Well, I did it. I finally gave in and decided to purchase the diaper bag of my dreams. As with most of the things I buy, I try to get the best deal possible. I carried around the big bulky diaper bag I bought for $15 bucks when I was pregnant till Devan turned one. After that, I figured I could carry just a purse and throw in a diaper or two if I thought I'd need it. I've been using my purse as a diaper bag now for several months and have not been happy about it. Theres not enough room and whenever I am lifting, holding, buckling, or running after Devan my purse slips right off my shoulder and out come all the contents. So, I have been seriously searching for a diaper bag that does not look like a diaper bag, but functions like one, and one that will not slip off my shoulder constantly. So I finally found it. I went to a couple of stores to see if they had the one I wanted, but I was sad to find only the "diaper dude" bags and not the "diva" option. Then I found the one I wanted on ebay and after some price matching research, I decided to go with ebay. SO- here it is!
I look forward to no longer picking up the contents of my purse off the floor or my car, or the street. Hurray for diaper dudes/divas!

Weekends with a baby are fun, but weekends with a toddler are even more fun! Toddlers can do all sorts of cool things, like play at the park:

Or try and exstinguish candle flames at wedding receptions:

Or, my personal favorite, a time out from running around the fountain to do some quick yoga moves:

Who knows what she'll think of for next weekend, but I bet it will include lots of smiling!

I have been sewing for years. I have been sewing things like quilts and simple tote bags for years. That is why I am happy to say that I can now add "skirts" to my list. I have attempted to use patterns several times in my life but having never taken an actual sewing class I always seemed to be a little lost. Thats why I was so excited to find this cool site. It was so great to have step by step instructions WITH pictures! I tried to get a picture of Devan wearing it but trying to get Devan to hold still long enough to take a photo is asking a lot. Hurray for skirts!

Today is indeed a lucky day. Like most Saturdays, my family and I found ourselves walking around the mall looking for a place to eat lunch when our luck kicked in. We found this. As we approached the entrance we found two men standing looking at us. As we got closer one man handed us some vouchers and said they were good today only because today was their soft opening. He also told us he was whispering because we were the last to be invited and as soon as we entered he quickly closed the door behind us. We got in line behind all of the other invite-only customers and looked at our vouchers. He gave us 30 dollars to spend! So lucky! And our luck kept getting better. As we were waiting in line there were people walking around with hot pizza samples, and after that there were people walking around with lemonade samples! I decided to call my Mom and see if she wanted us to pick her up anything. She wanted to order for herself and my Dad and I was a little worried we might not have enough vouchers. I asked one of the workers if we could pay for anything over our 30 dollar vouchers and she said no. I was a little upset thinking maybe our luck was running out when she said " I'll just give you more money." Then she handed me another voucher worth $20! So now we had a total of $50 to spend on lunch. Well, we almost didn't spend it all, but don't worry, we did. Here is a list of everything we got.

One Sierra Turkey Sandwich.
One Chicken Ceasar Sandwich
Two Tuna Salad Sandwiches
One Loaf Rye bread
One Loaf Asiago Foccacia
Three varieties of pastries
Two sodas
One green tea.
FREE.

And it was all SO delicious! Who said there's no such thing as a free lunch?

P.S. Another great thing about this place is that it has replaced our once beloved local chinese restaurant. We are really glad something equally good has taken it's place.

Magnets! I found this idea from this great website. Here is my first batch:

I bought those marble vase fillers and glued pieces of paper to the backs with craft glue that dries clear. The sea shells are not actual shells, just pictures I cut out. Glue on a magnet and then you're dunzo. (Note: my magnets are not functional. I bought cheap magnets that will not hold other things up, but rather just barely hold themselves up.) This project is so versatile, you can use anything. Here is one I made for my hubby:

The only thing that stinks about these is that it takes a while for the glue to dry. I am so impatient that I found myself checking to see if they were dry several times in the middle of the night last night. I was also up with a sick baby though. I love magnets. I think my next one will say " I love your guts!" Stay tuned.