If only they'd had these when we were putting together our wedding registry.

It's always helpful to have friends and family in certain professions. My brother-in-law can advise me on car parts; the upstairs neighbor is a doctor; I have about eighty zillion friends who can counsel me in various aspects of law. (That part was easy: just move to Washington DC in your mid-20s, wait about five years, and bam! All your friends have ABA continuing ed requirements.)

But alas, I can never reciprocate. Nobody ever seems to want to know about Jordanian labor law or how best to pitch a tricky Consent to Subcontract. Nobody ever comes up to me at a party and says, "hey, what's your position on this whole grants under MOBIS contracts controversy?"

But all that changed this week, when a friend of mine, working for another USAID contractor on overseas assignment, reported that they were denying him Post Differential because he was on Temporary Quarters Subsistence Allowance. Outrageous! Clearly they were confusing Post Diff with Post Allowance, which really isn't permitted while on TQSA (which makes sense if you think about it). I pointed him to the appropriate AIDAR and the whole thing got straightened out.

It's good to be useful. Shame it will never happen again.

The Bean smiles a lot these days, but once you get out the camera she just stares at it, slack-jawed. I had to camp out like a wildlife photographer to get this shot.

Isabel holds her head high.

Isabel's weight is in the 80th percentile of her age group, but her length is off the charts. This means that the only clothes that fit her are paradoxically too big for her.

Our little lady of leisure.

Cleaning the Bean.

Taken today in Richmond.