i could give 2 poops if/what/how kids use the net, but i don't like hannah using it so much because its consuming too much room in her already free-thinking-is-for dorks brain.

niel and i have a low tolerance for media in our home. the internet is on a need to use basis and so is the phone. television is for watching movies or a special treat after all homework/chores/ect has been completed.

the quote above is from our typical afternoon chat. belle sent us an email-something to do with fan box-and we were both annoyed, to say the least.

are we wacked because we wont allow our kid to have a cell phone or unchecked use of the internet?

holy shit! we've become our parents!!!

suprise!

late last summer i pulled up the grass on my park strip. the official name is called rip your strip. i started to rip but decided that was way too much work so i put down some cardboard, collected tons of organic material and hauled dirt from a neighbors house to mine. i did some broadcast seeding of alfalfa and clover to put some nitrogen into the soil, added some random stuff from the beds near the house, planted some radishes to breakup the soil, gave it some water and waited.

sounds easy, doesn't it? well it wasn't. most days were over 100 degrees and hauling the dirt was exhausting because i made a couple of hill/mounds to add "interest"( = dozens of trips up to the neighbors). i might add that i had little to no help during this project.

well, look what i got come spring:

he happened to show up just as i done taking pics.

it seems the soil i used had some poppy seeds in it. what a pleasant surprise. it could have been a lot worse! (the cornflower was a gift from fMh artemis)

you know, it may not be the most "designed" park strip in the 'hood but dammit, it sure is the prettiest.

next up: pulling all the poppies out before they seed and planting the new stuff i got for mother's day.

two mommies

Note: i'm a little overdue on this posting since i meant to publish it 4/19/08

i've added two new girls to the club. a rhode island red and a barred rock. they are about 10-11 weeks old and beautiful. last night, the golden girls got to have a mama take care of and keep them warm for the very first time. cutest damn thing i ever saw too. four good size chicks (about the size of a small pigeon) huddling under one medium sized red hen. She could barely stay on top of them and when she'd fall off, the chicks would slide underneath her until they felt secure. good thing it didn't take long for the barred rock hen to pitch in on the mommy duties.

hey, my chicks have two mommies. isn't that against my religion?

3/13/08-this is what the white ones looked like when i first got them at a couple of days old

4/19/08 (I've built them a real home since this picture was taken)

seems chickens don't like their picture taken. they are always on the move

to my two fans...

because two hits on my site meter is better than none.

thanks for playing along with me.

m

personal progress

most 14 year olds girls are not known for their wisdom or their ability to see the big picture. no, they've got more important things to worry about like friends, boys and hair. (hair being the most important issue of any day)

but every once in a while, my typical, often self absorbed teenager says something that makes me proud and reminds me that despite all of the cons of raising a teenage girl, there are some pros that give way to tons of hope.

last night the young women went on a service scavenger hunt and as we were near the end of our evening with only seven minutes to go, i suggested that we go to a house we missed on the way up the street.

one of the other young women said "well, they aren't LDS" and as i was about to suggest that we should be willing to knock on any door, not just the familiar ones, my belle sighs heavily, rolls her eyes and says:

that's not right! we can and should serve everyone in our neighborhood.

her statement was a little more dramatic than i prefer but i was impressed with her thinking and her willingness and ability to speak up in a crowd for what she thought was right.

although i'm not positive she would have had the same courage if i wasn't present, i do believe it's a a step in the right direction.

next lesson: tact.