The computer denouement came at 2 in the morning, when Ed and I resolved the last outstanding question we had about my overcrowded hard drive. Relieved, we called it a day and went to bed.
And so Monday began as normal as you could wish for in this unusual summer season. Wake up time -- normal, swatting bugs -- normal, feeding cats and chickens -- normal. And yes, finally finding the blooming heads of July day lilies! The beautiful summer season -- normal!
Breakfast, at peace, on the porch.
And then we have the arrival of Snowdrop and Sparrow. Our morning nature walk has to be brief. The bugs are out and they especially love hanging by the raspberry bushes -- the place where Snowdrop is intent on picking some ripening berries.
"Want a berry?)
But even this brief outdoor interlude is worth something: we get that feeling of summer - intense heat, bugs and all.
("what are you gonna do...")
Lovely in so many ways...
Challenging in some.
Indoors, after our reading time, I offer some art project choices. Neither child is tempted by them. Snowdrop wants time for imaginative play. This is not unusual for a Monday and I let her roll with it.
She reorganizes some of her set ups and then turns her attention to neatening the food table. (It was never intended to be just that, but the kids love pretend food play and so it remains exclusively a place for them to prepare "meals" for themselves and the dolls or characters.) I've noticed that she has a real neatness streak in her!
Sparrow is happy to be included in her play, even if neatness isn't quite his thing yet.
And from pretend food, we go to a real lunch, where the highlight for her is ... everything, and the highlight for him is the icing on yesterday's birthday cake.
Eventually, the kids leave. Typically I am the one who takes them home, but I have a Zoom meeting with my Polish friends and so I hand kids over a little earlier than usual.
Lots to talk about with those across the ocean! There is the horror of the drama unfolding in this country of course, but, too, there are the elections in Poland - held last week, with a run off next weekend. The outcome couldn't be more important, as it will either signal a readiness to accept significant change in the way the country has been governed, or it will give Poles more of the same. It's fair to say that most of my friends desperately want radical change and perhaps all want some degree of change, though this is hard to gauge, Poles tend to be more conflicted about expressing dissenting opinions. (I am not unlike them in this regard.)
Still, it is wonderful to have this rather regular meeting with all of them. Honestly, it's almost as if they lived in another state or even just down the road rather than an ocean (and then some) away.
Evening. We're beating the heat indoors. The predicted spot storms never popped up over us and so I do go out and water a few of the tubs, but otherwise, I have little energy for big outdoor works.
And yes, an easy Monday dinner of leftovers. And a significantly earlier bedtime! We are greatly in need of sleep.
And so Monday began as normal as you could wish for in this unusual summer season. Wake up time -- normal, swatting bugs -- normal, feeding cats and chickens -- normal. And yes, finally finding the blooming heads of July day lilies! The beautiful summer season -- normal!
Breakfast, at peace, on the porch.
And then we have the arrival of Snowdrop and Sparrow. Our morning nature walk has to be brief. The bugs are out and they especially love hanging by the raspberry bushes -- the place where Snowdrop is intent on picking some ripening berries.
"Want a berry?)
But even this brief outdoor interlude is worth something: we get that feeling of summer - intense heat, bugs and all.
("what are you gonna do...")
Lovely in so many ways...
Challenging in some.
Indoors, after our reading time, I offer some art project choices. Neither child is tempted by them. Snowdrop wants time for imaginative play. This is not unusual for a Monday and I let her roll with it.
She reorganizes some of her set ups and then turns her attention to neatening the food table. (It was never intended to be just that, but the kids love pretend food play and so it remains exclusively a place for them to prepare "meals" for themselves and the dolls or characters.) I've noticed that she has a real neatness streak in her!
Sparrow is happy to be included in her play, even if neatness isn't quite his thing yet.
And from pretend food, we go to a real lunch, where the highlight for her is ... everything, and the highlight for him is the icing on yesterday's birthday cake.
Eventually, the kids leave. Typically I am the one who takes them home, but I have a Zoom meeting with my Polish friends and so I hand kids over a little earlier than usual.
Lots to talk about with those across the ocean! There is the horror of the drama unfolding in this country of course, but, too, there are the elections in Poland - held last week, with a run off next weekend. The outcome couldn't be more important, as it will either signal a readiness to accept significant change in the way the country has been governed, or it will give Poles more of the same. It's fair to say that most of my friends desperately want radical change and perhaps all want some degree of change, though this is hard to gauge, Poles tend to be more conflicted about expressing dissenting opinions. (I am not unlike them in this regard.)
Still, it is wonderful to have this rather regular meeting with all of them. Honestly, it's almost as if they lived in another state or even just down the road rather than an ocean (and then some) away.
Evening. We're beating the heat indoors. The predicted spot storms never popped up over us and so I do go out and water a few of the tubs, but otherwise, I have little energy for big outdoor works.
And yes, an easy Monday dinner of leftovers. And a significantly earlier bedtime! We are greatly in need of sleep.
