So happy that I can't stop yelling.

Today when the FedEx truck parked in front of the house I nearly died of joy.

J and the baby were both with me when I answered the door, along with a barking Willie. He's progressed from growling and barking when the doorbell rings to barking like crazy and jumping on everyone who dares to stand on our front step.

I had to shield the poor FedEx driver from him.

Then I saw the return address on the box and immediately began shrieking. I bounced back into the house with a box that seemed quadruple the size needed to hold my itty bitty mini computer.

J and I followed me, echoing my exciting screaming and mimicking my leaps. Twas funny.

I had intended to take the two of them to the library and was running late already, but I just had to see how tiny it was. I opened up the giant box and then another not as giant but still pretty big box and finally found my tiny new best friend, Little Marta.

She smiled back up at me in all her miniature glory.

I set her all up and rushed off to the library in my favorite sweater even though it clashes terribly with the double stroller. I smiled at two construction workers painting a crosswalk on the new pavement that I left a footprint in yesterday and they smiled back and made small talk the whole way across the street.

At the library I completely lost track of time and ended up leaving long after the baby should have been asleep. But I reserved the Hunger Games so everyone will shut up about how I need to read them. Even the librarian who helped me frowned and said, "You haven't read them yet?"

Back off.

I'm still trying to read the shelf of goodies in the playroom. I came across The Kitchen God's wife by Amy Tan and it was excellent. She also wrote the Joy Luck Club, which is on my list now. But I've been sorely disappointed in the other classics I've managed to muscle through in the last few weeks.

I didn't realize that classic authors were so trashy. My mistake.

Once home I stuck the baby in his crib and fed J lunch. R got home from school right around then and T's mom stopped by to drop off dinner. She has been doing that for us a lot lately and I have to say, it's one of my favorite things ever. These kids won't eat anything I cook except chicken and even the ways I can prepare that are limited as far as what they will tolerate. I've tried to broaden their horizons but they have resisted every step of the way.

So T calls her mom on the nights when we just feel like we can't come up with anything and she brings over home cooked Persian goodness that the kids will tolerate and all anyone here has to do is heat it all up.

We spent the afternoon crafting. T is working long hours in preparation for a planned extended maternity leave. So while she is out and I have all three kids in the afternoon I do my best to keep them entertained and off my nerves.

We picked up a Halloween craft book at the library and while the kids colored and glue-stuck I made a paper pumpkin candle holder and a little witch named Gertrude.

T said my handy work made it very clear why I work with children.

And let me just say, that if I taught elementary school I would have THE best classroom in the entire world.

After dinner E and T took the two older kids to Temple, it's another holiday and I don't have the energy to know which one. I put Baby I to bed and returned to the playroom, which looks like a hurricane hit it, twice, to spend some quality time with Little Marta.

I'm about to spend the night uploading every picture I've taken since my last computer died. I hope Little Marta is ready for me.