This and That

Oh, so much time has passed since the last blog post! My beloved little guinea pig has passed on. He was technically Bethany's, but I claimed him since I pretty much did everything involved with taking care of him. He was five years old. We moved Becca's hamster, Hammie #2, into Chico's spot in the laundry room. I found I missed Chico chattering at me whenever I walked in. Hammie #2 doesn't chatter. He's usually asleep, but I know he's there.

Bethany didn't get to go trick-or-treating this year. She was planning to go. She had ordered a penguin costume for Spirit Week at school and was going to use it for Halloween. But this year she didn't have anyone to go with, and she didn't want to go alone. I can understand that. It is more fun to go trick-or-treating with friends. Becca was going to go with her, but she had worked all day and was tired. In the end Bethany was sick anyway and didn't feel like going. At first she was a little disappointed that this might be her last time to go, but I reminded her that Becca was fifteen when she last went and that Bethany could plan to go next year.

Becca is working at the Farmhouse restaurant in Ellerslie which is where we've been telling her all along she should try to get a job. She only has to work Fridays and Saturdays, and it is fifteen minutes from our house. She still babysits occasionally. She is taking two college classes and trying to figure out what to do with her life after graduation this year. She actually suggested she might join the military! I certainly hope she doesn't go that route. Deep down, I don't think she means it.

Becca made a skirt completely by herself. She was very proud. It turned out nicely. She did a good job on the zipper, too, which can be tricky. She briefly considered fashion design as a career. I finished the buttons on the school skirt she made. Neither buttonhole maker on our machines was working properly. I had to come up with a creative solution which, surprisingly, I did. I don't usually think outside of the box, too well. In the end, hooks did the job, and I sewed the buttons on the front to look like buttonholes are there.

I haven't watched the news lately. I don't really know what is going on in the world currently except that, according to stuff I've seen on Facebook, the media are trying to drag Ben Carson through the mud. He's a strong contender for the Republican nomination for President. I'd vote for him in a heartbeat.

I recently found an old Christmas newsletter that I had sent out in 2008. I used to be pretty faithful about sending Christmas cards and newsletters to long-distance family and friends. I think Facebook has changed the Christmas card dynamic though because I stopped sending them and so did just about all my friends. We can keep up through Facebook throughout the year so  Christmas newsletter seems superfluous, I guess. They're a lot of work. Yet that old newsletter had things in it I had long forgotten about. It was my 2008 in a nutshell. In a way, I liked having a reason to recap my year. I'm sure I didn't include everything we did, but I included what the girls were doing, saying and learning which would otherwise be forgotten. The written word is powerful in a lot of ways, not least of which is capturing a memory or a little snapshot of our lives. Photographs are great, but words are indispensable.