You Used What?

One of my New Year's goals this year is to switch over to as many natural products as possible so we can avoid having harmful and unnatural chemicals in our home (but that's another post...).  

So, a few weekends ago Devin and I made our first real visit to Whole Foods.  I had stopped in once before, but didn't have much time to browse.  In a store like that, where most things are new and unfamiliar, it takes time to read packages and labels so we wanted to take a trip without the distraction of the kids.  My fabulous mother-in-law watched all 3 kids so we could go with Elisha, Josh, and Reina.

The guys kind of separated from the girls to go check out some other things.  I was checking for cleaning products and shampoo and Devin was trying to find the yogurt he needed to make the vegan chocolate cake for my brother's birthday.

Josh had found some sausage samples the store had out and invited Devin to try them.  After picking up a toothpick from the pile and eating the sausage off the end, Devin realized he grabbed a toothpick from the USED pile.  SICK!  When he told us what he had done, we were cracking up in the store and making jokes about how nasty the person could have been that used it before him and how he might get sick.  We couldn't believe he made such a gross mistake!  His stomach did bother him the rest of the night, but it was probably psychological...

Ice Cream Decisions

The other night we had to run to the store after dinner and baths.   Mommy took about 2 seconds to locate her chocolate ice cream and put it in the cart, but Daddy took a while to decide.  While we waited, the boys were just being so cute so I snapped a few pictures. 

Notice Devin reading the cartons to help him decide which flavor to choose.

Chocolate Man

As we ate at Burger King the other day, a black man walked by the table.  Jaxon noticed and said, "Mommy, that's a chocolate man."  The sweet innocence of children is such a cute thing.

VNSA Used Book Sale

We went to this used book sale this weekend, and loved it!  We can't wait for it to come again next year!

Toms Shoes

Check out Toms Shoes.  My brother introduced them to us and Devin and I both have a pair.  We love them!  They are so comfortable and the best part about them is that for every pair that are purchased, Toms GIVES a pair to a child who doesn't own a single pair of shoes.  What a great cause!  Buy some!

These are the the pair I have.

These are what Devin's look like.

Shopping Spree

There are a few stores I would LOVE to go crazy in and buy everything!  They are...

Costco... First, I gotta ask, what don't they have?  I'd stock up on everything our family uses and needs everyday.  Plus, they always have other fun stuff that I would like to have.

Ikea... Redecorating would be a DREAM!

Victoria Secret... How fun would that be?!

Bribery and Frosty

Here's how to make your kids behave while at the mall so you can catch the after-Christmas sales...

Bribe them with fishie crackers and candy.

Or, you could tell him Frosty the Snowman will eat him if he's not a good little boy.

No, we didn't really tell him that.  What kind of mom do you think I am?  He was just scared for some reason.

Jaxon loved Frosty though:)

No, Thank You

I receive e-mails from Forever 21 and today I clicked on it to link me to their site.  This was one of the shirts advertised on the homepage.

I think it's terrible!  Christmas is SO not about the gifts and it may be a joke, but I don't like it or think it's appropriate.  It doesn't matter to me which holiday you are celebrating, but celebrate it for the right reason--and that reason shouldn't be gifts.

Don't mess with the birth of the Savior of the world anytime, especially Christmas time!

Costco Jungle Gym

Yep, sometimes we let our kids climb all over in Costco.

And they love it!

Training Bras

Since Henry is totally weaned now I needed to get a new bra.  Yea!  There are certain times I need different sizes, usually one when I'm pregnant, one for nursing, and a smaller, not-pregnant, non-nursing one.  Anyway, that's probably too much info, but whatev...here's my story...

Last week I had a few minutes to wait while my car was being serviced at the Superstition Toyota dealership so I went over to the mall to check out Victoria Secret (the best bras ever and totally worth the money)!  The girl pulled out the drawer of like 15 different styles in my size and opened a room for me.

While I was trying to decide, and wondering how women deal with so much padding in some of them (I mean, seriously, have you seen "The Bombshell"?  It's big enough to be a pillow!), a heard a mother and daughter bring her daughter in to get a room.  While the daughter was trying some bras on the mother asked the Victoria Secret employee, "How much do these bras cost?"  The employee told her $48.  The mother then said rather loudly and surprised, "I aint buyin' her no forty-eight dollar bra!  She has a fifteen dollar one now that works just fine.  Don't you have any cheaper ones?"

I had a flash back to being a young girl going to try on bras with my mother.  My mom would never have done anything like that, but just going bra shopping was embarrassing enough for me already!  I felt so bad for the girl!  At that age, boobs are a big deal and I can just imagine the girl in the room cringing with embarrassment.

I was reminded that talking about price before taking your kids shopping (when they are old enough to understand cost, of course) is important to avoid situations like that.  When I have a daughter at an age when self esteem is so fragile, I hope to be more sensitive than that mother was.

Oh, and I did find a fabulous bra:) It was $48, but totally worth it!

Christmas List 2009

I know Christmas is still a while away, but I was just thinking about number 2 on my list and thought I'd see what people thought...

1.  Dust buster
Though my Dyson does the job, a handy little tool would be pretty nice for smaller jobs in tighter places.  I bought one a few years back and returned it without opening the box.  I thought I would never use it.  Now, I see opportunities to use one daily.  Thank you, kiddos:)

2.  Adult Footed Pajamas(.com)
I would totally wear these every night after I run and shower and wanna stay all cozy while me and Devin relax and enjoy our shows...Yes, I would love it.  Better than a robe because your legs are covered and better than sweats and a sweater because your tummy/back wouldn't ever catch a chill!

Target and JoAnn gift cards are always on the list too.  Those stores, along with Costco and Ikea, would be my dream stores to go crazy in--like have no spending limit--wow, that would be awesome!

What's on your Christmas list?  Which stores would you choose for a shopping spree?