Here's a trick I used on my stepdaughter, who would *not* drink a cup of milk - a few sips and she was done. I secretly put a drop or two of red food coloring in the bottom of a glass. I then held it so my hand wrapped around the bottom so she couldn't see the coloring. I asked her if she wanted some "magic milk". I ceremoniously took the carton of milk and poured it into the glass - as it filled the milk turned pink. You should have seen her eyes!!! She drank the whole thing. I varied the colors so it was always a surprise, but she liked pink and purple the best. Funny thing was the next time I talked to her mom, she asked me what the heck magic milk was. My stepdaughter is now 13, but we still have magic milk. We take turns creating the colors.

As much as I enjoyed writing my little screed in the OP, I do want to say that our GC is always helpful in resolving these problems. I've never done such a huge remodel before, and I find it puzzling that there have been so many errors. We tried to provide all the right information up front; sometimes we didn't get it all down in writing and we've had to go back and review things with the builders. But just as often we've had things in our plans that they just missed. I took an opportunity on Friday to talk to one of the GC partners about their error rate on our job. He didn't think our project was so unusual for their company, but he did talk a lot about this vent fan issue and admitted that there were three opportunities for them to get it right and they missed each one. After that conversation I went back into the house with my dad and showed him our progress. Then I noticed that the HVAC sub had put an A/C vent outlet in the wrong place. After we'd asked for 3 weeks for him to put it in, showed the project manager WHERE to put it, given him a drawing of the new closets they were building there - still it is in the wrong place. sigh. Another conversation for Monday morning.

Sealavender - congrats on your new little bird! He is a cutie! I have three of these little guys and they are so endearing. If you dont have much time to spend with him, you might consider another budgie so he has a pal. These guys travel in large flocks and really crave the company of other parakeets. My first parakeet (Pip) was found outside by a friend. Eventually, I bought him a buddie (Sky) and the difference in his personality was amazing! It as clear he was craving a friend. Since budgies are very active animals, I bought them a double flight cage. They use every inch of that cage. Pip passed away recently, after 8 years. I found Petuniae on craigslist, living in a very tiny cage and with a smoker to keep Sky company. Petuniae is a boy, but because of his mutation he looks like a girl. Luke was found flying around town (I named him after Luke Skywalker as he was flying the galaxy). Luke wasnt in great condition, but boy is he a cheeky little fella now. Sky: Luke, Sky, and Petuniae’s cage (I cover one side to shade from sun): Busy body Luke (right) and Sky: Tiny Petuniae: Pip and Sky: Sky: Pip and SKy were best friends (RIP Pip):

My last year trick-or-treating, my friend's and my favorite TV show was Alias Smith and Jones. Swoon. So, living in a horse-friendly community, we dressed as the guys and trick-or-treated on her horses. Fun! Except, they didnt have saddles, and I have a hard time mounting without one. And, every time we went to a door, the horses tried to walk in! So one of us had to stay in the driveway holding both horses firmly, while the other rang the doorbell. Kind of a bother, in the end lol. Then there was the car of boys who tossed a cherry bomb as they drove by, spooking the horses. That was definitely NOT fun. My son's early Halloweens were scary for him. We went to a hayride, and one of the parents on the ride wore a slasher costume, OMG it was gory. We had to get off the ride after not too long, DS was practically clawing his way inside my coat while sneaking frightened looks at the guy. And answering the door one year, the dad accompanying the child had on a "scream" mask. Scared the bejeebers out of DS. We had plenty of talks about real and not-real. So, when he was 3 and going trick-or-treating for the first time, I'd made him a scarecrow costume. He freaked out, "I don't WANT to be a scarecrow! I want to be DS!" So I dressed him in his red puddle-jumper overall and rain boots, threw on a firefighter's helmet (it was, in fact, sprinkling every now and then that day), and went out. At every house, folks would say "what have we here? Oh, a firefighter!" And DS would correct them "No, I'm only DRESSED like a firefighter." After 5 houses he said "Mommy, I have enough candy now." Funnily enough, he grew up to be an actor and portraying characters other than himself is what he does.