Today I took the safety latches off my cupboards.  I think it's officially the end of the baby era at our house.  We've gotten rid of pretty much all of the baby gear; there's not a stroller, high chair, or bouncy seat to be found.    This led me to think about the baby gear that we could have lived without (diaper genie!) and those things that I liked so much that they're still in use today - even as my children are now in elementary school.  So here's a roundup of the baby gear that still works for big kids!

1.      For easy perusal of the hi-jinks going on in the backseat!  A lot of these types of mirrors use suction cups but my suction cups never suck - so to speak.  This one clips onto the rear view mirror itself which means that you don't have to adjust the rear view mirrror to see into the back.  A quick glance into the lower mirror pointed at the kiddos will suffice and is so much safer.  I have one of these in each vehicle and while I may be done with most baby gear I don't see myself getting rid of my mirror anytime soon! 
2.   Everyone gets some of these little, soft terry washcloths at their baby shower.  And yes I used to use them to give my babies baths.  Gradually these little washcloths made their way into my kitchen towel drawer and that's where they've stayed.  They're perfect for washing little faces and hands before, during and after dinner.  Much softer than a paper towel and less icky than using the kitchen dish cloth!   When they're stained enough they get put in the cleaning rags and I buy another set for face use!
3. Perfectly sized for feeding baby cereal, right?  But they're also pretty great for getting into the corners of pudding cups and they coordinate pretty well with those colorful plastic bowls that we have from Ikea.  Somehow, a small spoon just works better for some things.   And they're cheap enough that it's not too big a deal when they don't come home in the lunchbox.   The First Years Spoons (2.89 for 16). 
4. I love these little stackable bowls from Ikea.  They are perfect for little snacks, I have enough of them to dole out Goldfish crackers to the entire neighborhood,  and everyone gets they're own color.  The size really helps with portion control.  A couple of small scoops of ice cream in a bowl like this doesn't look so skimpy.   Ikea has plates, cups and silverware that match but neither lasted at our house.  The plates are oval and didn't fit well into my cupboards.  The cups are a little top heavy and easily knocked over.   The silverware was thick and chunky and not as useful as the little First Years spoons that I like.  But the bowls are perfect and will probably still be around into the teenage years.
5. Dishwasher baskets are sold in the baby aisle with the thought being that you can use them to wash baby bottle pieces.  Well the bottle years are far behind us and I still use my basket every day.   Anything small and light that would fly around the dishwasher goes in there.  Things like small plastic lids to bowls, coffee cup lids, tea strainers, etc.   I've gotten a lot of mileage out of my basket and don't know that I'd ever have a dishwasher without one.

I have a new default icon and I even made it myself!  I'm even wondering if I could put a banner together.  Hmmmm.....  Feel free to snag if you'd like a Portmeirion Botanic Garden dishes icon.  Please credit if you do!

"Mom!  The banana bread has cooled down.  Can I have some?"

"No!  Don't touch until I can get a picture!"

"What do you need a picture for?"

"My blog."

Fifteen minutes later.

"Mom!  Can we have the banana bread now?"

"Just wait.  I have to get a picture!"

"Mom!!!"




ETA:  It was really good!  I don't know if it was the super ripe bananas or using the greek yogurt instead of sour cream, (of course the chocolate chips didn't hurt!) but it was super yummy and moist and didn't last long.  I polished the last piece off for breakfast and was sad to see it go.

If you were to see me with something in my hand it wouldn't be a cell phone.  No I habitually carry around an iced tea cup.  It is truly my drink of choice and an addiction I have to admit to.  Though for a while now, I've worried and fretted about the amount of waste that I create buying all of these iced teas.   (Average of 3 per week x 52 weeks per year x rest of my life = bad!)  I've always been on the look out for the perfect reuseable iced tea cup but haven't really found the right thing.  I like the shape of the plastic cups (they fit into my cup holder well, I like the straw to stir up my one packet of sugar on the bottom, etc.  So I snatched up this when I found it!



It looks like your regular plastic cup, but it's an insulated plastic cup with a screw on lid (really like that feature!) and a hard plastic straw.  I was able to get a grande (that 16 oz. for you non Starbucks speakers) though I usually buy a venti (translated = 20 oz.) but am a pretty happy camper!  I won't even blink an eye using it at Dunn Bros.  They can order some and I'd be happy to buy one of theirs too!  The insulated part is going to keep it from dripping all over my car and I think it kept the ice from melting so quickly.

Apparantly these were (are?)  hard to find - I saw a larger sized one that went for $60 on eBay!   I got mine at the Target/Starbucks.  I might stop by a regular Starbucks and see if they have the larger size.  This was a product made just for me!

Easter was a gorgeous Spring day. We had our annual Easter Pizza (spinach, tomato & ricotta) and the only fancy desert I created was to use my new mini Bundt pan that I picked up at the Goodwill. I was going to sell it but the kids really liked these little cakes so I think I'll hang on to it.



We all played Sequence which my MIL & SIL greatly enjoyed. And we hiked over to the park across the road where a couple of days before the giant mud puddle had swallowed my youngest son's Croc. I'd been digging and digging through that pile of mud with the hoe but couldn't find it. We all tromped over to examine the problem and at the last moment Paul was able to find it out if the middle of the puddle. Croc saved!

April is National Poetry Month. I've seen some other journals that have posted a poem a day and I've enjoyed them immensely though I'm not going to do that. I did create an endcap display & poster at the library. Hope the other librarians keep it filled and that someone checks my books out.

I have a much greater appreciation for poetry as an adult than I did when I was younger. I listened to the Teaching Company's How to Read and Understand Poetry course a while back. I think that I only understand poetry a little bit better but I enjoyed listening to many poems and poets that I wasn't aware of.

So I can't resist one little poem in my journal. I think that this simple poem is my favorite.

This Is Just To Say by William Carlos Williams

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

I've been slowly trying to make my house more attractive. Cleaning helps a lot but I've also been trying to declutter and do the "use what you have" method of decorating. Which means looking at what I have and maybe moving some things around.

Right now my dining room pleases me greatly.



I bought runuculas for the table and love the bright color.  I moved some of my Portmeirion out of my bedroom and now have two large vases and the ginger jar all together.  I removed a teapot in a different pattern and am very happy with the effect.  It's all Botanic Garden now except for the tiles along the bottom.  Eventually I'd like the tiles to go up on the wall.

I got this from my sister over at Tea with Honey. Persuasion is one of the few movies I own. I love Amanda Root & Ciaran Hines.

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