And Now There Are Three

Saturday was the big moving day for Alyssa. She had two friends help her move her furniture into a storage shed here in tiny town (and a few things into my sheds), while another friend worked her hours at Domino's for her.

She has gotten almost all of her and Lexi's clothes organized into the closet and dressers, and I worked on putting the food away. I think she has every herb, spice and seasoning mix available! I think I used to as well, but I've sort of narrowed things down over the years. I'm glad she likes to try different things. She said one advantage of Andy's leaving was that now she could cook more adventurously. He grew up on chicken, beef, pork, potatoes, dried beans and a few vegetables - I think corn is the only one he eats. And he isn't interested in trying anything different. He and his father hunt, so there is always venison in the freezer, but his mother refuses to touch it. She also refuses to let fish be cooked in her house. His dad makes deer-jerky and I guess gives the rest of the meat away. Alyssa brought several pounds here last week and I made a small stew with some of it. I'm glad to have it in my freezer.

To fit the foodstuff on the shelves in the back room (there's canned goods, pasta, etc. as well as seasonings) I had to take some things out to the shed. Alyssa's freezer (not plugged in) is now full of wool. There was enough space in my freezer to fit what she had in hers.

School

So today Lexi is starting her second week at Carlisle County School. They are talking about drugs, and the importance of staying off them, this week, and having a special 'fashion statement' each day. Today is camouflage - she has a t-shirt. Tomorrow is wild hair, wig or hat. I think she has decided to wear this one. Good fall colors.

Wednesday is the color red; Thursday is the school colors, which we think are gold and maroon; and Friday is pajamas. I don't know if she has any gold or maroon, but that's Alyssa's problem. I really don't like the idea of wearing pajamas out of the house, but I guess I'm terribly old-fashioned.

Lexi took that picture, as well as these of herself and her cat Ginger. It's amazing to me how young kids pick up all the current technology. I guess perhaps we did too, but it has all progressed so far in the last sixty years since I was Lexi's age. When I was six, we lived on a farm in Minnesota. We heated with wood and used karosene lamps for lighting. We had an outhouse, and used a chamber-pot in the wintertime. We did have a pump in the kitchen, but many of our neighbors carried their water from a pump in the yard. My sister and I went to a one-room country school, which had about thirty pupils in the six grades, with one teacher, of course.

Lexi was a little unhappy early in the week, because she thought the new class was ahead of the one she had come from. I told her they might be in some things, but are probably behind in others, and it will all even out over the year. I think it is just the way they are presenting the material. She is already talking about her friends at school, so I guess she feels comfortable socially. She's a pretty gregarious child, so I really wasn't concerned about that.

Fall

I think autumn has finally arrived! Leaves are starting to change color and the weather has cooled off. I'm about ready to put away the shorts and bring out the long-sleeved shirts. The black walnuts are falling like mad, especially on windy days like Saturday was. I need to rake them all into a pile. I don't know what I'll do with them after that - maybe put them in the sinkhole in the back yard.