If I whisk matcha in my autumn tea bowl, but don’t take a picture, did it really happen? Isaac found a persimmon tree heavy with ripe fruit way up out of reach at the botanical gardens a few weeks ago. These persimmons, however, are from the commissary.
Persimmons
Heart on His Sleeve
It almost breaks my heart it’s so ernest. Isaac picked out her birthday present all by himself—a playdough cookie maker. As soon as he saw her, Isaac grabbed the gift bag, bypassed the table where everyone else left their presents, and ran to her. “It’s a present for YOU! You want to open it?” She…
Plan Bee
I have learned some things about yellow jackets. They’re not bees, it turns out. They’re little wasps, related to hornets. They can “overwinter” and become massive colonies. They can go unnoticed for years, apparently, until I want to use the office space in the attic, at which time they will come—literally—out of the woodwork. Seven…
A Woodland Nymph
I was lost one afternoon, so I stopped to look around, When I found a tiny woodland nymph sitting on the ground. Her eyes were green like moss, her hair was russet silk; Her skin was pure and flawless as the surface of fresh milk. She crawled around the knobby roots of an ancient maple tree…
High Times in the Tidewater
The last week of October we had one calm, sunny, warm summer day. I’d already planned to drive out to the beach to visit Sara-Michelle now that she’s a Compound Outlier, and the weather could not have been more perfect. Eloise tested her abilities by climbing all the way over the playground and letting Isaac…
Backyard Apple-Picking
“Mom! You want to go apple picking?” I don’t know where Isaac gets this stuff. I must have mentioned it before I realized there seem to be zero places to pick apples within three hours of here. He kept asking. I kept looking for somewhere close enough we’d have good memories of the occasion. Finally…
Trick or Treat!
Isaac is in bed, wide awake, wiggling around unable to go to sleep. He had so much fun trick or treating and pre-partying with the neighbors! I was told I could bring a vegetable—tricky. No one ever eats the whole tray I’m stuck with the crappy unwanted veggies until they shrivel and mildew so I…