Reason 23920 why I'm insane...

I bought a diaper bag today.

Of course, I wasn't going to buy just ANY diaper bag. I wanted a FABULOUS diaper bag. Hey, if I'm gonna be a tired momma schlepping around my offspring and all it's parapharnelia, at least something has to look fabulous at all times, am I right?

And since I'm a total labelwhore, especially when it comes to bags, you know that there's no way in hell you're going to see me toting around a Winnie the Pooh Walmart special. Nothing against those who do, but, that's just not me.

I gotta be me.

Enter: the designer baby bag. Yes, I've seen the designer baby brands, like Petunia Picklebottom and Skip Hop. They're okay, but I wasn't feeling them. I know Coach makes them, but the new ones are UGG-LEE. Also, this is my first child. I think it (and therefore me, natch) deserves a little something more than the same stuff all the little teenage girls are carrying around the mall. Don't get me wrong, I do like my Coach bags, but I wanted my diaper bag to be a little bit more special, because I'm weird like that.

I decided that I'd get a regular tote bag, and use that as a diaper bag. Designer totes are incredibly well made and will last long beyond the diaper years, which means that I will be able to carry my bag still after the baby is a bit older, and therefore, a tote would be perfect.

I have to admit, I was jonesing after a Louis Vuitton (this one in particular), but after looking on the website yesterday, nothing there was catching my eye. NOTHING. I know, I was totally shocked. The only other thing that I felt would fit the bill was a Gucci bag, so I decided to check out that website.

Well, I did, and I found a tote that looked really perfect for what I wanted. My husband said we could go to the mall today and check it out, to see if it was okay in person. We got there, and of course, the didn't have the bag. However...

Did you know that Gucci actually MAKES diaper bags? I didn't, but they do. Not only that, but they had one that was exactly what I was looking for:

Isn't it perfect? It's the classic logo fabric, in tan and gold, with pink and gold straps. It has the three flat pockets you see on the outside, plus one big and two smaller pockets on the inside. It also comes with a changing pad. Most importantly, it doesn't look like a diaper bag AT ALL!!! It's genius! I'm so in love.

My husband asked if this was the one that I wanted, and I was like, YES, emphatically, YES! So he said we could go ahead and get it. Happy Mother's Day to me! Thank you very much President Bush, I have stimulated the economy as requested.

I'm not going to use it though until the baby comes. It's neatly tucked in it's dust bag, inside it's box, waiting to be loaded with diapers and binkys and all that other stuff that babies need. My child, and I, will be stylin'.

Oh, and in other news...

I found jeans. Hallelujah. My first pair of designer denim, more expensive than any other article of clothing I've ever bought (excluding my wedding dress, of course), but they fit, and they're comfy, and they look GOOD on me, and my ass. YAY! They're being altered as we speak. I can pick them up next Friday.

I shopped my heart out today. WOO!

The Bag Tag

I have a little bit of a curiosity/voyeuristic streak, and I'm fascinated by what other people carry in their handbags. One of my favorite blogs is the Your Look Blog on the InStyle website. I just wish they'd update more often! My former boss bought me Contents by Kate Spade (I looked but couldn't find a picture online) for my birthday one year, which I had never heard of prior, but I ADORE. I seriously perused that one for a while. It's amazing just how many women carry more than one wallet!

I found this on another blog, and I haven't done this one yet, so here you go! Just a fun little snapshot into everyday life.

This is The Bag Tag, and here are The Rules:

1) Post a picture of whatever bag you are carrying as of late. No, you cannot go up to your closet and pull out that cute little purse you used back before you had kids. I want to know what you carried today or the last time you left the house. No cheating!

This is the diaper bag I bought last summer when I was expecting. I had it stashed in my closet until after the baby was born. I love this bag! I wanted a bag that I could carry past the point of needing a diaper bag, and one that didn't scream "LOOK I'M A DIAPER BAG!".

2) I want to know how much it cost:) And this is not to judge. This is for entertainment purposes only. So spill it. And if there is a story to go along with how you obtained it, I’d love to hear it.

After tax, it was $725. Yes, that's a lot for a diaper bag. But it's GUCCI. (Yes, I'm a shallow labelwhore. I've dealt with that and accept it as part of who I am.) Also, it was my "push present" which is why I didn't carry it until I had the baby. Most women get jewelry, but since I'm not really into that so much, this is what I picked. It's more practical, if you ask me.

We applied part of our stimulus check towards it. Hey, if the president says "Go forth and Spend," who are we to argue? Keep in mind that I had a job at that point that I had no plans of quitting any time soon. I was also still (rather naively, might I add) under the impression that health insurance covered all of that "having a baby" business. Duh.

3) Here's the big one - what exactly are you carrying in that bag? Dump out the contents and post a picture of them too.

It's a diaper bag, which means I'm carrying EVERYTHING! I have a change of clothes for the baby (in a Ziploc bag just in case I need to stash something messy), a burp cloth, a cookie (my husband put that in there), diapers (of course! ha ha. We use disposables when out, cloth at home), toys for the baby, a changing pad, a refillable container with wipes, my wallet (Prada = love), a tin of mints, a business card holder with my mom/calling cards, a pink pen, MAC lipgloss, cherry Chapstick, a metal nail file, my keys, a mini camera tripod (it bends! SO handy), MAC blot powder compact, the bag for my eyeglasses with the baby's sunglasses inside, a Dreft stain pretreater pen, the owner's manual for the carseat, my cell phone (it's seriously like six years old and all half the crystals have fallen off), a pack of gum, Sephora blotting papers, and an oilcloth pouch I picked up at La Grande Orange in Phoenix that contains my pacifier pod with a binky, Aveda hand lotion, Vicks hand sanitizer foam, Children's Tylenol, a comb, a plastic hair clip, two hair ties, spare breast pads, a little container of ibuprofen, two individual packs of Wet Ones antibacterial wipes, a pantyliner, and two peepee teepees.

That's a lot of shit, yo.

4) Tag some chicks. And link back to this post so people know why the heck you’re showing everyone your bag.

I'm going to tag:

*Whitney

*Lindsey

*Cicely

*Susanne

and

*Sam

because I find them interesting, but I totally understand if you want to skip this one.

The Mom Bag

I am a mom, but I don't carry a "mom" bag.  You know the ones I'm talking about - they're huge and weigh about 40 lbs because they contain everything from kid snacks to toys to miniature first aid kits.  You need a tissue?  The Mom Bag contains about three packets of travel tissue, as well as various used ones scattered here and there.  You need a pen?  There's usually at least five, but only two will actually write.  You need a mint?  There's usually a couple covered in lint swimming around at the very bottom along with some pennies for company.  I'd suggest trying something from one of the three packs of gum that are probably in there instead.

(do a Google image search for MOM PURSE and you'll see what I mean)

Nope, I don't carry that kind of bag.  When Bubba was a baby, I carried a very nice, very large (for me at least) tote style diaper bag.  I carried it until he was about a year and a half, and then I switched out to a medium sized purse.  I still use that one when I want to go somewhere that I feel I'll need to pack distractions (like church) but for the past year or two, I mostly am back to small purses.  I find that a smaller purse and wallet makes me really focus on what I'm carrying so I'm not dragging a bunch of unnecessary junk with me everywhere I go.  Do I sometimes miss things?  Well, yeah, but not every often.  I know what my necessities are pretty much at this point in my life.

Here is what was in my purse the day before yesterday:

That little Kate Spade bag is about two inches deep, six inches tall and maybe a foot wide?  I'm guessing because I'm too lazy to actually get up and walk across the room to measure it.  My phone should be a good point of reference, I guess.  In it, I found the following:

*Half a pack of gum - EXCELLENT behavior bribe for the boy.  He will do just about ANYTHING for a piece of gum.  I only give him a third of a piece at a time though.
*Hello Kitty tin filled with Tums - pregnancy necessity.  Heartburn is EVIL.
*Benjamin Moore color sample - We're planning on painting our bedroom this weekend.  This color looked so good in my friend Dorie's house, but it's too dark in mine.  BOO.
*EOS lip balm - Love this stuff!
*Lipstick - I alternate.
*Two hair ties - Gotta have a back up!  I'll never be one of those women who can stand to wear them on her wrists. That bothers me so bad.
*A crochet hook - I know.  Random
*Lollipop wrapper - I had a OB appointment the day before, so I took a lollipop for the boy.  He gets it after I'm done for good behavior.
*Michael's gift card - a thank you from a friend
*Paint chip for paint sample - Benjamin Moore Hush.  Seriously, look how light that color is.  On my bedroom wall?  It's the color of very strong chocolate milk.  Weird.
*ATM receipt
*iPhone
*Wallet - Inside there is a credit card, a debit card, my ID, a couple of gift cards/punch cards, my husband's business card, insurance cards for me and the boy, and some Apache Helicopter temporary tattoos from when we went to the open house at Falcon Field.

That's it.  Sometimes if I know we'll be out for a while I'll toss a granola bar in there for Bubba, or his phone and headphones.  Occasionally I'll toss a small bottle of hand lotion in there too.  For the most part though, this is it.  Obviously I don't always carry paint samples or crochet hooks though.   ;P

When the girl is born, of course, all this will have to change.  I'll go back to my big diaper bag with lots of smaller organizers inside and it will be okay because all of that extra stuff will become necessary stuff.  I should probably go back and review what I used to carry with Bubba.  Hooray for blogs that become useful reference points!

So... what's in your bag?

What's In My Bag?

Busy Bee Lauren asked, "What's in your bag?" over on her blog today. I haven't done one of those posts since I was carrying a gigantic diaper bag, so I thought it would be fun.

1. Pretty little pink purse. Authentic Kate Spade, and I only paid $6 for it at... wait for it... Goodwill!

2. EOS lip balm. This stuff is awesome!

3. Yogurt covered raisins for my boy.

4. Aveda Hand Relief. Probably the best hand lotion I've ever tried.

5. Antibacterial wipes. I go to Goodwill a lot, and everything isn't necessarily as clean as I'd like.

6. My keys. There are photos of a very tiny Bubba in the photo holder. I know there are lots of rhinestones missing from the Coach keychain, but I got it on a road trip to Disneyland a long time ago so it's sort of sentimental. My husband bought me the pink house key as a surprise. :)

7. Tiny plastic pill holder. I have Tylenol, Advil, and Excedrin in there just in case of headaches, as well and a couple Zoloft in case I leave the house and forget to take one. There is also a Xanax just in case of emergency. I don't like the way they make me feel though, so it would have to be a pretty bad emergency!

8. MAC Russian Red lipstick.

9. MAC Redd lipliner.

10. iPhone in a very cracked pink cover. Thanks, Bubba! Seriously though, it's a good argument why you should have a cover on these. I shudder to think of what might have happened without it!

11. Prada wallet. Yes, it's small. I don't carry much in it - a credit card, my debit card, my driver's license, a few loyalty cards, my husband's business card in case of an emergency. I used to carry a giant wallet with EVERYTHING in it, but realized that not only is that dumb in case it gets stolen, it's kind of unnecessary.

That's pretty much it. Sometimes I'll toss my camera in there. If we go out somewhere, I'll take a diaper and the travel container of wipes and just leave them in the car. Occasionally you'll find a Michael's or Joann coupon in there too.

I sewed a new mat for my table yesterday. I've been using my seed packets as decor until I plant them! :) The faux forsythia was on sale at Joann and looks perfect in the pitcher I found for a dollar at the Junior League Rummage Sale. I know this is kind of random. I wanted to post it on here but it wasn't enough for a blog post on it's own.

Is Craigslist really worth the hassle?

I love purses. Anyone who knows me will confirm this fact. I have several Coach purses just sitting in my closet that I haven't used in a while, and I probably won't, seeing as how I'm going to be switching to my AWESOME diaper bag here in a few months. I thought, hey, maybe I'll just sell them on Craigslist and make a little extra money from them.

Holy crap there are some losers on Craigslist.

First, there are the bargainers. The folks who see you listed your item for $75, so they decide to offer you $30. Um, no. I'm not taking $30 for a purse that I paid over $200. I'll keep it in the closet at that point! So, I put FIRM on the price when I relisted.

Then, there are the barterers. Now this is partly my fault, because I put in the listing that the reason why I was selling them was because I didn't need them due to the baby coming, won't use them, yada yada. No, I don't want to trade for your used baby clothes/stroller/carseat. Yes, I know a carseat costs more than $75. No, I don't think that my purse PLUS $150 is a great deal for that fugly travel system. So, I put "not interested in trades" on the next reslisting.

Then there are the "experts." Like I said before, I love purses. I also love fake purses, not to carry, but to play "Spot the Inconsistencies". Seriously, I had the BEST time on Canal Street in Chinatown in New York. I'm pretty damn good at telling you why things are fake, and can spot most of them in photos on Ebay/Craigslist. I'm weird, what can I say?

Anyway, when I listed, I made sure to state that not only are the purses authentic, I have the original price tags, care cards, and dust bags. I believe in taking care of my crap, LOL! Still, I got emails that are like, ARE YOU SURE IT"S REAL? or $75 is too much for a replica, you should let me have it for $30.

Um, you're right. $75 IS too much for a replica, and if I were selling replicas, I'd take your advice into consideration. So, I put "AUTHENTIC - yes, that means it's real!" on the third relisting.

Oh, then there are the people who are doing you a favor. Some of the barterers/bargainers fall into this category. I got one that was like, Well, I think that's a cute bag, so I SUPPOSE I can give you the full amount that you're asking for ONLY if you ship it to me. Sure, no problem, I'd be happy to do that IF you pay by bank/post office money order, and also pay for said shipping including insurance and tracking. What am I, a sucker? Yeah, haven't heard back from that one!

Finally, there are the people who will swear they want to buy the bag, BEG you to hold it for them, email you back and forth, and then - nothing. They drop off the face of the Earth. BLAH!

This one though... this email exchange made me laugh.

hi i am really interested in your purse. i know you wrote you will not trade but i am willing to make you a dealing i have lots of baby cloths and a car seat with matching stroller.just let me know if you are interested.thank you

So, just like all of the other offers for trades, I wrote back:

No thank you. I'm not interested in a trade, that's why I wrote that on the ad.

Succinct. Polite. To the point. Usually they don't reply anymore at this point, but apparently me not wanting her "baby cloths" and used car seat (seriously, I thought EVERYONE knew that you're not supposed to get a used car seat) was offensive, because I just checked my email and found this:

f*ck you then bitch keep your fake purses

(edited by me, of course)

Ah, another expert. On purses, on spelling, on grammar... who knows? Sour grapes anyone?

So... does anyone know of any good consignment stores in this area?

Twenty Teeny Dresses

Confession - when we first started trying to have a baby, way back in May, I bought this:

I know, I know.  Buying baby clothes when you're not even pregnant yet is kind of crazy.  Buying gender specific baby clothes when you're not even pregnant yet is REALLY crazy.  However, when I rounded the corner at the Goodwill that day, these were hanging on the end of the rack, right at eye level, beckoning me. Yellow, gingham, and vintage?  I couldn't resist!

I picked up the romper, and then put it back.  I knew I was crazy to consider it.  What would my husband say?  Then I picked it up again.  The tag was blue, and items with blue tags just happened to be on sale 50% off that week.  If I bought it and we had a boy, I'd only be out a buck.  I could live with that.

Then I noticed what had been behind it on the rack.

Y'all know how I feel about yellow seersucker baby dresses.  Daisies are also my favorite flower, so because it too had a blue tag making a dollar, it was coming home with me.  I took the two items, wrapped them snugly in their plastic bag, and tucked them far into a back corner on the bottom shelf of my accessory cabinet.  My husband would never find them there.  I was having my "if you build it, it will come" moment I guess.

Well, two nights ago, after finding out we are having a girl, I finally pulled them out to show him and confessed how long I'd had them stashed.  He thought it was more funny than crazy, thank goodness!  Then he asked the magic question - "Are you going to get more?"

When we went for our second trimester ultrasound with Bubba, we both took the day off work for it.  After the ultrasound, we hit the mall and bought baby stuff.  Lots and lots of blue and green baby stuff.  It was fun, and it was something we did together.  We were both working and had a bit more disposable income than we do now though.  Also, my husband's company is rolling out new software and he's one of the trainers, so taking time off work right now is not an option.  I felt kind of bad that we didn't get to do the same thing for Kelly that we did for Sawyer.

So, yesterday, I grabbed the boy and we went thrifting.

I've watched MANY episodes of Bewitched in the past year, and I've just become enchanted with the little dresses that Tabitha wears in the show.  For little boys, I think it's cute when they're dressed like little men.   I know a lot of people disagree, but I think little baby legs in jeans are adorable!  However, for little girls, I think they should look like little girls for as long as possible.  I don't like clothes with words for either gender, and I think leggings should be worn under dresses when it's cold only.  I don't like leggings with tee shirts, and if it's not cold, I think a nice diaper cover or tights are just right.  That's just me.

That led me to start thinking that I'd really like to have a bunch of vintage baby dresses for this little girl.  She won't wear them every minute (at home I'm sure it will be onesies and footie jammies) but I think they're just the sweetest thing on a little girl.  I looked on eBay and Etsy, but at $15 an outfit, I knew I was going to have to look elsewhere.  Hence, thrifting!  I scored big time at my favorite store, as well as at the Deseret Industries store.  When I got home (after stopping to buy a bottle of Dreft) I realized that I had bought twenty dresses, ranging from 3mo to 24mo.  Not all of them are vintage, but they all have those vintage elements that drew me to this type of dress in the first place.

Pink seersucker.  What's not to love?

Did I mention that smocking is a bit of a weakness too?

Hmm... and apparently Peter Pan collars.  This one is not vintage, but the teeny bows on the sleeves and the matching diaper cover reeled me in.

This one not only KILLED me, but it made the cashier at Goodwill squeal too.  Like, she was waving it in another cashier's face and saying "THIS is why I need to have a little girl.  THIS.  DO YOU SEE???"

I mean, look at the back!  The frills!  The lace!  The bow!  I can't blame her.  I die.

Yellow seersucker with pink ric rac trim.  LOVE.

This one I initially passed by due to the spaghetti straps, but further down the rack I found the matching diaper cover.  They had been priced separately.  Since finding the diaper covers with the dresses is kind of hard, I picked it up and asked the manager if I could get it for the same price as the other sets.  He said yes, and it was sold!

The perfect shade of green.

The trim and the bows on this one are velvet.  My husband actually really liked this one.  The tag read $9.99, but it also said 2 of 3 on it.  I looked, but could not for the life of me find the other two pieces.  I took it to the manager again (different store) and he knocked the price to $2.99.  It never hurts to ask if you have a good reason!

Another impossibly girly number.  You know what's funny?  When I was a kid, my mom used to want to dress me in yellow all the time and I HATED it.  HA!

This one is so sweet, but the diaper cover was what sold it.

More yellow seersucker, smocking, and a Peter Pan collar.  Gotta love that eyelet lace trim too.

This one needs the hem to be ironed.  I'm tempted to use my hair flat iron because I am a bad housekeeper, and besides - who irons baby clothes???

Pink and green and seersucker and eyelet lace.  *sigh*

The pleats and the lovely seafoam green color were the selling points here.

Of course, I have a bunch of coordinating diaper covers too.  Some came with certain dresses (see the one for that blue dress right in the middle???), and a few I bought individually because I figured I could pair them with dresses that didn't have them.  I would like to find some more though.  Ruffled underpants are just too flipping cute to resist.

I did notice that I have a fondness for clothes with this label.  Of the 22 outfits hanging on Kelly's side of the closet right now, seven have this label.  No other label is repeated in there, with the exception of a couple of Carter's items.  The outfit I had admired on Etsy also had this label.

The only other baby item I bought yesterday was this teeny cardigan.  At two dollars, it was too cute to pass up.  It's not vintage, but it's simple and cute.  I love it.  I also picked up a pair of maternity jeans for $6.  My bootleg Target BellaBand knockoff (seriously, last time I bought the real thing and they're a million times better) isn't really wanting to stay put anymore, so they came at just the right time!

Looking at this, one can tell that I love baby pink, pastel yellow, and bright apple green.  I'm okay with blue, but I don't seem to care for purple AT ALL.  I also passed up quite a few white dresses, because while they were pretty, I'm not totally insane.  Also, notice the nice miniature wooden hanger in the last photo?  All of Bubba's clothes are hanging on those.  I went to Ikea to get more yesterday and was informed they discontinued them.  WHY IKEA???  Why keep the ugly multicolored plastic ones and get rid of the tasteful wooden ones?  WHY??? 

Whew.  Rant over.

Today I have gone and stood in front of the closet about five times so far, just admiring everything within.  Sugar and spice and everything nice, indeed!

It ain't easy being green

This post inspired by Sam.

I'll be the first to tell you - I'm no hippie. I'd never survive in a sea of crunchy-granola girls, that's for sure. They'd totally mock me till my death, after which they'd try to compost me or something, because I doubt that I'm recyclable. That being said though, I do care about what we as human beings are doing to the environment and I want to do what I can to help. I'm talking baby steps though, because I sure as hell am not giving up my MAC makeup or switching to reusable baby wipes. Ew. I am still an OCD germaphobe, after all.

Here are some of the small changes we've made:

*We started using gDiapers. I love these things. While a regular disposable diaper can take centuries to biodegrade (and probably won't ever do so in a landfill if you use a Diaper Genie), and a regular cloth diaper has almost as much impact on the environment (albeit in a different way) due to the soap, water, and energy used to clean them, a gDiaper takes the best of both worlds and combines them into a cloth diaper shell with a disposable liner that can be composted (pee only) or FLUSHED! Even if you do toss them in the trash (like we do, I don't trust apartment plumbing) they will biodegrade in a mere 100 days or so. Awesome.

*I got rid of the vinyl shower curtain liners in our bathrooms and replaced them with cloth ones. I was skeptical of how they'd work at first, but they seem okay after two years. Best part is I can just take them down and toss them in the wash if they start to look grubby. Reusable for longer than vinyl, and no nasty off gassing.

*We started to recycle. This may not seem like a big deal to some people, but we live in an apartment and they don't offer recycling to us here. We (meaning my husband) have to bag it up and drive it to a drop off point. It's not far, but it is a pain in the butt.

*I put CFLs in the living room lamps. Dude, I HATE these things. I hate that when you turn them on, they're not just on, but you have to wait for them to warm up. Not to mention the fact that they contain mercury, so you're up shit creek if you break one or have to throw it away when it dies. But, they were on sale, and they save energy, yada yada yada. I did it because I knew I should, not because I wanted to. I only get half credit for this one.

*I made my own all purpose household cleaner. Like I said, I'm a germaphobe, but I found a recipe for one that says it kills bacteria. One cup water, one cup white vinegar, and ten drops tea tree oil. It smells like pickles and medicine, which is weird, but better than chemicals and I don't have to worry about the baby breathing it in. The pickle smell does wear off after a bit though.


*I stopped using the pink baby lotion. Even though I loooooove the way it smells, I can't pronounce most of the many ingredients. If an adult's skin can absorb nicotine through it using a patch, I'm guessing that a baby's much thinner, more delicate skin can absorb those chemicals. We've been using 100% pure cocoa butter instead. Now, instead of smelling like a baby, he smells like chocolate.


*I also use the California Baby Overtired & Cranky bubble bath instead of the lavender bedtime stuff for the same reason. Smells even better and comes with a wand to blow bubbles!


*Along those same lines, I use Dimpleskins Naturals Bum Bum Balm instead of Desitin or A+D ointment. Big D turned me on to this, and I love it. It's so nice in comparison to the other stuff.


*I use bar soap instead of body wash. Less packaging.


*I only buy biodegradable hand soap. My favorite is Kiss My Face almond scented.


*I donate my used magazines to the local old folks home and the nearby hospital emergency room so they can be enjoyed more than once.


*We've committed to buying as few plastic toys for the baby as possible. I don't want to be one of those people who's house is awash in a sea of brightly colored plastic that beeps and lights up. We want to go the wooden, old school route, and choose toys that are multitaskers and contribute to the imagination. The one exception on the plastic thing - Legos.

Same goes for baby gear like high chairs, etc. if we can avoid it.

*I'm drinking water out of a glass instead of a plastic water bottle.

*We donate unwanted items to Goodwill instead of throwing them away. We'll put bigger items by the dumpster for what I like to call "Apartment Recycling". Someone always takes them!


*We buy organic items and produce when possible. If that organic zucchini is all shriveled and sad though, I'm going to go with the fresher looking regular one.


*We stopped heating baby bottles by letting hot water run on them in the sink until they were warm. Now, I keep a Pyrex measuring cup in the microwave half full of water, and I heat that up and stick the bottle inside. Heats the dang thing faster too.


*Switched to all natural toothpaste.


*Turn off water while brushing my teeth.


*We don't use paper plates, ever. No plastic cutlery either.


*I started to make handknit dishcloths that can be tossed in the laundry and reused instead of throw away cellulose sponges.


*We take our own reusable bags to the grocery store. I'm encouraging the next generation to do this as well.


*Keep the windows open while the weather is nice to air this place out and remove toxins.


*This is probably going to sound ridiculous, but I've become more conscious of the amount of toilet paper that I use after reading about it on Sam's blog. Before, I'd grab the end, yank, and tear off whatever I got. Now I try to use just what I actually need so I'm not wasting paper.


*Same idea with paper towels. We started to use our dishtowels more too, so a roll lasts a long time. Switching to those select-a-size ones helped reduce our consumption too.


*Turn off lights when I leave a room. Grouse at husband when he forgets! LOL!


That's all I can think of right now. See? Little changes, a little at a time that I can handle.

Things I want to do:


*Start using soap nuts in the laundry, and around the house.


*Wean myself off the plug-ins and the air fresheners. Instead, I will use my own homemade spray: 1 1/2 cups water, 1/2 cup vodka, 10 drops or so lavender essential oil.


*Buy baby clothes at consignment shops instead of new.



*Use gDiapers full time. They're awesome, but kind of pricey compared to disposables, obviously. This past week I found $5 off Huggies coupons online, and since I found the diapers on sale at Safeway... well, could YOU pass up a $5 package of diapers?


*Stop killing houseplants. Especially the ones that clean the air.


*Get the husband to use paper bags to scoop poop so we won't have any dependence on plastic bags anymore.


I'm sure I'll think of more as soon as I hit the publish post button!

Aunt April comes to Arizona

How's that for some alliteration?

My sister in law came to visit us last week. She flew in from DC Thursday night. We were going to pick her up at the airport and then take her out to Pita Jungle for some Mediterranean food since we figured she would be hungry after a three hour flight. We dressed up the little man in his cutest outfit, made ourselves look presentable, and headed out the door.

We arrived at the airport a little bit early and instead of parking and heading inside like we normally do, we opted to save the $5 - $10 bucks and wait in the Cell Phone Lot. It's this big parking lot where all the spaces face a screen that tells you what flights have arrived, which are en route still, and which are ready for pick up. Pretty clever, actually.

So we're sitting there, and I smell something NOT NICE. I gave my husband a dirty look, and he declared his innocence while looking back at the baby. He got out of the car and went to check it out - sure enough, someone needed a diaper change! He went to go lay the changing pad in the back of the SUV (very handy space back there, I tell ya) while I unbuckled the baby and pulled him out of his seat. As I hugged him close to me, on my hip, I felt something warm squish down my arm and then plop on my foot... did I mention that I was wearing sandals?

Yeah.

So I hand him off to my husband, and go to get the wipes out of my diaper bag. Um - problem. There was ONE wipe in the case. Little man had a blowout the night before at the Walmarts and we forgot to refill it. I found my emergency stash in the center console, but there were only three in there. I also found one individually packaged Wet Ones wipe in there. Believe it or not, between those things and the three disposable bibs, along with my bottle of hand sanitizer, we managed to contain the mess. All while a monsoon was blowing through, no less!

We also had no backup outfit. You'd think we were total amateurs at this baby thing, but I promise you this kid hasn't had a blowout in over five months. I thought we were past them! There were a couple of small bags of things in the back of the car that were to be taken to Goodwill, and in there we found one of my old tee shirts. Since the super cute Osh Kosh overalls were no longer in a state to be worn, (EVERYTHING had poo on it, even the mini-Chucks) we put the shirt on him and just tied the sleeves in the back so it would stay on.

My son got to meet his aunt for the very first time wearing a DRESS, y'all. We thought he looked homeless. She said he looked like Gandhi. Either way, it was pretty dang funny and I'm really disappointed in us that we didn't get a photo of that. Needless to say, we never made it to the restaurant and I just threw together something at home. What a way to start a visit!!!

The next day, she joined us at the library for Baby Storytime, and then we all hung out at home. We headed to El Zocalo for dinner, which is an awesome restaurant near here. Since it wasn't a particularly hot day due to the storm the night before, and also since the sun was setting, we opted to sit out on the patio. They have a great patio! April went to take a photo of Bubba in his high chair, and this is what she snapped:

They can't all be winners, folks.

Here he's waiting for his dinner, which he refused to eat once it arrived. He did manage to eat some of his dad's rice though, and a few crackers.

After dinner we drove into downtown Phoenix for First Fridays. We got there a couple of hours after it started, and ended up just staying at the Phoenix Art Museum and skipping the shuttle that took you to all the galleries.

Bubba picked up a new friend in the gift shop.

That's his new stroller. Babies R Us is doing a promotion right now where you can trade in certain brands and types of baby items for 20% off a new baby item. We traded in our heavy old stroller frame that you snap the baby bucket onto for this snazzy Maclaren Volo and got $25 off. Not bad since the frame one was only $60 and that's probably more than I would have gotten on Craigslist! Also, the new stroller only weighs 11 lbs and folds up only half as big as the old one. SO NICE.

Here we are out front. I forgot to suck it in! HA HA! At least we're a very (unintentionally, I assure you) color coordinated family, huh?

I think we were the last ones out. They don't tell you when they're closing, they just assume you have a watch on I guess. The security guard literally locked the door behind us. Oops.

The next morning I tried a new recipe for waffles that I found on someone's blog. They were SO GOOD, and healthy too! I hadn't made waffles in years. I'm so glad the waffle iron still worked. I couldn't find anything called Banilla flavored yogurt so I just mixed together banana and vanilla flavored yogurts. Problem solved. :)

Bubba joined us at the table.

What's that? You want a closer look at his forehead?

Yup. We're dorks.

After breakfast, we all got cleaned up and did our hair so we could go out.

He's cute no matter what, I swear! We did fix it before we left the house. I'm not that mean! We headed to the park where Angelina took our maternity portraits. Since the day was very overcast, and it had been raining off and on all morning, it was almost completely empty. Perfect conditions for taking photos!

My husband is fond of saying the baby gets his scowliness from me, but I think this photo is proof otherwise.

He was in a really silly mood.

I was running up and down the sidewalk, and dipping him backwards, which he LOVED. That's what's up with my hair.

After that, we did a little shopping, then headed home where I made fresh bread (another blog recipe), brownies (Alton Brown), and spaghetti (my own version). Never let it be said that I let my guests go hungry! We had a nice evening hanging out and April got to play with the baby. He warmed up to her that first night right away and they got along famously, I'd say. The next morning I made breakfast and then it was off to the airport.

Too short! But, we had fun. I'd say it was quality time spent with family. :)