Bits and Pieces of Our Days

With Julia Child books seemingly all over the house, I guess it's no surprise, since Ramona's been reading this one:

that she'd inform me that if one can't get a suffocated duck for a pressed duck recipe, one should use a decapitated duck and substitute fresh pig's blood. 

Umm. 

This is why we call it unschool-ish. Any information from my child involving fresh pig's blood is definitely ish-ish. 

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Reading Island of the Blue Dolphins to Ramona. I read and reread this book when I was a kid, loved Karana, her bravery, resourcefulness, and courage. I remember being struck by the book in so many ways, thinking, "How does the author make me feel like I've tasted abalones, when I never have and probably never will? How did he do that?" A writer awakens. Ramona's loving the book, too, though she wishes it could be a little happier.

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I'm thinking of doing NaNoWriMo this year. Am I nuts? Betsy plans to tackle it again, and Ramona is thinking of doing her own version of it, so I suppose I could call it all school. Ish.

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Part of science yesterday with Ramona: making ice cream. If you're ever trying to explain the difference between "objective" and "subjective" to your child, you can simply use ice cream. Favorite flavor? Subjective. But ice cream? An objective good.

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I am crazy about Pope Francis.

This servant of the servants of God is just another guy on his way to work: