The Simple Life at Home

Well, I seem to have hit some kind of a bump in the road. I just have had a major case of the blahs this week. I haven't felt well for one thing, plus it is so dang hot here it makes you just want to stay inside in your a/c and hide. But I had so many things on my "things I'd like to get done" list that just sat there all week, begging for attention. Instead, I spent whatever time wasn't taken up in homeschooling or taking my kids out for some summer fun either reading or sleeping. On the upside, I read "To Kill a Mockingbird." What a beautiful book! I had never read it before, but was really touched by it. My favorite character was that of Boo Radley, who remains hidden in his home for much of his life, but is evidently drawn to the outside world, leaving small gifts in a hole in a tree for the neighbor children and even serving as protector of them when necessary. This week, I felt like Boo. Like I would love to just stay here in my home and never leave. But that's not practical for a mom in the 21st century, is it?

Instead we went to the movies and saw Nanny McPhee, which was a much better movie than I thought it would be. Then on Thursday we went to the zoo with some friends. While it was hotter than I would have liked, we did have some fun watching chimpanzees turn somersaults all around their exhibit, seeing a baby joey in its mama kangaroo's pouch, and watching a young giant eland (? never heard of it before! imagine a big huge gazelle-y type thing) leap and try to encourage the older fellows to join in his games, without much luck, unfortunately.

So hopefully next week I'll be back to being my more, ahem, vivacious self. For the remainder of this week, oh, say, the next 36 hours or so, I'm just going to chill at home. And maybe leave some little presents in a tree for my neighbors to find and wonder about.