Two more adds for 'My Favourite Things' list...

First up: A Spoonful of Chocolate recycled book handbags....hello Oprah would love these...

Ultimately 100% of all profits will go to the handbag designer's father, who is facing losing the house he built with his own two hands.

Plus she'll even make you a custom item: "Please note, custom orders do take time. It takes extra time to find the perfect book and fabric therefore I charge $45 for a custom book handbag and $22.50 for a custom book passport holder."

And second on the list & yet another Oprah would love item...me & 'O' are so alike...le sigh:

Not a huge flats fan...something to do with being 5'1 and my mom constantly drilling into me that when you're short you should always wear heels...yeah well try that with two kids ages 3 and 1 and who are always on the go...but I digress.

I have finally found a pair that I have been wearing religiously every day since I got them. The name of these must have ballet shoes is "Pretty Ballerinas".

The flats are tres chic, super comfortable, superior quality, beautifully hand-made and they give a boost to my daily mommy uniform of jeans and tank tops. And the pink boxes they come in are totally reminiscent of the ones my first ballet shoes came in when I took ballet classes at Greta Leeming School of Dance.

Pretty Ballerinas was created in 2005 and is a division of MASCARÓ, a family-based
company founded in 1918 and the best news is they'll be opening up their first North American boutique in Montreal [in Westmount on Victoria Avenue] in early Fall 2009...yay for Canada!

Pretty Ballerinas, already has quite the celebrity following, including: Kylie Minogue, Kate Moss, and Lindsay Lohan. And the much anticipated boutique is already creating quite the buzz here in Canada

The Canadian website will be be launching this Fall [2009] and the ultimate bonus for the trendiest of fashionistas, a limited number of each style will be produced so the ballet flats maintain their exclusivity. To quote one Paris Hilton, 'That's like so hot.'




Happy shopping!

So forthcoming with the truth

Last night my husband and I, along with another couple, went out for a fabulous dinner sans enfants. It was the first time that the four of us have gone out in almost 2 years for an adults only dinner escape [see what children do?].

We went to a fabulous restaurant, Petit Bill's Bistro, for some lobster poutine...so divine. It truly was a poutine heaven eating experience and throw in a glass of wine and it was almost orgasmic. Yeah I know I need to get out more. But I digress.

Throughout the dinner we kept doing the 'Shhh listen, do you hear that? That's right no screaming, crying, whining kids...' We love our kids to death, we do, but sometimes a dinner without the required 100 interruptions and at least 2 tantrums is a welcomed change of pace. For the sanity of the adults if nothing else.

When we got home my sister, the night's babysitter, looked exhausted and said, "They were really good tonight...busy but good," and before she walked out the door she added, "Oh and Isabella may have had some toilet water to drink...just so you know." Ahhh yes nothing completes a day in the life of my 1 year old daughter, without her having some face to face interaction with the water in the toilet bowl. Now there is one fascination phase that I hope ends sooner rather than later.

This morning, my son was standing next to my bed waiting for me to wake up. I got my good-morning kiss and hug and then he proceeds with the play by play details of the night before..."Mommy we had so much fun with Zia last night. It was really fun. But Zia had a lot of work to do...there was the cereal that I dropped on your bed and then Isabella dropped cereal all over the office on the floor and I got toothpaste all over the bathroom and Isabella was thirsty so she drank water from the toilet again. Zia was tired. But she still loves us. I'm so sorry Mommy for the mess we made. But it's OK you can clean it up today. Are you not mad that I spilled cereal on the bed? Zia said I could eat cereal on your bed. OK I'm hungry let's go have breakfast now."

Here's hoping that my little 3 year old is this forthcoming with the truth when he's a teenager. I know things will be hidden, truths untold, stories fabricated and lies told but for now I'll take the innocence that is a 3 year old who comes clean with the real story because he doesn't know any differently.

BeechNut Let's Grow! Tummy Trays: take 2

Alright apparently it's the soft hearted mom in me that sucked up my hard lined 'one chance only' code that once ruled my world, but I caved in and I decided to give the BeechNut Let's Grow! toddler meal option one more chance. I'm such a sucker.

Confession: OK FINE drag it out of me. I had nothing in the fridge the other night and I was way too tired to cook anything. So during my travels to go grab take-out [note to trainer: yes it was a healthy choice...or as healthy as I could find] I stopped in at Shopper's Drug Mart and grabbed the Mac & Cheese Tummy Tray.

And because the mission of my 1 year old daughter is to constantly contradict me and prove me wrong, it really should not have surprised me in the least that she absolutely loved the 30-second mac & cheese zapped meal in the microwave oven.

Now grant it, it really hard to screw up mac & cheese but I'll give props where props are due. The fact that my daughter devoured the entire tray with a certain sense of gusto I was impressed. And because I have a policy that I have to try everything that I give my kids, I did the mommy duty and took a bite. And I must say that it was fairly tasty...it actually had some good flavouring going on and the noodles were cooked perfectly that it makes for an easy chewing and swallowing process for toddlers.

Now let's not kid ourselves here, ______ (insert name of five star restaurant here) won't be serving it on their menu anytime soon, but in those desperate "there is nothing, I don't want to make nuthin' moments' we all face as we stare blankly into the fridge wishing we had access to a private chef, this is one food option that totally works in a pinch.

So hats off to you BeechNut on your Mac & Cheese Tummy Tray. I have four stacked away in the pantry for emergency 'mommy is having a cooking meltdown' purposes.

So to review:

The BeechNut Let's Grow! Tomato Tummy Tray - total why bother situation due to the suckage of the product

The BeechNut Let's Grow! Mac & Cheese Tummy Tray - two thumbs up from the picky- foodie-in-the-making-1-year-old and one 'has an apparent soft spot for BeechNut' mommy.

Now off to the kitchen to make lunch...and maybe if I click my heels three times before I open the fridge, the meal fairy will have left something totally fabulous that I just have to reheat....yeah I know, wishful thinking.

Things that make me go hmmmmmm?

A little reflection on the week thus far...

1. Why is it that my 3 year old son takes on the properties of slow moving molasses when I need him to do something [i.e: get changed, eat lunch, eat dinner, put socks on etc.] and yet he instantly morphs into Olympic record setting Michael Phelps when I leave the room for 2 minutes to change his sister's diaper and he manages to empty an entire box of crackers onto the floor and starts spreading peanut butter on them because he wants to have a picnic?

2. Had I known that my 3 year old son would be occupied for a good solid hour with one roll of Scotch Tape, the room of toys he now has never would have never seen the light of day.

3. Why is it that my daughter can sleep through a parade of construction trucks driving by her window, her brother's whining and phones ringing but the minute mommy sits down to starts typing a blog she wakes up? Really I don't type that loudly.

4. Why is it that my 3 year old can't hear me asking him to do something when I am sitting right next to him but he magically hears me whisper-cursing when I'm in a different part of the house?

5. Why is it that my son forgets basic rules...no yelling, no hitting, no screaming, no saying the word 'hate' on an hourly basis yet if I do something, like I don't know like yell, he instantly can list off the rules of the time out chair, including the 'if you get out of the time out chair before the timer beeps, I'm going to start the clock again'?

6. My 3 year old son won't walk across the balance beam at his gymnastics class but climbing all the way up to the top of the bookcase in the office...no problem.

7. My 1 year old daughter is a fairly picky eater but put her outside and suddenly dirt and sand are a Foodie's most sought after culinary feast, why?

8. Why is it that both my 3 year old and 1 year old can turn on the DVD player, TV and stereo and yet the simple instruction of 'please stay in your room' completely confuses them, like I'm asking them a question about geophysics?

9. Why is it that my 3 year old son complains of being bored playing in his room filled with toys yet he'll watch the same episodes of Olivia, Ruby & Max and Hard Hat Harry over and over again, like it's the first time he's ever seen them every single time?

10. Why is it that both my kids get their second wind exactly 10 minutes before mommy's show that she really wants to watch is about to start? I swear it's because they know we have the PVR feature...damn the kids and their tech savvy ways.

Too much thinking....time for mindless TV...'I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here' it is.

7%

My cousin Pina sent me this....totally worth the re-post.
This is something we should all read at least once a week.
----------------------------

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland ,Ohio.

"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me..
It is the most-requested column I've ever written.


My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once
more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone...

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone and everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's,we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come.

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Its estimated 93% won't forward this. If you are one of the 7% who will,

Remember friends are the family that we choose for ourselves.