Another Cinderella Story

Here is the trailer for the Selena Gomez movie, Another Cinderella Story. It's kind of creepy that they cast a twenty-six year old as the love interest though. They could have found someone younger than Drew Seeley.

Tori Spelling

Someone should tell Tori that not taking your birth control pills and getting pregnant does not constitute a miracle. Tori should really go back to being a comedic actress, she was good at it.

Homemade Hot Pockets

My boys love Hot Pockets, but I hate buying them. Why would I want to pay $1.25 for each chemical filled little toxic goodie. So I've come up with a way of making my own. It's really simple to do. Every week when I make pizza dough for pizza night I make an extra batch of dough. This is the recipe for the dough. I then fill them with the left over filling from taco night the night before, or turkey pepperoni , cheese, and pizza sauce. You can use whatever sauce, cheese, and filling you have on hand. I'm thinking about using brie and apples. Fold the dough and seal using a little water. Bake at 325 degrees for about 20-30 minutes. I don't really keep track of how long they cook. When the dough is golden and fluffy I take them out. They freeze very well. And to reheat just pop them into the microwave on high for 60-90 seconds. And I don't feel like I'm poisoning my kids.

Gucci Baby Shoes

If you have $235 to spend on baby shoes these Gucci shoes may be for you.

The Joy Of Recycling

My nine year old son has discovered recycling, and recycling makes him very happy. Of course in the past two weeks recycling has also made him almost $70. I have discovered the joy of my kid having enough of his own money to buy his own toys. Since he's been sick I have been spoiling him a bit. Not counting Christmas and his birthday the little brat has been averaging a toy a week, at an average of $10 a pop. I didn't realize I was giving him so many. I am kind of embarrassed.

Juice Boxes For Kids

After last weeks warning about the massive quantity of sugar in Capri Sun I have found some healthier options. If you live in Europe there are Innocent Drinks smoothies for kids. These cartons have no added anything. The ingredients are listed right there on the website and they are all pronounceable. Here in the US there is First Juice which trains little taste buds to like less sweet drinks. And then there is Bot Beverage's fortified flavored water. They cost more than traditional juice boxes, but think of what you will save in dental bills.

Butterfly Clock

Isn't this clock lovely? This cut out butterfly clock is designed by Susanne Phillipson. £115

Pretty In Pink

J. Crew Frankie Bag. J Crew continues to go upscale. $395

Ikea Sniglar Changing Table

Paint this wood changing table fuchsia or black for a cool nursery addition. $34.99

J.Crew Schoolboy Blazer

Look at the lining in J. Crews Schoolboy Blazer. $150

Stella McCartney for LeSportsac

It's bunny day. Little bunny backpack, $120

Kids Line Bunny Meadow

Organic cotton crib bedding at BabiesRUs, $179.99

Smith System Gorilla Book Trucks

This would be a fantastic way to store a kid's books and toys. The carts can be purchased in colors to match your decor. But be careful, I used to work in a library. Filled with books, a book cart weighs a ton. $353
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Concord Neo

The Carbon special edition Concord Neo is also available at Two Left Feet. £POA

Little Horn Tee Shirt

I just love the print on this little girl's shirt. $40 AUD

Sweet Enough To Eat

I don't normally publish photos of celebrity spawn, but this one is just so over the top. Kate Moss took her daughter to a wedding last weekend. Little Lila looks like she may be a little handful. A yes, she is wearing a fur, but what little girl didn't like playing dress up.
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Girl Sues Dad To Go On School Field Trip

A Canadian father grounded his twelve year old after she posted pictures of herself on an internet dating site and argued with her stepmother. Pretty normal, except for the dating site stuff. But she didn't like being grounded from the field trip. So she moved to her mother's house, and sued to have the father's punishment overturned. And the court agreed with the little brat. It decided that she had been punished enough, and since she was living with the mother the father's punishment didn't apply. The father is the custodial parent.
What do I think the court should have done? Sent the child back to the custodial parent, and dismissed the case as the nonsense that it was. Wasn't there something important that could have been taking up the court's time?
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The Rise Of The Mini Me

I wear designer clothes. But I find the fact that so many high end designers doing children's collection kind of tasteless. Not so much for the cost, but for the fact that they are just slapping their names on t shirts and jeans. I would not spend $150 on plain kid's jeans or a tee. Dolce and Gabbana, one of my favorite labels, seems to be guilty of the logo mania. I think that Chloe and Phillip Lim are getting it right, designing exquisite little dresses and jackets. I would have no problem spending three or four hundred dollars on a very pretty piece from their collections. The LA Times has an interesting article blaming the whole trend on Hollywood. But isn't Hollywood to blame for all of America's ills.
What do I dress my boys in? Very traditional Polo, J.Crew, and Target. I don't want them to look back in twenty years and cringe. Children's clothes should be comfortable, not tiny versions of adult clothes.
Chloe Dress $180

Phil & Teds Vibe

This things reminds me of the way that my neighbor used to carry his kids with one in the seat and one in the stroller basket. He would push them across the street to his in laws like this on and off all day long. This is a much safer version of the same concept. The Vibe is a single stroller and you buy a second seat that attaches to the area where the basket would fit. You get a double stroller in the same amount of space as a single. And it weighs about 22 pounds in single mode, so the double stroller probably weighs less than 30 pounds. And when your toddler is old enough to walk it converts back to a single stroller. And have a look at the accessories while you're at it.But the one downside is that the poor kid in the back only gets a view of the back of the top seat. $709

Live Action Mario Brothers

What the wee tyrant has been watching on YouTube.

$2380

That is what the Eero Saarinen Womb Chair for kids costs. Cute, classic chair. Horrid cost.

Kill It Dead De-Funkifier

Because teenage boys stink. $11.99
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Afterschool Specials

What ever happened to those classic American movies, The After School Special?

Jamie Lynn Spears Has Given Birth

Jamie Lynn gave birth to a baby girl this morning. Maddie Briann (a Hollywood baby with a normal name, gasp!) weighed in at 7 pounds 11 ounces. Mom is just 17. She seems a little more down to earth than her sister, so she may be a good mother. I had my first baby a few weeks before my 20th birthday, so I know that it can be done. Just don't rush and get married. Remember Solange Knowles.

The Aussie Version of Gdiapers

I love Gdiapers, but what happens if you have a baby that weighs under 8 pounds. My youngest was three months old before he was 8 pounds. I wrote to Gdiaper and asked if they were going to be making smaller diapers and they replied no. What they didn't tell me was that they have an Australian distributor that makes just the product I was looking for, and that they ship to the US. Eenie Eco diapers start in a size 0000 (and will fit a baby as small as 4 lbs). The cover wraps around and ties in the front to prevent rubbing of the tender navel. And if you don't want to use the flushable inserts they have microfiber cloth diapers. Microfiber absorbs about six times their weight and dry quickly. Why are they not bringing these products to the US.
I still love Gdiaper. If for no other reason because you can compost the wet ones. And I love them more now that I know that I can use them from birth. Because who really wants to invest in two different cloth diaper sets.

Cute Easy Wall

Walter Wall Decor $42-65

Ford Flex

I need a bigger, newer car. I drive an old station wagon that seat just five. The problem is that sometimes I need space for six. I really like the looks of the Ford Flex. I don't know why because it is a kind of big, ugly box. But I am really drawn to it. It starts at just $28,295, so the price is even right. What is the problem? It only gets 17 mpg city. Is Ford smoking crack? I'm paying almost $5 a gallon for gas, $4.43 a gallon to be exact. This would have been a great hybrid. They may call it a crossover (fancy talk for station wagon), but this thing is a SUV. Maybe next year they will come out with a hybrid version.

Jennifer Delonge Ava Sofa

Give them somewhere just their size to sit? And it will go well with most adult furniture, so you don't have to hide it away. $499

Jamie Lynn Should Talk To Solange

Her story is just like Jamie Lynn Spear's. Younger sister of a superstar ,pregnant as a teen, shot gun wedding, hubby disappears after a year or so when the press died down. Do you really want to be divorced in your early twenties?
Doesn't Solange Knowles look a lot like Diana Ross in this picture
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Who Knew

If you pack a Capri Sun in your kid's lunch box everyday you are supplying them with about 25 cups of sugar a year. That is enough for 1600 chocolate chip cookies. And it has only 26 less calories than bottle of Guinness(better known as "special soda" at our house). No wonder there are so many fat kids.
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Miley Cyrus Getting To Big For Her Britches

Miley Cyrus and her buddy Mandy have taken to making fun of fellow Disney stars, Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato. With her waning popularity you would think that Miley would be trying to repair her nice girl image. Disney seems to giving all the plum jobs to other, more "respectable" girls these days. But no, she wants to be a mean girl. Look how far that took Lindsey Lohan.
And why are her parents letting her hang out with a twenty-one year old? There is a huge gap in maturity between fifteen and twenty-one. Why would a twenty-one year old want to hang out with someone that age, unless it is to advance her career.

Autism Learning Games on Etsy

Designed to prepare autistic children for common tasks, these charts and booklets would be great for all small children. I especially like the what hurts and school lunch charts. Little kids aren't the greatest at telling parents what hurts. They just come and tell you, "I don't feel good." Then you have to play twenty questions. And can you imagine being five and going to the cafeteria for the first time. We rarely prepare them for that when we explain what happens at school.

Happy Father's Day

To the man who is the Tommy Lee to my Pamela Anderson.

How Do You Explain Taxes To A Child

By telling them that "taxes are what the government charges people for the privilege of buying something."

My Dream Nursery Inspiration Board

Top Row: Purr BabyC cradle, Baby Miro Modo Crib, Nurseryworks Empire Rocker, and Poldo Como chest (for a changing table).
Second Row: Bror mini sideboard, Hexalux A light fixture, Graco SweetPeace, and Ikea wood flooring.
Third Row: Vipp six gallon waste bin, granny square crochet coverlet (will beg my mother and grandmother to make one in cashmere), Bloom Coco baby lounger, and Philippe Starck mini chair.
Bottom Row: Dwell Studio for Target receiving blankets, Bobo Sperlein fairy lights, Petitcollin Doll Lamps (I know they're strange but I love them), and Trumpette bouncy cow.
I know that I can't have it all, but a girl can dream. If I only I didn't have to start writing alarmingly large checks to an university in a few years.

Series A

Heirloom has come out with a set of whimsical children's furniture, the A series, to go along with their earlier retro designs. The line would be great for a bright, cheery nursery or a child's room.

???

Can someone tell me how teenage boys manage to have skin tight pants that still sag so much that half their underwear are showing (like the Jonas Brothers)?

How Much Is A Baby Girl Worth

I am pondering whether it is worth almost $19,000 a try to be guaranteed a baby girl. I already have two boys. And because of fertility problems, problems with preterm labor, advanced maternal age, and my beliefs about proper spacing, it is starting to look like a good idea. I know that you are thinking, beliefs about proper spacing. I believe that I should only have one child in college at a time. But I will have to pay for college in a few years, so that makes it seem like less of a good idea.

Playtown by Playsam

Give your child a polished wood set of some of Stockholm's most famous buildings by Playsam. $184.59

Restoration Hardware Baby & Child

My catalog came today. The collections seem a little Pottery Barn like, very preppy. I really like how the bedding collections are sold by the piece (so that you don't have to buy a useless bumper and crib skirt). And the pieces come in sizes for cribs all the way to full/queen. Which is good if you have a baby and older child sharing a room. It just seems an odd time to be starting a fancy new baby line when the economy has gone south.
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Filament Baby Shoes

Aren't these heavenly. And I love the packaging. About $83

Cross Wall Hanging

Did anyone else have one of these hanging in their bedroom as a child? $22

Tori Spelling Has Given Birth

I am predicting that she will be pregnant again within twelve months. By then the attention will have started to wane. And being pregnant is her whole career.
I loved her show on VH1. Maybe her next project shouldn't be another baby, but acting lessons. Because she has great comedic timing. See, I can say nice things on occasion.

Break Free From The Tyrant Big Oil

The Think City will be coming to the United States in 2009. The electric car will be able to go up to 110 miles of a full charge, and will cost less than $25,000. The bad news is that it has just 4 seats. But there is great news, they are looking to build the car here instead of importing them. That's work for unemployed auto workers.
Source Wall Street Journal and Inhabitat