my little radiant child

this past wednesday night which was, I believe, day 3 of 'snowed in 2011', daddyluv and I took advantage of our Netflix membership and watched 'Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child.'

this rather intimate look into the life and sadly premature death of a passionate and artistic soul helped me to see a very important lesson that I want my child to know: the only limitation on his ability to create something great is his own failure to try.

so in that spirit we spent days 4 and 5 of 'snowed in 2011' making his first collage!!



I ripped open a cardboard box and he used crayons and markers to draw all over it. under the pictures there's a drawing of daddy, a few houses, some rainbows and LOTS of the color green.

then we went thru a bunch of old magazines (mostly parenting mags since the content tends to be toddler safe) and he got to choose whatever picture or image he liked. he got to use his safety scissors for the first time and (with me holding and guiding his hand) cut out the picture.

finally he picked the spot, smeared it with a glue stick and slapped it on! not too shabby for a kid who'll be 3 in a few months, eh!

by the way, here's the awesome drawing of daddyluv:




and joy of joys, this drawing came with a patented babyluv narrative!

‘hmm… I know! I make daddy! ok, I make a circle… eyebrows…. two eyes… a nose…. aaaand a smile! oh, I forgot…. aaaaand a mustache! there, all done!’

my little radiant child.

10 Ways to Combat Winter Hair Shedding Naturally

how very ironic that as i sit here pondering the dry-as-hay fro that's sitting atop my head i find this fabulous article from Savvy Brown on 10 Ways to Combat Winter Hair Shedding Naturally!

it's a necessary reminder that every part of your body, from the inside out, needs nourishment and when it is properly nourished it shows. now excuse me while i take this snow day to do some self-maintenance!

ps. your kid's hair and body need the same inside out care! don't take those beautiful, junior fros for granted ;-)

relatively happy new year

taken about 12:05 am. new year's 2011, five minutes after babyluv realized the combination of staying up til midnight then having a room full of adults countdown to an ear-splitting scream and trumpet of noise-makers can wreak havoc on a two year old's fragile nerves.

Unruly!

For all those who don't know, I gave birth to that wild child that you rolled your eyes at because he was running away from his parents in the supermarket then falling out on the floor screaming NOOOOOOO right after grabbing some random breakable item off the shelf. Yea, that adorable li'l tyrant in all those photos. And yet he's still alive and just barely spanking free.

That doesn't mean I haven't sat and contemplated how I could make him wear one of those doggy shock collars without going to jail.

Don't judge me.

Thanks to Aja Dorsey Jackson of Black and Married With Kids for sharing your unruly child story!

Unruly! How To Tame a Wild Child by Aja Dorsey Jackson of Black and Married With Kids

BABIES!!

this is truly one of the sweetest, most wonderful documentaries I have ever seen! it's simply a candid look into the lives of four babies in four different parts of the world, from birth to age one.

in the words of daddyluv, it's like 'march of the penguins' but with babies. *single tear for the penguins*

if you're a Netflix subscriber it's available to watch instantly!

Melissa & Doug Dollhouse or Castle Giveaway

from the awesome folks at The Budget Mommy here's a great giveaway for you little ones!! a Melissa & Doug Dollhouse or Castle Giveaway! follow the link below for your chance to win.

Melissa & Doug Dollhouse or Castle Giveaway on The Budget Mommy!

Babies R Us & Toys R Us: FREE Tote & Additional 40% off Clearance Clothing

Toys R Us and Babies R Us has released a new coupon for a FREE tote and an additional 40% off all the clearance clothing you can fit in the tote. The coupon is valid through 1/23/10.

Take the coupon to the Guest Service counter for your FREE tote, and then start filling it up. Offer excludes clothing larger than 4T.

Many thanks to Thrifty and Thriving for the coupon!

sometimes you have to let go

aren't these adorable?

these were a victoria's secret semi-annual sale steal a few seasons ago. personally I love a pink panty. and these are a sweet shade of coral, a great cut and they were $5.

but alas, in my zeal to snatch cute discount panties I didn't look at the material. these are not cotton. they're a dreadful spandex/nylon blend. wearing them means having a very hot crotch and perpetual wedgie. wearing them makes my tushie sad.

so even though they're super cute and only a few seasons old, I'm tossing out the hot wedgie drawers. there's no reason for me to even keep these around because I keep accidentally putting them on and suffering through the hot wedgie all day. it's not worth the trouble.

it's ok though, at least I know I'll never be a hoarder.

leather and steel

So I'm sitting here, taking a break from folding the mountains of laundry I've managed to do this morning, and I was feeling all accomplished. I decided to take a photo of mount laundrymore to share with y'all my great task. then I glanced down at my sexy new piece of leather and steel and decided to share that instead. ;)




many thanks to Bead Siam on Etsy for the great piece!