A rare opportunity for an evening out presented itself to Fr Pickwick when he heard that the Tallis Scholars would be nearby, a mere two-and-a-half hour jaunt away in Princeton. The Pickwicks excitedly began planning for a date. Mrs Pickwick inveigled an innocent teenager into babysitting, picked out her outfit (after choosing nine others the… Continue reading The Pickwicks in Princeton
Mrs Pickwick scored a small victory in the kitchen this morning. Even before fortifying herself with coffee, she captured and then perfectly sliced a mango! Just look at this lovely unmangled mango. Usually, even if her technique is perfect, the mango is mushy because she was saving it for just the right day. Also, to… Continue reading Any Way You Slice It
Feisty: “Is ‘U’ a vowel?” Busy: “No. I’m not a vowel.”
So, as I hinted yesterday, there is a global crisis at the moment and perhaps you feel as if your life has been upended and is in more chaos than the Pickwickian abode on a good day. Perhaps you have been devouring news articles, social media, letters from your pastors and bishops, helpful quotes, inspiring… Continue reading Mrs. Pickwick’s Promise
Mrs. Pickwick has been nagging the children to pick up their things since the dawn of time. She has generously provided hooks, cubbies, baskets, shelves, labels, drawers, three-dimensional maps, and in a desperate attempt to keep with the times, real-time satellite tracking of all socks. It has never worked. However, this week, for the first… Continue reading It’s the Little Things
“Or, maybe it was a Pirate!!” –Carols, with Feisty
The Pickwicks are not known for their astute management of the internets. This may come as a shock to some of you, but Mrs Pickwick once observed to a very good friend that it would be awfully handy if there was such a thing as….(wait for it)….an online database of people, perhaps even with photos,… Continue reading Black Friday Special
An indomitable figure stood poised in the doorway of the monastery trapeza, binoculars at the ready, scanning the distant horizon. It was no ordinary day in paradise. It was no minor feast for which this soldier of the kitchen kept vigil this afternoon. It was a cold, soggy, quintessentially overcast November day: The Day. The… Continue reading Something Told the Wild Turkeys
I have taught several kindergarteners at this point in my illustrious homeschool career. The third time around it is much easier, because naturally I perfected my methods and used up all my tears on the first one. And as all parents of more than one blessing know, once you find a system that works for… Continue reading Kindergarten of Eden
After a perfectly peaceful and productive morning the housekeeping was in good order and the children were behaving beautifully, Mrs Pickwick decided to just lie down for a few minutes with Baby P for his third attempted nap, as the first two were interrupted by all the, er, quietude. It was almost time for lunch,… Continue reading Fr Pickwick’s Cup Runneth Over