Unexpected Humor

Okay, so I know that this photo isn't immediately amusing, but bear with me, and look at it again. Still not finding the humor? Well let me share why I found this body wash to be blog-worthy material.

First, read the usage directions. Notice they're all in ENGLISH. (No, that's not funny.) Now, look down at the list of ingredients. Notice anything? Like the fact that "water" is listed in English ...and SPANISH? I mean, why did the product makers feel the need to use Spanish with two of the ingredients but not the actual usage directions?

Second, scroll down to the bottom of the picture, specifically to the company information. Did you catch where this body wash is made? CANADA. Where FRENCH is one of the two spoken languages. FRENCH. So why list the ingredients in SPANISH?

Long Overdue Photos

Leah likes pulling the pillows off the couch and then pretending to sleep.

Say "cheese!"

She also has a thing for bracelets. Guess Daddy will have to work hard to buy her some bling!

I gave her ONE pot; she wasn't satisfied until she pulled out several others.

Bubble solution is for drinking, right?

Mmm, blueberries.

Apparently Leah just walked right over and plopped right down in the slip-n-slide pool.

Water baby

Will took Leah out for their first date:

a ride on the carousel.

Going for a basket ride courtesy of Daddy.

She pulled off the basket of toys and just climbed up on the telephone cart one day.

Sunblock: the new hair gel.

Who knew a cardboard box could be such fun?

Playing with bubbles at Grandma's house.

First ice pop.

Chillin' in her chair (and yes, she pulled up the dog and the cake.)

Giggle Baby

No, I'm not referring to Miss Leah, though she does make me giggle sometimes. Actually, Giggle Baby is a book that Leah checked out from the library recently. As the title suggests, it contains pictures of little babies. Leah thoroughly enjoyed the book, especially because of her love of babies (how funny, especially since she still is one), but there was one particular baby she liked the most: ballet baby.

The line from that two-page spread read, "Ballet baby, don't pick your nose!", and there's a picture of a baby in a tutu picking her nose. How do I know Leah loved that one? Because every time Scott or I read that page, Leah stuck her finger up her nose and smiled. Every. Single. Time.

Oh how I love that goofball.

My Provider

Once again I am reminded that God is watching out for me and my family. Not like I had forgotten that, but His little reminders are encouraging.

Saturday, Scott and I drove up to Bowie, MD, for a surprise party for Mike, a friend and co-worker of Scott's, and his wife Katherine. Because of the party's time, we were fortunate enough to leave Leah with my parents. For the most part, the ride was uneventful; we didn't even run into typical weekend DC traffic! Just before we turned onto the residential street to get to the party, we heard something clunking underneath the car just as the engine light popped on and the AC suddenly didn't feel so cool. In the next moment, the temperature gauge shot up, also causing us some concern. By God's provision (for there's truly no other explanation), we made it to the party house.

Before heading inside, Scott popped the hood; more bad news: antifreeze was pouring out of the reservoir. Uh-oh. Even I knew that wasn't good (and I know nothing about cars). Further exploration revealed the source of the thunking we heard under the car: a belt had broken. Oh joy.

Now wouldn't you know it, but Mike's sister-in-law knows quite a bit about cars. She came out for a quick peek before Mike and Katherine were supposed to arrive, and agreed that the source of our troubles was the belt. (She also deduced that a pressure build-up popped the cap off the antifreeze reservoir, so that was an easy fix.)

Fast forward to after Mike and Katherine's arrival (because of traffic, they didn't arrive until 2, even though they were supposed to get there at 1; we had arrived shortly after 12). Scott, Mike, and Bob (Mike's brother) drove to Auto Zone and picked up the requisite belt. Then, the group of them, along with Thomasina (the sister-in-law) tried installing it... to no avail. Because they didn't have the tools they needed, they couldn't install the belt, no matter how hard they tried.

Thankfully, though, God provided another option: Eunice, Mike's mom, has AAA, and offered to call us a tow, thus saving us the cost of a tow to Woodbridge. So, at 6:41 (yes, that's the time the driver said he'd arrive), our car was loaded up on a flatbed, and we headed back home. (This was considerably later than we had originally planned on staying; initially, we figured we'd stay for a couple hours and then head home in time for dinner. So much for THAT idea!)

Thomasina commented that I was remarkably calm about all of this; she said she wouldn't be in the same situation. I explained that I knew it would all work out. Plus, I knew how fortunate we were to have this happen where and when it did.

Because of God's hand in all of this,

*our car broke down in their neighborhood instead of the interstate.
*Leah spent the day (and night, too) with my parents.
*we didn't have to stress about how we'd get Leah home (from the party, had she come).
*we were safe and free from injury.
*Scott was driving.
*the car didn't break down during the week when Leah and I might have been out and about.
*Harvey, a friend from church, gave up part of his Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon to help fix the car.

So why should I fear if my God, who is bigger than life's problems, is in charge?

Home Improvements

Much to my hubby's dismay, I've been on a home improvement kick lately. When we moved into this house three years ago (has it been that long already?), Scott was more than overjoyed at NOT having to make any major changes. I certainly can't blame him for feeling that way, especially since it was one project after another for him at our old place. Still, being a woman (for I think this is something all women do), I've managed to find new projects for Scott.

Now that we've settled in, I've discovered various rooms that need changing. Take our bedroom, for instance. Recently, I've been putting the finishing touches on it. Add a few pillows here. A bit of fabric to the curtains. A coat of paint on the walls (if only!). Scott doesn't see it that way, though. He looks at the room and thinks, "It's done. Nothing needs to be touched," while I look at it and think, "Hmmm, what about...?" In his mind, since nothing is falling apart, we needn't change anything. Silly man. Doesn't he know that a woman's (decorating) work is never done? I would paint the room, but a) Scott doesn't like it when I paint; b) there's no way I could move all that furniture on my own; and c) uh, what would I do with Leah while I painted? So it looks like this final touch will be the elusive one. I'll just have to make do with all the other plans I have in mind for the room (and oh, the list is long).

This doesn't mean that Scott's opposed to maintaining the house; it simply means that we have a difference of opinion on the matter. While I want to update and personalize the house, Scott wants to tackle projects when they become pressing matters. The deck was one such project. Father's Day weekend, my hubby stained our deck-- by hand. The all-day endeavor certainly paid off, for our deck looks great now, but it wouldn't have been my top priority. Next on Scott's list? Maybe painting the trim, fascia (sp?), and soffitt. We're considering either hiring someone to wrap those in vinyl or else Scott doing the work himself, but that decision won't be made for a little while now. I think Scott's other priority is replacing the windows (we're halfway done), which is something we can't do ourselves. Oh, but before that, Scott will now have to fix the plumbing under the kitchen sink, which is something he's fixed in the past. How did this list get so long? (I'm starting to see why he doesn't want to undertake any "unnecessary" projects.)

I guess owning a home means that you're never truly done with anything, right? So while Scott continues maintaining, I'll continue updating, and maybe one day we'll both be able to rest and be done with it all.

Yeah, right.

Little Reader

Leah has a new favorite reading spot (other than mine or Scott's lap): the fireplace hearth. She'll crawl up there to "read" a book. Well, not just any book; it has to be Babies. What a blessing to have such a little reader.

Psalm 130

Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;
O Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.

If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins,
O Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness;
therefore you are feared.

I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
My soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.

O Israel, put your hope in the LORD,
for with the LORD is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.