Mondays are hard

Mondays are hard. I feel like my weekends FLY right on by and my "To Do" list just continues to grow... Some weekends I really push myself to "accomplish" something (anything) and some weekends I am just grateful for the things I can get taken care of...

So, the chickens are gone. I miss hearing the roosters. There were 16 eggs (only 2 of which appeared to be fertile), and the setting hen had one under her wing, so that was kinda sad for us. But they've gone to a farm setting and friend of my parents', so we'll be able to see them again when we visit my parents.

Claira is learning a few signs. My dad taught her "More" the few days he spent with us last week, and she's added "eat" and "poopy." (Yes, this IS a mommy blog. Deal with it.) I had been showing her some signs for awhile but she didnt' seem interested and began saying many words so I stopped. But when dad showed her the sign for "more" and she got a celebratory reaction, she was motivated to use the sign... She is learning "please" right now and used it correctly a few times yesterday. These are big steps - she can say many words, but some she either can't or won't, and using the signs is helpful to all of us. She's been spontaneously using them, and it has been fun. She is walking EVERYWHERE and rarely crawls anymore. She has discovered the kitchen cabinets & drawers, which have been left alone (for the most part) until she's started walking more. So, latches are being installed... She seems to prefer the big spoons & whisks most often... Maybe she'll be a chef. =)

Yes, fall is here. We had snow the other day. It looked like a blizzard outside. Melted when it hit the ground, but it was SO pretty. On one side of the building I looked out and saw "blizzard" and blue skies - that was very interesting. We're thankful we didn't get the 2 feet of snow that Buffalo, NY saw - but the cold weather is certainly on its way...

I had thought about commenting in great detail on the shootings at the Pennsylvania schoolhouse, but am going to remain brief on that. Suffice it to say that the horror mankind can afflict on one another is breathtaking sometimes, but in a fallen world it is to be expected... I think about what if that was Claira and how would I react, and immediately I have to surrender her to the Lord's care again because she belongs to Him. I do not say that flippantly or nonchalantly or without feeling. I can only imagine how those mothers felt and the imagining is excruciating enough...