What-What?! Week of January 29th

Posting late today, because I went and bought a car.

It's a 1997 Ford Expedition.  And it is HUGE.

It looks like this, except not a stock photo.

We wound up with this rather than an Explorer or anything smaller, because we've had a heck of a time finding something we could afford, fits all the kids in their booster seats, and isn't a total piece of garbage.  Many of the medium size SUVs simply don't have a large enough bench seat in the back for the three booster seats, or they have very awkward third row seating (I'm looking at you, Ford Explorer).  All of the minivans we looked at in our price range had been trashed, and most had questionable reputations in terms of dependability anyway.

I would love have loved to buy another Subaru, but the only options with third row seating is the 2017 Forester or the Tribeca.  Even the used Tribecas are pretty expensive and hard to find.

So we're going to do this for now.  We got a good deal on it, and I'm really pleased with the place we bought it from.  I expect in a few years, we'll be on to something different.  That's okay.

What-What?! Week of January 22nd

And everyone's still sick!  Well, recovering, but still not feeling great.  Corwin is pretty well back to normal, but Saffron and Ozzy are still super, super tired.  We took the family to Target yesterday and needed to buy Corwin some new shoes.  While we were shopping for Corwin, Saffron actually fell asleep sitting in one of the benches in the shoe area.  Then last night, Ozzy started begging us to get him ready for bed starting at 6:30pm.  That is so early.  Poor babies.  Here's hoping they start feeling better this coming week.

TV Show: Just Add Magic

This is an Amazon Original show that Saffron and I started watching while we were sick.  The show follows middle school-age Kelly and her two best friends, who discover an old cookbook with very unusual recipes -- magic recipes!  Kelly's grandmother is suffering from some sort of illness, which seems to have some connection to magic and the history of the book.  Kelly and her friends decide that to help Kelly's grandmother, they need to learn more about magic, and they learn by doing.  As you can imagine, hijinks ensue.

My experience with Amazon Original shows is that they tend to have good production values, but the writing and acting are a little lackluster.  This show is no exception.  However, because this is a kids' show starring children, I think it's totally in-line with what I'd expect -- it certainly feels like something I would have watched as a kid.  I think the characters are approachable and not obnoxious, the mysteries are interesting enough, and the stories themselves are relatable to the target audience.

We haven't yet made it through the first season, but I definitely plan on finishing the show based on what we've seen so far.