Our up-coming trip

Instead of grousing about how much I hate to travel (which I do, immensely), I should think "I'll get to see my sister soon!" Glass half-full versus glass half-emtpy. The Dalai Lama would be proud of me.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

Kamikaze worm eating warbler

It took a full side run into the window. Luckily we were right there and I ran out to rescue it (it did a face plant into the grass below and had its little heinie sticking up into the air) before dh came along with the lawnmower. I put it in the shade in a protected area.

Last I checked, it seems to have perked up. I hope it's flown off by now.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

My acceptance speech

I just got an e-mail notifying me I had won a gift check from Smithsonian magazine for participating in one of their surveys!

Hm, now I can say I got "money for nothing, and chick(en)s for free!" ;) Oooh, I love it when I can fit a song to a situation.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

Pets vs. "pets"

My friend Vickie has guinea pig babies and need to find homes for them. It's a little tempting since they're the cheap, and non-allergic, versions of cats. But, our general rule is to not keep any animals that we can't eat or that don't produce food for us. There are many reasons to love chickens as "pets"!

If we must get a pet that doesn't provide food for us in some form, it must be a utilitarian animal, such as a working farm collie.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

Maybe I should talk about homeschooling

A mom on a homeschool list I belong to wondered if anyone else has a homeschool blog, so I was inspired to either write more about homeschooling here or start a new blog on our homeschool journey. However, since dh already shakes his head at me for having 2 blogs and 4 e-mail accounts, I think I'll just make homeschool notes here instead of starting a new blog.

I still want to do what Vickie does and get the kids to keep their own blog for their homeschool journal.

Ds#1 is about mid-way through his Bird Biology course from Cornell University. We're looking into the IUHS program for him, but we're not sure how far to go with it yet since he's only 10.

Ds#2 is progressing through 2nd/3rd grade materials, on par with his age level (8), but because of his ASD, I don't really know how much of the abstract social concepts he understands from reading the What Your 3rd Grader Needs to Know book.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

Tired

We went to help out our friends J&R today. They are building an environmentally friendly partial strawbale house and needed help with the clay-straw "plastering." We were only there for four and a half hours, and while working, I didn't feel bad, but after we got home and I had a shower, then I realized how achy my muscles are. Those poor people are building the entire thing themselves (J&R and J's sister and her hubby)!! No wonder they are keeping so fit!

Stupid me, I think I may have broken a finger by not being more careful while jamming clay straw into holes.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

Weed killers

We finally conquered the weeds (by hand; no chemicals for us, thank you very much). Finished the last of the beds yesterday. The beds now look beautifully tame - at least for about 12 hours. The never-ending battle...is that what Superman was talking about? Uh, Justice League reference. Never mind.

On another topic, there was a Jeopardy question last night about a Sumerian myth hero. The answer was Gilgamesh, and ds#1 knew it (the contestant didn't). How does he know these things??

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)

Back home again

It's hard to homestead when you have to travel all the time. Not impossible, but tryingly difficult. The weeds care not that you're gone for a week or two at a time. Or maybe they do care...and take the time to grow stronger and taller, just so you'll have something to admire when you get back.

It's also hard, I've discovered, to get a new working dog/puppy when you're traveling for half the summer.

But, most of all, I miss our beautiful home and quiet countryside. I miss everything about it, from our bed to our huge picture windows to our chickens to frog songs at night.

It's good to be home for...oh...a month before having to head off again.

"To be conscious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge." ~ Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881)