Busy Is As Busy Does

Good morning! It is yet another beautiful day thus far. It is supposed to be warmer than yesterday. I think yesterday was in the 50s somewhere. It was sunny at times, cloudy at others, windy almost all day long, and just generally a good day to be out getting things done. Today we are supposed to have a high of 60 and it is supposed to be sunny all day long. Sounds like another good day for getting things done outside.

Amena had planned a trip to Nick’s in the morning but she didn’t give me a time frame and I don’t like waiting around for people to be ready for whatever because it usually means that I don’t get done the things that I would like to. So I had the boys help get boards from the attic of the barn and get the saw out of the basement and I set to work cutting them up to be ready for construction in the afternoon. Amena wanted to go when she wanted to go but I wanted to get the boards cut up so I could get the saw and scraps put away and picked up. I also wanted a shower first but since I knew I’d be building stuff outside, I forwent that.

Amena drove back roads to the end of Elm which according to GoogleMaps is a distance of 7.3 miles. Next step: Driving to Barre. She’s doing alright but needs to control the speed until she has more control of the car. Speed comes with experience. I know emergent drivers don’t understand this, I was one of them, but now I do. It’s just like anything else. You learn how and then as you get better at it, you go faster. Sewing, knitting, cleaning, cooking, etc.

We stopped near where Seth, Joseph, and I planted Amena’s letterbox because the car started making a strange sound. Neither of us could see anything obvious but it turned out to be a plastic part that should have been attached to the fender. There was nothing in the car to tie it down but there was an ancient cord for electronic devices so I used that. It worked, which is all I cared about, and the rest of the trip was uneventful.

When I got home, I built the two shelves for the windows and rearranged plants. Then I went outside and began the garden box project. First I fixed the two that Amena broke last year. That was kind of fun. Then I put one together behind the house because it was going to stay there. The other I put together beside the house because it was going to go out to the garden. So now there are four boxes to get ready for dirt and that is on my list for today. Not all four, probably, but two, anyway. It is much easier to build boxes when you have two helpers dedicated to helping rather than having to continually ask a boy to hold something. It worked and they were willing, it just took longer because I did more by myself.

Now it is time to go milk so I will probably be back.

I am back.

Joanna came over. I hadn’t gotten to the evening part of yesterday yet so I’ll get back to Joanna.

Cedric wanted to go over to Paul’s during the afternoon but wasn’t there for long. He and his brothers were busy taking bicycles apart and building a jump for them while I was working on garden boxes. Because we were going to be outside, I let the goats out so they could munch on whatever they wanted to. When people are outside, they typically stay close. They would come in the house with us if we’d let them. Sometimes I think we should just turn Viking all the way and let them in. I’m not sure about the raiding part, though.

When the boxes were done, I finally got my shower. I still wanted to plant a letterbox, after all. By the time we got there, though, there were too many people so we’ll have to go back today and do that.

Before Amena left to go to Nick’s, I asked her what time his mom would be bringing her home. I kind of wanted to have an idea of when I would be taking her to Joanna’s because the plan was for her to spend the night. She didn’t know. I was hoping it wouldn’t be after 8:00 because it usually is and I really would prefer not to drive in the dark. She got home after 8:30 and wanted to know if we could leave. I mentioned not wanting to drive in the dark and the fact that there were only twenty minutes until 9:00. She went upstairs. Paul got home. She came downstairs at 8:55 and asked if we could go. I said no. I told her I’d be happy to take her any time in the morning which is funny because Joanna had told her almost the same thing.

Fast forward to this morning. I was getting ready to go milk and Joanna showed up! She’s so darn cute! Seeing her little baby bump makes me want to see Laura’s, too. Anyway, she was on her way to the vet in North Brookfield (kind of made an out of the way stop here), and was ready to take Amena. Amena of course wasn’t ready so Seth and Joseph went with her.

And there you have it—our day yesterday and a bit of this morning.

Have a fantabulous day!

Note to Self

Good morning! There was a 50% chance of rain overnight and I’d say it did from the looks of things. I haven’t been out other than to let the dog and cat in and out or out and in but it feels cooler than yesterday. Yesterday was beautiful aside from the fact that it was so much warmer than it has been so it felt hot. Especially inside a car.

This week is vacation for many schools in this area. Maybe all, but I don’t want to sound so certain when I’m not. No school for Quabbin for sure. Because it’s vacation certain of my offspring thought they ought not to have to go to bed at the usual hour. Because they were so slow in getting to bed, I was hoping that I’d have some time this morning with no interruptions. Well, silly me for thinking such thoughts. Seth and Joseph ended up only going to bed about forty-five minutes late so they were up close to the time they usually are. Amena and Cedric didn’t go to bed until just before I did and they are still in bed. I’m okay with that. Seth is playing with LEGOs and Joseph is veging out on the couch. I’m okay with both of those, too.

Yesterday morning I took a shower and noticed that the water was noticeably cool. I thought that was odd and as a result hurried faster than I would normally. As a result of that, I didn’t scrub my arms and neck as well as I ought and as a result of that, I have what has to be a hay-induced rash on my neck and arms. It is much better this morning but still itchy in spots.

Amena had track practice yesterday from 10 to noon, although we had to leave at 11:15 because she had a dentist appointment at 12:15. She drove part way and while she was at practice I visited two cemeteries and found a letterbox. It was a beautiful day. After the dentist, I had a lunch date with Kenisha. That was very nice. There are just times when I need a break from the typical, you know? By the time I got home, it was time to think about dinner.

“Mom, how do you spell while?” That was Seth.

“W-H-I-L-E.”

The cemeteries I visited were both in preparation for the vampire letterboxing series I want to do. I’m waiting for Dracula to arrive at the library for me so I can use it for my first clue. My object yesterday was searching for good hiding places.

“Mom, does I’ll have one L or two?” Seth again.

“What kind of I’ll?” I was wondering if it was I’ll or isle.

“I will do something.”

“Two.”

I also was looking at headstones to use for some of the other clues and I found some good material. In one cemetery I was able to replace a couple of flags. One had broken and the base of another had come off its spike. I love seeing when these people served. There were a few from the Korean War, more from WWII, a few from WWI and even one from the Revolutionary War. I didn’t notice any from Vietnam. I thought this was an appropriate activity for Patriot’s Day although to be perfectly fair, I would have done it anyway.

I noticed this one right away because of the name. Finding a Daniel or a Joseph in a cemetery is not an unusual occurrence. I haven't found many Seth's and I've never seen a Cedric. Still, when I see a Daniel, I always stop and take a look. This time, I noticed that this Daniel died young, too; just 19 years and 10 months old he was.

“Mom, how do you spell probably?” I’m not sure what he’s doing in there.

“P-R-O.”

“Yeah.”

“B-A-B.” No response. “L-Y.”

For dinner we had leftover soup and garlic bread. I now need to make more bread which is a good thing because I have much sourdough starter I need to put to use.

Up for today we/I have many things on the agenda:

Letterbox plant at the rec field

Driving with Amena to Nick’s (she’ll only drive part way, but still)

Fixing my garden boxes behind the house and perhaps making one or two more

Building two shelves for windows for more starts inside

Perhaps a visit to another one or two cemeteries

Somehow, I think that’s enough to fill the day. I also need to make soap this week and we really need to clean house at some point in time. And of course it’s about time to go feed goats and milk. And Joseph informed me that I didn’t do a stamp for Holy Water for the vampire series. I told him I wasn’t sure how to draw holy water because the I’m only familiar with the stuff inside Catholic churches. I looked it up anyway and saw a couple of pictures that would work carved as a stamp. If I do that, I need to either add another cemetery to the list or have two stamps in one. I think I would opt for the second as I really thing five stopping places is enough. On the other hand, I have been known to change my mind.

Off to milk I go.

Have a fantastic day!

Short

Good morning! It is a beautiful day out and is supposed to be nice all day long in spite of dreaming throughout the night in the bits and spurts of sleep that I got that it was raining).

Today is Tax Day. I know someone who was born on this day and I know someone who is due on this day. She has not been sleeping well and so I hope she is able to get some rest today because labor is ever so much easier when you are well rested.

I just had to chase the bus down with Amena. Our bus driver is so awesome that he stopped at Hubbardston Center School because he saw us following him.

I think Zoey somehow knows that I was planning to milk if I got the call during the night that I was needed just before I left. She’s being very vociferous. There are still twelve minutes until milking time but she’s making it sound like it was an hour ago. Silly goat.

Yesterday Joseph had a Pack Meeting. Once again, there were very few boys which means very few parents there. With a Cub Master moving on at the end of the year and two committee members already moved on with their boys to Boy Scouts, we really need more parents to be involved.

During the meeting, everyone was introduced to the Read to Feed program. This is something like a walk-a-thon but more like a read-a-thon. Joseph decides how many minutes he is going to read and asks for pledges. All money raised benefits Heifer International. If you would like to pledge, let me know.

Today we are going to turn into a semi-half day and spend the afternoon outside. This is, of course, dependent on if/when a baby decides it is time to be born.

Right now Seth is not doing well at listening. He has been told numerous times that he needs to do the math test he did not do yesterday and thus far has not put my phone down. We are just about to the point when I take it away.

The words are not flowing from my fingertips today. There are so many things to do, I guess I don’t want to take the time to provide reading material for others.

Have a fantastic day!

Mice and Men

Good morning! I just looked through a folder of pictures that came mostly off my mom’s camera. It looks like some came off Grandma’s as well. They basically cover about two years and chronicle Grandma’s visit out here in 2012, my mom’s quilting life, a couple of my mother’s trips to Oregon (as evidenced by pictures of Alicia, Aunt Cindy and her cat, and lots and lots of fabric as well as perhaps a trip to see Marie), a trip or two by Marie and Oliver to my mom’s, a couple of Christmas’s, and Laura’s wedding. That was fun. Laura and Blaine are approaching their 1^st anniversary so it’s time for more pictures.

I happen to really like this picture. For a couple of reasons but one I'm not going to mention right now. The other is the feet. To me, those feet represent my family. They are real and down-to-earth. They are getting things done (in this case, taking picture of work accomplished and work that needs to be done).

Laura called yesterday to let me know that she is not able to take money out of the trust accounts for Amena, Cedric, Seth, and Joseph other than in person. Since she’s not planning a trip out until Christmas, 2017, that might be a while. After a conversation with my mother via Facebook messenger, we’re going to see what we can do. Since I’d told Dan I wanted to get out to California I called him to let him know that it just isn’t going to happen and that we’ll be doing well to get to Idaho. Of course, he’d like to further complicate things by having one or two of Amena, Cedric, Seth, and Joseph fly from Idaho to CA which probably actually means Spokane to Portland which seems almost silly but, you know, that’s how some people think.

In my conversation with my mother, she mentioned that Paul is still trying to get Laura and Blaine to move out here. I had a mini epiphany this morning while looking at pictures. In spite of the fact that houses are not really any more or less expensive here or in Idaho (it depends on specific location more than anything and I found a 10.1 acre lot near Diane Vaniman in Sandpoint that looks lovely yesterday), property tax is approximately three times as much here and prices in general seem to be lower for groceries in Idaho. I’m not sure why anyone who has grown up in the west would want to move here.

Still, this little epiphany. Paul made a lot of money when he was younger selling cars. Specifically, used cars. This means he is very good at persuading people to do something. In this case, he is attempting to persuade people to move to Massachusetts. I don’t think it is going to work. In fact, I know it isn’t. The dilemma is how to help Paul see and understand this. His insistence on not moving is not going to prevent me from doing so.

Today I will do some more checking out of things and hopefully develop a plan from which to work for travelling to points west. The most important thing is for me to be in Utah when Laura has a baby. The second is for children to get to Idaho. We’ve been in Massachusetts for seven years now and have not once been back to California or Idaho. It is time.

In other news, Amena came downstairs at 6:32 and asked if the bus had already gone by. That is a certifiable first. She has her first track meet this afternoon. I’m not sure if Seth and Joseph will want to go but I’d like to see her so I’m not sure they’ll have any choice. Cedric asked if he could stay and I told him he could. She insists that we don’t have to watch her but I think it’s important that we do.

In other news, the drier just finished so I need to take care of some laundry. I’d really like to get it all as caught up as possible today.

Therefore I will bid you a good day!

Yesterday and Today

Good morning! Nice rainy day so far. A not very warm rainy day. Fairly productive except I keep forgetting I have a lump of dough in the back refrigerator I need to take care of.

I just took care of it.

Going back to my last post, Paul brought the ads home and I looked at them. This leads me to believe that my initial perception was, in fact, incorrect. That is good. Sometimes it is good to be right, sometimes it is good to be wrong.

I have been reading about women who have been forced into c-sections by their doctors. Some women are made to because a hospital will actually get a court order making the women have one. Some women are coerced into it. Many of them are told that their baby will be taken from them if they do not agree to it. Some are told their other children will be removed by child protective services if they do not agree to it. Many, perhaps most, of these women have done their research and know their rights. Shame on the doctors who take advantage of women at this very vulnerable time. Honestly, I am glad that I know not all doctors are pigs because after reading, I’m inclined to think they are all swine.

Yesterday I went to the sandpit nearest us for a lovely little hike. We were gone for about an hour and a half and went only about 2.5 miles but the up and down was something else. I was sure my legs were going to be in bad shape this morning but they aren’t. I could go do it again. But I won’t. I’d rather go letterboxing. I would have taken some pictures but my phone died. Silly boys who like to use my phone to play games.

Today is somewhat rainy. The weather forecast has changed about six times in the past three days. The only thing that has remained constant is that tomorrow we should be rainy. It has been a 100% chance five of the six times and 90% once. I’d say there’s a good chance of rain. With that in mind, we are planning indoor activities for tomorrow. Currently, it has changed again and we are back to 90% tomorrow and sun for the five days after that (well, one day is partly sunny). It has been rain on at least three of those five days previously. Good grief. The plan for them is to go out letterboxing and just be prepared for rain if it happens.

Compare this with the one below. Silly weather.

Speaking of letterboxing, I carved 19 stamps in eight days (ending Saturday) plus two that I didn’t like enough to use. Joseph carved two. That means we’ve got some stamps to plant. Five are for a series on how to keep safe from vampires. Seven are for a Star Wars series (I might have a couple of them be hitch hikers). Two are for LTCs which are letterbox trading cards. Three are for individual boxes and we know where we want to plant each of them. The last two are going to be hitchhikers and have to do with what I might be doing if I weren’t doing letterbox related things.

I’ve requested a copy of Dracula by Bram Stoker from the library for the initial clue for the vampire series. I want to plant each of the five in different cemeteries around us. There is one little cemetery that I think is very cute but it has houses so close I’m not sure it is really a good choice. There are plenty others to choose from, though, so I don’t think we’ll run into any problems. I have no idea about the Star Wars stamps. I actually think I’d like to do a couple more carves before planting and will probably just pick a spot and put two or three or four in each box and have two or three boxes. Anyway, it’s all fun to plan and carry out.

Today when the boys are done with morning school, I’m going to run over to Julia’s and borrow her screw gun so I can put together some more shelves. The sisters have come over twice and helped plant seeds in milk/water/juice jugs. I would like to do about twenty more so I need more shelves for them because there simply is not room at the moment. I think I’m going to do short ones with just two shelves.

Well, that was yesterday. Today the chance of rain is now 80% although right at this minute it is 100%.

Look at this. In the half an hour or so that I was typing between when I checked earlier and just two minutes ago when I did this, we're back to 90% today and Saturday changed from Sunny to Partly Cloudy. How fickle the weather is!

Does anyone else have routines? I mean, it’s normal to have routines, right?

I have one when it comes to laundry. It looks like this:

Wash a load.

Dry a load and wash another load.

Fold when I’m ready to and dry another load and wash another load.

Fold when I’m ready, etc., etc., etc.

Amena does her own laundry and that is great; it means that much less for me to do. The only problem is that she takes stuff out of the drier and puts it in a basket or on the couch (we have a couch specifically for this purpose, you know) and then puts the load that was in the washer in the drier and then that gets put in a basket or on the couch. And then there is more for me to fold than I ever feel like so it sits there. It sits there sometime for days. Even, occasionally, for weeks. Which isn’t to say it’s a static thing; it changes all the time as people dig through it looking for whatever it is they can’t find anywhere else (which is several times a day per person, well, per boy child).

What this means is that when I go to fold because I’ve done more washing and drying is that there is more to fold. So sometimes I will fold and fold and fold. Sometimes I will fold for ten or fifteen minutes and then not for ten or fifteen minutes, etc., until done. Sometimes, and this is really my favorite method, I will fold the load that came out of the drier and then fill the basket with stuff from the couch and fold that. Then I wait for the next load to come out of the drier and fold it and another basket from the couch. Etc., etc., etc. That’s what I was doing yesterday afternoon/evening. When I’d had enough laundry and the pile on the couch was less than half of what it had been and I decided to go to bed, there was a load in the drier and a load in the washer. Then Amena decided to do a load of laundry so this morning there were two new loads on the couch. I folded one because it was towels and therefore super easy but I really don’t want to do any more. I hate folding clothes.

At least the pile on the floor is substantially smaller today than it was at the beginning yesterday. I hate having dirty clothes piled on the floor because it’s the kitchen, they get walked on, and Misty sleeps on them. In fact, if there are dirty clothes to sleep on, she will not use her bed. If she didn’t smell so bad, I wouldn’t mind as much.

Today we have an artsy day planned. After math and reading, we’ll go to Julia’s where the boys will paint toilet paper roll fireworks and I’ll work on some letterbox trading cards. I’ve never made any before but I’ve read what I could find on AtlasQuest about them and joined an LTC Facebook group. I think it should be fun. If it isn’t, I probably won’t do it again.

Last night I told Cedric that I’d make hot chocolate and rolled oats for him this morning. That just means that when I got up at 5:00 to make sure he and Amena were awake I stayed up rather than snoozing for another 25 minutes. Some mornings I actually sleep, some I just take almost half an hour to finish waking up. This morning I think another half an hour to finish waking up would have been nice.

Speaking of waking up, yesterday morning in the wee-sma’s, at three something, Paul’s mask got catawampus and was making the most awful noise. It was like a full-blown gale in the bed. I turned the light on to make sure he was still breathing and then attempted to get back to sleep. It was long in coming; those darn machines make a lot of noise if the mask isn’t properly set. In the future, I think I’ll either kick him or go sleep in the living room.

Right now I’ll be off. Have a fantastic day!

Be Kind and Don't Let Your Perceptions Cloud Your Vision

You know that adage, “Actions speak louder than words”? I believe that to be true. However, this morning I began thinking about it in conjunction with perceptions. Our perceptions cloud our view of the world and so many times the actions we witness often do not mean what we think they do. Also, it is quite possible, because of how others perceive us, that our actions might take on a meaning that we had no intention of portraying.

For example, Paul picked up the ads that just came in the mail yesterday. The prices in them aren’t good until Sunday or Monday and I didn’t have time to take a look at them yet. He put them in a bag of stuff he took to work. I said, “Those just came yesterday.”

“Yeah?” said his voice. His tone and expression said, “So?”

“Just so you know.” I said. I really should have said what I meant, “They just came yesterday so I haven’t had time to look at them and I’d like to so I know if there is anything we could use.” I didn’t do that and so I’m left with the feeling that he doesn’t care what I want or what we could use or what we might need. That is my perception.

What did he really mean? Probably not, “I don’t care what you want or what we might need or what we could use.” I’m thinking he probably meant, “Yeah, so I’ll have lots of time to take a look when I’m on hold and can’t really do much else.”

Honestly, that second scenario is a good one because then he won’t be looking on ebay or craigslist for things. J When you spend too much time shopping, online or in person, you often end up with things that you don’t really need. I guess that’s one reason I don’t like shopping—I have always felt compelled to buy what is needed rather than wanted (and yes, I do feel that crafts are a need—they keep us sane) even though there are lots of things that I would like to get that are not needed.

Someone posted this on Facebook the other day and I had to share because it is so true.

In other news, in many ways, I am grateful to be where I am right now. Not physically, so much, but mentally. I read Michelle Murch’s blog (murchmadness.wordpress.com) and my whole body and soul ache for her and her family.

I can’t say that I’m glad the accident and our stay at the hospital are over because I wish they’d never happened. I can’t really say that I’m glad for the intervening years because they don’t lessen the fact that what happened, happened. I guess I can say that the waves have slowed down. At first, it is like being in a storm, tossed about and at the mercy of the winds and waves. You don’t know how you are possibly going to live through it but the fact that you are alive indicates chances are good that you will. Then the storm calms. The intensity of the feelings is still there but the constant buffeting has changed as if the wind has slackened. As time goes by, it is more as if there is an ebb and tide to everything. Most of the time you are able to function in a somewhat normal manner. Most of the time.

Then, suddenly, an errant wave, sometimes in the form of a tsunami, hits and you feel as if everything just happened. Seriously. There are times in the car when I feel like I am sitting in the Durango and I wonder how it happened. Will it ever go away? From what I’ve learned from others who’ve experienced the death of a child, no. It will never go away. It will continue to evolve but it will never go away. Isn’t that a cheerful thought?

On the other hand, I have come to realize that the reason we feel such pain and grief and loss is because there was such love. Which is not to say that we do not feel those when there is little or perhaps even no love, just that the intensity is much, much greater. Sometimes, when we have guilt, the grieving can be even more sharp and profound.

Some LEGO dudes that Seth took a picture of the other day. LEGOs are awesome. But they can also be a trigger because Daniel loved them. 

That brings me to other thoughts. I do feel guilt when it comes to Daniel’s death. We were in a one car accident and I was driving. I have to live with this knowledge for the rest of my life. I have no one else to blame. And yet, if it was truly Daniel’s time to graduate mortality, there is nothing I could have done to prevent it.

There are other causes of grief. If a partner (we’ll say husband) were to die and the other partner (we’ll say wife) had some harsh thoughts about her husband or had been unfaithful, or myriad other things, she may harbor feelings of guilt. And yet, if it was truly his time, there is nothing she could have done to change things.

What about the young man who was killed in an accident and the driver of the other car was drunk? Well, there would be someone to blame, wouldn’t there? Or at least a focus for our anger. Still, if it was that young man’s time, we aren’t doing ourselves any favors by refusing to forgive the drunken person.

And so it goes. Each situation is different and hopefully we do not lower ourselves to the point of judging others because there is no way we know each circumstance involved.

I hope you have a lovely day. And don’t forget to be kind.

One of, you know, those days.

Good evening. I should be getting myself to bed soon but I just don’t currently feel like it. Some days are, you know, just days. Today has been one of them.

I used to really like Sunday. It was like having a day off. I don’t really feel that any more. This morning, for example. I actually got up late, 7:30, but only because I didn’t go to bed until after midnight. I have to milk Zoey and feed and water the goats so anything beyond 7:30 just isn’t going to happen.

Then I did fun stuff like wash dishes. For breakfast we had sausages and buckwheat pancakes. The pancakes were from a mix that Paul bought because he said, “I wanted to try it.” That really is funny because he almost never eats pancakes. Besides, if someone wants buckwheat pancakes, I’m pretty capable of making them from scratch.

Can you see it? Not really. It's under her left front leg.

Then there were more dishes. I decided to make an apple crisp because we needed something to eat later and we have quite a few apples and I’d really prefer to eat or otherwise use them before they are to the point that I’d rather let the goats have them. Then I decided to make au gratin potatoes because we have a ton (almost literally) of milk, leftover ham, and potatoes that need to be used. That took care of five pounds of potatoes, five cups of milk, and about two cups of cut up ham.

Then there were more dishes. Because there are always more dishes. I did make the boys wash some they’d gotten dirty and I made them put the clean ones away.

Then I decided to make hot chocolate. Because, you know, we have that almost literal ton of milk. That takes care of two and a half quarts. And makes more dirty dishes.

I was wondering what had been causing Misty's digestive upsets. Maybe eating Kitty's leftover catches? Maybe because Kitty actually eats them as opposed to swallowing them whole. I had to make Misty give this one back.

I took the bone out of the ham so I could cook it for pea soup and put the rest of the ham in a smaller container. I think we need to have ham and broccoli fettucine because we’ve still got this ham and we’ve got quite a bit of broccoli, too. I hope Paul wants to take some potatoes to work for lunch. He probably won’t because he likes to eat what he cooks, not what I cook. That’s what comes of being a bachelor for so long, I guess. On the other hand, I generally like to eat what I cook rather than what he cooks which is what comes from doing my own cooking for my entire adult life. Still, I hope he takes some because they don’t freeze well and we’ve got a lot left.

Anyway, I basically was busy doing stuff in the kitchen until noon and then a little bit more when I did the hot chocolate later.

I carved some stamps, too. I was looking at Lord of the Rings pictures and came across this one of Gandalf that said, “You shall not pass,” and thought that would be an excellent one to put on the other side of the river that we had hoped to cross in the fall when we planted Joanna’s letterbox. I changed it some and then carved it. Then I carved a Lamborghini for Cedric. It isn’t perfect by a long shot but he is happy with it and that’s all that counts in my book. I also carved two more for the Star Wars series I’d like to do for May 4^th.

Yum, yum! These are all from yesterday morning, by the way.

That was fun but the reason I carve these things is only partly for the fun. It’s also because I want to plant and find letterboxes. That means hiking and that means finding places to go. The Great Seal of the State of Jefferson is going to be planted near Mt. Jefferson here in Hubbardston and I’m going to call it Transplanted or Homesick. Or maybe Transplanted and Homesick. Cedric’s Lamborghini is going to be called Lambo Lord and be planted also in Hubbardston. Gandalf will be planted by the nonexistent bridge I mentioned and will be called You Shall Not Pass.

I was looking at different places to plant the Star Wars series and haven’t decided. There are quite a few possible locations. Depending on how many I get done, it will need to be a fairly decent hike. One of those I have already done I’d like to do as a hitchhiker. It is a very simple and small design.

When Laura, Joanna, Daniel, and Amena were my homeschooling children, I used to think that I’d like to do a year-long schooling calendar. My thought was to do school for two or three months and then take two or three months off. I had it all figured out but never implemented it. Now that Seth and Joseph are homeschooling, I’d really like to do this now but with Amena and Cedric in public school, it would be much easier said than done. But, if you figure a year having 365 days, 104 of those are weekends. Most schools require 180 days of school. That leaves 81. Why not break them up evenly throughout the year? If you divide the year up into thirteen week quarters, you could be on ten weeks and off three. And that really gives you more days of school than you need unless my math is way off because I should be getting to bed. Anyway, I’d sure like to give it a try sometime.

You might be asking what that has to do with letterboxing. It’s just that I would sure like to go out and plant some letterboxes tomorrow rather than do school. Joseph wants to get out and do lots of hiking because he’d love to catch up with Jack Foley and maybe even pass him on the Pack 12 Cub Scout hiking leaderboard. For a boy who doesn’t like hiking, Jack has a few miles under his belt. Joseph is at 55.5 miles and Jack has slightly less than twenty more. Can Joseph catch up? I don’t know but he’s currently willing to give it a go.

Tomorrow might actually be a good day for school because it’s supposed to snow again. If there is public school tomorrow, Seth and Joseph will do school. If there is no public school, I’ll feel sorry for myself about not being able to get out and do something.

In the meantime, I have plenty to keep myself occupied tomorrow. And then some, really.

In the other meantime, have a splendid evening and a terrific tomorrow.