The Aligator in the Garage

So it's after 3 am, I'm totally stressed out with about a million things I could rant about, but instead, I'm going to surrender to my blog craving because I've been so delinquent and it might make me feel just a little better to forget my rotten day and remember something fun that happened recently.

We've been spending a lot of time out in the garage lately with having the garage sale and Jack was playing quietly when he came up to me and starting talking a mile a minute about the alligator in the garage. Things like "I'm going to keep him" and "I'm going to pick him up and hug him" and "he's soft, I'm going to touch it" (making the motions with his hands sliding together). I thought, he can't be making this up, it's way too specific to just be a thought. I said, "wait, Jack, whatever it is, don't touch it until mommy gets to see it" (this is the kid that picks up bees) He promptly took me to the corner to show me where it was. Honestly, I was just a little scared. I looked around this rolled up mat for our treadmill, but didn't see anything.... until I walked away and then he popped his head out. Of course, I had to scream a little, it was just a bit freaky, especially when you're thinking "is there really a little alligator in my garage?"

So here he is....



mind you, these photos are from 2 years ago. He's just a scant bigger now, but I didn't have a chance to grab the camera this time. I wasn't about to leave Jack alone with him to come back only to find Jack hugging him or worse. No, I didn't clobber him... are you kidding? I won't show you my spider pics! But I'm certainly not going to be the one to mess with the food chain, that is for sure. He was a little brave getting close to Jack, but I'm pretty sure he's harmless. Anyone know what he is? (besides the alligator in the garage)

Jack and GG's Ducky session at Harrington's

See the video here how our session went. I was freaking out because getting them to sit still for photos is like corralling two greased up pigs, then you throw in two adorable, super tiny little baby ducks, and my blood pressure was through the roof! I was so scared something was going to get killed because Jack wouldn't stay put on his bottom and of course, they were somewhat uncooperative with the camera. Even so, the Harrington's are really awesome at catching that split second where there's a great shot. Check it out.

Dear Tacoma....

The best piece of material I've seen in a long while. I love it!
(Double click the image if you're having a hard time reading.)

bye bye baby

I think I can officially say we no longer have any "babies" in the house anymore. I know, I know, she's still very little, but to see my husband taking apart the bassinette tonight after having it's home next to my side of the bed for the last 36 months, well, to his credit, he tried to get it done before I had finished nursing her and laying her down, but it was hard to see it go. If for nothing else, I'll have to find a new place to put my clean clothes that I'm too busy to hang up. Our room seems so vacant now. I imagine Jack coming in tomorrow morning (this morning) to wake me and asking, "what happened?" his new favorite question for everything.

Things have suddenly seemed just a tad easier lately. It's very odd. I really started to take stock the other day as to what could be attributing to this. It finally hit me tonight just after I said goodbye to the little co-sleeper that was making it's new home in the cold attic. GG is now just a little older than Jack was when she was born. This is the first time I've had a toddler this age without an infant to care for. I had the experience of having a baby until he was 6 months old and then I became pregnant again, so the rest of the next several months had added challenges and by the time Jack was just starting to do things for himself, I had a newborn. This last week, I was finally able to push GG up to the table where she is happily feeding herself almost all of the time. She's also become very interested in potty training when she feels like it, she plays by herself more often now and I've seen some glimpes of her starting to wean from her last two feedings -in the early morning hour and at bedtime- so there's a lot going on right now in her journey to toddlerhood. But then you look at those cheeks and they just scream:
"BABY girl".



Still, this newfound liberation is a bit unsettling. I'm not sure what to do with myself during the new and few minutes I've found. It's not much, but it's like catching my breath. I got to dust the living room the other day, and it wasn't even the weekend!

SUPER SAVER - draft guard for door

Okay, so I started thinking about lots of creative ways to save money lately. With the economy in a state of crisis and just about everyone I know cutting back on this or that, I thought that it couldn't hurt to post my latest find once in a while. Who knows? It could save you a little money, too!

You'll need:
two strips of styrofoam insulation or thick foam (cut to the width of the door)
quilter's batting (the width of the door x about 18")
old pantyhose (just one leg per door)


This was inspired from a commercial for a draft guard that fits under doors. If you have a drafty door, it's very much like having a leaky faucet. You don't really see the money dripping away, but if you added up the gallons you're wasting over the course of a year, you would definitely do something about it! We have a doggy door from the mud room to the garage and then another from the garage to the back yard. So, there's a bit of a draft coming in : ) (see the titanic opening under the door?)


I started with two pieces of scrap insulation styrofoam (from Lowe's or if you know someone who is building or a site where you could find enough discarded). We have an awful lot of construction in our area, so this type of thing is plentiful here, but you could buy a 1/8 of a yard of foam from JoAnn's or local fabric store. Measure your styrofoam to your door and trim excess.

Cover each piece with batting by rolling it over the styrofoam like this:


Then roll up your old pantyhose as if you were going to put your toes in and start at one end, working your way up. Cut excess and knot shut.


Carefully ease the guard under the door through the "trough" between the pieces of styrofoam with the batting that goes between the pieces next to the floor.


It's not the most beautiful thing I've ever created, but the kitchen is soooo much warmer now. I'm shocked how much air we didn't realize was coming in!

Nearing :::500:::

The blog is getting very close to 500 hits (thanks, Cindy!)
and I promise not to do this again until we reach 1000, but it's been fun watching every new century mark getting closer and closer together. If you are lucky #500 (see counter) leave a comment and say "hey! it was ME!" Thanks for stopping by : )

Still Riding My Obama High

President Obama has been awfully busy for one week....
(1. Scrub 2. Rinse 3. Repeat)
What an amazing start. I'm as excited today as I was a week ago. My favorite word of the week: "follow through". Okay, that's two words, but whatever. I don't see him going down in history as "the president with the most vacation days". His predecessor holds that at 34% of his days in office. Can you imagine taking off 3 1/2 months out of the year? What a farce.

My second favorite word? "Diplomacy"
ooo, that even sounds just a little sexy ; )

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