This week has been a busy one as we’ve started a big project in school. In about a week, all of the desks and chairs will be cleared out of our classroom and put into storage. We’ve been put into groups and assigned a learning centre, which we’re to create in a portion of the classroom. To create our living centre we need to bring in the furniture, materials-everything! My mind has moved past ‘wow, this is going to be a lot of work’ to ‘wow, this is going to be really fun’ although in a week when we actually get into it and start setting up it may be back to the first thought (hopefully a mixture of both!). Kim, Ashley and I are going to be creating the ‘Science and Discovery area’ which I think is awesome. I love the thought of setting up an environment that promotes and instigates investigating, experimenting, caring for living things, exploring possibilities, etc. And there is so much that you can bring into a science area. We plan to have a sand and water table, and lots of natural materials from outside. We’re going to have a brainstorm session where we’re gonna go crazy with ideas- it’s gonna be sweet!
 Earlier this week we created 'invitations' based on our learning centres and I practically raided Aunt Alexandra's studio. As Alexandra brought out a dish of beach glass and coral she laughed and said, "see, this is why it's good I keep everything- you never know when it's gonna come in handy!"

In other news, I quit my job at Value Village. I  actually wasn’t planning on quitting until the summer when I’ll hopefully have a full time job at a day care, but I was just finding school and work to be too much. I was starting to feel tired and overwhelmed. Although I miss my coworkers and the customers, with this big project emerging, and another OJT at the end of this month, it’s going to be so nice to just be able to focus on school work, and not be rushing off to work. It’s already nice actually! Although, I have to say: I wouldn’t have quit if Josh didn’t encourage me. I’m so used to working!

Yesterday evening was my first jobless night, and Josh and I volunteered with the Humane Society running a booth at the mall for the ‘Somebunny Event’. We were selling stuffed bunnies with all the proceeds going to the shelter, and advocating that people let their ‘impulse buy’ be a stuffed bunny rather than a real one, since people often buy real bunnies in the "spirit of Easter" not realizing how much work they really are and the poor bunnies end up at the shelter. That is certainly a message that I can stand behind. I would love to have a bunny as they’re my favourite animal ever, but they really are a lot of work and I don’t think I’d be able to properly care for one right now. But hey, I’m happy with my hamster, gerbil, and ratties- they keep me busy enough!

And now onto a long weekend of relaxation, visiting with family and perhaps even some vegan chocolate!

Since early September when Josh and I first embarked on a Vegan lifestyle, I've noticed how my decision to look at animals differently has transcended into many areas of my life. At first I thought mostly about my diet as I cut out meat, dairy, eggs, honey and other animal products that I didn't even think twice about before like whey powder and gelatin. As I continued to learn more about what we derive from animals I began looking in my closet considering that just because I didn't own a fur coat didn't mean that I was free of having clothing that animals suffered and/or gave up their lives to produce. After all there were my leather flats, down-filled vest, and wool pea coat. I began reading the tags on my clothing and thinking much more critically about what I was wearing.
Going to my bathroom cupboard led to more unsettling conclusions, knowing that most of the products I was using like my mouth wash, tooth paste, hair spray, deodorant, etc were tested on animals no different than my own pets and the ones I help care for at the Humane Society. It was time for a change and that meant looking for cruelty-free companies and avoiding most of the mainstream brands that I had grown accustomed to using.
My efforts of maintaining a Vegan  lifestyle have even impacted my conduct as a future Early Childhood Educator. Suddenly that Little People circus set featuring the elephant wearing the tasseled get-up and the monkey wearing the top hat isn't so cute anymore, and same with books about going to the zoo. I think about these things and wonder what kind of messages we're sending to children about how we view and use animals for our own desires (entertainment? education?). What are we communicating to children about our role as people on this earth and how we treat those who are vulnerable or weaker? I don't mean to over analyze things, but I do believe that children pick up on messages, whether we intend them or not. 
It's interesting how learning new information and taking on a new perspective has led me to re-evaluate how I go about things in life that I didn't put much thought into before. At first it all seemed daunting and a little scary, but it's becoming more natural by the day. That's not to say that I sometimes still don't buy something only to realize after that it actually isn't Vegan, but I try to just learn from it and move on. So far, making the transition to a Vegan lifestyle has been one of the best choices I've made in life after my relationship with God. I've become a more conscious consumer and I feel really good about what I cook,what I eat, and what I give my money to. I look at animals differently and I'm challenged to see them as living, sentient-beings who might be on this earth with other  purposes than to serve me. I'm still learning about all of this, especially in regards to theology but it is a learning endeavor that to me is worthwhile and necessary. 

The Duffy household has been a busy one lately. We've been treating all the pets for ring worm (and it  seems to be gone now- thank God!). The rats have  also had a cold so they've been on meds for the past little while but hopefully that will clear up soon, but little Sonnen the hamster's tail is almost all better. Things are starting to look up for our little animals! Please pray for us that sickness will stay away- there has been too much of it lately!
At the beginning of the month I began a new OJT which will be a month long. I'm working at a centre in a room with mixed ages between 2-4 years old. It feels wonderful to be back working with children. I enjoy class so much and if I were to describe how what I have learned just in this short amount of time has made such a big impact on how I look at children, this blog post would end up being far too long (like it usually is!), but the opportunity to practice what I've learned in real situations with children is crucial.
I'm being both inspired and challenged by the children. I find a big challenge for me that I've been working on is how to help children resolve conflict. Even through simple situations like both children wanting the same toy, I find things can get sticky fast. I like the High Scope Method with it's 6 steps for helping children solve conflicts, but it certainly does take practice and sometimes I feel that no matter how hard I try a resolution that both children are happy with doesn't get reached. But teaching children how to solve their own conflicts rather than needing a teacher to control the whole affair, is so important and I know that I must press on with that.
I'm looking forward to Valentine's Day. I work that evening so Josh and I will probably do something simple (which I don't mind at all), but it'll be especially nice to be at a day care to share in Valentines Day with the children. I love the reds and pinks, and I already bought my Winnie the Pooh valentines to give out to the children. I'm hoping we'll get to decorate cookies too!
In the meantime I'm planning some activities f or this upcoming week one of them being an 'invitation to play' with a 'woodland animal' kind of theme with my little fake Christmas tree and berries, pine cones, pieces of wood, little wooden bowls of spices, Beatrix Potter books and more. I'm totally creating something that I would have loved as a child to see if the children will also enjoy it. I love early childhood education!

Just recently,  a mysterious wound appeared on our hamster Sonnen, on the underside of her tail. I called Atlantic Veterinary College upon noticing the wound and the vet advised me to put some warm compresses on it each day. The wound seemed to be healing up fine, until one night when we took Sonnen out of her cage, her tail was a bloody mess and it was obvious that she has been picking at it. We took her to our vet Dr.Nielson and received antibiotics and an anti-inflammatory for her. To our dismay, even after giving Sonnen the medicine she picked open her wound again the following morning. We cleaned her up and realized that we would need to do the same thing which we did with Charlie, and monitor her 24 hours a day. To give Sonnen medicine, but let her continue opening her wound just seemed pointless and dangerous, and it’s not like you can put a cone on small animals the way you can with dogs and cats. There was a risk of the infection spreading and even having to have the tail amputated.

We put Sonnen’s cage on the couch where we could have easy access to her if she started picking. Since Josh and I began taking shifts and intervening when Sonnen would start touching her tail, she hasn’t reopened the wound again. I think the medicine has also helped her to feel better, and perhaps not feel the need to pick. Sonnen seems to be healing up very well, and hopefully soon here won’t even be a scab to pick. As a result of a lack of blood flow, Sonnen did end up losing the tip of her tail. It became black and dry and just kinda flaked off. Not that I think that’s a nice thing, but if that’s if  the worst that comes out of her injury, then I think that’s still pretty good.

The other day, I took my nerdy self to the library to study during lunch. It wasn’t long before sitting at a study carrel with my text book sprawled open in front of me that I began to nod off. The night before, Josh and I taken turns sitting with Sonnen and we both got a little over 4 hours of sleep. I began to feel so tired that I simply gave in and put my head down and went to sleep. I dreamed about lion cubs and long twisting spirals of dark purple, blue and black streaming out of the sky. When I woke up, lunch was almost over and I went back to class where I remained sleepy for the rest of the afternoon. Tonight, we’re rotating shifts once again, but hopefully in the days to come we somehow won’t feel so tired.

It’s not our intention to be extreme in the care of our pets. We simply believe that if our pet is sick then we should take care of her, and if there’s something we could do to help her get better, or stop her from getting worse, then we should do it. I believe that Sonnen deserves to be cared simply for the fact that she is one of God’s sentient creatures. Also after having bonded with Sonnen and having experienced such big love and big personality from such a small creature, I couldn’t imagine not caring for her in sickness. It just doesn’t seem like an option.

We’re glad to see that Sonnen’s recovery is going well and hopefully Dr.Nielson will think so as well when we return to the AVC this week for a follow-up.

Today felt like a holiday. I was almost late to work this morning and as a result of getting ready in fast-mode I needlessly brought my backpack into work with me and had to shove it into my tiny locker. Things were slow and peaceful at Value Village and I spent my shift tidying up the floor aka picking shirts up off the floor and trying to get them to stay on their hangers, and chatting with regulars while they hunted for treasures.

I knew Aunt Alexandra was at home preparing Christmas dinner. As I set knick knacks on shelves, and organized books I could just picture her wearing her black apron with the white splatter paint and her pale pink bandana to keep her blonde hair out of her face as she loaded casserole dishes into the oven and monitored the progress of the vegetables boiling on the stove and ran around her small yellow kitchen. Since we aren’t Ukrainian it was random for us to have plans of eating stuffing and mashed potatoes off of Christmas tree plates, but it was important for Aunt Alexandra that we have this meal together since she wasn’t here for Christmas.

With our mouse Charlie passing away and Josh getting his wisdom teeth out just within days of Christmas, it was a strange holiday for us. I kept thinking of a  quote attributed to Mother Teresa “never let anything so fill you with sorrow as to make you forget the joy of Christ risen,"  and I felt challenged and encouraged all at the same time to reflect on the miracle of Jesus saving me from my sins and wanting to have a relationship with me today. Reflections like that are certainly strong enough to ward off disappointments about an ‘unchristmas-y Christmas’.

Josh’s mom and step dad joined us for our Christmas dinner and we had great conversation as we ate. To accommodate our vegan diet, Aunt Alexandra welcomed in soy milk and vegan Becel margarine, and baked us up some meatless ‘chicken breast’. I’ve never been a picky eater but with being vegan I often feel as if I am. I feel like I’ve become high maintenance. I tend to feel guilty when people need to recall the ingredients in the dessert they just baked, read over the ingredients in packaged food, and rework their tried and true recipes to accommodate me. These guilty feelings are purely self- originated though since our family and friends, in their love for us haven’t expressed any annoyance or inconvenience in using alternatives in their cooking.

After dinner we drank tea and enjoyed some warm apple pie and ice cream. Josh and I had a scoop of vanilla soy ice cream on our pieces of pie, and my taste buds hardly knew the difference. Josh’s step dad tried some of the soy ice cream and actually liked it too.

Even though our festivities for the day didn’t have its roots in the cleverness of adding the forbidden celebration of Christmas into New Years, nor is there any trace of Ukrainian in the family, it was a sweet time together with some splendidly good food. It was a good holiday.

                I think year 2011 was one of several changes for the Duffys. We returned to Double H Ranch, moved into a bachelor apartment in town, began school, adopted a Vegan lifestyle, became even more concerned about animal welfare while caring for Charlie the mouse, became involved with the ministry Christ on Campus, and I’m sure there are more interesting things that have taken place but those are what come to mind at the moment. I’ve set some short-term goals for myself for 2012 (see our Visions page), and I’m expecting that 2012 will be a year of growing closer to God and staying close to His heart as we continue to study and work towards our long-term goals.

                School starts up again tomorrow and I like school so much that I’m looking forward to going back. I’m so happy and grateful to be studying something that I’m so interested in.

Before the New Year, Josh and I adopted some new little critters. We still miss our little Charlie, but felt we wanted to take in some more animals in need of a home. We know that Charlie with his sweet nature would want us to continue in our care for small animals. We adopted Ping Pong the gerbil who had been at the humane society for a few months. The staff at the humane society were becoming concerned that the little guy wasn’t going to get adopted at all. Neither Josh nor I have ever owned a gerbil nor did we really have a strong desire to own one, but we knew that Ping Pong needed a home and just like we took in Charlie out mere sympathy and grew to love him, we don’t doubt the same thing will happen with us and Ping Pong. The little cinnamon coloured gerbil is actually on a stand right next to my arm chair and I’ve already grown rather fond of the spunky little guy, and I feel happy to give him a good home.

We also adopted 2 rats that we found on usedpei from a couple who were finding that they didn’t have time for them anymore. So on Boxing Day, Casper the white albino rat and Milo the dumbo tuxedo rat came to live with us. They’re both still pretty shy and seem unsure of us, but I think with time, a little patience and Cheerios, we’ll win them over. And then of course we still have our little diva hamster Sonnen who doesn’t seem to mind the presence of other animals as long as she still gets lots of attention.

                So we’re definitely at (or over!) our limit with pets, but we’re committed to giving them the best quality of life we can and I’m looking forward to gaining more experience in small animal care.