Cleaning Out and Ugly Babies

I took advantage of the warmer weather and opened up the storage shed in the backyard.  I pulled about 10 boxes inside.  Today, since it was raining this morning, I went through three of them.  I found more pictures, of course.  We have always been a photographic family.  Some of us were even photogenic, too.  I found other miscellany as well.  Decorative items, mostly.  I had sorted a lot of this when I moved from my condo, um, hmm, 12 years ago?  I think that's how long it's been.  I did throw out a few things (broken), put a few in give-away (old, but in good shape) and kept a few things.  I found myself packing up some slightly burned candles in the "keep" box.  I caught myself, but now I can't remember if I threw them out or not.  I'll have to check.

What happens is, I get caught up in a TV show (in this case, the original Hawaii Five-O) and I'm not really paying attention to what my hands are doing.  Then I end up with garbage in the keep box and give-away in the garbage and...well, you get the idea.  Sometimes I end up with several garbage boxes!  Which is not altogether a bad thing, really.

Along with the TV distracting me, I also had Tabitha.  For whatever reason, she found my fake flowers fascinating.  No, she didn't play with the blossoms or leaves.  She rubbed all over them!  I know, they are "marking" when they do that, but she was purring, too!  Loudly.  Then she jumped in the box that I was sorting.  It was almost empty, but had a few pictures and frames remaining.  I found a piece of curling ribbon and tempted her out of the box with it.  Of course, a few minutes later I had to get up and take it away from her because she was eating it!

Okay, purposeful digression here.  You know how there is clumping cat litter now?  And you have to scoop out the, uh, waste to keep it clean?  Well, I always know when Tabitha has been eating things she shouldn't.  Her "deposits" are extremely colorful with a wide range of textures.  That cat must have a cast-iron digestive tract!  Curling ribbon, yarn, feathers, even potpourri!  Yecch!

Anyway, once I had the box empty, I gave it to her to play in.  Most of the time, the cats can't wait to their hands, er, paws on a box.  This time she ignored it.  I think she was peeved about the curling ribbon.

Well, once I sorted through the third box, Hawaii Five-O was over, so I cleaned up for the day.  Most of the pictures I found today were of Brittany when she was two and three.  I've always thought she was a cute kid, even as a baby.  I know I'm biased, but I looked at these photos as objectively as possible and I still think she was a cute kid.  Believe me, I have seen some babies who could never, under any circumstances, be called "cute."  When my oldest niece was born, I went to see my sister at the hospital.  I stopped by the nursery and, next to my niece, was a nearly 13-pound baby.  Now that alone wasn't any big deal, as far as looks.  It was the fact that about five pounds of this kid was all nose.  Jimmy Durante had nothing on this baby!  A few years later, a couple I knew through church had their first child.  The first time I saw this baby, he was swaddled, so I went up to the mom to see his face.  When she uncovered his face, I literally took a step back!  I must have made some sound--a squeak or a gasp--because the mother looked at me with concern.  I turned my head and pretended to sneeze!  I bravely took the step forward again and said, "He's so little!  I didn't want to sneeze on him."  Pretty fast thinking, if I do say so myself.  The best I can describe that poor little boy was "a wizened, old man."  Now if you think I'm being mean, you need to know what the kid's uncle called him.  Yoda.  The saddest part?  Nobody ever laughed when he said it!

Back to Brittany.  I do admit there are a few awkward stages during her first couple of years.  Like at nine months when her ears looked too big for her.  Or when she would pudge out just before a growth spurt.  But once she was about three, I didn't see those awkward phases again until she hit puberty.  For a couple of years, she was overweight and had glasses.  Fortunately, she had perfect teeth.  Then, just before high school, she slimmed down and got contact lenses.  At about 5' 1", she's slender and petite.  (She says she's 5' 1-3/4".  Whatever it takes to keep you going, I guess.)  In this picture, she's about 2-1/2 years.  How old was I?  Old enough.

She even has dimples!
Her hair had been blond up to this point.