I
So far, so good on the 7 posts in 7 days challenge, although last night was close. I've learned a few things this week: I reallyd do have time to blog on the days that Little Bear naps on my lap, it's hard to force myself to come up with something to write about every single day, and linkups are definitely not "cheating" posts!
II
I also learned, on a completely different note, why it is a bad idea to walk a couple of miles in flip flops. Yes, I always knew in my head that it wasn't a great idea, but I didn't have any practical knowledge of why until yesterday. It was a gorgeous day, and Little Bear was resisting a nap at the top of his lungs, so I drove to campus earlier than I needed to pick Matt up, put Little Bear in the ergo, and took the longest route possible to walk to his office building. It didn't connect that I was wearing flip flops until I was almost half a mile from the parking lot, and being a stubborn woman, especially since the child had finally fallen asleep, I just kept going. By the time we met Matt and walked back down to the car, I had large blisters on both feet and the skin was cracking and starting to bleed. No more flip flops for me for a while!
III
It should be okay to keep going for walks, though, right? As long as I wear socks and proper shoes? I've gotten out for at least one walk every day this week, and already agreed to another this afternoon, and I really don't want to skip it. Getting motivated was hard at first, but right now I know how good I'll feel afterwards and how much Little Bear and I will both enjoy being outside, so I don't want to lose that momentum. Winter is coming fast enough, and it will be much harder to want to get exercise when it is cold.
IV
Posting every day definitely has the downside of using up the things I would normally save up for Fridays... I have nothing here.
V
The children's room at our public library has a large, whimsical mural covering one wall: a parade of fairy-tale figures wends from a timber-framed castle toward the woods, where Alaskan animals and fanciful creatures alike look on. We sat in front of it reading stories the other day, and I was struck by the incredible details I'd never been close enough to notice before: in a fairy house high up in a spruce tree, a daddy stands on the balcony holding a baby no bigger than Little Bear's thumbnail. Farther down the tree, the mom looks up at them, and you can pick out every teeny flower embroidered on her apron. A gypsy in the far-away procession shakes a tambourine, and you can just see each of the bells. It's incredible! Little Bear was too wrapped up in staring at the paper stars hanging from the ceiling to pay much attention to the mural, but that'll come as he gets older.
VI
We did a bit of saint-day feasting this week: for St Mary Magdalene on Monday, I made a nice moose roast; for St Bridget of Sweden on Tuesday, we had Swedish meatballs; and yesterday, for St James, my mother made a lovely plum tart. Today we celebrate Sts Joachim and Anne, parents of Our Lady, but I'm not sure yet what I'll be doing for it.
VII
Little Bear is using words to communicate more and more: The other day he saw me standing in the kitchen eating a scone. He crawled over and pulled himself up, saying "Mama! Mama!" When I picked him up, he pointed to my scone and exclaimed, "Dat!" He grinned and bounced when I gave him a bite, and when he finished it he pointed to my scone and said "Dat!" again. It is so much fun to be a part of him learning new things every day!
Have a lovely weekend!
I really want to eat those Swedish meatballs. Too bad it's Friday. And, you know, they're a picture on the computer.
ReplyDelete1) You need to take a picture of that mural.
ReplyDelete2) So jealous of your access to Moose meat!
3) I love reading your blog! Unfortunately, I keep forgetting to. :P