Now THAT'S a Dirty Job!

"Okay, Mike Rowe, here's your next Dirty Job: clean the baby without getting poop all over him, the floor, his clothes, or yourself; all before he tries to roll over. You have 10 seconds.
Ready. Set. GO!"

♫ ...Dirty jobs, they're everywhere, just take a look around.
Down the street, or up the stairs, or even underground...

... So... don't be scared or unprepared to tackle something rank,
to pick up gum or have some fun inside a septic tank.
Don't begrudge a little sludge, or working in a pit,
but always ask, to wear your mask, when cleaning pigeon - gee-whiz!

You don't need to borrow, beg and you don't need to rob,
All you've got to do is get yourself a dirty job.
All you've got to do is get yourself a dirty job.
All you've got to do is get yourself a dirty job... ♫

"Oh... Mr. Rowe, you look a little flustered and dirty! Don't worry, I'll let you get the next one too. In fact, I'll just keep you around until you get it right... "

What we do for fun when we're sick...

The kids found that if they remove the heater vent cover, they can make balloons "magically float". This provides minutes of entertainment.



When that gets old and we're bored and have cabin fever, we think up new games.
This one started out with mutually throwing small, harmless objects at eachother with minimal force and evolved into finding the meanest toy lying around and hurling it with brute force at the head. Evie won. (Please note the blue forehead on Sterling and the missing eye of poor Mr. Bun Bun). Really I think Bun Bun got the worst of it.



When we are really bored, we play hide-and-seek and hope that no one finds us.



Sometimes we leave bowls of Cheerios lying around in the floor to test the development of small babies:
1. Can they crawl or roll far enough to get to it?
2. Will they be able to masticate said Cheerio?

Thankfully yes, as this was as yet untested.



Our final quarantine favorite (aside from never changing out of our pajamas) is half-crazed, impulse shopping just to escape the "cabin," wherin we buy silly Glo-worm knock-offs like this Sea Horse that plays lullabies and ocean sounds. (All kidding aside, you should have seen Hylton loving on this thing in the store! It's really the first toy we've bought just for him and it was so sweet the way he got so excited when I gave it to him later in his crib- I swear the kid almost hyperventilted, kicking and panting and trying to mark his teritory in slobber.) Honestly, I think we may have our newest "lovey"... Sterling claimed his two silky blankets, Evany: Mr. Bun Bun, and I'm pretty sure Hylton is claiming this... This one may be even more difficult than Evie's Bunny to bring to Sacrament or Elder's Quorum without sullying the reverence though. Maybe we'll let you choose: crying baby? or Pachelbel's Cannon Larghissimo? (With gurgling ocean accompaniment, of course!)

The Beasts from HEAVEN!

On the recommendation of some friends I decided to check out the Portland Running Co. yesterday and could not be more happy!

Kristy has been really great about trying to keep me motivated about running but after our moderate two-miler the other day, my knees were sore and my ankles bruised for days! In talking with another friend who had to have physical therapy from running without correcting her over-pronation, I decided to get fixed up before doing any more damage.

So the saleslady asked me what I'd been running it and when I pointed down to my old, broke-down Sketchers she said, "Oh! That's bad!" Uh. Yeah. She watched me run and recommended a few shoes based on being a moderate over-pronater and I tried running in each. These ugly beasts were the most comfortable shoes ever! I've never heard of Mizuno- but then I'm not really a runner, so that's not surprising. But check out that fat instep!

I usually pick shoes based first upon price, then appearance, then fit. I have never bought solely on fit before and it was wonderful! Lucky for me, these babies happened to be on sale. I can't wait to run in them!

10K, here I come!

Doug: In the Twilight of Life

Doug turned 35 on Sunday and I had meant to have this little tribute done for him by then, but not so much. It took me a few days to scan and gather all the pictures, so I'm a few days too late, but that doesn't mean I love him any less. (For the record, he has been reading the 4th book of Twilight lately, so I thought this would be appropriate). Happy (belated) Birthday, Honey! I can never resist a chance to embarrass you a little...

DONE!

I have been working for weeks on this quilt for Evie and, to my and my husband's surprise, finished it yesterday. I am known (at least in this house) as the girl who starts projects but rarely finishes them. I have to say though, that I am turning over a new leaf and have finished nearly all the projects I have started recently. I can't vouch for that old wingback chair or the old brass lamp that have been sitting up in my grandparent's attic for nearly 8 years, but nevermind those. Out of sight, out of mind. This quilt required more time and dedication than anything I have completed in a while- it's a really good feeling!


Evie and I compromised- black for me and pink for her.


I made it Queen size because she will eventually be in the Full size bed that's in Hylton's room now, so it is touching the floor on the one side of her bed and bunching up on the floor on the other.


Evie likes to poke in all the bubbles on the "minky" fabric.



I had about 18" of the binding left to sew when I saw that my thread was running out. I was eyeballing that spool the whole time and this is how I finished! It was almost like cheating death... almost...