Amanda came home today with three baby gates- one for downstairs, one for upstairs and one because the third one was free (or something) and we can use it around the house or at either grandparents’ house.  When Milly, who was pretty fussy this afternoon, went down for a nap, Amanda started working on installing the one for the bottom of the stairs.

The problem we had is that the railing juts out a bit and made it hard to install going directly across the bottom of the stairs.  Amanda first put it up and discovered that there was no stud in the wall and that it would come out pretty easily.  It’s one that you install then swing open, as opposed to the kind that you have to put up and take down whenever you want to use it.

Anyway, eventually she figured out that you could install it with the hinge perpendicular to the steps and let it swing open from there.  It sounds easy, but there was a lot of frustration involved.

Nick, Amy and Eli Warkentien came over this evening.  We all ate and went for a short walk then had brownies and ice cream to make sure the walk didn’t really do us any good.  And of course, when I say “we all” I mean the adults walked and carried the babies and ate brownies and ice cream.  The babies did not.

After Milly and Eli went to sleep we played Puerto Rico, which we haven’t done in a while.  Amanda won and I came in last.  Not my best performance.  After Puerto Rico we watched Fringe and Flash Forward then the Warkentiens headed on home.

Zach Dotsey