February 2nd

 And just like that, January is over!

I am so proud of myself!  I bought a little water purifier test kit for an experiment and actually did it!

That seems silly since I am a Ph.D. level engineer but the truth is that for years, I had toddlers running around snatching things off of surfaces, so got out of the habit of actually doing experiments.

It worked. We put nasty, dirty, oily water in the top and cleanish water came out of the bottom. It looked great but of course nasty things can be in water and the water still be clear. We didn't drink the water, but we admired it.

Push ups are a big thing here among certain strong people.  Here, Miriam and Rose are doing push ups.

Sarah made a very unstable, tall tower out of Settlers of Catan houses. Neat! She is so creative!

So I went to the dentist yesterday to get a couple of cavities taken care of. I did not enjoy the experience.  Our dentist is great and I was treated very well but wow, my jaw was mad at me and I do hate that feeling of having a numb cheek, nose, and jaw after the novacaine.

And yet, I still have my teeth and I have the opportunity to have someone competent take care of my teeth, so am very thankful for that!

I came home and rested for a couple of hours and today I have been tired too.  Maybe a minor illness?  Not sure.

Anyway.

We also published an updated edition of The Banished Uncle today.  The original was 57,000 words and the new version is 89,000 words, so I added a lot.