{bits & pieces}
The weekly “little of this, little of that” feature here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!
Fall in New Hampshire. It’s that smell in the air, and the warm evening sun coming through the orange leaves, and the crisp winds, and the chilly nights and mornings, and the new light that shines down into the apartment in the afternoon thanks to slightly thinner foliage…
I would say you should come visit, but we’re suddenly feeling all booked up until the holidays! (Yes, you! EVERYONE! I just want all the world to be here and experience this with us!) It’s suddenly here and going too fast.
But we did get out apple picking last weekend with some new friends.
Here, Finnabee is being indulged as she wants to keep exploring down the row but Daddy is caught in conversation and Mommy has plopped down to nurse the baby (but has a camera at the ready):
The orchard was so lovely that we (the kids and I) went back during the week with some other friends! When it comes with an awesome play yard (including swings and a sandpit), rolling views of all the surrounding mountain peaks, and the weather is fine, the orchard on the top of the hill certainly is the place to be!
This week’s links! (Just a reminder: if you’re reading this page on the Home page, it will be more difficult to navigate than if you click on the title and read it on its unique page. The bullet formation just doesn’t want to come through on the Home page, for reasons mysterious to us.)
I have two top picks this week.
Stop Googling. Let’s Talk. from the NYTimes. The author identifies the negative, unintended consequences of “personal devices” with regard to conversation and other aspects of human flourishing. What makes this a more refreshing read than the average luddite-esque-rant (as much as I enjoy the genre) is that she also makes indications for how we might respond constructively and keep our technologies in check.From the article: “Studies of conversation both in the laboratory and in natural settings show that when two people are talking, the mere presence of a phone on a table between them or in the periphery of their vision changes both what they talk about and the degree of connection they feel. People keep the conversation on topics where they won’t mind being interrupted. They don’t feel as invested in each other. Even a silent phone disconnects us.”
My Dealings are Higher than Your Dealings. Do you ever have that feeling that the Gospel passage for the day was surprisingly fitting? Or that the Old Testament readings this week seemed to track exactly what you were going through? It seems so silly now that I’ve read this piece, but it honestly hadn’t occurred to me before that there would be an over-arching term for this, as of course it is not coincidental: liturgical providence of God. Highly recommended especially if you are on tenterhooks regarding the current Synod.
Moms, Babies, and Childhood Development (if this has been a theme with me recently, I guess that just reflects where I’m at in life and what my reading tends to be!)
My friend Moira must know that I feel strongly about the issue of post-partum care, since she rightly predicted that I’d enjoy reading this piece on Creating Your Babymoon. Mind you, this woman’s perspective is woo-hoo-hippy-dippy (her words), but I admit that I am right there with her as far as stressing the need to rest (read: in bed) and be nourished; and she has a lot of practical advice.
(Related to the “Googling” article, above) I love that she notes that just gazing at the newborn baby is so important. I might be biased, but I think we could all benefit from more baby-gazing in our lives. Babies are just endlessly fascinating — open to the world, so innocent, so newly alive, changing every moment — that they hold our gaze more than the average grown-up person does. One more reason, in my book, to toss away the screen when there’s a baby in arms (it’s a goal of mine, at least – not one that I’ve been 100% successful at so far!).
Speaking of new babies, I am loving this new term: breastsleeping. It’s what many of us are doing and need to feel more confident about, because it is, indeed, good for us and the baby.
My Facebook friends have been passing this around for the past few weeks, and I finally got around to reading it. File away under “just let your kids play and they will learn!” aka “The American model of Kindergarten is bonkers!” The Joyful, Illiterate Kindergarteners of Finland.
Miscellaneous
An enormous and exquisitely organized new archive of photos from the Great Depression and WWII. You can search by time period, location, and photographer. Check it out on Yale’s Photogrammar.
A little while ago, when I posed a question about how to handle my cloth diapers, a few of you recommended that I check out Fluff Love University. Just want to pass it on now; I am actually a little overwhelmed at the depth and breadth of the informativeness of this site. Definitely the top standard of information for anyone using cloth! Thank you for pointing me in that direction, dear readers!
Today is the feast of St. Francis Borgia. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
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