Seven Quick Takes

I

I really don't have the brain for this today, but it's been a week since I last managed to post... a week of low sleep, crowned by last night's hour and a half on the floor in Little Bear's room while he cried because he wanted water but couldn't calm down enough to drink it without choking... I can barely walk today, let alone do anything that requires thinking. Hopefully I can boil water, because there's no way supper will be anything fancier than pasta salad.

II

Okay, no complaining about pasta salad. I do like pasta salad, and maybe if Little Bear naps well and I get a chance to lay down myself I'll be able to pack up supper before we go pick Matt up from work, and we can have a car-picnic at the migratory bird refuge this evening. The Canada geese are starting to show up: a sure sign that spring is sticking around, despite the piles of snow still hanging around town. It's a beautiful 47 degrees out right now, and shouldn't get much cooler before supper time.

III

Part of our driveway has gotten the memo that it's spring; other sections, not so much. We actually need to use 4WD to get in and out of the garage! A several-inch-thick sheet of sheer ice slopes down to the garage door, about one and a half car-lengths of it, and immediately beyond that we start sinking into two inches of mud. Renting does teach valuable lessons on what to look for/watch out for in buying a house—now we definitely know better than to buy a place with a driveway sloped like this, and that if we buy a house that only has a dirt driveway we'll have to plan on putting down a couple of layers of gravel.

IV

Somehow I thought I took a bunch of pictures this week, and I was planning to just let my camera roll take up the slack for my lack-of-brain, but I went to see what I have and there's nothing. One of Little Bear with a letter U balanced on his nose, which he of course learned from his father and thinks is just the funniest thing ever, but nothing else. Maybe I was borrowing Matt's phone when I took photos? Oh, pregnancy brain; I can't remember.

V

It's probably too late today to make a difference for most people in non-Alaska timezones, but today, Friday in the Octave of Easter, is to be observed as a solemnity (as are all of the days in the Octave). And that means, no abstinence from meat! Which I completely forgot when I was planning my menu for the week, but I'm not making the grilled veggie burritos I have written down anyway, but I'm probably also not going to put meat in the pasta salad because what kind of meat goes in pasta salad? A cold pasta salad with a mayonnaise-based dressing? I tend to always use tuna, peas and little cubes of cheese. Maybe if I had grapes I would use chicken, but I don't... Maybe chicken and diced strawberries? With slivered almonds, cubed Swiss and mini farfalle? Would that be too weird? 

VI

This coming Sunday is the octave day of Easter, and Divine Mercy Sunday, and the beginning of Pope Francis' jubilee year of mercy, and it's Easter in the Orthodox calendar. Whew! We're planning to fire up the grill that afternoon and have a good friend over, and celebrate his Easter and our Divine Mercy et al all together. Mrs. Pregnancy-brain here has completely forgotten to buy charcoal all week long, despite having had the car every single day this week; maybe we'll pick some up tonight if we wind up having a picnic. 

VII

Yesterday morning Little Bear climbed into my lap while I sat in the rocking chair, sort of wedged/curled himself around my belly, and promptly fell asleep. And started snoring. Baby immediately started wiggling wildly, kicking at him, but didn't manage to wake him up. Not sure if she was telling him to stop snoring right next to her, or if she wanted to play with him!

Have a good weekend! Go check out This Ain't the Lyceum for more quick takes.