Play with your food!

How cute are these guys?! Whomever said you shouldn't play with your food clearly never played with Food Face. Birthday gifts? Christmas presents? yes please! Available online here.

Experience Anita Kaushal

from the publisher:



'Kaushal, herself one of seven children, embraces the modern concept that children are a natural part of our lives, neither inconvenient beings nor precious centers of the universe, and so The Family at Home, focuses on the needs of both parent and child. For example, a library trolley adds whimsy to a volume-lined living room and displays books within a child’s grasp; oversized pillows that look tidy both on the floor and on a couch make for inviting family time and easy cleanup; cubbyholes that double as a secret reading space and room divider create a shared bedroom; and axe-hewn teak benches contrast warmly with the surfaces of a sleek kitchen. The unique spaces in this book have the hallmark of a home anyone would want to return to: they are livable, flexible, and, above all, brimming with individual style.


The book’s four chapters echo the rhythms of family life and consider how each space lends itself to dual use, depending on whether children are present:


• Live shows how to adapt living areas to the needs of children and adults.


• Share offers ideas for making the kitchen and dining areas flow impeccably for cooking, eating, and celebrating with family and friends.


• Nest is devoted to making bedrooms and bathrooms calm retreats.


• Bare focuses on light and air, gardening, nature, and caring for the planet.'



The cool, clever world of kid-inspired decor
by Claire Whitcomb/Universal Press Syndicate

If you don't have kids, get some. Fast. Because the patter of little feet is the coolest decorating accessory in town.
It isn't just that kids, jumping on snappily designed sofas, signal you care more about life than style. Dogs can convey that same message and often do.
It's that kids inspire clever design: a mod table, a graphic rug, a fairy-tale bed.
From map-of-the-world wallpaper to school-locker storage, from modern-art mobiles to small-scale Bertoia wire chairs, contemporary kids seem to come equipped with possessions that grown-ups adore.
Not only that -- kids motivate architects to design great things: a fireman-style pole that provides a quick transition from upstairs to down, a slide that runs alongside a stairway, room dividers with elliptical cutouts so little ones can nest and play.
These are just some of the kid-friendly inspirations showcased in "The Family at Home: Love, Life, Style," a new book by Anita Kaushal (Clarkson Potter, $45).
Kaushal has her ducks -- or, should we say, teddy bears -- in a row. She understands that "the true enjoyment of a home" is as dependent on "the things that we do there -- sleeping, eating together, conversing, sharing books and, yes, even watching television -- as it is about what we put into it."
Thankfully, she offers strategies for dealing with exactly what we put into our homes. She shows that toys can be artfully contained in bowls, baskets and oversized glass jars. And kids' clutter can be tucked into drawers beneath window seats or whisked out of sight behind a beautiful folding screen.

In "The Family at Home," there are no velvet ropes. Kids are welcome to wander, frolic and participate in all that a house offers, even cooking.

The latter task doesn't have to be real. Children will happily stir pots on a play stove set next to Mommy and Daddy's gourmet version. And they'll let you get dinner on the table if they have a play cupboard filled with grown-up things: a pot to bang with a wooden spoon, plastic containers to make towers, and a bowl to fill with soapy water.

"These timeless playthings will not only improve your child's development," Kaushal says, "but fewer toys also make for better concentration."

Timelessness is a theme in "The Family at Home." In the living room, the "toys" are piles of pillows that give kids a place to nest and make forts. In the kitchen, old country tables provide a childproof place to make a mess.

And in the nursery an Eames-era rocking chair substitutes for the nursing glider that tends to be discarded after toddlerhood.

As for the art on the walls, family pictures add drama, especially in long hallways. To give them a unified look, Kaushal suggests reprinting them in sepia or black and white and hanging them two inches apart in standard black frames with white mats.

What if there's one picture you absolutely love? Blow it up to poster size and let it make a statement either in a child's room or in a living room.

If you're thinking of commissioning a portrait that captures the magic of childhood, Kaushal suggests having an artist paint a child's favorite toy or stuffed animal. Kids will love having this keepsake long after their prized possession has been battered or forgotten.

As for some of the best art in the house -- that created by your kids -- hang up as much as you can. "Children who are encouraged when they think creatively will build confidence in their own ideas and sense of self," Kaushal says.

If space necessitates selectivity, pick a theme for the art you hang -- kids' portraits of themselves, paintings of your house or images of the family dog. Or mount a rotating exhibit. When kids come home with a new favorite painting, take the old art out of the frame and substitute the new.

Reading "The Family at Home" will help you lead a fun, tasteful life, but it will not protect you from pink plastic ponies, battery-operated action figures and the invasion of the tacky. Kaushal advises tolerance.

"You may find it hard to live with, but children do like tacky things," she says, "and once upon a time, so did you. Ask your mum."

I love these cute little carseat covers! Believe it or not, I only have a year or so left of carseat time before all of mine will be in booster seats! As much as that boggles my mind and weirds me out, I still love all the cool, hip baby stuff and am so thankful that God saw fit to put me with a group of friends with new borns, hopefuls, and big bellies :). These carseat covers are definateley something I would invest in if I could go back and do it all over. We ruined some carseats and spent some unnecessary money because of spills, tears, and technical difficulties. So, for aprox. $40, I could have saved a few hundred. Plus, they are adorable. Check out these cuties:

New Baby Clothing Line: Carter2Campbell

A friend of mine has just opened her line of baby clothing: Carter2Campbell

We Play Hard

We sleep wherever, however

Touch the Earth

Hugs and KISSES to you

Make a Smilebox greeting

Grandmothers

Grandmothers.

I have mentioned before, several times, that I love the smell of freshly bathed and lotioned babies, but I swear it never makes the same impact as when they have been bathed by the love of their wonderful grandmothers. Granna uses a great lotion and always warms them up with the blow dryer after they get out of the tub. The result is a baby smell that is just simply magical. Arni uses another kind of amazing smelling baby lotion, but combined with the smell of her freshly laundered (usually footed) pajamas, the smell of babies home from Arni's after bathtime is a smell that will stay with me forever.
There is no doubt that every grandmotherly ritual my children experience comes from a place of the most beautiful love, and I am so blessed to say that my children could not have done better in that department. They will forever know that they were always loved deeply and sacrificially by their grandmothers.

Sue Crow Originals

Blake's aunt, Sue Crow, in Evansville, Indiana happens to be a genius knitter and quilter. She has made us some wonderful garments for the boys. We deeply appreciate all her amazing talents. Here are some samples I have pictures of so far:




This is a very special one that Sue made 30 years ago for Blake when he was a baby. Now our youngest baby is wearing it.



More to come later...

Santa Came! Santa Came!

On the 12th Day...

Blake was finally off of work, and we actually just had a relaxing day at home. I burned CDs that were my Christmas gift to Elijah, Blake piddled around the house and played with the boys. Then that evening we went to Nana's and Papa's house for our traditional Christmas Eve dinner: bolied shrimp, sandwhiches and desserts galore, Nana's congealed salad and Christmas punch. This year was a little differnt. Usually, the entire family shows up and we open gifts, but this year, with Nana and Papa (especially) in bad health, we just focused on each other. It was a close, sweet evening, the same one I have been celebrating all 28 years of my life, but somehow this year was different. Maybe it will be the last, I don't know, but if so, it was a joy, and I will always remember how precious the time with Nana and Papa has always been.


Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the House

Not one creature stirred that night, not even Reagie Dog.
The cookies and milk were set with delight

The stockings were there, hung just right

Will Santa Claus come, the wondering hearts thought

we shall see in the morning just what he brought...