On the way home from church the Sunday before last we nearly ran over the tiniest little duckling who was frantically trying to cross the street by himself. We stopped in the middle of the street and gasped as he ran to and fro, narrowly avoiding the cars that were whizzing by on either side of us. In those moments I always have a bit of a crisis: are we the crazy people stopping traffic? should we just go ahead home? is one duckling really worth stopping for? Ultimately we pulled into the bank parking lot to hunt for the little thing after he scurried off the busy road, since there was no mother anywhere in sight. I decided that I would want our children to see compassion in us, even for the littlest life. Even if some day we are farming and raising our own animals for meat, especially if some day we are raising our own animals for meat. We brought him home and kept him warm over night until we could bring him to the wildlife rescue the next day, who were so glad to have him and informed us that he is a wood duck. We were sad to see him go, and reminded of another reason we hope to someday live somewhere with enough land that raising and keeping a duckling might actually be feasible. Also, apparently we have quite the track record of animal saving together; this duckling joined the ranks along with a giant snapping turtle, a baby sparrow, and at least one lost dog (am I forgetting any Alan?)

The last several weeks in photos have also included:

A sleepy buddy always prefers Daddy (I think my shoulders are to bony for his liking, not to mention the belly in his way these days. . .)

Before and after of my beverage cart which usually holds our record player. I'd been meaning to cover that crazy yellow with a nice cream for a long time. One afternoon and a can of spray paint. Much better, right?

Morning tea on the porch and a very concerned looking Indy.

A welcome volunteer peony that crept under the fence from the neighbors yard, plus a wider shot for good measure so that you can admire the regular state of my kitchen island ;)