The Pit Crew and the Boss

I've been working a lot this week, while not working very much. With the Labor Day weekend, I decided to take the week off to (1) rest and (2) complete some chores and projects. At the top of the list was to (finally) paint the living room. It was past time to remove the peach color and put in something more exciting, like another neutral color. We actually bought the paint at the same time of purchase as the brilliant green color for Helen's room... months before Helen was born. After nearly two years, I figured the paint would look better on the wall than in a can in the garage.

We invited up the Walker entourage-- my parents, brother, and niece-- to enjoy the long weekend with us and visit with Helen. And yes, I was very transparent about bribing them into helping with my paint project. I actually thought for some reason it would take all week to paint. But that was because the last two paint projects involved nasty, evil wallpaper and borders and I did them mostly by myself.

What a difference a well-oiled paint crew makes! We had all the taping and prep work done Saturday morning and completed the entire room's first coat that afternoon. We were able to finish the second coat early Sunday afternoon after going to church. I am still thrilled and amazed that we actually completed the whole project that weekend. As they say, many hands make light work.

We went out to one of our favorite restaurants Saturday night-- Lieu's Chinese (think PF Chang's). Here's Helen trying to imitate her Daddy using chopsticks.

We then went downtown to stroll around, eat ice cream, and enjoy the evening. Helen didn't even notice the horse and carriage walking by because she was so intent on pushing around her own stroller around in circles.

As for the rest of the week and my other two objectives... those were somewhat put on hold. Helen and I are sharing sicknesses. Tuesday, she developed a fever. So I spent most of the week caring for her every need. After all, she's the boss! Or so she thinks these days. As adorable as she can be, she can sure be grumpy and demanding. And it didn't help that I got some sort of throat/tonsil infection. But we're both on the mend and feeling better. Helen is still bossy, though. I was able to get most of my projects done and we're ready for another fun filled weekend.

-AW