Water Emergency - Continued

It hasn't been that bad so far. We grabbed pizza on way home (ie no dishes). I hadn't run the dishwasher before we left (annoying...I usually don't like to leave dirty dishes/garbage when we're away), so I'm just leaving those dishes in there. I boiled 2 large pots of water for dishes and managed to clean the few we made getting lunches ready and all that. We positioned water jugs strategically around the kitchen and bathrooms. Managed to brush everyones teeth properly with the bottled water except my own. So, if I suddenly drop off to go hide in the bathroom at work b/c of e-Coli induced gastric issues then we'll know it was my neglect of proper water emergency teeth brushing technique. We made bottled water coffee this morning, which I should have brought to work b/c we can't use the coffee makers here since they are tapped right into the water lines. Argh. Bottled water microwaved tea, it is. I did bathe all the kids (it was 85 degrees and they were all sweaty and dirty) and hopefully Kelly didn't actually ingest the water I dumped over her head.

I don't have a sanitize cycle on my dishwasher so I guess those dishes are just going to sit unless I suddenly become inclined to wash them with boiled water. Not likely. I have a TON of laundry to do but I just don't know whether to do it or wait. I usually wash clothes with cold water so I'm hesitant to do it. I don't know if it's worth Shelaghs wrath if she decides she wants to match her underwear to her outfit and the only pair that matches is in the dirty laundry pile.

It's amazing to me that people are freaking out, waiting in huge lines at the local stores, and fighting about buying water. Seriously. The boil water notice is only for a 20+ mile radius around Boston. Take a drive and buy some water in a non-ban town. This isn't rocket science. The other thing that is really annoying me is the city and town recommendation to use paper products. Really? We want to encourage everyone to operate with disposable stuff and generate crazy amounts of extra trash and waste? Bad precedent.

They fixed the leak and are anticipating 1-2 more days before all the testing is done and acceptable. I can do this.

Block Parties & Boy Parts

The block party was a success! We almost had a 2nd rain out, but right at 2pm the sun came out and everything was dry. The bouncy house was filled up and the kids started running around and playing. Patriots came on (awesome last minute outdoor setup) and music was playing. The fire truck parked for awhile too. There were over 100 people there, plenty of food (albeit mostly desserts!), and lots of neighbors to meet and chat with.

I have to say I sort of lost track of the kids here and there, but they seemed good with the neighbors treehouse, the bouncy house, the crafts, and face painting. At one point both Joe and I couldn't find Rory. When I came out from looking in the house, Joe was marching him in with pants around his ankles. Yes, you read that right. Pants around his ankles and poop on the back end. Despite having been brought in for an unsuccessful bathroom run just 20 minutes earlier, Rory decided that he would rather go outdoors (I think he faked me out in the house on purpose in retrospect). So, to the back of the neighbors yard he went, dropped his drawers and pooped away. And, while Rory was attempting to climb up the treehouse ladder with his pants around his ankles a group of neighborhood boys was asking to use the neighbors hose to wash off the "dog poop" someone mysteriously stepped in. Joe caught him just in time and was able to hose him off in our house. He just loves peeing outside. Pooping, not so much.

Block Party

With 3 kids, a part time job, and an endless to-do list of things I never do, I've taken on the neighborhood block party. Thankfully, we have a committee of 5 as of now and more volunteers coming, I'm sure. We had a meeting at my place last night to discuss the general plans and it went well. I'm so glad we're doing it...there are a ton of young families on our street and surrounding and it would be cool to actually get to know some of the neighbors better.

Plus, it gave me an excuse to run last minute to Trader Joes again - Maple Leaf cookies and Shortbread cookies with Apricot or Raspberry jam. Yum. While I was there I sampled a nitrate-free beef hot dog (delish!) and Salt & Pepper potato chips (also yum). I finally bought the brownie mix that L was recommending and NO WONDER it's so good - it calls for a STICK of melted butter. I'll report how they are...I'm sure they won't last long in the house now.