Do not expect frequent updates or quick progress. I do not intend to start building these shelves until the weather warms up. I’ll use these 23 degree days to gather ideas and design the shelves.

I bet she’s not the only Ryan that’s exhausted right now.

I said “No”.

She insisted I think about it for a day.

The next day, I said “No”. She replied, “Fine”.

Three days later, after realizing that my wife had not spoken to me since “Fine”, I began to conclude that the decision was never actually mine; the suggestion never actually a suggestion. It was a wife-suggestion. The military calls these orders. My only hope was to explain my reasoning and try to get her on my side. I took various measurements of the current home theater area and measurements of the suggested area and was prepared to make my argument. When she asked “Why” a few days later, I showed how I could never fit the TV, front speakers, and subwoofer in the new area she was suggesting. With authority in my voice, I told her, “The space on that side of the basement is not right for a home theater”.

I think she was prepared for this. Looking back, she had cleverly started this conversation in our garage, directly in front of my workbench. With me standing there, surrounded by all of my power tools, the smell of sawdust and polyurethane in the air, she said “So change the space.” I was helpless. The thought of tearing down walls and rebuilding them as my own was intoxicating. It was my turn to say, “Fine”.

What followed was 6 months of work renovating our basement. While I failed completely to take any ‘before’ or ‘during’ pics, I at least took some ‘after’ pics. You will find them on a page called The Basement - Revised Edition.

We once assumed that Taylor was one of those climbing toddlers because she would climb onto our couches all the time. Now, two years later, Ryan has shown us that Taylor was actually just scared of heights.

Taylor also never gloated about her climbing conquests.

The kitchen table is a favorite spot because it commonly has goodies on it.

Some goodies are the kind you eat…

…others are the kind you make a mess with. Note: there is a large overlap between these two groups.

Now to be fair, it’s unclear whether Ryan climbed up here. My father-in-law may have just been giving her a bath.

I could go to Home Depot, Lowes, or Sears and buy a workbench.

Or I could design and build myself a workbench.

It then occurred to me that having kids meant that there was a third possibility. I decided to design a workbench and manage its construction. When that one fell apart, smelling like carrots and milk, I decided to try again on my own. I am documenting the progress on a page that I call DIY - Catch-22. Enjoy.

Oh, and here’s the worthless one:

Real useful gift, Dorene. Thanks.

Also, you might think this picture was taken professionally, since only a studio would have these kind of props available. You would be wrong. My wife definitely purchased a giant coffee mug (or possibly a shrink-ray) for this photo. Yet I’m sure I still would have lost the argument referenced in my previous post.

ps: Month 22 is new.