Farmgirl Follies

The lesson in the plan

Posted by Farmgirl on September 2, 2010  |  2 Comments

 

It’s been a busy week.

I’ve been making Halloween vignettes at the store.

 

 

 

We’ve been learning about early peoples.

 

 

 

We’ve been reading about Native Americans and Christopher Columbus.

 

 

 

We’ve been counting … a lot.

 

 

 

We’ve done some experimenting …

 

 

 

And yes, there have been a few eruptions.

We do try to limit those to the baking soda & vinegar variety, however.

Keeping a schedule helps, as does planning our lessons.

 

 

 

The puzzling thing about plans, however, is that there are too many variables.

 

 

 

Unplanned events happen constantly. Floods … whirlwinds … tornadoes … hissy fits.

Sometimes we lose the shirts off our —wait — the pants off our legs without explanation.

Sometimes we ask questions, hear the words, “No, Mommy, I did not. No.”

Then a few seconds later a sweet, seemingly innocent child asks,

“Is ‘No’ a lie sometimes? Cuz sometimes I say no but I mean yes. Is no a lie?”

 

 

 

I had to stop and think about that one. Consulting my lesson plans didn’t help.

Most things never make it into our carefully crafted plan … sometimes ‘No’ is a lie.

Like when we say, “No, I’m not tired.”

Or, “No I’m not mad you flooded my basil.”

Or, “No, I’m not mad that you removed your pants and buried them in the mud under the flood, and how I’m going to revive them I have no idea.”

Yes, son, ‘No’ can be a lie. Yes, son, lesson plans are great. They’re just not all-encompassing.”

Some things can’t be planned.

Some things are just unexpected …

I have a pimple on my forehead.

I have ants in my kitchen, and they’re totally disgusting.

I was to remove my daughter’s stitches yesterday, but I’ve only pulled one because my scissors are too big to cut the other two … at some point I need to go to a store and buy sharp little sewing scissors.

We’re into soccer season. Still taking archery lessons. Piano started up again.

The farrier came yesterday and trimmed the horses’ hooves. The dang beasts had been into the cockleburs. Their manes and tails are completely matted. I assured him the next time I come upon four spare hours and a vat of baby oil, I would remove the offending appendages and brush their manes and tails until they shine.

No … you can’t plan everything.

You just have to roll with the punches.

And whether we’re ready or not, autumn is arriving. Fall is coming … maybe it’s already here.

I’m ready for that, though.