Happy Halloween

We had a glorious Halloween on Mackinac this year. It was so warm I only needed a fleece, which isn't the norm for northern Michigan. I hope your Halloween was every bit as wonderful.

Really?

Time for another episode of Liz's Pet Peeves. Fair warning - I'm going to nerd out.

These Halloween decorations drive me crazy and I mean CRAZY! 

Spiders, members of the arachnid class, are invertebrates; they have exoskeletons. They do not have endoskeletons. Octopuses* are mollusks - another invertebrate. Neither arachnids nor mollusks have backbones - or any bones for that matter.  And yet someone thought these decorations were a great idea. Sigh.

I realize that people shouldn't base their scientific knowledge on Halloween decorations, but little children see these before they are taught animal classification. A four or five year old isn't going to know any better when they see this and make an unconscious mental note. Which will then have to be untaught in the future. How about, instead, choosing animals that actually have skeletons.

And while we're at it, let's only include animal parts that are actually part of the skeleton! A chicken's comb, wattles and tail are not made up of bones. These actually kind of make me cringe. And I'd buy them. I'd have a whole bunch of them around my classroom if they were even remotely accurate. 

Ok, rant over...

*Yeah, I googled it just to makes sure I was correct.

It's the Little Things

We adopted four new "teenage" hens in June and recently they have started to earn their keep. Last week, for the first time we got this beautiful blue-green egg. I think it is from one of the "Twins;" (two nearly identical brownish-grayish chickens with poufy cheek feathers.) 

I just love having all those different colored eggs on the counter.

Can't Put My Finger On It

The face my bread dough reminds me of something, but I just can't quite put my finger on it. Tell me, what do you see when you stare into the eyes of my dough?

Done

I just got the message that my son's FAFSA has been accepted. Thankfully, it was not nearly as much work as I'd been lead to believe. I'm not sure how they calculate what families can afford to give their children for college, but their number and my number aren't anywhere close to one another. Regardless, it's done and I can cross it off of my list.

Memories

My dad's blue jeans and a few of his button down shirts have been transformed into a blanket. Nothing fancy, more utilitarian - just like him. 

I miss him. Not every moment or every day, but regularly. Part of me wants to set a place for him at the table on Thanksgiving. But I worry; will that honor him or just remind us all of his absence? And what's right for me, might not be what's best for my mom. Sigh. It's hard to know what to do. 

 

Time to Adult

A certain young man turned 18 recently. 18 is a very special birthday so it was one of those "get out the good china" kinds of celebrations.

For an important celebration such as this one, one desert just wasn't enough. The newly minted adult got both of his favorites: lemon meringue and pecan pie.

My "baby" is now an adult, which is hard to believe. I am so very proud of the human he has become and I can't wait to see what awaits him as he moves into the next chapter of his life.

Caught My Eye

As I was walking to the post office after school one day this week, turquoise caught my eye. It's not a color usually seen on Mackinac's shores. Upon closer investigation I discovered it was a piece of line, probably lost from one of the ferries. It was a lovely pop of color on an otherwise dreary day.

Sad Day

 

My daughter lost her little buddy today; she came home from school to discover that her pet rat, Sylvester, had passed away. Her other rat, Lucas, had to be euthanized this summer, so today was not a surprise. Despite it being expected, it didn't make it any easier to say good-bye. He was a good little rat and he will be remembered for his wiggling whiskers and how cute he was when he nibbled on Cheerios. 

Fall

Fall has hit Mackinac and it has been a delight. There is a chill in the air and the fall flowers are out. Fall on Mackinac, is by far, my absolute favorite season.