Fun With Needles! (An Ouch-Free Post)

Today's Wonder of the World is...Needles! But Only the Fun Kind!

Flickr photo by Shade McVay
Hedgehogs have always looked needly to me, but aren't those three babies cute?! You know, in an out of this world way?

One of my three babies had a needle encounter on Friday. Right as I was soaking in all your wonderful suggestions and sweet empathy over my Sarah flying the coop, (thank you again, so very much!) I got a phone call that my Ben had gotten in a fight with a gate at Cross Country practice, and the gate won. (A teammate decided to open the gate pole just as he was ducking under it. The force of it hitting him caused the gash.)

Right about then my left eye started twitching. (Overwhelmed me is not a pretty sight.)

See that beautiful, unmarred left shoulder of his? Right now that shoulder has what appears to be a hairy black caterpillar crawling up it, thanks to six brand new stitches.

They asked him about it at church on Sunday and he got to take off his shirt and show the youth group. I don't think he minded.
"At least I'll have a scar to show for it," he said.
Maybe it will match the scar he got in France, the one that I wrote about in French By Heart.
My boy is such a he-man.

Enough about the ouchy kind of needles.
Let's have some needle fun!

Ben has had his driver's license now for less than a week, but if I let him, he'd love to take a long drive. Maybe to see the Needles Highway in South Dakota!

Flickr photo by picturethepromises
And hey! there are pine needles in the picture!

I love pine needles. Especially against the snow.

Flickr photo by deepintheforestcat
We don't get a lot of that in South Carolina.

Hopefully Ben would take along a compass on his trip, and read its needle occasionally.

Flickr photo by Jonathan W

If he didn't pay close attention to the map, he might end up at Seattle's Space Needle.

Flickr photo by eightylbs
Which could be fun! Can't you just imagine George Jetson landing on that thing?

Now I've got the song "Here's George Jetson" in my head. "Jane, his wife! Daughter Judy.."
Maybe I'll find a record and play it! I hope the needle is still good.

Flickr photo by marshmallowpillow

Whenever I think of needles, I also think of these little guys.

Flickr photo by dukkillr
Porcupines!

And porcupines remind me of sea urchins, with their needles/spikes.

Flickr photo by gekimo
And sea urchins remind me of sweet gum balls, with their sticky spikes.

Flickr photo by Jim-AR
And sweet gum balls remind me of pom pom fringe which have no needles at all...

Flickr photo by aaaandreaaaa
But you can sew them on with a needle!

Hopefully, we'll have no more sewing in our family that involves skin anytime soon.

Have a Wonder-Full Monday, everyone!
And watch this hedgehog eat a carrot. It's hilarious!
Love, Becky