Getting Out of the Pool is Hard

We had a very nice visit with a donkey named Dakota, a pregnant horse named Tilley, two dogs, one cat (that we saw, there were more), and a pool today.   They were all fun.   Well, aside from the donkey, who was very sweet and gently nibbles on your hands, until she nibbled a little too hard on my daughter's hand.   

She got over it quickly as it really was only a little harder than she expected.   It was more fun to brush the donkey and give the donkey and horse hay, treats, and alfalfa.   Scott, our host, told us everything to do.   I have very little experience with horses or donkeys but he knew just what to tell the children to do.  

My son, who I didn't think would be that interested in the horse or donkey really liked them both.   He was interested in bringing hay to them and brushing them and talking to them and just interacting with them.   It was nice to see him with them.

My daughter was able to get up on the back of Tilley, although it was decided best not to go for a ride.  First, because she was pregnant, but also, there was the whole saddling and learning what to do to ride a horse and it was a bit more to accomplish than made sense to do in the span of our visit. 

Sitting on a huge horse and feeling how big they are how their body moves is impressive enough for a first "lesson" as it was important to remain calm on the horse because, as Scott said, that while very unlikely, horses can get spooked and if Tilley got scared, they could fall off.  

Both children were very respectful to the animals but it was hot, so the next step was to head to their backyard pool.   It was at this point that the adults go to spend time talking and testing out my husband's drone, which he brought to look at the property from above.  One of the dogs was part herd dog and she paced the pool the entire time the children were in, ready to jump in and save them at a moment's notice, should there be a problem.  I've never seen a herding dog so intent on her quarry before.  

It was a really lovely day and it was something special to my daughter because she has heard about horses in so many places, in particular, some books even featured them.   But she's never felt one or been on one before.   Her understanding of them changed entirely today because she has concrete data from hearing, smelling, and feeling them now, which is more than any number of words can ever describe. 

The Big Boy Tiny Girl Get Out Now Update:  It is hard to get out of a pool when you're having fun.   The children did not want to leave today, but it was time to go.   My son relented and finally got out, but my daughter did that thing I did many times when I was young: if I can't hear them, then I don't have to get out, and bobbed around until I got her attention.  No one wanted to leave. 

The Donkey

Whew, it's late.   I seem to be saying that a lot lately.   I keep working until I realize I haven't made a blog post and it's already past midnight.   How this keeps happening, I don't know. 

The Big Boy Update:  My son wanted to play a game with his father tonight.   He had asked for hours.   I was working at the computer when they get in game and heard complaints from across the room.   My son was giggling and denying he'd set himself to invincible.   My husband got him back when he changed the settings.  But then they went on to win a team game together against lots of other people.   They both were happy. 

The Tiny Girl Chronicles:  My daughter is going to get to ride a pony or horse tomorrow, most likely not the horse, but she is getting to ride a donkey.   The donkey is the sweetest of the bunch.   She is so excited about it she was squealing and running around saying, "donkey donkey donkey!" when I told her. 

Social Media

I am so terrible at social media.  I've avoided most of the social media avenues/apps/platforms in large part for the entirety of their existence.   I have accounts on all of them and if you were to send me a link that opened in one of those platforms, I could click on it and go see what you were sure would make me laugh uproariously.   Because who doesn't want to see a monkey getting whipped cream out of a refrigerator and asking for some in a cup as a treat?

With Filament Stories, there is a lot of social media I'm having to learn.   The different platforms have different ways of delivering content.   YouTube started out with videos, but now there are Shorts and Stories and they have different requirements on length, when and how they're presented, and in what orientation they must be uploaded. 

Over ninety-eight percent of viewing these days on some platforms is done on phones, so while we were building videos in horizontal format—which my husband and I both prefer—we had to refactor our plans and go vertical.   Which is an odd thing, because there is the same amount of space on your phone regardless of if you're looking in landscape or portrait, but it just feels smaller. 

The vertical extends to TikTok, which is sort of a throwaway, but it can get people in you as a brand and they'll want to find you on other platforms.   Currently, and surprisingly, just from throwing a few videos up, we have subscribers.   Instagram wants not vertical but a more squarish format.   

Instagram has posts, reels, and then your "Story" which is what's happening now.  If you like your own post and then add it to your story, you've doubled the exposure.   And if you have a video and post it as a reel, it gets shown in the reels area when people go there.   

Does that sound confusing?  It is.  It so is.   Just getting one post up where we get the proper tags in (because you have to hashtag so many things) and then adding links to the items shown and giving proper credit to the model creator, the music, and the filament, is an exercise in confusion. 

Fortunately, we have a friend who knows far more about this than we do and he's given us some good advice.   It's still strange to me to be posting on these platforms I wanted to actively avoid for so many years.  

Other than that, all the 3D printing is so much fun.  Busy, but fun.

The Big Boy Update:  My son requested, "a 3D printed cup I can really drink from."  He knows not all filament is food safe, which I was impressed he knew. 

The Tiny Girl Chronicles:  My daughter now has a Dwarven Mug for when she drinks something in a can.  It can sit in this container (the lid screws off) and she can hold the handle and drink from the can directly.   She felt all over it to see what was on the sides and said she loved it.  

The Five Dollar Fourth

It's the fourth of July.  We have family over and have had a very nice time.   The fireworks have happened and my daughter is nowhere to be found, hiding out at a neighbor's house because she really, really hates fireworks because they're so loud.   I have a feeling she'll be home soon.

I wanted to tell this story very quickly before I'm called to the backyard for s'mores.   Yesterday I let out the dog and left the door barely open so the dog could press on it and let me know when she wanted to come in.  I always set a timer on my watch for five minutes in case she doesn't come back quickly.   But yesterday, I forgot. 

Several hours later I noticed the door cracked and said, "who left the door open?" in an accusatory manner of a mother who doesn't want to have all the cool air flow out of the house into the backyard.   Only no one had been outside in the back.   

And then it hit me, I had opened the door and had forgotten all about the dog.   I called for her and called and in a few seconds, the dog came padding down from upstairs.   But how did she get inside?   No one had let her in, everyone was sure. 

This morning the mystery was solved.  Keira from two houses over and one of my daughter's best friends had noticed her in their yard.  She came to our house, opened the front door, and let her back in.   This morning when we found out, my son said to me, "mom, can you take five dollars from my allowance and give it to Keira?"  He wanted to thank her for saving our dog.  

I went to give Keira the money and she kindly declined.   She said it wasn't anything and she was glad to help.  I told my son I was very touched he would want to give his allowance away because Keira had made sure our dog was safe. 

The Big Boy Update:  My son was all involved with the fireworks but when he was done, he came inside. His friends knocked on the door beside his computer and asked for him to come back out.  He said, I'm tired, my back hurts and I have a headache.   I told him he sounded almost as old as I did.  

The Tiny Girl Chronicles:  My daughter went into the filament closet and picked out a spool and asked me to make her a surprise, "with this color".  I told her when she went to bed which printer would have her surprise when she woke up and she could get it off the print bed if she wanted.   She now has a lovely little bright orange tree frog to go with her other 3D printed animals she keeps in her room.

So Many Identities

There are a lot of identities we all go by in this electronic age.   I have my real name and the userid I use on Google that I post this blog under.   I have three email addresses, wait four (I forgot one.)  I am online in some communities and I have a handle or nickname I use there and then there are all the various hashtag names I use on the social media platforms.  

If you wanted to find me on Facebook, you could probably look me up by my full name, including maiden name, but there could be a lot of people with my name so you'd have to find my by other information you know about me.   What about Twitter or Instagram or TikTok?   Then there is that podcast I put out.   

It's all a lot for me to keep track of, much less someone else.   And now I have this YouTube channel under a name not my own that we're working on showcasing filament.   It's super fun.  It's loads of work.   It's sometimes harrowing because even small amounts of content require the work behind the scenes to get the content printed and ready to show.   And don't even get me started about making quality time lapse videos, because as beautiful as they are, they are an exercise in patience, settings and the right technology to get looking right. 

But it is fun.   Wait, where was I?  Identities.   Now I have a secondary set of identities as FilamentStories we have to keep track of.  Fortunately, in this case we're a team, my husband and I, and we both can do that side.   That includes posting, commenting and responding to all the comments. 

It's a lot to keep track of and I am admittedly not well-versed in social media, so I have so much to learn.   I get on one of my devices like my laptop or phone and have to ask myself, checking to, "see who I am right now."

So far, I don't have a split personality from it.  I hope that remains the case in the coming months. 

The Big Boy Goodbye Update:  My son's teacher and one of the administrators at his school are leaving with one moving away.  Today we had a goodbye gathering to see them and say our goodbyes.   My son is happy he'll get to see their son online with Minecraft even though he's moving to the other side of the state.   He didn't seem upset otherwise. 

The Tiny Girl I Don't Care Update:  My daughter didn't care about the teachers and student moving, she didn't want to go.   She was cranky and had to have several lectures and a cooling off walk before she was fit to go to the gathering.   She didn't know these people and thought she would be completely bored.   I think she had a reasonable time, but it's not the same sitting around with adults talking around you and having only a little input into the conversations you care nothing about.   She was kind though when the one teacher moving told her about the special painted rock she had that my daughter had given her.   She said she had packed it and was bringing it to their new home.   That made my daughter smile.  

Kittens

My daughter is kitten mad.  She wants a cat so badly she can taste it, as my mother would say.   Today, we got to go see two kittens.   Or, in her case, feel two kittens .  

It was at my best friend from elementary school on up's house and she and I cried when we saw each other because no one has seen anyone is so long.   I have two years of birthday presents to get to her. 

My daughter got to do something she's never really done before:  feel what all the parts of a cat felt like.   These kittens were so darling and sweet and playful and they let her hold them (briefly) and then darted off to chase the toy again. 

It was a wonderful afternoon.  It hurts my heart a little, knowing how much she wants a cat and that we can't really get one here for several reasons. 

The Children On The Brick Wall:  My children climb up somehow around the back to the very tall top of the brick wall surrounding Nana and Papa's back patio.   If one of them fell, it would be broken bone city I'd guess.   But there is dirt on the other side and they have the best time.   So I hope for the best as all parents do from time to time. 

Guests!

We have guests.  I forgot what guests are like. We're still doing things as they got in late and we're talking about 3D printing and other things.  I'd better get back in there and see what they want to print next.  So exciting having visitors

The Children's Update:  The children are sad Uncle Eric, Aunt Kelly and their cousin Nicole are staying with Nana and Papa, but they're glad we'll get to see them several times while they're in town.