Even though we are only a few blocks from the neighborhood pool, we decided to get Daphne a plastic pool for the backyard. Today, she got to test it out. She loves playing in the water and I expect we will be spending lots of time in the pool this summer.

So, I have a question for you cloth diapering mamas out there… What kind of swim diaper do you use? Luckily, Daphne still fits in her Bummis Swimmi from last year, but it’s a size Medium (15-22 lbs) and I expect she will grow out of it before the summer is up. I think (maybe?) that I prefer a snap or velcro closure, as opposed to a pull on style. And before I go get lost in the confusing world of cloth diapering forums I thought I’d see if anyone had one they could recommend.

And here’s the little bathing beauty now, having so much fun.

I have approximately 2 months to find the perfect play kitchen for Daphne’s birthday. I say 2 months, instead of 3, because that gives me time to have it shipped here, and con someone into putting it together. Here are the two frontrunners:

KidKraft Vintage Kitchen, $139 at Costco (which includes shipping)

and the retro Kitchenette, $199 plus shipping from Land of Nod (doesn’t include the fridge too)

Both are wood. And I like the retro and red. In fact, the second kitchen looks a lot like my kitchen in B’ham, white cabinets with red accents. I realize that Pottery Barn kids has a retro red set, but I just can’t spend $500 for a play kitchen.

Any advice from play kitchen owners out there? What features do you prefer? How long did your kids play with the set.

I also need to get started on my felt food. Any favorite patterns?

For the first time since the second trimester of my pregnancy, I got a full workout at the gym. We have a Wii Fit and an elliptical machine here at home, but for some reason I can’t get motivated to use them consistently. Oh wait, I do know the reason- the fact that neither Daphne nor I have been on a consistent schedule since she was born. Plus I’ve turned into a complete insomniac and usually take an afternoon nap with Daphne to make up for not sleeping at night. Or I’ll get on the elliptical and Daphne will need me for something, or I get distracted. But, if I make the effort to get all the way to the gym I will usually get at least 30-45 min of cardio in before going home.

I actually like going to the gym and only stopped going before I had Daph because of the 100+ degree heat, which in my pregnant state felt like 120 (the gym didn’t have great air conditioning). Oh, and just a quick “what not to do” for the pregnant ladies out there. When I got pregnant I was completely addicted to all those baby shows on TLC and Discovery Health. Especially the really scary Birth Day or Stories episodes. You know, the ones where the worst case scenario always happens and they occasionally show graphic c-sections. Because if I’m prepared for the worst case scenario then I have nothing to worry about, right? So, I’m on the treadmill with the little TV built into the top of the dash. Usually I watched either CNN or one of my baby shows. The particular episode playing that day was a pretty graphic c-section multiple birth and I turned to see the young single guy on the machine next to me looking at the screen with a “WHAT THE HELL!!!!” look on his face as the doctor was cutting through this chicks abdominal wall. Whoops!! Sorry dude. Moral of the story, be considerate when watching scary baby shows.

Anyway, Chris and I have been talking about working out for months and have even discussed doing the ConocoPhillips Rodeo Run in January. I don’t think the run will happen. I’ve never done great with high impact stuff. No matter how much stretching I do, I always (always!!) have problems with shin splints. And Chris? Well, I swear he needs new knees. Too many old football injuries. So maybe we can commit to more gym time.

I’ve also been interested in the 30 Day Shred, after hearing about it from so many bloggers I follow. I’m not really a Jillian Michaels (Biggest Loser) fan. I prefer Bob. If I ever had a personal trainer I’d want someone like Bob Harper. Bob seems like someone who would give you a hug, in comparison to Jillian who scares me. It’s only an $8.99 commitment (If you buy it on Amazon) so maybe I’ll give it a try.

And for those of you who do work out consistently, how do you stay motivated? Do you have a set workout time or schedule, or is it just something you fit in? I guess I need to make it a priority.

These might possibly be the cutest baby shoes in existence. From Etsy seller MiaJoie.

Josie Baby-

Marianna

Peep toed shoes for infants? I’m about to die from the cuteness.

A few weeks ago, at my Tuesday morning mom’s group, we were discussing buying girl’s clothing. Specifically, how easy it is to spend $$$. One of the moms said she just got done buying a complete spring wardrobe for her son at Old Navy for $40. Then, I joked you couldn’t even buy one Matilda Jane dress for $40.

Anyway, I’ve been trying to curb my spending on Daphne’s wardrobe. Not that I ever spent that much, really. I shop the clearance sales. But I do want Daphne to get more wear out of her clothes, hence the cutbacks. In fact, I’m not buying an Easter dress for her this year. She has several dresses she can wear. But if I did have, say a couple hundred bucks to spend on an Easter outfit, I would get her one of these:

Jane and Jack Rose Floral Silk Dress. $78 and SO PRETTY:

Bo Peep Set (I think from Luna Luna), also $78. Wouldn’t this knit set be cute for a casual egg hunt? I am in LOVE with ruffled capris on little girls.

French Fairy dress. It’s hard to see what it looks like as a dress, since the pic is so small, and it’s $138. Holy Hell.

And the Daphne dress from JCrew. It’s $198.

And I do really like this GenMarie dress with Jennifer Paganelli’s Flower Power fabric line. I love Flower Power and was looking forward to it being released. Not that I’ve bought any yet.

Ok, so there’s my fantasy shopping trip. Is anyone else scaling back for Easter?

Oh, I think I might need this:

MAC Cosmetics has a HELLO KITTY LINE!!!! AHHHHH the CUTENESS!!!

And I love the design on the lipstick base. At any given time I have around 10 MAC lipsticks rattling around in my purse and I hate having to pick up each one and read the bottom to find the one I want, since the packaging is normally all black.

They have accessories too!! Too bad I already have a skunk brush, otherwise I’d really want this brush set:

Has anyone been by a MAC counter to check this line out? I bet it will sell out fast.

Especially on this blog, hehe. Remember my post about not buying every cute Target shirt I see for Daphne? I suck. My first trip to Target after that post resulted in the following top for Daphne:

But, but.. I can’t be expected to pass up such a cute 80’s inspired top. It’s actually just the black and gray sleeveless top, I layered it over one of her Hanna Andersson t-shirts today. It’s warm here, but not sleeveless top warm, you know. And you can’t see her shoes in the picture, but they are one of my favorite pairs. Black and silver t-strap Pedipeds. So cute.

And my first Matilda Jane order will be here Tuesday. Family, this is what happens when you give me money for Christmas. I either buy stuff for Daphne or get random things like dishwasher soap. It’s no fun to shop for me.

You might not have heard about the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, which will go into effect on February 10, 2009. The new safety measures for children’s products may put thousands of Etsy sellers, children’s customs clothes makers and other handcrafters out of business, unless they are able to complete the required product safety testing. So, do I need to go on a massive Etsy shopping spree for Daphne, because I really want to get her a few cool hats, more hair bows and this dress from Rocker Baby:

OK, I’m all for product safety. But the idea of not being able to support independent artists and crafters because they can not afford expensive testing breaks my heart. Surely there must be a solution.

I can’t believe Land of Nod is charging $89 for a cardboard playhouse. Seriously people, just go to the grocery store or Lowe’s and get a big box, some markers and a box cutter and go to town.

Mom and I had a good time at the Nutcracker Market on Saturday. After 2 1/2 hours we had only made it through maybe 25% of the booths. I didn’t buy much, in fact I only spent $25 on a hat and 5 hair bows for Daphne. And then I spent another $20 on a mimosa (for brunch, I guess) and a baked potato and Diet Coke for lunch. $4 for a 20 oz. Diet Coke. Don’t you just hate how they screw you over on concessions?

The place was packed!!! And honestly I didn’t see much I was interested in, with the exception of this charm from Waxing Poetic.

I have all my mom’s old sealing wax and seals (from her high school days?), so these charms remind me of them. In case you didn’t know, I’m a necklace person. I pretty much wear necklaces all the time and the more unusual or interesting, the better. Maybe I’ll put this charm on my wish list for Valentine’s Day or something.

While I’m on the topic of my wish lists, I’ve added another item: a commissioned watercolor portrait from Sitting Pretty Studios. How awesome would it be to have a watercolor portrait of Daphne as a toddler? I’d LOVE it and it would be something I’d hold onto forever. Grosgrain is giving away a 9.5″x11.5″ custom portrait. Unfortunately, I never win anything. Ok, I take that back. Once at a women’s retreat they were giving away door prizes and I happened to be sitting near the front and had to draw the names. I drew my own name. Then I felt like a big cheater. Then the woman handing out the door prizes made a joke about it. I mean, like I orchestrated my own win or something. Please.