Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Bits and Pieces of Our Days

A friend is in town from Chicago, visiting her daughter and grandbabies. But, she also has an 8-year-old daughter, who's a dear friend of Ramona's. So, we've been busy catching up, hanging out, making plans.

*****

Ramona and I missed the final Holy Mass last night of one of our favorite priests. (He's leaving our parish, though fortunately isn't moving too far away, so we'll still get to see him.) Ramona wasn't feeling well, so I stayed home with her. I finally figured out that she is very much like her father. I will give her Benadryl only at bedtime from now on, as it knocked her for a loop.

*****

Yesterday was the feast day of St. John Fisher, Atticus' Confirmation saint.  He doesn't care about cupcakes (Atticus, that is, not St. John), which are the usual feast day treat of choice for my girls, but he did enjoy one of these, after cleaning the gutters:

 
Atticus, that is, not St. John.

*****

Did you know that a washing machine has a clutch? It does, and my clutch is broken. I am enjoying the break from laundry, but am not looking forward to the pile that will await me Thursday, when the repair is completed.  On the other hand, I'm grateful that I own a washing machine. I'll just think of Thursday's pile as "vacation laundry."

*****

Summer reading -- I haven't had a lot of time for reading yet! Not so with my girls. Betsy just raced through The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins and we're having a great time discussing them.  We can't wait for Mockingjay to be published.

(eta: Please see the comments of this post for parental warnings and caveats. And thanks to Nutmeg for asking the question. I should have gone into more detail initially.) 

*****

Planning, planning, planning: summer activities, get-togethers, trips to see my sister, and my parents, and Laura Ingalls' Wilder's house in Mansfield, Missouri.  Fun stuff!

5 comments:

nutmeg said...

Can you let me know about the Suzanne Collins' books? I have never heard of them and my 12 year old needs some good stuff to read... is it too "violent" and "jarring"??
(as one review said)
Thanks, Karen!
:)

Karen Edmisten said...

Nutmeg, it is violent jarring and disturbing. It's also compelling, serious, worth loads of discussion, and a great read. But a hard read, in terms of subject matter. The premise is a brutal one, which is why I initially dismissed it and didn't plan to read it. Then I gave it a chance and I was impressed with the quality of the plot and the writing.

At our house, though, I wouldn't allow a 12-year old to read it. Betsy just turned 14, and I gave her permission and she read the first two books very quickly. We've been talking it all over, too. It's mature subject matter -- not gratuitous or unnecessarily graphic, but the premise alone is horrifying and chilling and requires, in my opinion, plenty of discussion.

I think parents should read it first before passing it on to the kids.

Sue said...

Wow, I feel linked to you somehow. I, too, am on a laundry vacation. Unfortunately, ours was beyond repair, but new one comes on Friday. :o)

nutmeg said...

Thanks, Karen... we did more research, and given the subject matter, decided that our 12 year old has too vivid of an imagination for it at this point. I may pick it up and read it though!
:)

Karen Edmisten said...

Sue, I hope you're enjoying that new washer. :) My laundry is now caught up!

Nutmeg, that sounds wise. My older daughter is reading the first Hunger Games book now, but she's more sensitive to visual images than my middle one, so I warned her about certain passages first. So much depends not just on the child's (or person's!) age, but on their personality, sensitivity level, etc.

You're such a good mommy. :)