Guest In The Greenhouse

The other day, I went out to the greenhouse to gather tomatoes. As I looked down in the base of one of the tomato containers, I saw this little bright face amongst the green leaves.

A Little Friend

Our little friend comes to the bird-feeder and sits inside the little bracket where the suet is supposed to go. I think he likes it there.

Autumn's Arrival

Proof that Autumn is coming.
A time for beautiful colours, drifting leaves, chilly wandering winds, and warm blankets. I think if someone asked me right now, I'd say that Autumn is my favourite time of year; but I know that in November I'll likely say that Winter takes that crown. At least I'm always happy with whatever season we're in!

The Deck-Door

We had gone for a walk, and came back just as it began it pelt rain down at us. Thinking the door was shut, we sat around the table, drinking tea and talking.
The door to the deck creaked open, and we all turned.
Tink rolled her eyes at her cup of tea. "Oh that whiny ole door!"

Tasha Tudor

Today is Tasha Tudor day, as I found out over at Jenny's blog. She originally got the idea from another blogger, and I guess that many bloggers are going to spend today doing something to commemorate Tasha and the way she lived. I had the idea this morning to do something, maybe just one thing, simple in honour of her, everyday for the rest of the week. (It's a good thing today's Thursday, right?) At the end of the week, I'll probably post pictures/descriptions of the things I did, and what I liked most.
So here is to Tasha Tudor and the remarkable, simple life that she lived.

Tis The Last Cobbler of Summer

Okay, so maybe I'm over-doing it to be singing the great old Irish ballad in relation to a cobbler. But I'm pretty sure that these are the last rhubarb cobblers I'll make for this summer. The rhubarb plants that we have a beginning to fade, so I made two just for good measure.

Word From Hawaii

Today, a postcard arrived from my dear Jhaniel, and I eagerly read it, then stared at the beauty of the pictures on the front.

I wonder a little whether she choose the postcard knowing that it would make me want to come to Hawaii. Of course, as soon as I heard that she was going to college there, I wanted to go visit her. But the scenery was... breathtaking.

Mum's always wanted to go there, as almost every Alaskan does. But for the first time, I have wanted to join her there. To me, Hawaii was that over-rated place where people went to lay on the beach and get sunburned. Now I see the beauty of the nature there.

No, I still wouldn't want to just lay on the beach - even though I don't get sunburned. I would want to go hiking on their mountains and maybe, just maybe, I'd try snorkling.

Of Centrepieces and Randomness

It all started with me, I guess. The table was bare with the exception of the blue and white centre-cloth and a glass with two dahlias in it. As I ate my breakfast, I took off my glasses.

That's when it began. Seeing the glasses and figuring it was okay, Dad added a pack of post-it notes. I - being oblivious - suggested to Mum that we needed to change the centre-piece because it had been basically the same for over a week.

And Mum went random. A few minutes later, I came out to see that she had created her masterpiece: "The Random Centrepiece."

It included: my glasses, one pack of post-it notes, fish food, a roll of tape, a piece of wrapping paper that Belle from home from school, a picture of Mum and Tink (you can't see it in the picture), Tink's doll, a baby blanket, one of Theophilus' work gloves, and the original cloth and flowers.

Naturally, we didn't actually leave the Random Centrepiece there, as my father would probably get worried about me and Mum if we left it until dinner. A bit of searching, and I decided to honour my love of coffee - and Mum's love of flowers. I think this is a little more presentable than the Random Centre, although Mum's is far more original and unique.

Our house is a collection, gallery, and tribute to the Ways Which Are Random. And I think that is just how things are, whether we like them or not.

Something Bright on a Grey Day

Sometimes, it can be difficult finding the good things that happen on days that seem entirely grey. Other times... they stand out amongst the white, black and grey.


It's not so bad if the kids leave their toys out on the deck - if they are outside toys to begin with - if it means that it helps brighten my day. And who couldn't help but smile at this swirly-coloured ball?

Oh, and for Marilyn, I believe this post is my equivalent of your "Wild and Precious" post.

A Berry Day

Today, I made a very important discovery: the raspberries were at last ripe! So ripe, that I actually lost a lot because they were dropping off the stems before I could pick them.

So Tink and I went into gear and began to pick them. Here is Tink's collection, which isn't too bad, considering this was her first time and she was learning to tell the difference betwixt ready and unripe berries.

Here I am, showing my half-full bowl of delicious berries. Of course, I ate them liberally too, so my bowl could have been much fuller. Oh well, there's still a lot in there aside from the ones which I so voraciously devour.

Note to self: do not get the prickles embedded in fingers, as it will generally hurt and be highly difficult to remove. But at least my arms are protected. And my bowl too... no little fingers (mine or Tink's) snitching the contents during this photo!

Yes - I let her get the ones closest to the ground. Reason number one, they're closer to her level and so she won't have to reach up to far. Oh yeah, and I won't have to bend down and then wonder how I'm going to get up again!

This is my bowl, after it had been hit hard by me. I can't help it: fresh raspberries have to be one of the best things of late summer/early autumn. I'm looking forward to picking more in the days to come!

Photo credits to Mum today, who found out that she can too take good pictures with Dad's camera! Hopefully she won't be so against taking pictures in the future!

Raspberry patches forever...

Camera Captures Kitty

Suddenly, the kitty is attracted by something pretty in Mummy's mirror. What do you know, it's Noelle herself!

"Are you really taking another picture of me? Well, I'm so pretty, you can't help it, can you? I guess I'll smile and look cute for you."

She's a very photogenic cat, that Noelle. And she stayed still, just like she was posing.

"Now will you leave me alone so I can sleep? It's tiring being so pretty and getting chased by little three year old girls!"

When Things Go Wrong

Today, when we dropped the girls off for visitation, Belle helped me open the door - only she opened it so fast that I didn't move my leg fast enough. It resulted with me sitting on the floor nursing a very sore knee. After a few hours, it was swollen, sore, and I didn't feel like putting any pressure on it.

Finally, we were headed home, when the van started acting odd. A little ways after that, we pulled over to the side of the road, and we couldn't get the Sherwood to work. It refused to start. Thank goodness, Dad came soon. However, he couldn't get it started either, so we sat there. In the end, a neighbour of ours, whom we'd never met before, stopped and helped us all get home.

Funnily enough, I wasn't so phased. I just opened up my notebook and actually got a surprising ammount of work done. Maybe I should do that in the future when things go wrong: open my notebook and start writing.

First Day of School

It's the pony parade right before leaving for Harrison's first day of fifth grade, and Belle's first day of first grade.
Then Belle inspected her wardrobe for the day. Let me see: pink, pink, pink, and pink. Looks like we have everthing need for first grade's beginning!
Then down the driveway, down to the bus-stop, and off to school!

What Belle Saw

These Sandhill Cranes are some of the most amazing birds, and we've never had them in our yard before. Thank goodness, Belle has good eyes.

From The Greenhouse

At last, we see some results...

Of O'limpitians and Olympians

Mum, Belle, and I are all feeling a little under the weather, so Belle and I have crashed in front of the telly.

Running came on around the time that Tink woke from her nap. After a few minutes, she decided that she is Sonya Richards. She began racing around the living room, beginning every one in what resembled a stretched squat. "I'm gonna be o'limpitian runny! I winned 'gain!"

Belle announced that when she's not sick, she's going to be a swimmer. According to her, swimmers don't have as many injuries as everyone else. So she practiced her backstroke whilst laying on the couch and Tink counted herself off on her own races. If the girls achieve their new goals, we have a couple little Olympians here. By the way, Belle pronounces it better than Tink does.

Flower From Tink

Pink balancing against the blue of my pen and the white of my paper. I work on my writing during the commercial of the Olympics. According to Lance, I've moved into the telly-room for the duration of the Games.

Watching Olympics

Belle, calmly watching the Olympics, at least the beginning interviews, in her words, the boring part of the night.

Running is a little more fun. But only a little, mind you.

But when the Americans begin scoring during beach volleyball, Belle decided it was time to start dancing and cheering for them.

Apparently, even I think it's time. Oh, and this is when one of the Americans dropped the ball and I was getting a bit worried. I'm a competitive cheerer...

Even our pets are watching the Olympics. It's something to "bring families together" as the commericals have said. Over and over again.

Cheers to Team USA!

Road Legal

Today I went and had my license changed. I'm officially road-legal, off my provisional and owner of a really bad photo. I guess no one really looks good on their license pictures, but I had to laugh that my own self-photos turn out better than my drivers.

Not that I'm going to drive all the time now, because I'm spending my evenings at Mount Olympus. I mean, Beijing. Who else is tired of hearing about Phelps while watching completely different sports? (Don't get me wrong, I am hoping that he gets his eight medals. It's not like he's really about to not achieve his golds. I mean, goals.)

Theophilus: Indiana Jones?

I've been hearing about my brother looking like Indiana Jones... and I don't understand why.

But here he is with his hat, about five minutes before he left yesterday.

Theophilus Is Off

At midnight, Theophilus is leaving for Colorado. It's going to be the first time that he and I are really going to be seperated. The longest before was only two weeks apart, so the thought of possibly not seeing him until Christmas is a little frightening.

The last few days have been a little crazy, as he's been packing up his things. However, he seems to have got everything together, and is ready to go off to officially begin college. After all, he's already taken college classes before, so it won't be that hard for him. And it's a nerdy school, so he'll fit right in.

New Dress

Here is the border of my new dress that I bought on Friday.

Making Me Smile

Laura: Harrison, Tink, Belle! Where are you?
Harrison: Over here!!!
Laura: Where is 'over here'?
Harrison: It's where I am right now!


Also, Mum got a reimbursement check from the program that we were homeschooled through, and couldn't find it. After searching for a while, she found it on the windowsill of her WC.
Mum: I found it!
Lance: Yay!
Mum: Now we can buy school stuff!
Lance: OPA! (Yes, some parts of our life resemble the Greek family from "My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding"... sad, I know.)


Theophilus: Laura is amazing.
Laura: You only say that when I've agreed to do something for you.
Theophilus: Yep, that's when you remind me that you're amazing.
Laura: How are you going to remember my amazingness when you leave for college?
Theophilus: Well... Priority mail means that cookies might still be in good condition by the time they reach Colorado.

Ways To Reduce Stress

When we are stressed with life, it can help to meet friends with similar problems, to have a little lunch at a beautiful coffee-shop that we don't visit often. And then, having creamy mushroom soup on a cold, rainy day helps cheer me up. Since that day, we've been having a lot of adventures on our blue trolley. Oh, and Cissy: "MEOW!" Sorry, had to do that for her.

Some Photos From Saturday

Our visiting quartet: Michael, Evelyn, Adriana, and Gerrall.
Eddie goofing off with our horn soloist.
Our horn soloist, Tony, showing what you really ought to do with trumbones...
Gerrall taking a picture of Tony, who is her husband, and Weeda, our conductor.
Joanna, our harp player. She's really sweet, and I love her harp!
Mellisa practicing right before the concert. I loved being her standpartner. (Not as much as you, of course, dear Marilyn!)

Pictures at the Coffee-Shop