The regular “little of this, little of that” feature here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!
I finally got around to tackling the worst of my grody window frames last weekend. If these photos make any sense to you (and I will understand if they don't), you can see that this window is positioned just a little over a lower roof. It is the roof that hangs over the front porch/stoop. When rain falls, it bounces off of that roof and splashes into this window, carrying with it the filth that resides on that surface.
I know that the “After” photo isn't even all that glowing an example of cleanliness. But please know that I had to approach this many-faceted spot with many paper towels, a bowl of warm soapy water (frequently replaced and eventually upgraded to Borax), q-tips, and a rag that was subsequently thrown away. I have no idea when these frames were last cleaned, but I can tell you that it was sometime previous to last fall when we moved in. I guess that the grout in those corners probably was originally white; I'm not sure if I have it in me to get rid of the black stains. Maybe on a second go-around – but there are other windows to see to in the meantime!
If you look closely at the top photo, you will note something that looks like a bar and is in fact part of the handle of my Swiffer. And yes, it is propping the window open. Old house problems.
I happen to know that I'm not the only person who has removed a unit of her Swiffer handle in order to have the Swiffer be toddler height (looking at you, Rosie). When Finnabee was at the age to really start getting excited about sweeping, we were also just getting things hung up on the walls around here. I quickly realized that none of my wall art would last long with that broom handle careening around in her little grip. So a shortened Swiffer was the answer.
This week's links!
- I get this one on here right off the bat: Expecting Baby #7 And I'm Finally Tired of This. I'm leading with this one because it's this week's most intense and hard-hitting. Auntie Leila shared it, saying “I don't normally like to post rants here but this one I liked.”
- On the same site (as the above), you can read an interview that she (Auntie Leila) gave with Heidi Bock.
- The Lion Sleeps Tonight. There's been a great deal of back-and-forth about the Lion story v/s the Planned Parenthood story in the past few days, but this short piece from Crisis Magazine is rising above the chatter – probably because it gives the perspective of G.K. Chesterton, who always helps us see things clearly.
- Vaguely related: 14 Things Everyone Should Understand About Guns. I recognize that not all our readers may be enthusiastic about firearms, and I understand that. But I think, no matter your particular feelings on the topic, you should read this. It is helpful information that will help you to be the kind of person who can not only contribute to the national conversation about guns but also contribute to national safety regarding guns.
- And on a very much lighter note, speaking of animals: you might enjoy the tumblr sadanimalfacts if you like animal-related wit in dry/cute cartoon form.
- We have strong feelings about the post-partum period here at LMLD (yay to Peabodee and me! we just finished our 4th trimester!). I was a fan of How to Postpartum Like a Boss from the Fike Life. We endorse her approach for sure.
{The onnnllly thing I would disagree with here – and this is a minor point – my personal opinion is that you should ditch the ipad for a book while snuggling. The jury is still out on whether the ipad might not be the best thing for you to hold near your newborn's tender little head, and a book will be less distracting anyway and less likely to keep you awake if you might be able to get a nap. In my first post-partum week with Peabodee I re-read Mara, Daughter of the Nile, which was an excellent lazy read. I'm surprised it hasn't been made into a movie yet, because it reads like one!}
From the Archives:
- You'll recall that Auntie Leila recently wrote about the post-partum period.
- And I included other post-partum-related articles in this {b&p}!
- Tomorrow I'll tell you a secret. Today I'll tell you about chicken taco salad. (This is reaching further back into the past, so the formatting is a little wonky! 🙂
In the Liturgical Year:
Becky says
I have done many battles with window sills and have had some luck with the black gunk with pressing cotton balls soaked in vinegar mixed with tea tree oil against the black corners and leaving them for a bit. Clorox wipes are my final solution but I try to avoid them if I can.
I agree that a trimmed down swiffer can be the perfect answer but we also had a porch in constant need of sweeping that tore swiffers up too much. We got our kids this broom: http://www.forsmallhands.com/cleaning-up/push-broom Since it’s a push broom, they don’t tend to be quite such a hazard.
Becky says
I love forsmallhands.com! I gave my 1 and 4 year old a child size mop and broom last Christmas, and my house is…cleaner than it was before! I kind of dream about buying the small silent hand vaccuum, since I have a real aversion to machine noise around kids, and I think they would love using it…perhaps one day!
Mrs. B. says
I loved the first link! It definitely reminded me of Leila’s Third Secret. We all want to exert control over our lives, and “the plan” sounds so reasonable, right? But so many simply don’t see the poverty behind it, and they are unable to connect at least some of the problems in their lives with “the plan”.
I recently suffered a miscarriage: my OB asked, Where you trying to conceive? Well, no – but we were NOT trying either… She had a laugh, and remembered that yes, I am that weird patient of hers (this at a nominally Catholic hospital, where I’ve been pushed to discuss birth control “options” right before going in for C-sections…)
I do wonder whether our openness to life makes much of a dent, though: “the plan” is so reasonable it cannot be wrong, so people may have some second thoughts, but it’s easy to chase them away by simply repeating the mantra of our age: openness to life is a choice – feel free to say it’s the right thing FOR YOU, but don’t bother ME, I’ve made a different choice… But many people do change their lives and ditch “the plan”, so I am being overly pessimistic here.
Deirdre, I laughed at your window pictures! I have the same problem: our first floor window are very low, and whenever it rains they become as black as yours. But I’ve given up keeping them clean – I feel the white phase doesn’t last long enough to justify all that cleaning, and I’d rather keep the glass clean than the frame (it is a problem with my toddler though, who loves to scrape all that dirt with his cute fingers!) I do vacuum there every once in a while, and it helps even if it’s not perfect. Glad to know you belong to “the race that knows Joseph”, that is people who actually keep their windows open! 😉
Jenny says
Don’t feel too bad about your windows! I have lived in my house since 2007 and I am quite sure they have not been cleaned since we moved in. They were cleaned and painted right before we moved in, but since then? No.
Melissa D says
Oh, I LOVED Mara, Daughter of the Nile! One of my fave books as a slip of a girl. I looked it up just yesterday to see if I could find a nice hardback copy for my girls. I remember my HB copy looking less…slinky than the modern one.
(Have you read The Forgotten Daughter, by Caroline Dale Snedeker? Lost noble Roman daughter grows up a slave on one of his villas. She wrote another about Romans in Britain called The White Isle.)
Summer says
I really, really enjoyed the first link – thank you for sharing it!
Logan says
The top link really didn’t fly with me. I remember a time soon after I had my second set of twins, going out to a restaurant with them and my husband. It wasn’t a peak time and while our two- year-olds were a little squirmy, they weren’t being loud, but these two old ladies sat down at the table next to us and proceeded to scowl at us for the next hour. Every time we looked up they were looking at us with really glaring eyes. My husband and I nudged each other and whispered about what terrible people they were, they must HATE kids, we thought. Well, we certainly felt sheepish when they made a point of walking over to us after they had finished and smiling warmly on us, while congratulating us on our beautiful family.
I realized then that it was going to be a whole lot harder having a big family if I assumed every look, or even every glare, and definitely every question, was ill intended. When you judge another person’s intentions, they may or may not be sinning, but you DEFINITELY are.
I just worry that people are too thin skinned. There are real jerks out there, who has the time and energy to rebut imaginary ones? Maybe that’s why she’s tired.
On the topic of window sill cleaning, I had a great friend lend me one of these :http://www.ladybugsteamvapor.com/
when I was moving and needed to clean all our window frames. It was awesome! Fast, easy, no scrubbing. You can use this thing on anything and the little nose perfectly gets in the cracks. I swear I’m not selling these. 🙂