3 Great Gifts to Nurture A Baby's Mind

I spent a lot of money getting a master's degree in Child Development.  So at least I'm an expert toy-shopper.  And since we're about to have our first Day Camp baby (my friends Tony and Jen are due with baby Maxwell any week now), I had reason to shop!  For the record, I totally believe that playing with dirt and tupperware are great.  But, in case you need to send along some gifts or buy some for your little ones, here are some of my favorites right now.   (I sent them all to Baby Max from amazon.com).  

Hey Max-
This toy keeps you busy in your younger months- Mommy can hang it from your car seat so you'll have something to look at on your Day Camp travels. Then, take it down to grasp, crinkle, cuddle and chew!  You are loved! -Aunt April
Freddie The Firefly

Hey Max-
I was pretty sure your dad wanted you to have a "manly" toy.  You can chew on this and hold tools like the screwdriver when you're 4 months old. Then when you're 9 months old, you can begin taking tools in and out...over and over again! In no time, you'll be building things with your daddy! You are loved!  -Aunt April
Melissa and Doug Fill and Spill Toolbox

























Hey Max!
I can't wait until you're 7-9 months old and begin to discover that every action has a reaction. This toy will last you into your toddling years.  You're going to have a blast with baby physics.  I can already tell that you're totally smart like your parents.  You are loved!  -Aunt April
Melissa and Doug Deluxe Pound and Roll Tower

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This American Life: Filters and Beard Charts

I have a full life.  Like many Americans, I feel like I'm on the perpetual treadmill and the speed is accidentally getting faster and faster.

When the speed gets too fast, what do you do?  Jump off?  Are you able to keep up?

I've decided that in order to keep up with the important things, I need to apply personal filters.  I'm trying to shred the things that hold me back from reaching my potential. 

One of the filters I applied was TV.  I canceled my cable and even my basic stations.

But, I'm not that hardcore.  I bought Apple TV.  For a one-time price of $99 plus your monthly Netflix subscription, you can instantly stream a large number of movies and TV shows.  And, if you really need to watch something new, you can also stream from the itunes store (recent recommendations: The Town and Inception).

Love the TV filter.  Commercials are gone.  So is channel surfing...and landing on something worthless.  And, for some reason, I've become documentary girl.  I've found buckets of Apple TV options (including podcasts) that allow for critical thinking.  Never.going.back.to.cable.

So, it was the filter that ultimately led me to the beard chart.  Brilliant.  Have you seen Showtime's "This American Life?"  If not, you need to watch "God's Close-Up" about a Mormon painter who uses atheist, bearded men as his models for religious scenes.  I'd love to know your thoughts on this episode.  Any Ira Glass listeners/viewers out there?



You can watch the full episode instantly on Netflix free with your monthly subscription, or on itunes for $1.99.

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Things I Love Thursday

Sometimes, when I'm cleaning, I think, "Oh, just one more surface..."

Seriously.

It wasn't always that way. One day my friends John and Sherry over at Young House Love told me about their obsession with Mrs. Meyer's. Since I'm highly allergic to the WORLD, I'm currently switching over to organic everything. It was fate.

And, oh, y'all need to hear the people talk about Mrs. Meyer's (the Basil Scent in particular). It's almost disturbing. But just wait until you try it. You'll be one of them. I bought mine off of drugstore.com and this review was enough to convince me:
I love Mrs. Meyer's products and I think this scent is probably my favorite. Like the title says... if only I could bathe in it! It makes my daily household chores bearable. I am constantly cleaning after my three munchkins (all four and under) and this gives me that moment I need to breathe in and relax between the craziness of my day. Yes a cleaner really can do that!

Here's my homemade, label-maker version. I took the original bottle and poured a few cap fulls into each recycled spray bottle, then mixed with water. The $7.99 price tags looks a lot better when you realize how far the 32 oz bottle actually goes. I've already made 4 spray bottles and a few floor mixtures.
Plus, did I mention it's just heavenly? And it cleans well. In.Love.

You weren't expecting a cleaning product, were you? :)

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Why Women Might Be Better Lawn Boys

I've been the owner of a lawn for two years and I've never owned a lawn mower. You see, I had this nice young man, the lawn boy, who brought his generous dad's mower over and cared for my lawn. But then that lawn boy moved to college. And I was left with a growing jungle. So, I had a few choices:
1- Find another nice lawn boy with his own mower --Nope, didn't have time to network before the lawn grew to high.
2- Hire a legit lawn service--Um, I could have done this if I stopped buying groceries...
3- Buy my own cheap lawn mower and do it myself--I'm allergic to grass, but a $100 investment would pay for itself in a few weeks...

The winning option was...#3. And when I decided to buy my first ever mower, I wanted it to be on the cheaper end, take up a small amount of space in the garage, not involve hauling gasoline cans, and help me SAVE THE WORLD!

So, my friends, meet the Task Force!Yes, I bought a reel mower (I got it at Lowe's- see it here). Besides the fact that I break into hives every time I mow, I rather enjoy the new green household helper. :) I love that it doesn't make any noise or pollution, it can get very close to trees and under picnic tables and it does have a nice clean cut. In this picture, you can see that I cut the bottom section, but not yet the top section.

Yes, the neighbors were totally staring at me when I was posing my lawn mower.One negative is that you have to pick up every single tiny stick before you mow or it gets caught in the reel and won't move. I think that's okay because raking before mowing probably adds a ton of calorie burning to the project.

So, here's the interesting thing. Every single person told me not to buy a reel mower because they are too hard to push. But, I realized that men are the only ones giving advice on mowers. Hmmm. Sorry guys, but you're wrong. It kind of feels easy to a woman. The reason is, that you haven't spent years pushing double strollers. Reel mowers are way easier than double strollers. Those kids sure are cute though, aren't they? I kind of liked that double-stroller pushing job better than lawn boy.

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It's like a cleaning lady moved in

****See update below*****
I grew up in a lovely suburb of Chicago where the mean house price is $600,590. When I scrub the floor on my hands and knees, I still feel like I've got mean step-sisters standing over me and I am Cinderella. My punishment, mostly because it was never a part of my childhood routine. One of the nicest benefits of being able to afford a house in the suburbs? Being able to afford an awesome cleaning lady!

Enter adulthood. I now work for a non-profit in a city where the mean house price is $500,000 less than where I grew up. And I am so blessed. Today, I walked the little girl I mentor to her house in the inner city. And I felt at home.

But secretly, I still dream about material things. Like someone to come do my cleaning for me. And then, I discovered the Shark Steam Mop. As a coupon-clipping Kohl's shopper, I brought home my own cleaning lady!

They should pay me to be on an infomercial. I'm hooked. Can't stop cleaning. It even steam-cleaned my white rug... something it doesn't even claim to do! But, the "Proof is in the Pad."

Any bets on how long my cleaning infatuation will last? :)




******JAN 2011 UPDATE*****
The steam mop stopped working. It won't get hot anymore. So, I take back all my nice comments. I went back to dirty floors. And the occasional swiffer.

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