The Farm Report

Category: Ellery

  • Hanging on the door when I arrived home

    Hanging on the door when I arrived home

  • Spring break

    Spring break

    Spring break has been glorious. I didn’t realize how tired I was until my body collapsed into a heap of exhaustion for days on end while the kids enjoyed way too much time playing on iPads. I think Shep and Neko have built an entire new civilization on Minecraft by now.

    Then I cleaned my car. I worked a few days on getting ahead at school. Instead of an all-house spring break purge, I tackled the zones that were really bothering me. (Did you know our children’s bedrooms have doors, and when you close them, the mess magically goes away?)

    Today we took a road trip. Took in the science museum and then a delicious meal at a restaurant with amazing light. I managed to sneak everyone’s photo. It appears we are in that phase where everyone sticks their tongue out for the camera. Super.

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  • Murphy

    Murphy

    Tom is a cat person. A cat person who married a dog person. But the dog person has family members with cat allergies. So we just kind of tucked the whole cat discussion on the back burner.

    But this year we decided it was time.

    Tom began a search of shelters, looking for the perfect kitten. And a few days before Christmas, he found one. The only catch was that the woman coordinating Murphy’s adoption was coming home from vacation and wouldn’t be back until the next day. They assured him that no one would be adopting him until the next day and to come back then.

    Neko and I were at riding when they discovered Murphy, so that evening we went back to visit him to insure that everyone could cast an informed vote. But when we walked in, his cage was empty. He had been adopted 30 minutes earlier.

    You have never seen three such miserable children. They sobbed the entire drive home. They were inconsolable. Tom was crushed.

    We put the word out we were looking for a kitten. We found a litter locally, but Tom wasn’t ready yet. He wanted a few days to get over the loss of Murphy.

    But then, standing in his favorite record store, he got a call—our kitten had been returned and was available for adoption again.

    Welcome home, Murphy.

  • Sledding

    Sledding

    My parents’ house is built on a small hill. It’s the perfect size for beginning sledders. My children and nephews all took their first sled rides down this hill.

    This year Neko was looking for an extra challenge, and started building ramps out of snow to launch sleds for some air time.

    There’s nothing quite like rosy-cheeked children, exhausted from play in the snow, coming in to parents who have been snoozing on the couch.

    This, my friends, is a solid winter.

  • Christmas

    Christmas
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    We made it!

    There were presents and excitement and squeals of delight. The obligatory assembly of toys and a sea of wrapping paper.

    We even put lights on the tree.

    Even though we got it out, we forgot to hit record on the time lapse camera. Although it would have been fun, we’ll be fine without it.

    Perfectly imperfectly perfect.

  • Tree

    Tree
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    This year has been busy. Oh, so busy.

    This summer was a frenzy of remodeling my classroom and that of another teacher’s. We started the school year in the weeds, and barely made our way through.

    The first day of winter break was three days before Christmas. I was not prepared. There was no tree. There was not an ounce of ho-ho-ho in this house.

    But two days before Christmas, just in the nick of time, we got our tree. We scoured the rather empty field for a solid choice. Neko was determined to carry my parents’ tree. Our tree was a bit, ahem, bigger than it looked outside.

    Who knows if there will be lights or ornaments. But according to the Whos down in Whoville, Christmas will come without those.

    Ho. Ho. Ho.

  • Jet

    Jet

    Ellery teaches a four-year-old how to use the movable alphabet.

  • Tea and scones

    Tea and scones

    Tea and scones at school for United Kingdom week. (And a visit from the heavily bearded and funny Jonathan MacQuade.)

  • Sunday morning

    Sunday morning

    When two creative people meet and breed, the resulting number of projects already in progress before noon is kind of ridiculous.

  • String art at Math Night

    String art at Math Night
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