A new month is here – but more on that in just a bit. I hope everyone has had a nice day and is now ready to relax with the Thursday Rundown. Here we go…

Toy Maker – Dang, my wife is creative. Call me an anti-recycler, but I go through plastic water bottles like crazy. The new issue with this is that whenever I am holding one, Sloan wants to take it out of my hands and wave it around. She loves the feel and sound of the plastic – but I don’t love my drink being grabbed from me, especially when there is the potential for water to go everywhere. Sidney solved this problem by taking one of my many empty bottles and filling the bottom with rice. Not only does it give Sloan her own bottle and eliminate the chance of a spill, but she likes it way better anyway. Sidney’s makeshift toy is a legitimate noisemaker with the rice crashing against the flimsy plastic. Sloan has a new favorite “toy” and it didn’t cost us a dime.

A look at Sloan’s new “toy.”

The Month of March – I have always raved about how much I love this month. In fact, five years ago I wrote a blog post specifically addressing my adoration for March. What’s not to love about March Madness, longer days, the coming of Easter, and warmer weather? Well, my affinity for the month increased exponentially last year. It is now officially Sloan’s birthday month. A St. Patrick’s baby, she entered this world on March 17, making it the best month ever!

Weirdest Business Transformation – I have written before about how I am fascinated with businesses that go under and then come back as something else. Think of a shuttered grocery store being converted to a haunted house during October or an old Blockbuster store transforming into a fast food restaurant. Well, I have the craziest transformation example ever to tell you about. When I lived in my apartment here in Myrtle Beach, I was close to a business district with lots of different buildings and shops. One of the particular businesses happened to be a sketchy, seedy adult film store. It went out of business about a year ago but it is about to return to life as (get ready for irony)… a crematory. Even crazier, the guy who owned the adult store will also own the funeral parlor. The owner said he became a licensed funeral director in 2017 and that “it’s an honor to serve families in their time of need.” Quite the transition!

Pizza a Healthier Breakfast Choice Than Cereal – What a bombshell! A popular Salt Lake City nutritionist, Chelsey Amer, recently said that an average slice of pizza is healthier than a bowl of traditional breakfast cereal with milk. She says that while both options contain roughly the same amount of calories, the pizza is a healthier breakfast option because it packs a bigger protein punch. After the blog post I wrote on Tuesday, I feel even more like an unhealthy disgrace.

How can THIS be healthier than a bowl of Cheerios?!

Sloan at 50 Weeks – It is a milestone…the big 5-0 for Sloan. After several major breakthroughs last week, things slowed down a bit this week. However, her ability to move quickly continues to build. She doesn’t just roam around the living room anymore, she explores the entire first level of the house. She has grown more comfortable using couches and tables to prop herself up on her two feet and she continues to eat more people food, recently trying both pancakes and quesadillas. With her birthday month here and her actual “big day” just a little over two weeks away, things are starting to get exciting.

Here is Sloan’s photo collage at 50 weeks.

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Enjoy your month of March, everyone, I know we will. Don’t Blink.