with gratitude for doctors and librarians

Today was a day just like any other, completely normal, and yet filled with its own comings and goings that will never happen in quite the same way again. It passed no more quickly or slowly than any other day. We rose, we ate, we went outside. We worked, we played, we gathered back together, and now all but me are asleep, resting and readying for the next Today.

I don't know how mother's survive on such little sleep. It's like discovering your car has a whole other gear you never knew was there. I have shifted into 5th gear, where nights are spent sitting in a rocking chair, then tossing in bed, waiting to be called back again. Daytime naps are fitful, and this cranky, drooling baby of mine, whose teeth seem determined to hide beneath his gums forever, demands to be on my hip at all times. At least it seems that way. 

Truth be told, he is still a mostly happy boy, but he is not himself. I give him lots of cold things to suck on, and when we both can't stand it anymore, Tylenol. 

I hope those teeth come soon. 

It hailed today and a tray full of tomato, pepper, broccoli and beet seeds fell off the porch. I saved a few but most were lost. Such is life. The lettuce and spinach are doing well in their cold frame; I might harvest some tomorrow. No salad will have ever tasted so good. I transplanted six pumpkin plants into a patch beside the cold frame, too, and so far they are fine. I covered them with plastic containers to ease their transition, and I'm glad I did or they might have gotten beat up in the harsh weather today. Last year I started my pumpkins too late and all I got was lots of pretty flowers. I think I'm on schedule this year though, and my fingers are crossed for home-grown jack-o-lanterns this October (and maybe some soup too if I'm lucky). 

Hunter and I have been making library trips part of our weekly rhythm lately, and I am loving it. I have taken for granted what amazing community resources libraries are, especially for families on tight budgets. On our last trip, I picked up a few baby board books, a Veggie Tales movie, a gardening book, a DIY legal resource guide, and I ordered a book on livestock rabbit husbandry. The librarian was an invaluable resource; I told her all the things I was looking for and she walked me through the different sections, found what I needed, and ordered what she didn't have from a different library. Librarians are master researchers; I never would have found what I needed on my own, or in a big box bookstore for that matter (I say 'big box' because our local bookstore is also a fantastic place). I think it is a hallmark of a healthy civilization to have a place for its citizens to freely access literature and pursue self-education. I am disgusted with the mayor of Toronto for threatening libraries with his reckless belt-tightening. If I cannot take my child somewhere where he can read and learn for free, I want to live somewhere else. 

Tomorrow Hunter goes for his eight month check up. Another thing to give many thanks for- our wonderful family doctor. I can't believe how many of our friends don't have a family doctor. It's scary. I have never changed doctors in my life, despite living several hours away at times. She has always taken every health issue I've ever had (and I've had a few serious ones) with complete seriousness and I owe her a great deal. I feel totally safe relying on her to help me ensure my son's health. I know lots of folks who have hardly any confidence in their physicians, or worse, don't have one at all. 

So that was a random post, but that's life. In and out, up and down, left and right. Always changing, always the same.