Saved by the Amazing, Wonderful, Spectacular Play-dough Lady

Boy, am I ever tired. With a capitol T and three exclamation marks tired. I spent all weekend outside in the dirt-- I pretty much moved the entire backyard garden to the front yard. No biggie. We're making way for a veggie garden in the back, but boy, howdy this was a lot of work.

Our poor roses somehow missed their fall pruning (gee, wonder what we were up to then?) and after being unceremoniously and brutally cut back, uprooted and transplanted, my arms now look like I've been fighting cougars. And the cougars won. But the yard will soon be looking wonderful, and we are getting some much-needed rain right now. See me embracing the rain? I am embracing the rain (she says through set lips and gritted teeth.)

The air around here is pretty blue right now-- I've had a date with my sewing machine tonight, and she's just not treating me like she used to. Or perhaps one should not sew when one this bone-weary. So I put away my rolling cutter and came out here to check in with you lovely chickas-- I've missed getting to peek in on every body's blogs over the last few days. The small fry are all ear-infected again, and it's been kinda hard to get to the computer. And speaking of rolling cutters-- you wanna know the eight words you never want to hear your two-year-old utter when you are up to your ears in a white sauce? "You never, never, NEVER touch dat wolling cutter!" Well, at least he is still small enough to rat himself out-- woe betide me when he gets old enough to keep his mouth shut.

So if you actually read the title of my post, back to that. I was saved today by the Amazing, Wonderful, Spectacular Play-Dough Lady. That is what she shall heretofore be known as around here, because not only is her product top notch, but her timing is impeccable. (Remember that ear infection I mentioned? And the rain? And the three long hours between the end of nap and when Daddy gets home? Yup.) I read about this Etsy seller a while back on LittlegirlPearl and just had to order. In this economy, it might seem frivolous to pay good money for something you can make at home so easily-- but I really admire clever marketing and a witty sales pitch, and I could not resist ordering a subscription. So today the first of our tins of dough arrived in the mail. And it was worth every penny. And I love that she imprints the top of the dough with her fingerprint so that you will remember, as she puts it, that it was made by "a real, live person." How cool. I love that you are surprised by the color each month, and I love that this batch was an awesome neon yellow. Among the things it has already become: a dinosaur, Peter Rabbit, Charlie the Dog, and Tyler Hansbrough, who, according to Grady, is carb-loading (I kid you not) and his plate of spaghetti dinner. Rock on, Play-dough lady. Rock on.