(This post was written on 3/9/2021. For some reason, Blogger pulled it down and "investigated" whether it violated their standards. I'm not sure if Big Nettles controls Blogger, but I found it funny if not completely bizarre).
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Throughout the pandemic, construction has continued on a railroad line in front of my house. What was once a "training" section for SEPTA will now be an extension of the Elwyn/Media line into Wawa. It's far enough removed from our property that I don't worry about Kit playing on or near it, though we have discussed the potential dangers. After all, every day is a lesson.
Yesterday we took the time to discuss how dangerous the third rail for a train is at all times. We discussed the electrical power that runs through it and how, under no circumstances, do you ever touch or go near it (even though it's suspended about 40 feet or more in the air). Why take chances?
Later, in the early evening I was inside when Kit came running in holding her hand and crying. It's not uncommon for her to hurt herself and quickly recover, after all, she's a daredevil! So I didn't think it was serious. I comforted her and asked her to explain what happened.
She told me and Julie that she was looking to decorate the "fairy garden" that she's been building outside when she saw what she thought was a little shrubbery. "That would look cute to the fairies," she thought.
So she reached down to yank it out of the ground and immediately felt the pain of a STINGING NETTLE!
If you have never experienced the pain of stinging nettles consider yourself lucky. It's an odd sensation not unlike being stung or cut, but with no visible ailment. The pain/itch can last up to 24 hours! Luckily, this particular incident seemed to subside after about 5 or so. However, that coincided with bedtime which is already a tricky time of night.
Because it was her right hand, she proclaimed she wouldn't be able to do her homework for the night. Rather than give her the night off, I took dictation and her homework's handwriting changed ever so slightly (I write like a 7 year old).
I made her spell out every single word in the sentence she wrote for her writing assignment. I didn't correct her when she spelled a word incorrectly, so it looked like a normal sentence I myself would actually write.
In the end I sent it to her teacher with a note about those dangerous Stinging Nettles. This morning, because she's still learning remotely, I overheard her teacher in group guidance discussing with the kids the dangers of stinging nettles.
It was nice that my kid could contribute to the lessons of the day.
Yesterday we took the time to discuss how dangerous the third rail for a train is at all times. We discussed the electrical power that runs through it and how, under no circumstances, do you ever touch or go near it (even though it's suspended about 40 feet or more in the air). Why take chances?
Later, in the early evening I was inside when Kit came running in holding her hand and crying. It's not uncommon for her to hurt herself and quickly recover, after all, she's a daredevil! So I didn't think it was serious. I comforted her and asked her to explain what happened.
She told me and Julie that she was looking to decorate the "fairy garden" that she's been building outside when she saw what she thought was a little shrubbery. "That would look cute to the fairies," she thought.
So she reached down to yank it out of the ground and immediately felt the pain of a STINGING NETTLE!
If you have never experienced the pain of stinging nettles consider yourself lucky. It's an odd sensation not unlike being stung or cut, but with no visible ailment. The pain/itch can last up to 24 hours! Luckily, this particular incident seemed to subside after about 5 or so. However, that coincided with bedtime which is already a tricky time of night.
Because it was her right hand, she proclaimed she wouldn't be able to do her homework for the night. Rather than give her the night off, I took dictation and her homework's handwriting changed ever so slightly (I write like a 7 year old).
I made her spell out every single word in the sentence she wrote for her writing assignment. I didn't correct her when she spelled a word incorrectly, so it looked like a normal sentence I myself would actually write.
In the end I sent it to her teacher with a note about those dangerous Stinging Nettles. This morning, because she's still learning remotely, I overheard her teacher in group guidance discussing with the kids the dangers of stinging nettles.
It was nice that my kid could contribute to the lessons of the day.
