We come home after long hours to a happy, rested, entertained boy.

 The house is tidy, the floors are cleared.   Jack's play area is even organized.

The lasagna we left is cooked and cooling on counter.

The dog is walked and content.

Oh, and dishes are done.

It's much, much better than a daycare would have been.

PLUS! All of that happened while Jack works through ANOTHER cold. (I blame this one on the flu shot he got Friday.)

Need I remind you that a daycare would not have taken him today, necessitating one of us missing work?

So much better with a nanny.

This mom thing is pretty nice.

Oh, this is fantastic. Ben's steaming UK set up is working wonderfully. I love watching this show on its proper schedule. It's even fun watching the british "adverts."

The safety glasses came for this project.  Ben was at Lowes and they were having a free kids project.  Jack was a little wary and close to his naptime, but the store let him take home all this gear for free!  Today Ben and Jack built the truck:

 Jack loves to help me bake.  Today I was making pizza for dinner, so I invited him to help assemble the pies.  What a helper!  He stretched, squashed, rolled, and smushed the dough.  He spread the sauce and licked the spoon.  He sprinkled cheese and herbs.  He placed pepperoni perfectly.  The only problem was when we were done he cried because he wanted to make more!  Don't get between this boy and an apron. 



Accidental sideways camera by Ben.  But I like it, it's kind of artsy.

Discovering a cool museum in our own town made us feel like tourists in our own city.  We decided on a restaurant in LoDo near the ballpark called Biker Jim's Dogs.  Of course Ben chose an exotic dog made of rattlesnake and pheasant topped with cactus and a Malaysian jam.  I chose a much more boring all beef dog, Jim's Classic style with cream cheese and grilled onions.  Their baked beans were really good, and probably the best fried mac and cheese I've ever ordered.  I was really excited to see a Boylan's soda fountain too. 

After lunch we walked a few blocks to Sakura Square.  On the way we saw a strange group bicycle:
And some funny street art:

I also found some goodies:

I wonder if these will be any good.  The one I tried in San Francisco came out of a box too.  Next week we have plans to visit Boulder.  I have my sights set on Smooch.  Their mochi ice cream looks heavenly and I can't wait to try several. 

It was so fun to play in Denver today!  I learned some cool things (did you know Denver had three cable car lines in the 1880s?  We saw a cable car at the museum from Denver), and it reminded me that there's a lot to explore in our own town still.  It's even possible to sight see with a toddler.  (Jack was angelic for the outing, even putting his hands in pockets while wandering the museum.  He only needed occasional reminders to behave.)  Now if you'll excuse me, I have a mochi ball calling my name.