Mommy's Beloved - Closet Organization

Our classroom has been more than a little under-utilized in the past few months. (Click here to see more of our classroom) I finally decided that it was a lack of organization that was keeping me from being the best homeschool teacher ever.  OK, so maybe that's wishful thinking, but more organization certainly can't hurt!  So we got 2 drawer systems from Home depot. They are pre-fab cabinets, intended for things like a laundry room, but they fit better than the closet organization systems, so we went this way instead.  Also, since we are renting, this has the advantage of being stand-alone.  So we can always take it with us if we move. And at $89 each, they were cost effective too.

I also needed some slotted organization for things like paper.  After some searching, I found the Recollections set at Michael's. And I love this set.  It was simple to put together, connects to other pieces easily, was a decent price (around $30 each) and looks great.  We got two sets and they are put side by side on top of the drawers. For a real craft area, I would have loved to have done it all in Recollections since it divides areas into smaller sections, but the drawers we started with are also useful for a future closet (for a future baby) so it was a good fit for us.

Anyway, here is the final product:

I couldn't bear to take a before shot.  Imagine all the contents of the drawers and sections piled on the floor and you have a good idea of the before.  This is 1000 times better, trust me! :)

OK, back to being the best homeschool teacher ever...

Bella's Beloved: Gymboree Bubbles

We've used just about every brand of bubble out there.  But our favorite by far are the ones from Gymboree.

Not only is that bubble wand amazing (with any brand of bubble) because it makes tons of little bubbles that are fun to chase, but the bubble solution itself is great.  The bubbles are just stronger than regular bubbles.  The upside being that you can catch them (if you're gentle) and they stay in bubble form when they land on something.  The downside is that sometimes you find bubbles a week later.  But we've restricted bubble blowing to the back porch, so that's not too bad.  And it's good for some extra laughs sometimes, like when bubbles somehow find their way onto the inside of a pair of glasses.

Baby you can drive my car

Normally when we go visit my dad (who Bella calls Papadaddy) we usually go to his house and just hang out a little while at his house.  He is in a wheelchair and therefore can't travel much.  As a special treat for his birthday, we rented a wheelchair van and picked him up for a day out of the house.  He wanted to take Bella shopping, so we headed to Toys R Us and let Bella run wild. (scary thought, I know)  He was really set on getting her a Power Wheels vehicle of some sort.  Which is good, because when she saw them, she basically refused to leave.

We tried desperately to get her to love the mustang, but she was set on the jeep.  It had doors that opened and shut...therefore it was far superior in her eyes.  

 Then there was this gem, on sale at a whole 0 dollar discount!

Bella loved the jeep, even when it didn't move, so she was more excited when she learned what it did.

Unfortunately the concept of a steering wheel evades her still.  So I gave in and rode with her a little.  It was definitely not built for me.  But I rode down the REALLY steep hill on the side of the house with her.  Which was pretty scary but she loved it.  Finally we figured out that she was better off if we turned the steering wheel as far to the right as possible and let her ride around and around in little circles.

And a bit of short video for posterity's sake:

Have your kids gotten into the electric moving toys?  How long did it take yours to figure out a steering wheel?  Or peddles on a tricycle? Any tips?

Mama's Beloved - Early Birthday Presents - The Nook

Vinny has never been very good at holding on to presents for me once he's bought them.  My birthday is in about 2 weeks, and it was no exception.  He arrived at the new house Tuesday morning (YAY) and basically threw my gift at me he was so excited.

He got me the brand new Nook.  Not the color one, the new e-ink version that Barnes and Noble just put out.

So far, it is awesome.  Before we moved out of Rhode Island, I took the opportunity to go by the local library and check out all the different e-readers.  They had the Kindle, the Sony e-reader and the color Nook.  I like the e-ink Nook way better than the backlit color version.  Since I've been spending so much time on the back porch, not having the backlighting is nice.  And the touch screen is much more intuitive for me than the Kindle's push button navigation.  The other one we looked at was the Sony e-reader, but the page refresh on it was pretty slow and it flashed, so when I got going and was flipping pages rapidly, there was almost a strobe effect going on.  The nook does the same thing a little, but it's not as bad as the e-reader.

Vinny was very thoughtful and got me a protective cover, added some family photos for me to have as screen savers, and put a few books that I've been dying to read on it for me (The Hunger Games series, Game of Thrones series, and the Sookie Stackhouse series).  The only problem I have is trying to convince Vinny to let me leave the light on at night so I can read 'just one more chapter.'

Have you considered an e-reader or do you already have one?  Which one do you have and why did you pick that one?  Any suggestions on what should be on my reading list?

Mommy's Beloved - Photoshopping Heads and Faces

When Vitafamiliae (check out their blog here) posted about taking photos of their family and how it was impossible to get everyone to look good, I jokingly said something about photoshopping heads til you got a picture where everyone looked good.  But thinking about it later, I realized it might not be a bad idea to do a post about it.  Because I love some Photoshop!

With each person you add to a photo, the challenge of getting everyone to look better goes exponentially harder.  And with each decreasing year in age, the challenge also goes up exponentially.

When my grandparents had all of their kids and grandkids in town for Thanksgiving a few years ago, they really wanted a family picture.  But with an almost 2 year old and a grandmother who can't keep her eyes open for a picture to save her life...it was going to be tough.  Not to mention I had to also be IN the picture...so I couldn't be looking through the viewfinder telling people to stop making silly faces.  So I sat there, and smiled, and clicked like crazy on the remote.

OK, so here's your first challenge: which people in this photo had their faces or heads photoshopped? (I even made these photos super big so you can see details)

Hint: There are 3.

Below is the photo I started with, You'll notice from the original that the photo isn't black and white.  It's amazing how many little defects switching to black and white covers!

Did you find them all the first time around?  Hopefully not, because if they were that easy to spot then I shouldn't be doing this post.  If you need help finding all 3 even looking at the original, let me know and I'll do an edit with the answers.

So, not that I'm a pro at this or anything, but I do have some hints if you want to try this.

- Ask everyone who is old enough to do so to try to stay in the same position for the entire set of shots.  It makes the shopping easier.  The difference between photoshopping in a new set of eyes and photoshopping in a whole new head on someone who decided to stand up when they used to be sitting is totally different, as you would expect.

-Click away for as long as people will sit there.  More options increases the likelihood of turning out a decent face for someone. Use rapid fire and don't stop clicking!

- Use Photoshop CS5.  Photoshopping out crazy things in a picture used to require some talent.  But CS5 makes it immensely easier because it sort of figures out what should go in a particular spot.  So if you do need to delete a person and stick them in standing up, it's doable without looking silly.

As for the particulars, if you want a play by play in photoshop, let me know in the comments.  I'll do it if there is demand for it.

Bella's Beloved - Color Wonder

If you have kids, and have not yet discovered Color Wonder products...boy do I have a life changing experience coming for you.  This stuff is absolutely a must have if you cringe when your kids ask for markers or paint (which is totally me) and while I manage to let myself go and let her have the real stuff from time to time, Color Wonder paper and art supplies let me indulge her without needing medication.

The markers, finger paint, paintbrushes...all of it only colors on the paper!  GASP!  I know...I'll give you a minute to catch your breath.  So at the end of art time you have a relatively clean kid that a quick hand washing will return to pristine condition, a clean room (well, as clean as it was before you started), and a beautiful picture your kid can be proud of (hopefully).

Notice there that Bella is wearing a smock?  TOTALLY DIDN"T NEED IT!!!  It was there to make her feel like she was getting to make a mess...but shhh, that's a mommy secret.

Bella's Beloved - Skippyjon Jones

Shortly after we got Pippen we discovered this little series about a siamese cat named skippyjon jones.  Basically, this cat thinks he is a chihuahua, not a cat because he has a big head and big ears.  Then he proceeds to get himself into all kinds of silly pretend situations where he saves the day.  We have 3 of the books pictured here.  

We don't have Mummy trouble.  And there are tons more in case grandparents are looking for good gifts (HINT HINT).  Bella just adores them.  And so far all of the ones we have gotten have come with a CD where the author reads the story.  Which is nice because there are a few places where he sings and it's awfully convenient and makes you look like super-mom (or dad) when you can sing the words properly.

Obviously, Pippen shares some resemblance to the main character, so we've been calling him Pippyjon jones, Mr. Fluffernutter, Mr. Kitten Britches, and a few other names Skippyjon gets called in the book.

What are your kids' favorite books?  Or what were your favorite books when you were a kid?

Why I love the Backyardigans 1 - I love being a princess

I think the Backyardigans is probably my favorite kids show of all time.  I just love their little songs and the cute things they say.  I finally got some for Bella and she's gotten really into them and imitates them quite a bit.  I wanted to share some of the uber-cute.

First the inspiration:

And now Bella's version...which morphs around 25 seconds into the hello, how are you song we do every morning to start our day, and then she gets distracted by the cat and the moment is lost - but you get the idea:

Of course she didn't want to do more than 1 line while I was videoing.  But we listened to her in bed last night for at least 30 minutes singing that one line over and over and over again.

Bella's Beloved - The Barrington Playground

On Sunday, it was pretty nice outside. (Of course, 'nice' is relative...it was sunny and in the lower 50's)  But any hint of spring and the New Englanders are out in force.  So I took Bella and Josie to the Barrington playground to get out some energy and soak up some vitamin D.

The place was packed.  Josie was a huge hit and was a very good girl.

And Bella had a blast too, especially once I finally convinced her to try the swings.  They have these cool swings that feel sort of like a roller coaster because of where your center of balance is.  (Warning: if you're prone to motion sickness, this video may not be for you)

I'm looking forward to many more days over there as the weather gets a bit warmer.  What's your favorite outdoor activity during the spring?

Bella's Beloved - The Children's Museum

Bella's 2nd birthday party was at the Children's Museum in Providence, RI. Everyone had an amazing time, especially the birthday girl!

Big Girl Bed

Our little girl is now in a big girl bed! We picked up this super-cute quilt for her (Kidsline Mirabella if you're curious and want to google it) with butterflies and dragonflies and ladybugs and flowers. Very girly. And she loves climbing up into her big bed to read and snuggle. And the best part...we can now lay down next to her while she goes to sleep instead of sitting next to the crib on a hard floor. I'll put pictures soon!

Bella's Beloved - Pumpkin Farm

The weather was pretty gross on Sunday, but we still hauled the kids out to the pumpkin farm to check out the animals and pick out a pumpkin. On Saturday, Lauren, Stefanie and I all went to a craft fair, and bought the kids these pumpkin knit hats.

So cute! They needed them because it was so yucky out. But they got to see roosters and chickens and a goose, and they got to check out a tractor!

We're hoping to head back out there one weekend if it's a bit nicer. We cooked the pumpkin we got and gave it to Bella and she LOVES it so I have to make sure and get enough to last us through the winter!

Lauren also put together this cute video of the farm: http://sharing.theflip.com/greeting/2251545

Wubbanub

I realize I have not really defined the "wubbanub." It is definitely one of the best suggestions for baby items we have gotten. It is basically the soothie pacifier that the hospital uses attached to a little beanie animal. This little attachment is great when they're little because it weighs the pacifier down a little and keeps it from flying all over the place. And it's great when they're a little older because it's a bigger target to grab onto and get to their mouths.

So, we have quite a few of these. We started out with the red and yellow Dougie Doggie, so named because my friend Natalie, who is a social worker, says alliteration is good for kids' development. i have no idea why, but that's why he has his name. This is Dougie:

Then we decided we wanted to get something a bit more feminine, so we ordered the purple and green Frenchy Frog. Aka Francois le Frog, aka French Frog, but usually he just goes by Frenchy.

Dougie was relegated to being a traveling dog, so he now lives with the carseat. This is largely a result of his going out frquesntly in her first few weeks and being the victim of a dropping in the parking lot in the rain. So he knows the dark and dirty side of life. And we wanted to spare the Frenchys.

Yes that's right, plural...Frenchy's' After Dougie went down in the parking lot, and we had to wait (read "suffer") til he was washed and dried, we made sure we had a Frnechy on hand for all occasions. So we have 1 on each floor on the house, Uptown Frenchy (who hangs in his crib), Downtown Frenchy Brown (the main floor Frenchy), and basement Frenchy (who is a bit ghetto and occasionally tries to sneak upstairs). For a while I also had a working Frenchy, but he was kicked out of the building with Bella. Here is Uptown Frenchy, getting breakfast in bed with Bella:

I don't know how long it will be before we can wean her off these things. She doesn't really use them a TON, but they are completely invaluable in the middle of the night and when she's tired.

Bjorn Bouncer

So, we have a bouncer. A nice Fisher Price rainforest bouncer that makes pretty sounds and lights and moves and has lots of toys. The problem: we keep falling over it. The legs stick out so far that it almost jumps out at you as you walk by. So, after some research, we bought the Baby Bjorn bouncer. This thing was expensive. No question about it. But worth every penny. She sits in it happily for hours, just looking at the simple wooden blocks on the toybar, it's lightweight, it folds flat, it bounces nicely, she can use it til she's 2 years old, and best of all, the base is right under the seat, so no more tripping!