Problem solved with Paint

Our neighborhood (entire city) is just blocks & blocks
of house upon house upon house. Most houses are actually
two separate flats. (We happen to have both up & downstairs).
Running through the middle of each block is an alley.

Each alley is home to weeds, weird discarded household items,
garbage, garbage cans and of course an assortment of common
little varmints (that will remain unnamed).

Mysterious things unraveled in our alley in July...
While stepping out from the garage to fetch our
blue & green cans just hours after the truck emptied them
we were shocked to discover that our garbage can had disappeared!
It mistakenly found a new home in someone else's yard.
But who's?
where?
why?
(that's another story that won't make it to another blog!)

For weeks we couldn't find it...
gone ... missing.

When you have SEVEN people in your house, ONE huge garbage
can makes a big difference! SIGH
A week...
month...
nearly a month and a half passed.

And then... We found it!!!!!
(all the while our address was spray painted on the back
but we hadn't been able to see it until now! SWEET!)

and I intend to do all I can to see that it isn't mistakenly taken
to a "new home"' ever again.

Here's how a little paint will prevent another case of the
mistaken-missing-now-found-garbage-can-mystery, but
it also provided a lovely, messy activity for the youngest kids!
(Then my oldest girl used black paint to put our address on
every side and lid!)







oh.. NOTE:
We'll be spending the next few days
with family... so my blog won't be updated
for a while.