Randomness on a Saturday

I've been gathering up little tidbits that don't quite add up to a blog post, so I thought I'd dump them here more for my own ability to keep track of things, rather than for you, dear reader(s). And so, without further adieu or any ability to turn these into a single theme, here goes:

1. Mouser kitty caught a tiny little mouse this week. Usually they only seem to come in during the colder weather, so this tiny toddler-of-a-mouse was definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time.

2. Our own mouse-of-a-toddler now has free rein on the main floor, because we took down the gate:

She seems to know she's not allowed to go down to the basement alone (made easier by her laziness at doing stairs, so she usually demands mommy or daddy carry her down), and she more or less responsibly colors on her own in the office. We'd been leaving it open for a few months now, and after she tripped over the threshold the other day, we decided its time was up. Leaving the sticky cups up for now in case of a potential child #2 (or even just a party with lots of children).

3. We've been treating our hawthorn tree all year for rust to avoid the orange spots of last year. We have been less than diligent but it's much better than last year, though still seems to have traces of rust on the leaves. I'm a little disappointed because we selected a hawthorn because we thought they were supposed to be pretty hardy, and spraying it with chemicals weekly is not ideal.

 It has grown a little bit, as has the toddler in whose honor it was planted.

4. Reconsidering my love of sycamores after seeing how much bark they shed in my neighbor's yard, though a friend who has several says that they easily mulch into the ground when mowing. Still not sure what (or even where) to plant after we take our oak down this fall.

As I said, very random. Some longer posts on the way, but it's been a pretty lazy summer housewise, so don't get your hopes up for too much.