Unexpected Adventure

This morning we headed out for our bi-weekly trip to the library.  On the way out Husband asked me if I was going to see if the library had the Eric Carle Museum (ECM) pass on hand.

Side note; in case you didn't know, many libraries lend out passes to local museums and parks just as they lend out books.  Some are free admissions (like the ECM was) others offer reduced admission, free parking, etc.  These are a great free resource for any family.

Ok, back to the story.  At first I told Husband I wasn't going to ask.  We had to get RR packed for camp today and tomorrow we had to drop him off at camp; I felt there was no way we could sneak in an extra trip.

We spent a good deal of time at the library and the boys were bother behaving so well and getting along.  It must have been the euphoria of the whole experience because at check-out I asked about the ECM passes and they were in.  I was shocked!!!  They haven't been in the last two times I have asked.

I asked Husband if he thought we should go home and go to the museum later in the afternoon, but as he explained we were almost halfway there already we might as go.  So we did.  No diapers, no bids, no wipes, no sippy cups.... really no nothing.

At least I had my phone to get some photos.  They don't alone pictures in the gallery so all photos are from the hallways, library area; and drawing room.

They had a Mo Willems exhibit when we went.

Note to Santa, please get TT a doll house or toy barn.

After the museum we took the boys over to get some ice cream at a local farm, bakery, etc kind of place.  And as our luck of the day would have it they were having some sort of children's festival - complete with games, cookie decorating and a magician.  Both boys won prizes and won free apples.

What a morning.  We were home a little after 1pm with two very happy and tired little boys.

That Age

As of tomorrow I will have a pre-teen.  The Big Boy turns 9.  As my mother just reminded me on the phone, the last year before double digits.

I will admit having a 9 year old makes me feel old(er); but I think it's also pretty darn neat.  It is such an age of transition and of change and growing (and regressing.... he's into watching Disney Jr. shows again.).  But I have found with this age comes a new challenge.

The challenge of buying him gifts.

Really; what do you get a pre-teen (or teen for that matter) boy these days?

Sure there is the obvious: video games and Legos.

Sure he wants video games and Legos.

But really he doesn't need anymore video games.  And Legos, well lets just say he has enough Legos.  Enough for 5 or 6 or 20 kids his age.  Yes, he would play the video games.  And yes, he would build (then destroy) the 1,000 piece Lego set.  But when you already have a mild video game addiction (which your mother is fighting hard to overcome) and about fifty-million-billion-trillion Legos you don't need anymore.

So what to get?

I settled on a Razor Scooter.  The "graffiti" one.  Husband says he'll break his neck.  He's probably right; given RR's (total lack of) coordination.  But as I pointed out to Husband, better to break his neck on a scooter than on a bike.  And hey, it was 50% off.  You can't argue with that.  As an added bonus he has asked for a scooter a time or two, just not since winter has gotten here.

Oh, yeah... and I got him a little box of Legos.  From his brother, of course.

So Easy

About a month ago I was at a Tupperware party and the consultant was showing off the shaker.

I own two of these.  They are (were) my least used piece of Tupperware.  I had bought them with the intent to use them to make pudding, but they just weren't big enough for that.  So under the pantry they sat, and sat some more.

But then that evening the consultant suggested making salad dressing in them.  I had never thought of this before.

Nor had I ever made salad dressing before.  But it was on my "to do some day list".

Fast forward a week or so and Husband and I are making dinner and he realizes he doesn't have any Italian salad dressing.  For most people this wouldn't be a big deal, but Husband eats two types of salad dressing - Italian and Cream Italian.

So I seize the moment and decide to break out the shaker and my computer - to look up a recipe silly - and proceed to whip up my first batch of Italian salad dressing.  Husband and I play with the recipe until we get it just as we like it.  Yum.  And incredibly easy.  So easy I am almost ashamed it took me so long to make this.

Tonight we expanded our culinary skills and whipped up the Creamy Italian dressing; again playing with it to make it our own.  And again it was super easy.  Why have I been spending money on salad dressing all these years?  Seriously, these are no brainer things to make.

Creamy Italian by Us

1/2 cup mayo
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
and a really big grind of pepper

Shake and enjoy.

It's a Bird... It's Plane

.... It's a super awesome deal.

I love getting a deal.  Ok, really who doesn't?

At lunch today I went to one of my favorite consignment shop looking to score some fall/winter items for the boys.  And boy oh boy did I ever score.

For $33.50 I got TT a new light weight raincoat, 2 pairs of pants (Gymbore and Ralph Lauren - sweetness), and 3 pairs of PJs; and I got RR 2 long-sleeve shirts.  So that's 8 items for $33.50; that's around $4 per item.  And we're talking good quality, nearly new stuff here.  Ok, sometimes you can score new with tags.

Now if only I could score clothes for Husband and I at such a bargain   Oh, wait, I can sort of.

You see there are two consignment shops by my work; one that caters only to children and one that serves the whole family.  Personally I prefer the kid centered one for my wee-ones, I like the selection and service better.  It's run by this old lady who loves to gab.  I know more about her family and grandkids than some of the people I work with.  But really either is great.  I have no idea what it is about the area but we do not have consignment shops like this by me.  Really that should be my retirement plan, to open a shop similar to these in my community.

Consigment shops rock; especially for your kids - the way I see it why pay retail for something they are going to either outgrown or destroy wearing in 6 months time.  By the way; how do the people that sell their clothes to consignment shops get them to last so long?  Maybe my boys are just rougher on their stuff than most.

Butt Fluff Review: The Fluffy Elephant

As you know I love buying homemade cloth diapers.  They are like an addiction of mine.  So when I saw a friend's son sporting an embroidered Elmo diaper I just had to have one for my little Elmo fan.

I ordered TT's diaper from the same place as my friend, from Elizabeth at The Fluffy Elephant.  I opted for an AI2 (all in two) style with a single liner and a narrow fit between the legs.  My order was filled quickly and was at my house in the blink of an eye, and I couldn't be any happier.  The fit and absorbency is perfect.

However, I do have to say that I occasionally have an issue with some of the snaps.  Maybe it's something I do, because I've had this issue with other mom-made diapers before.

My order total was $21, plus shipping.  A total steal in my opinion for such a great diaper.  Seriously, I am not trying to fluff up The Fluffy Elephant, this is a really well made diaper.  Sorry about the pun, but I just had too.  The sewing is first class.  TT has already worn this diaper a dozen times and it is standing up very well to all the wear and wash.  

Would I buy from here again?  Totally.  Now to decide which way to cute creation to order next.  

Check out the goods yourself: 

http://hyenacart.com/stores/TheFluffyElephant/

https://www.facebook.com/TheFluffyElephant

Edited to add I understand the snap issue may be caused by how they are installed, when diapers are made at home.  There is another piece of equipment that can be used to apply them, but it's pretty pricey.  

Saving Money

I love saving money.  Don't we all?

Husband takes several medications a month, ad our prescription co-pay is $15 for each generic.  I am sure you can do the math.  While renewing our insurance plan a few weeks ago I noticed that we could mail order for prescription for a 90 day supply at the price of a sixty day supply, or $30.  These seemed like a good plan to me.  So Husband asked his doctor to rewrite a few of his scripts for 90 day supplies.

Just as I was getting ready to mail them off I noticed you could get certain generics medications (some 300 different ones) at the grocery store for $9.99 for a 90 day supply.  Husband checked the list, and sure enough the two we were about to send out to get filled for $60 total, we could get at the grocery.

Nice!!!  So what would have cost us $90 for two, three month supplies ended up costing $19.98.  Which is even far less than the mail order plan.

Now my only concern is that I put too much money into my flexible spending account for the year... but I suppose if it comes down to it we'll just have to have some extra massages and new eyes glasses.

The Best Of (Part 8 of 10)

A (long) while back I set out on a mission to make a top 10 list of MY favorite baby related items.

It's been slow going to say the least.  Last time I posted to the list was item #7 and that was back in January. Yup, slow going for sure... so much for my plans to have the list done by the time he was a year old.

But then this weekend it came to #8 on the list.  And this is a good item to have on my list because it can be used for years; and really I like items that have longer life cycles (than say the bouncy seat they use for a few months).

So without further ado.... drum roll please....

#8 on my list is the Woobee Plush blanket by RoSK (Rain or Shine Kids).

Basically it's a waterproof blanket w/ a fleece lining on one side that has a ribbon on either side of it.

Simple right - you're wishing you designed this aren't you?  You're also trying to figure out how to make you're own too.  Right?  Right?


The ribbons allow you to tie the blanket to the stroller or the car-seat and you don't have to worry about it falling off.  You can also tie it to the baby carrier to provide an extra layer or warmth or rain protection when carrying your little one around.  It's great for throwing on the ground to use as a blanket when you're out and about, etc.  Really, it has more uses than you think of.

On a related note; the price of these are all over the place on-line; I bought ours off Baby Steals for 50% off.

Cutting the Cord

Over the years we've had just about every "cable" TV option out there.  We've had no cable, done Netflix only, done basic cable, had satellite TV service, Hulu only... you get it.

Recently we had cable, bundled with our phone and internet.  We didn't have basic cable, but we didn't have HBO, Showtime, etc; so you get the idea.

Then for too many reasons to go into here we decided it was time to "cut the cord" with the cable company.  We signed back up for Netflix and Husband put in the call to cancel our cable services.

But it wasn't that easy.  Getting rid of cable would increase our "bundle package".  Some how it is less expensive to get three services from the cable provider than just two services.

So we started looking into finding a new phone and high speed internet service.

Finding home phone service was easy.  (And yes we need one, cell service is spotty out here; or non-existant depending on your cell carrier.)

High-speed internet was much harder.  Our choice was our current provider or... nothing.  OK, we could have looked into satellite internet services; but we weren't willing to go that far for high speed internet.

So Husband called the provider again, and after nearly an hour, finally got us a "package" we could live with.  We had to down-grade (or was it an upgrade since we were looking to get rid of it entirely) to basic cable and opt to not rent digital cable boxes from them (they wanted $15 a month for the privileged to charge us for something we don't need).

So now instead of having 800 channels of nothing to watch we have 22 channels of nothing to watch; not to mention the local cable access channel which displays the current temperature 24 hours a day.  Ah... my life is complete - I can now turn on the TV and see what the temperature outside is.

Homemade Hummus

Making homemade hummus for Monkey (and myself) is something I've wanted to do for a while, and today I finally took the 5 minutes to do it.

Wish I had done it sooner, it's so yummy.

When I posted about wanting to do this earlier, Jess commented with a recipe of hers; but I went with my own because: 1) it had less steps and 2) I had everything in the house.  The recipes are very similar, and hummus really sees like one of those things you can personalize to your taste.

For my recipe:
1 16oz can of chick peas, half the liquid reserved
4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp salt
1/4 lemon juice

In a food processor blend the liquid and the garlic, then process the chick peas, salt, and lemon juice till smooth.

Super simple and super yum!!!

Oh and super inexpensive: $0.79 for the chick peas, 3 for $1 for lemons and $0.99 for a whole head of garlic.  Way less money than buying a tub of the stuff.

Goodies

Fact: Monkey likes food.

Correction:  Monkey really likes food.

We've yet to find a food he doesn't like.  He eats everything; raw onions, fish, broccoli, cole slaw, hummus... you get the idea... everything.

Until tonight.

I stopped by the store on the way home to get some salad for dinner and I went to find Monkey a new snack-food... something to nibble on.

I suppose my first mistake was starting in the baby-food isle.  But there they were, on the end-cap and ON-SALE.  And they said they were good; it was even in the product name  - Beech Nut Goodies. A (white) cheese puff for toddlers if you will.

While we were cooking dinner Monkey was in his highchair, so I offered him a few... tasting one myself first.  And maybe it was because I tried it and told Husband how nasty they were in front of Monkey; but he didn't like them.  A food Monkey will not eat.  It is a miracle, of sorts.  He tried them on and off for a few minutes, before scattering them to the floor and demanding other more palatable foods.  Honestly I can't say I blame them, they were nasty.  Think a really hard cheese doodle with little to no flavoring that was sprinkled with Styrofoam pellets.

Yum... NOT.

Project Food Budget (Week 18)

So the budget was $100, and I am pretty sure I am over, because I sucked at keeping track this week.  I know for certain I spent $84.10 on food shopping,  Husband and I had a snack while running errands at one point and that was $6, plus we spent $19 on breakfast out Sunday morning.  And I am pretty sure I made a pit stop at the store once this week for deli meats and rolls.  So maybe another $15.  So I didn't make the $100 goal, but I did spend less than my normal $150 goal.

This week I also tried something new, I got some of the "not so fresh" produce.  I've had girlfriends tell me for years that these can be a good deal, and while I was at the store I saw a crowd of other mom's looking them over... so I gave it a whirl, and it worked out well.  My family goes through produce so fast there was never really a time for it to go bad.

This weeks menu was taco night, Outback for Turkey's birthday (not part of the food budget), sandwiches and salad... then after that we fell off the menu.  Monkey was vomiting on Thursday and Husband ate lunch late so Turkey and I had mac and cheese.  Then Friday night we ended up eating at my Aunt and Uncle's house (pizza).

All and all not a bad week I suppose.  Don't forget to see how these other participants are doing - and there are 2 new blogs this week as well.

Emily Levenson
Dairy-Free Cooking
Test Kitchen Tuesday
Red Pen Mama
Acquired Tastes
Fit Flexitarian
Warm As Pie 
Katy Rank Lev
My Inner Healthy
Little Blue Hen
xox, b
What da Health?
Project Food Budget 2.0
Fresh...A New Chapter
Chandeleah
Two Eggs Over Easy 
That's Just Me
Eat Whole Be Vital
Four Happy Violets
Naturally {Un}refined
Pgh Dad  
yogabeautylife
Charmingly Modern
naMAMAste
Six Dollars a Day
The Gluten-Free Vegan

King of the Store

When Turkey was small I signed him up for the birthday program at Toy's R Us.  It's a cute little program, a few days before your child's birthday a card comes in the mail for them from Geoffrey the Giraffe and in the card is a $3 gift card.  Then when you get to the store you tell the employee at the front desk that it's the child's birthday and they get a crown and a balloon (free).

The first year I took him to do this I felt a little silly because he was still riding in the cart and the crown was way too floppy to look "regal".  However since that first year it's been a tradition he looks forward to.  And luckily this year he got 2 cards, and thus 2 gift cards.

Tonight armed with his 2 gift cards (hey, $6 is a lot when you're turning 8) and his birthday money (he had his friend's party a couple weeks ago) off we went.

Turkey was BEYOND excited to be there.  He was on top of the world and could hardly contain himself while I got his brother out of the car and into the carriage... so Husband walked him in... up to the front desk Turkey marched and proudly reported that it was his birthday (OK, so it's on Tuesday but really...) and he got his crown and balloon and off we went to shop...

Well OK, me and the boys went one way and Husband went the other to get Turkey's gift from us (parents also get a $5 off $25 birthday coupon as part of the program)...

Turkey looked over the shelves with care, calculated, and re-calculated the prices on items he wanted....

And then over the loud speaker it came... the employee at the front desk was announcing it was Turkey's birthday and welcomed others to wish him happy birthday if they saw him (which they did).  Turkey stood there beaming, listening to his name being said over the intercom.

In the end he selected three packs of Pokemon Black and White and two 6-Series Lego mini-figures.  In his mind the best way to spend around $25 of his own money and a Sunday night.

Project Food Budget (Week 13)

The budget this week is $150 and this includes our New Years Eve treats and Chinese food.

This time of year the grocery stores in this area have a lot of "stock up sales".  We got the circulars for the two stores we shop at yesterday and planned out the shopping trips last night.

We did the first trip, as a family, this morning at store Y.  They had a number of buy 1 get 2, buy 1 get 1, and $1 sales going on.  We stuck to our list, and only spent $0.74 that wasn't on the list, and that was for an Angry Birds spiral notebook for Turkey.  In the end we spent $54.19 and SAVED $68.22.  And that was without coupons.  I love saving more than I spend.  We stocked up on chicken, frozen meatballs, half and half (that stuff has a shelf life of nearly 2 months), cranberry juices, and potatoes to name a few.

Tomorrow or Saturday we'll go to store X.  And Saturday night we'll spend the change on the festivities.

I am planning on making and freezing and taking some meals to my cousin who just had the baby, as well as stock up our own freezer.   I love having frozen meals ready to go... it really helps cut back on the "need" to eat on the go.

Don't forget to check out these other blogs and see how everyone else is doing.

Emily Levenson
Dairy-Free Cooking
Test Kitchen Tuesday
Red Pen Mama
Acquired Tastes
Fit Flexitarian
Warm As Pie 
Katy Rank Lev
My Inner Healthy
Little Blue Hen
xox, b
What da Health?
Project Food Budget 2.0
A Nice Heart and a White Suit
Fresh...A New Chapter
• Two Eggs Over Easy 
• That's Just Me

In case you haven't noticed this is a Thursday weekly feature.  

Growing

Some days I can't decide which of my boys is growing faster.  And I'm not talking the milestone kind of growing, I'm talking physical growth.

Just the other day I was putting together away Turkey's clothes and I swear I set more stuff aside to store in the attic for when Monkey gets bigger than I actually put away.  But, at least now I can hand his clothes down to a sibling.  I swear it was just this summer that he started wearing size medium, and now all the clothes he got for Christmas are larges.  He's entering that age where he also needs to start trying things on, because no longer are all of the size 10s fit the same.  I am however looking forward to being able to buy his pants like grown men do - in width and length.

We had promised to buy him his first suit for his First Holy Communion this spring, now I am wondering if we should just rent one; because he grows so fast.

And the same can be said for the little one; although we expect that from him.  All of the size 12 one piece outfits I got him when it first started getting cold are now too small.  My 10 month old is wearing size 18 months... he's so long and skinny.  Thank goodness for the cloth diapers to hold his pants up, since he has no waist to speak of.

I'm also proud to admit that I have no problem buying them clothes at the consignment shop.  I try to make their clothes a good mixture of new-to-them and new-new.

But still... they could stop growing so fast... if even just for a week.

The Tale of a Jacket

Husband needed a new jacket.  He's needed one since last winter.  We ordered one off Overstock, and when it came in it was too small, so we returned it and then never got him a new one.  He's like me, not the type of buy himself things; even when the are needed.

Well the other day at lunch, I decided to surprise him and I went out and bought him a new jacket.  And I got a fantastic deal on it.  I was so excited and teased him about his surprise the whole afternoon.

When I got home he was so excited.  He loved the way it looked.  He tried it on, and it fit great.

Then he went to zip it... and it had no zipper.  Bummer!!!

At first I was going to get the zipper fixed since I got such a great deal. But the tailor wanted $43 to install a new zipper.  That was well more than what I paid for it (hey, I said I got a good deal).

So I went the next day to exchange it.  I had stopped in the jacket section to adjust my ponytail, and when I looked up I saw the same jacket.  It was the right size and everything.  Then I looked at the zipper, also missing.  Go figure.

After much debate I decided on a nice London Fog jacket.  It was twice the price of the last one, but still a very good deal.  Especially for the brand name.

I bring the new jacket home; and what do you know... it's too small.

Sigh.

Back to the store I go.  Third times the charm right?  I comb and comb and comb through the jackets and finally find the London Fog one, one size bigger.  Exchange completed, I head back to work, feeling victorious.

I get the jacket the home, and on my honey... and instead of the giddy and excited feeling I had when I bought the first jacket over a week ago, I feel a sense of relief.  I can finally stop shopping for a new jacket for my honey on my lunch break.  Mission complete.

Guilty, Guilty, Guilty

I am terrible when it comes to clothes for me, and I don't mean terrible as in Shopaholic guilty.  I just don't shop for clothes for myself.  When I buy clothes or shoes it's because some one died, some one is getting married, or I'm pregnant.  I have no problems buying clothes for my boys, although I admit I shop for bargains and have no problem visiting the consignment shop.   If I have an extra $30 I would rather go get my nails done with my mom than go clothes shopping.

My wardrobe is sad.  Very sad.  I am surprised no one has ever signed me up on "What Not to Wear".

And then this weekend, we found ourselves in JCP, and they were having a sale (plus $10 off a purchase of $25 or more), and I had some extra cash... so I decided it was time to shop for me.  Husband took Turkey to a movie, music, game store and Monkey and I looked around.

I probably should have went wild... OK, for me I suppose I did.  I got 2 pairs of PJs, a knit hooded sweater, three shirts and a pair of khakis.  As I was standing in line to pay, I felt so guilty; so Husband was texting me with support, confirming it was OK, reassuring me I was doing a good thing.

In the end I got a great deal!!!  An awesome deal, and this helped ease the guilt (some).  I spent $55.02.. but look at how much I saved.

I am happy with my purchases, and I feel GOOD wearing them.  I feel more like a grown-up, like I have my business together.  Hmmmm.... maybe a new pair of flat are in my future. Or maybe an accessory, beyond my  rings and diamond stud earrings.  The possibilities are endless, as long as I keep the guilt in check.

Butt Fluff Review: bunnie4

This is a Butt Fluff Review of the AIO (all in one*) cloth diaper I bought from bunnie4 on etsy.com.

Pros:

• * It's an AIO - which means it should have everything you need to keep baby dry all in one diaper, no need for covers, or additional stuffing (unless you want it).
• The Velcro closure is super strong... this is some grippy stuff
• The Velcro has pockets to turn them into for washing (this prevents it from sticking to itself or other things in the wash).
• The fleece lining is super soft and quick drying
• The PUL layer is great at keeping the cover dry.
• It fits great.
• It came with an additional liner.
• It was a great price: $11, plus shipping.

Cons:

• I didn't get a confirmation from the seller that she received my order and my payment, and when I e-mailed her she was a little short with me.
• It's a custom, which means you need to wait to get it.  But it IS well worth the wait.
• The Velcro strip is very wide and stiff, which gives the diaper a "sumo wrestler" feel to it.

Oh and if you are wondering, this is one of the MIA diapers I posted about earlier.

I was not paid to write this review, all opinions are my own.

The Best Of (Part 2 of 10)

A few days (er, weeks ago) I started a "The Best of Baby Stuff According to Me"; it's designed to be a top ten list of things I LOVE and feel I couldn't live without for baby-rearing.

When we all know, really all you need is diapers (of your choice), food (of your choice) and patience... lots and lots of patience.  


In my previous post I named the Arms' Reach Co-Sleeper #1 on my list.

And now tonight... without further ado....drum roll please....

My #2 baby item is: The Woombie.

Monkey modeling his Woombie (in his co-sleeper).

My friend, Devin, over on "Devin is a Girl" recommended the Woombie to me months ago, back when Monkey was first starting to be a mini-Houdini and getting out of his swaddles.  Maybe it was because I didn't want to wait for it be shipped to me (that was before I knew I could get them locally, well sort of locally); maybe it was because I didn't want to spend the nearly $30 on it (I've mentioned it before I am thrifty).  So I kept going out and buying bigger and bigger Velcro-closure swaddler blankets.  And he kept escaping from those.  I should have listened to Devin sooner.  

We tried the miracle blanket a friend gave me, we tried swaddling the old fashioned way (with receiving blankets and with muslin ones), we tried to see if Monkey was ready to sleep un-swaddled (but he wasn't).    Over and over we went back to the Velcro-closure swaddlers, and then after he managed to get it wrapped around his neck the 2nd time, we ordered the Woombie (in Big Baby Size, Pineapple color).  After some drama, it finally arrived - and we have not looked back since then.

The Woombie is everything we could hope for and look for in a swaddler; and in this family my babies need to be swaddled.  Dr. Harvy Karp, the author of "The Happiest" series has his 5 S's for calming babies: swaddle, sushing, swinging, sucking, and side/stomach.  Swaddling is needed for a reason people... and we love The Woombie for swaddling.

Butt Fluff

I was very blessed at my baby shower for Monkey, along with the many wonderful gifts we also received a HUGE stash of (disposable) diapers.  After Monkey came along friends and relatives brought us more diapers.  We received sizes newborn through two, and did not have to buy a single diaper for the first three months.

Then my dearest friend, M, came over and lent me her stash of cloth diapers, sizes medium and large.  So we were able to pick-up cloth diapering right where the disposable diapers ended.  It was perfect.  We still use disposables at night, but at age 4.5 months we've spent less than $50 on diapers.  How sweet is that?

Originally the plan was to use G-Diapers with the bio-degradable liners; after we ran out of disposables, but the cloth diapering has been way easier than we anticipated.  And with that I figured it was time to start building up our own stash of cloth diapers.    So today, I bought my first cloth diaper.  Picked it up off Esty.com.  It was a great price (some of those brand name cloth diapers are truly expensive), and it was being made and shipped in the US (you can find in-expensive cloth diapers if you order from China).  AND it's an AIO (All-In-One), which I am very excited to use.

While I am grateful for the diaper's M gave me, it's apparent that there have been a number of cloth diaper innovations in that last 7 years, and I'm excited to see how this diaper compares (and it will be tough, as her diapers work great).

Cute little space robots.

Monkey is going to be so cute (and dry).

Product Review: EvenFlo SimplyGo

In this blog-post, Sucky-ness, I wrote about how I had to run out and buy an emergency hand pump at work.  I promised a review... so here you go.

The pump I bought was an EvenFlo SimplyGo Manual.  If I had to give it a rating I would give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.  It was better than I thought it would be.

Pros:

• It was in-expensive.  Typically sells for $20, I got it for $16 with a coupon.
• It is compact.  It easily stores in my desk at work and takes up very little room in the fridge.
• It is lightweight.  (Ok, anything is lightweight compared to the electric hospital model I typically drag around).
• It does the job, fairly well.  I can hand express 3 ounces in less than 10 minutes.  (Note: I have a huge oversupply, so don't take my word that you will get the same results.)
• The blue rubber cushion can be removed (needed for larger boobies)

Cons:

• The blue rubber cushion.  You can't see how your nipple is positioned through this.
• It's not as comfortable to use with the rubber cushion removed.
• No option for different horn or cone sizes.
• The band that provides all the action looks flimsy. They do give you a spare.