Firestarter

I am typing this in the comfort of my very warm and toasty house. Very, very toasty. I have built myself a blazing little fire.
The reason for the poxy photo of my rough head and otherwise awkward looking self is that I need this as proof for Mr Secondstitch that I did in fact get a fire going in his absence. And we can just say that this was one of many great fires I lit and not, say, a one off I persisted with this afternoon knowing that he will be home in 2 days (he's been away for 12 days I think this time. Will be home for 2 days and 2 nights and then off again) and checking out that fireplace for evidence that it has been used. Being a typical blokey bloke he loves a good roaring, way too hot, make everyone sweat fire.
But my Girl Scout skills are incredibly limited and I'm pretty crap at getting a good fire going. It is a very time consuming exercise for me. I use lots of newspaper/firestarters to get it going and it doesn't usually last. One of the oldies about town here advised me to use 'a splash of kero' to make it easier, but I just don't know that I'm ready for that kind of excitement in my life.
So anyway I got the stinkin' thing going this afternoon, and I have the photographic evidence.
I do love to have the fire, but if I could just have someone else to cut the wood, chip up the kindling, clean the fire place out daily, and get up in the middle of the night to throw another log on so it's nice and toasty in the morning - I'd love it a whole lot more. In other 'handy Mum' news I also fixed the washing machine today. I loaded it up last night to set it so it would start itself while I was still asleep this morning, but when I went to close the door it just wouldn't close.
There was this little very rusted out spring at the bottom of the door bit which had broken off at one end, hanging down. Door could not close. So my first plan was to just rip it off altogether, it didn't look that vital. But it wouldn't come off.
Do you see it. It's that caterpillar looking thing hanging down, looking like it's trying to escape my filthy load of (not quite) whites.

So I just need you to know that if this happens to you - this is a problem which can be fixed with Blu Tack. Easy. I'll let you know how long it lasts.
Is there anyone else out there who has to have a child lock on their fridge? We have had one pretty much since Ruby was old enough to walk, but I have never, ever seen one on anyone elses' fridge.

We have two real little fridge raiding bandits on our hands here. And you have to use the lock for it to work, LOL. I am always forgetting. And when I forget we have things like Ruby indulging herself with an entire punnet of strawberries in the time it took me to put Clary to bed last night! And this morning while I was hanging the washing out they both treated themselves to some post-breakfast apple pies.

Here they are. Little turkeys.

They are absolutely terrible to just helping themselves to little snacks when that fridge is not locked. And I can't lock the pantry so it's just open slather there. I don't know what to do. They're very sneaky.

And, just because, a picture of Clary trying to master the art of getting sunglasses on.