Camper

Sliced Bread: Daily Digit

Since part of my job entails policy analysis and awareness on the state level, Governing magazine's website is a frequent stop on my web-browsing tour.  They have a fun feature called "Daily Digit" wherein they share a number and it's significance.  If you've ever read Harper's then it's much like their fun monthly index.

All of the numbers are guaranteed to make you go Hmmmmm - many will totally blow your socks off.  Here are just a few to get you hooked like I am:

• 13 million: Estimated number of sandbags distributed in flood ravaged Illinois, Iowa and Missouri
• More than 2700: Number of marriages performed in California on the first day of legalized same sex marriages (typical weekly state average: 2460)
• 1.7 billion pounds: Estimated amount of non-biodegradable cigarette butts that end up in the world's lakes and oceans each year
• $4.5 million: Total of unpaid sewer/water bills owed by the NYC Economic Development Corporation - 22 years worth.
• 25 million: Approximate number of medically under-insured adults in the US in 2007 - a 60% increase from 2003. 
• 33: Number of Texans who have served a total of 427 years in prison and were eventually cleared by DNA testing.

Sliced Bread: Shelfari

There is a theme to this Friday's posts . . . . books! Adam's sister and cousin introduced us to Shelfari this week and it is FABULOUS! It's an online community of readers where you can build your own bookshelf filled with stuff you've read or want to read. I've already added several titles to my future reading list that I have intended to read but keep forgetting. This will be the perfect way to remember!

The site is free and you can invite friends, start communities or join existing communities. I've joined the 50 Book Challenge community.  Whether or not I can manage to read 50 covers in one year with a wee one at home remains to be seen. But, I have long kept a list of books I read during the course of a year (a habit Adam loves to tease me about). This group does just that so it is perfect for me! Plus reading other people's lists has helped identify future possibilities.

If you like to read you'll love this site! Just be warned - you will lose a lot of time once you log-on as adding books to your shelf is addictive!

Sliced Bread: Gal Pal

Adam hates it when we have to get dressed up to go somewhere.  Even more than he hates the fact that he has to wear a tie, I think he most dreads me getting dressed.  More often than not if I have to get dolled up it ends badly - My head spinning around on the top of my body like it's about to pop off, the F-bombs dropping  at a record rate and Adam running for the hills wishing he'd married someone else.

We've all been there. We get the dress on and the shoes on and, if you're more proper than I, you get the stockings on.  Then you look in the full length mirror. In my case this can only happen after the 3-4 jackets/hoodies and the feather boa and the cat's tail (the latter two are left over from a Halloween costume, get your head out of the gutter) off the hooks on the back of my bedroom door so the mirror is actually visible.

There you are, looking in the mirror, ready to walk out the door and it's a good thing because you should have left 10 minutes ago when what do you see? White goop or brown goop streaking across your dress.  This is usually when the first and loudest F-bomb drops in our house.  At the sound of which Adam comes running to stand and gawk despite knowing from previous experiences that his life is in danger the closer he comes to the lion's den.  I guess it's like a traffic accident.

Well, apparently there is a magic solution to this problem that could mean the end of demon Krista days (well, at least the pre-dressy occasion demon Krista).  Gal Pal is a little pad designed to take off the deodorant or makeup that is marring your otherwise perfect ensemble.  How cool are these little things? I'm ordering some immediately and will report back personally on whether or not they work.  But the testimonials on the site make them sound even more wonderful than they first appear!

Sliced Bread: Stitches So Sweet

As you know, Campbell is being baptized this coming weekend.  Mom and I found the perfect white smocked dress a few weeks ago but it didn't have any bloomers . . . an aggravatingly too common problem! Why sell a dress without bloomers, people?! Nobody wants to put a pretty dress on their little girl to have Elmo or whatever cartoon creature is plastered on their diaper glaring out at you!

To solve my problem I went looking for some monogrammed bloomers and came upon Stitches So Sweet.  I ended up ordering two sets - one with a light pink monogram and one with a yellow, whimsical "C".  Jill at SSS did a fabulous job! Campbell actually wore the monogrammed one on Easter. (Again, people out there making baby clothes - dresses and bloomers should be a permanently matched set like a pair of shoes!)

Stitches also offers a whole host of products from hand towels to hooded towels to sheets and blankets. All of it looks adorable and I can testify to the quality work you will receive. Have a gander at the website . . . you'll have a hard time not finding something that would make the perfect gift even if you're not in the market for baby bloomers.

Sliced Bread: Kinderware Dolls (& More!)

My mother takes her job as chief spoiler for little Campbell very seriously! So yesterday Grannydots bought a new toy for the stash of Campbell play things kept at her house. I got a chance to see the little bear this morning when I dropped Camper off and it is too cute!

This adorable, colorful little "yoyo" doll is sold by Kinderware. They are each sewn by hand under fair trade regulations by artisans in Bolivia.  There are several different varieties of the "yoyo" dolls available - dogs, elephants, bears . . . . and they all come in small and large sizes.

There are also a couple of other varieties of doll available on the Kinderware website. I for one love the bunny dot doll.  I believe this may just have to end up in Campbell's first Easter basket!

In addition to fully assembled dolls, you can buy "yoyo' doll kits which would make a great craft project for older kids. The website also offers plate sets for kiddies, sweaters and ornaments.

    

It's worth a stop - there's so much adorable stuff to check out!

Sliced Bread: WOW Baby Baskets

It's been a while since I had a Sliced Bread post but this one is well worth the wait.  WOW Baby Baskets offers a great alternative to randomly selecting a few items from an online registry or grabbing a gift card. 

 

I just ordered one for a dear friend who recently moved to Georgia and can't wait to hear how she likes it and what she gets in hers.  WOW gave me a fabulous way to send a heartfelt and special gift welcoming baby Callahan despite the miles between us.  No relying on a generic gift card in a "Congratulations" Hallmark.  No worrying that a poorly packaged present will arrive broken.

You can pick your price tag and theme. Prices range from $40 to "Ultimate WOW." Themes range from bath time to meal time to play time and bed time. Plus, there is a sibling gift option which was perfect for me, too.  Now Carson gets a new craft pack to celebrate Callahan's arrival.  A simple reminder that she is important, too.

I only wish I had more friends expecting babies right now.  If only I'd found this site last year when everyone I knew was pregnant!

Sliced Bread: Glassbooth Election 2008

I stumbled across another candidate selection quiz online this morning.  This one is unique in that it is more than just a series of questions.  Half of the quiz allows you pick and weight what issues are most important to you.  It's a short quiz but the one I've found most useful so far.  Glassbooth then shows your top three candidates, what percentage of issues on which you agree with said candidates and what issues you most strongly agreed on.

My results, interestingly, show just how close the three Democratic candidates are on the issues.  Obama was my top candidate with 78%.  He nudged out Edwards, also 78%, because Obama and I prioritize our issues more closely.  Clinton was third at 76%.  Clearly, not much difference between the candidates.

So, if you have 3 minutes - take the quiz and see how your candidates compaire.

Sliced Bread: The Invention of Hugo Cabret

I actually stumbled across this book on Design Mom.  Adam and I have both read it in the week since he picked it up for us.  I already can't wait to be able to read it with Campbell - though it will be a few years.

But this is a fabulous book about a little boy engaged in a mystery surrounding his dad's death and a strange invention he was working on.  The story is fun but the beauty of the book literally comes from the magnificent pictures.  Brian Selznick's art is amazing!

This is actually a sample from an interview I found and is a picture that didn't make it into the book.  So, if this got cut you can imagine how breathtaking the drawings in the book are. 

The coolest picture book I've ever seen!

Sliced Bread: Juno

I know what you're thinking - Wait a minute, these sliced bread thingies are supposed to be products that I can buy and play with and secretly horde from my loved ones . . . Well, you'll have to pay to go see Juno so technically it's still a consumer good and I'm guessing you will be very tempted to buy the DVD when it comes out later in the year so . . .

Juno is fabulous! Adam and I went last night.  We literally started laughing and didn't stop until the end credits.  It's a set of magical performances from an amazing ensemble of cast members.  Only Jennifer Garner with her larger than life dimples could play an uptight yuppie that you still loved.  Allison Janney, of course, is an old friend from West Wing.  She is hilarious as Juno's dog-obsessed step-mother. And Ellen Page is delightful as Juno.

The dialogue is snappy and the wise cracks ingenious.  You will find yourself incorporating catchy phrases in your speech as soon as the lights come up.  If this movie doesn't win every award it's nominated for I'm going to be pissed!

Oh, and in the spirit of sliced bread consumerism . . . the soundtrack is also wonderful! I am downloading it on Itunes as I type.  There wasn't a tune in the movie I didn't like.

All the way around Juno was one of the best movie going experiences I've had in years.  If ever there has been a MUST see this is it!

First Christmas in the Books

Campbell's first Christmas is in the books and it was a success.  Santa brought her an exersaucer - it was a HUGE hit.  She has this funny little thing she does where she opens her mouth as wide as it will go, cranes her neck, stretches her arms out and tenses every muscle in her body - it's her excited pose.  We saw a lot of that today - photographic evidence follows.

Grannydots and Grandpa did their fair bit of spoiling - jammers and dresses and books and toys.  My favorite new toy of Campbell's is a fabulous hand-knit Blabla doll we have named Georgia. I was not familiar with this line until today but looked them up and their site is full of fabulous toys and cloths and backpacks, etc.

Today we head down to South Carolina to meet up with Adam's family.  So Camper will get a few more gifts from Ganny and Popper I am sure. I almost cried when I had to pull the suitcase out again - I must admit.  I feel like I've been living out of that thing lately.  But the holidays are about family so we might as well finish the year up on the road again! Until the next time we check in - I leave you with another shot of Campbell's "this is the best gift in the world" boogie.