I love Orla Kiely (especially the purses) and now it’s at Target — for housewares and kitchen items! I haven’t seen it in person. But it looks so fun — Must. Go. Soon.

The compilation picture below is from Apartment Therapy: 

Posted under Mom Gifts

Great Backyard Bird Count

As part of our version of the Happiness Project, we are trying to continue to “learn”  – anything we can.  I love it when I learn about new things to do in my town! 

I recently found the STL Free for All site written by a mom/journalist in St Louis.  It has really useful information on free or almost free activities to enjoy with your kids.  I love the Great Backyard Bird Count she featured this week — I may for the first time actually count birds.   

Amy seems to have a great grasp of what is going on in the city and what would actually be fun –anyone up for the The Cat in the Hat this week at Pottery Barn Kids ?

Posted under Learning

You have to check out this site — from Everyone.   It is the first site I have seen that helps you with the tedious task of buying a group gift.  The gifts they offer are gift cards from national retailers.  But, the best part is how easy the process is: First, you select a gift card from the popular brand-name stores. Next, you gather addresses and emails and invite contributors via the site’s email form.  Finally, you activate your group gift by making the initial contribution and you’re done. Then, on the designated day, after everyone has had time to donate, the gift is on its way. 

Posted under Friend Gifts

As part of our version of the Happiness Project, we are trying to continue to “learn”  – anything we can. 

This article was written 2 years ago as I tried to learn to cook (or simply feed my child).   I still love the cookbook as a wonderful resource, and I am better at cooking and am still trying, but I have learned that it will never be my strength.  Tonight is pizza night. 

Ok, so I will never be able to call myself a chef, but I am trying to teach myself to cook.  Before my son was born almost 4 years ago, my diet consisted of Wendy’s burgers, ham and cheese sandwiches and the “special occasion dish” of chicken and rice.  I honestly had members of my family that expressed concern that my child would starve.  They had good reason to worry — I was worried as well.  But, my child is thriving, eats more than I do on most days, and we only have chicken and rice about once every 6 months.  

I am still working on this cooking thing — it is definitely trial and error, with lots of error.  But, I enjoy it and definitely feel a sense of accomplishment when, like last night, my little boy rubs his tummy and says yummm and my husband says, ”this was good” (this is the extent of his praise for food as he would just as soon have cereal as anything but eats my food to set a good example.)  

The biggest revelation for me was The Moms’ Guide to Meal Makeovers cookbook.   What I needed most before I could even begin to cook, was a makeover of my pantry and refrigerator. I had no idea what was considered healthy, what was deadly, and what was somewhere in between.  Everytime I started to cook something, I had about 1 out of the 10 ingredients required (usually the chicken).  This book really helped me understand what to put in my cabinets and fridge and now I am ready for anything (well, not really, but I am trying to be positive. ) I still have nights where everything ends up in the trash instead of on the table, but at least I’m trying, right?

Posted under Happiness Project, Learning, Random Thoughts

As the mother of an only child, I am very interested in any articles regarding only children.  The article, “What’s Wrong With Having One Child?” which ran in the New York Times recently, was especially interesting to me, as it discusses  the author’s decision, so far, to have only one child.  Here’s an excerpt: 

“As much as my husband and I have talked endlessly about the reasons why we think having one is best, this is a ridiculously difficult and emotionally charged decision, and I obsess about it all the time. I hear a friend talk warmly about visiting her sister and I immediately think about how nice it would be for my daughter to experience that warmth when she is older. I see my daughter play with a little baby at the park and my eyes almost tear up as I daydream about her playing with her own sibling. I go through the good-things-about-having-siblings checklist in my mind, and come out convinced that yes, we should definitely have another.

And then I remember all the reasons why we think we may just want one. Some of them I hesitate to share here, but most have to do with worrying about maintaining our sanity, our relationship with each other and our daughter and having any time for horribly selfish things like our non-family and non-work interests.” 

What do you think?

Posted under Random Thoughts

On Wednesdays, we hope to write about “giving to others”  or “giving back” as part of our Happiness Project.

Check out the new “I’m Tired of  . .” bracelets to support your favorite cause.   Whether you are tired of cancer, global warming, AIDs or any other world issue, you can declare it with these bracelets.  They are much more stylish than the silicone bracelets everyone wears, and they are environmentally friendly as they are made from recycled tires (get it — I’m “tired” of . . ) and metals. 

For every $10 bracelet sold, the company donates $5 (that’s half) to important causes. “You pick the cause and your bracelet and the donation will automatically be made on your behalf.” These are also a simple gift idea that looks great and can be worn by men, women and teens.

Posted under Charities, Giving to Others

On Tuesdays, we will write about “play” and how adults and children alike can have this in their lives.

I came across this and other pictures of Christopher Niemann’s New York-inspired lego creations today and just love them (click on the link to see more).  I will show these to my son when he gets home from school and see if we can play. 

Christopher Niemann also has a new children’s book that looks great — The Pet Dragon — A Story about Adventure, Friendship and a Chinese Characters !  What a fun gift book this would be.  

Posted under Books, Happiness Project, Kid Gifts, Play

On Mondays, we will write about the importance of “connection” in our lives and how we can establish and keep connections.

It was reported last month that 4 prominent men in the political field connect with each other daily on a morning phone call: George Stephanopolous, James Carville, Paul Begala and White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanual.  They are good friends and have done this for years.  While many conservative bloggers and commentators have derided these conversations as inappropriate “strategy sessions”, I am not interested in that aspect of the story.  

I am fascinated however by the fact that these friends talk virtually every day.  As I write often about the importance of connection, I was struck by how these men value their connection with each other.  To touch base with others who understand you and your circumstances and don’t just think they know you is critical to a sense of well being (happiness even ?).  This is why it seems that it was so important for President Obama to keep his Blackberry — to stay connected to those who knew him  before he was President and to maintain some form of normalcy.    

I think these stories are good reminders of the importance of connection.  I have always had a good relationship with my sister and after I moved to a different city from her 6 years ago (I am still not forgiven for this), the importance of staying connected took on new meaning for us.  She was a true lifeline for me as I was trying to figure out what to do with a newborn baby.  It wasn’t that she had the answers (she didn’t), but she knew me before I had my son and gave me the connection I needed to talk about fashion, entertainment, or just nothing. I used to call her everyday.  

As we have both changed and she has also had children (twins!), our time commitments have sometimes made our phone calls take a back seat to other things. This last month, I think we went almost two weeks without talking.  I was feeling disconnected and simply missing her.  After seeing the story about the Chief of Staff connecting every day with his friends, I decided surely my sister and I could connect more often.  So, we have reinstituted the “daily call.”  We’ll see how long it lasts, but just knowing we will try makes me happy.

Posted under Connecting, Happiness Project