A Question I Can't Answer

Riding in the car today on the way to dance class...

L: Mom? How do you play with toys in heaven?

M: Play with toys in heaven? Uh...I don't have that answer Lauren.

L: *thinking* Maybe Jesus knows.

M: Probably so.

Lauren Talks About Planets

This morning, Lauren was having her breakfast and watching her favorite shows (on PBS). I walked in the room to check on her breakfast status (it IS a school morning!) and had the following conversation.

L: Mom! Guess what? I know a planet!

M: You do?! Which one?

L: MARS!

M: That's right! Mars is a planet.

L: What's it like?

M: *thinking back quickly to 4th grade science project* Well, it's really cold there.

L: Yeah, I think it has snow there. I've seen it on one of Daddy's games.

M: Hmmm...ok...

L: Did you know there something strange about our planet Earth?

M: No. What is strange about our planet?

L: It only has ONE MOON! And in outer space there are lots of moons.

M: That's right! What else do you know about space?

L: That's some scary stuff out there...scary stuff like CATS!

That's my girl.

Love is in the air!

Those who know me well, know that one of my greatest joys is my Bluebird Family. We've only lived in this house for a year, but somehow my bond with this particular family has been different from any other family I've "worked" with in the past. Daddy B. is extremely friendly and interested in me. Mama is a little more aloof, and let's Daddy do all the human socializing.


Daddy B. has been singing his sweet song for a few weeks now. This song signals the beginning of the long, arduous task of bringing new Bluebirds into this world. This singing is his way of marking boundary lines of claimed territory and telling other males to move on and find another yard!


Yesterday afternoon I was in the bedroom folding laundry and could hear him singing. He's been teasing me for weeks singing somewhere I can't SEE him. The moment I hear him I start looking out and up to see where he is. Yesterday was a treat! He was sitting in the backyard on my platform feeder, normally reserved for my "other" birds ("other" being those that eat SEED). I had placed several chunks of my homemade suet in the platform for the birds and he was helping himself to some morsels...even though he has his OWN bowl in the front yard!


The sun was shining and he was brilliantly blue. The blue of a Bluebird is breathtaking, especially in the sun. I RAN to get my camera to get some shots of him. Like I said, he's very friendly towards me and I know he sees me in the window. He came closer to the edge of the platform (closer to me) and looked as if he was posing. "Is this better?" as he would turn to the side. I even got some shots while he was singing (more puffed out in the chest). It was amazing.


At one point, I saw another male swooping in to land on the platform. In one swift motion, the other male landed and Daddy moved over to one of the crooks nearby. Seconds later, Mama B. landed beside him. I could tell by the behavior (of the new male and of Daddy) that this was one of the babies from the clutch born last summer. I can't wait to see the "kids" help Mom and Dad in this nesting process soon to start in the next couple weeks.


Take a look at some of these shots of my beautiful Bluebird Family!

Daddy B. checking out the food choices.



Daddy B. singing (note the puffed out chest)

Daddy B. coming closer and giving me his best side.

Baby B., actually I guess he's just Young Boy B. these days!

Mama B. and her son enjoying a suet snack. That's a big chunk Mama's got!

Those of you that have followed my Bluebird Obsession will remember Daddy B. scaring and delighting me by landing on the french doors that are inside my screened porch. Well, HE'S BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK... This morning I saw something out of the corner of my eye and looked more closely to find Daddy B. fluttering around on the porch. He landed on the door handle and was peeking in. I walked right up to the door and said, "Good Morning Daddy B.! Is there something I can help you with?" I got the camera and snapped some pictures and then got a bowl of some suet cake to take out front to his bowl.

Daddy B. is training me early this year. "Ahem. Miss? Our bowl needs refilling."

The second he heard the front door open, I saw his shadow fluttering on the corner of the house. I looked up and saw him sitting on the gutter. He flew right up to me as I was putting the food in the bowl and I thought he was going to land on the crook right there with me!! He made a last minute change and flew up to the branch directly over my head. He's getting brave this year! As I walked back in the house, I caught his reflection in the storm door...he'd already landed on the bowl and was grabbing a bite. I looked out the window after I got back inside and he had flown up into the tree with a morsel for his sweet wife, Mama B. He's wooing her. Love is definitely in the air!

Not everyone loves bacon

Tonight I had grand plans to take the family out to dinner at IHOP. Today is "National Pancake Day" and therefore IHOP was offering a plate of three pancakes to each customer for free. OK, so fast-forward...we went to TWO different IHOPs only to find them completely packed and even overflowing with people into the parking lot waiting for some FREE pancakes.

*sigh* Never fear, I had a back-up plan...Cracker Barrell. Chad is not a huge fan of "Breakfast for Dinner" but Lauren and I could eat breakfast for ALL meals. My mind and tummy were all set for breakfast, so Cracker Barrell was a good plan.

Lauren and I each ordered pancakes. Lauren also got a side order of bacon. Anyone who has spent ANY time with Lauren knows that this kid would give up a lot in her life before she'd EVER consider giving up bacon. She's a lot like those dogs in the commercial for "Beggin' Strips"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CErapf79rqM

Tonight at supper, the waiter came to the table and asked if he could take Lauren's bacon plate. We all looked at him like he was insane. Couldn't he SEE it still had 3/4 of the slice left??? Chad said, "We would NEVER take bacon away from this kid."

After the waiter left, we were talking to Lauren about bacon and about how much she LOVES bacon.

She sat and gnawed on her bacon slice for a bit and then...

L: Dad? Not everyone likes bacon.

C: Yeah...

L: That's kinda sad isn't it?

Out of the mouth of our babe. Yes Lauren, believe it or not, not everyone loves bacon. And yes, that is kinda sad.

Boys are all the same...

I say to my friends and to myself all the time how THANKFUL I am that I have a little girl. I hear stories (some horrific, some hilarious) about the antics my friends' sons are up to. Whew! Everytime I hear a story I think, "HOLY COW! MY CHILD WOULDN'T DREAM OF DOING THAT!"

And then...

...I got a little boy dog. His name is Finnegan.

Finnegan may be a dog. But he is A BOY. He's clumsy and spontaneous. He chews on metal and brick. He chases birds relentlessly and honestly believes he's going to catch one if he just runs a little faster next time. He jumps fearlessly from one of piece of furniture to another. Sometimes he makes it, lots of times he doesn't. He falls down between couch cushions, he falls off tables. He's CONSTANTLY knocking stuff over with his POUNCING nature.



I hear stories all the time about my friends' sons that are climbers. Thankfully Lauren was NEVER a climber, so it was never an issue. Again, I think, "WOW, Lauren would NEVER do that..."



But now...I've got my own boy. And canine or human, boys are all the same.

And yes, that's my dining room table.

A History Lesson by Lauren Reeves

Yesterday afternoon I picked Lauren up from school and as usual, asked her what she did that day and what they talked about. I had NO IDEA I was about to get a history lesson on holidays in February...

M: Did you have a good day at school?

L: Yes.

M: What did you all talk about today?

L: Well on Valentine's Day lots of people died.

M: Who died? (not quite prepared for THAT bit of history)

L: Those people. A long, long time ago. They died on Valentine's Day.

M: OH! The Valentine's Day Massacre? (what the HECK did Ms. Carrie teach them??)

L: Yeah. That.

M: Yes, that's true. Lots of people did die.

L: Yeah, and now they are on coins and stuff. Like the quarter and the penny.

M: The WHAT? (*commence racing mind to figure out what in the world she's talking about*)

L: The coins. You know, money. The quarter and the penny. They are on those.

M: Ohhhhhhhhhhhh...Washington and Lincoln?

L: Yes. Them.

M: I see. Wow, that's really interesting.

Oh how easily information gets jumbled in a little ones head. I had no idea that Presidents' Day and Valentine's Day were somehow...related?

And there you have it. A history lesson by Lauren Reeves.

A Lesson on Pollen

Lauren has been happily playing in the playroom all morning while I've been working on the computer (managing blogs and Etsy shops can be quite time-consuming!). I can typically expect visits from Lauren every 30 minutes or so. Just checking in, or requesting a drink, showing me a piece of art, asking me a question, etc. Sometimes I feel like her visits are just attempts to scramble my brain and keep me on my toes.

Enter Lauren.

L: Mom? Is pollen a berry?

M: Ummmm...no...not really, it's uh... (frantically wanting to look up P-O-L-L-E-N on the internet so I can have a definitive answer)

L: Well, pollen can be a musical instrument.

M: A what? (commence rapid blinking and confused look)

L: A guitar has flowers on it.

M: *more blinking* OK... (I swear I really am trying to keep up with this thought process)

L: ...and well the flowers kinda smell like pollen...

M: *silence* (I got nothin')

L: Pollen can get you sick if you smell too much of it.

M: Yes, I suppose that's true...

L: BYE!

Exit Lauren.

Success. Brain scrambled.