the crock pot on warm, and we're attempting to keep the temp between 95 and 105 degrees by turning it on and off throughout the experiment.

My "real" experiment these days is "Replicating cinnamon roll oatmeal." Code-man really likes Quaker's cinnamon roll flavor instant oatmeal, and we're almost out. I have a coupon, so I'm just waiting for it to go on sale, but then I thought, we could probably make this ourselves for much less. If you use the microwave, quick oats are just as fast as instant, and much less expensive. This could have broad reaching implications for the boys' future Boundary Waters trips.

So each morning this week I've been experimenting with my oatmeal. We're almost there--Cody told me that the cinnamon was right, but it just needs more sugar. Once I think I have it we're going to do a blind taste test. The other day I changed both the amount of cinnamon and the amount of sugar, and then as I was standing in the kitchen waiting for the microwave to ding, I mused, "oops, I probably shouldn't have changed more than one variable at a time," to which my helpful 4th grade scientist replied, "yeah, mom, you should only change one variable, because then if it works, you don't know what did it." Thanks, bud.

Sometimes I think I'm such a nerd for approaching problem solving from a scientific perspective, but I realized that I'm showing my children that science is relevant to their lives, and that the scientific method is a great way to solve problems and find answers. Score one for the nerdy science mom!
As a funny side note, this morning as Code-man was attempting to set up his experiment, Bubby had has hands everywhere. He really has talent for messing things up when it counts the most. Fed up, I decided to go get the exersaucer and plunk him down in it until Code-man had everything set. I brought Bubby down with me to retrieve it, and when he saw what I was getting he said, "oh, thanks mom!" in that cute little boy voice of his. He was actually excited to sit confined in the saucer, and, when we took him out to eat breakfast, he promptly left the table without eating and climbed back in!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Absorbent, revisited

Ha! I think someone at P&G must read my blog (by the way, P&G person, please leave a comment :) In January, I blogged about one of their absorbent products, and then yesterday I was in the store and I noticed that the packaging had changed. Now it's "Adaptive Absorbency & Fit TM". I'm not quite sure what that's supposed to mean, but it sounds good. There's nothing on the package about this lightweight material absorbing 10x its weight; now it says "[this material] absorbs 4x more than you may need, yet feels amazingly light." Hmm. Why do I need something that absorbs more than I need to be absorbed? Not sure. I'm also not sure if that makes more sense than saying that something that's very light absorbs 10x its weight. They've also lowered the price--now it's only about 25% more expensive than the regular non-"improved" kind.

And just in case you're wondering, yes, I bought the product again. Once again, with coupons, and a gift card deal, the new product was less than the older style. P&G, I still love your products, even if I think your packaging slogans need a little tweaking. I'm probably the only nerd who notices these things, anyway.

So I just wanted to share that with you all so that you could bask in my all-powerful bloggy-ness. When I'm famous, you can say you knew me when...

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Mosaic

I'm an artsy craftsy kind of person. I love taking something ordinary or plain and making it into something beautiful. It really doesn't even have to be beautiful, as long as it's something I've made. Lately I've been drawn to mosaics, wanting to look at them, wanting to learn how to make them. I'm a thinker: I always want to know the why of everything, so I've been considering my recent fascination with mosaic. I think I'm so drawn to mosaic because it uses broken pieces to create something beautiful. It reminds me of the way God works in my life, taking all of the ugly, broken parts of me, parts that I would just as soon throw in the trash, sharp edges and all, and arranges them into a beautiful masterpiece.

It is interesting to me that sometimes mosaic artists take pieces that are, by themselves, beautiful, and break them on purpose, to put them back together in another way. Sometimes I wonder if that's what God does in my life, too. I wonder if God breaks me, through circumstance or hardship, for the purpose of putting me back together in a way that brings glory to God, and brings me into closer relationship with God. I wonder if I am God's beautiful masterpiece.
It's Ty-Guy's 8th birthday today! Happy Birthday, Ty-Guy (not to be confused with Fly-Guy, of course).

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Why have I not thought of this before?

I think you all know me well enough to realize that I don't splurge* on a whole lot of things. One convenience item that I do like to use is sanitizing wipes. They're kind of expensive, but for some reason they just seem to clean better than a sponge or rag + cleaning solution. The kids like them, too, and since they've been doing more chores, we've been going through them a lot faster. We ran out last week. My brain being too full to remember much anymore, I forgot to add wipes to my list, and of course I didn't remember, when I was in the store, that we were out.

This morning, as I was lying in bed, listening to the sounds of little people emerging from sleep, I remembered that we didn't have any sanitizing wipes, and that the children were going to want to do their Saturday morning jobs soon. I thought about what we might have on hand that they could use instead (I mean besides the obvious sponge or rag + cleaning solution), and I thought about our home made baby wipes. I would never, ever let the kids use store-bought baby wipes to clean--they cost way too much per wipe--but the ones I make, for less than one cent each, would be fine.

And that's when it occurred to me: I can make my own sanitizing wipes. Yes I can. It's so obvious, why did I not think of this before? So, I went to the internet to get ideas for what to soak the wipes in, and once again, the choices are obvious: rubbing alcohol, bleach solution, or any cleaning solution. Really. It's that simple. I think I'll use pine-sol, because 1. I don't want to use bleach, 2. we don't have very much rubbing alcohol on hand (and Hubby is probably using up the last of it while I type, trying to take old state park stickers of the 'burban's windshield), and 3. I like the smell of pine-sol (interesting note, I never liked the pine pine-sol scent until we lived in a home made of pine logs--for some reason it just smelled "right" there. Now that we no longer live in a log home, I don't like it quite as much--but I still do like that scent). I'm not quite sure how much I will dilute it at this point.

For those of you who don't know, here's my recipe for home-made baby wipes:
  1. Cut a roll of Bounty or Viva paper towels in half and remove the cardboard core from one of the halves (we've used a bread knife, electric knife, table saw, and mitre saw to cut--I think Hubby prefers the electric knife).
  2. Mix 1 T. baby oil, 1 T. baby wash, 1 T. white vinegar (to inhibit mold growth--I think we only have to add this because we use well water), and 1 c. water in a lidded container large enough to hold the half roll of paper towels ( I use Rubbermaid 1.5 qt containers from Wal-mart).
  3. Put the paper towels into the container, cut side down, replace the lid, and turn upside down until all the liquid absorbs into the towels.
  4. To dispense the wipes, pull up from the center.
So for my sanitizing wipes, I'll use pine-sol and water instead of baby oil, wash, and vinegar.

So simple!

*Rereading this, I realized that many people wouldn't consider pre-made sanitizing wipes to be a splurge or luxury item...just so you know, I do.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Happy Birthday, Dr. Suess!

In honor of Dr. Suess' birthday tomorrow, the boys made their own Suess-creatures. I wish we had had feathers or even better, a feather boa, in our craft box, but the creatures turned out well despite our limitations.Here's a closer look at Bubby's--it sort of blends in with his PJs in the above picture, doesn't it? I couldn't get him to hold it up so you could see its eye...I would say, "hold it up," and he would hold it up over his head, and then I would say, "down a little bit," and he'd put it way down by his knees, all the while looking at me like he thought I was losing it. Finally, I said, "hold it just like this. Don't move," but he moved--you get the idea, though--it's sort of a one-eyed chick with a bell on a curlicue on its head. I personally think this one is the most Suess-like.
I probably should mention, before you start thinking I'm a super-mom or something, that this project was not completed without a fair share of whining, throwing things, a little yelling, and a bit of deep breathing and counting to 10. The children just don't seem to understand that there are three of them and I only have two hands.

Look at this big fish! Yowza. Code-man and Logo fishing in the comfort of the ice house.
Portside Bait and Liquor: Home of the Big Mean Fish

Do you do windows?

I washed windows on Saturday night. I feel the need to tell you this because number one, I don't think you'll notice if I don't tell you (especially since most of you won't see them again until...well, I don't know when), and number two, they were only clean for 10 hours. That's right--within minutes of Bubby waking up on Sunday morning, his hand print had reappeared on the living room's picture window. "Mommy, there's a bird," he exclaimed excitedly. Yes, honey, but do you have to touch the glass? I'll be able to see the birds much more clearly if you resist that particular urge. This is exactly why I rarely wash our windows (it's been at least 2 years), and I only wash them at night. A clean piece of glass acts as some sort of mystical siren to grimy little hands, and quite honestly, if I'm going to put the effort in, I want the results to last longer than that.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Speaking of wild birds, today Bubby was outside shoveling as I was plodding back and forth between the truck and the house, bringing the groceries in. All of a sudden, I heard a shriek and Bubby ran into the kitchen, yelling that the turkey was chasing him. He told me, "the turkey went faster." He told me I had to come outside to see the turkey, but it was gone by the time I got there. I wonder if it was a pheasant, since we've been seeing a lot more pheasants than turkeys lately. Anyway, up until that bird chased him, Bubby was refusing to eat turkey because, "the turkey comes back outside and I see him," (excuses don't have to make sense when you're 2) but after this little episode, he insisted that a turkey sandwich would be best.