And this is all we need

Since we cut our family income in half almost exactly a year ago when my paid maternity leave ended, we have re-assessed a lot of the solutions we were using for convenience.

Though I love Amazon Fresh grocery delivery with all my heart and soul, we couldn't justify the higher prices and $75 minimum order, so I stopped using it. For the items we buy regularly it was cheaper for me to go to Whole Foods (!). Given that our "regular" grocery store is Trader Joe's, which is a lot less expensive than either of those options, I went back to traditional grocery shopping.

The other thing we gave up was our weekly yard service. We hate doing yard work, and our yard had never looked better, but at $50/week it was definitely not a necessity.

We dropped our Costco membership - every time we went to the store we'd spend $200 in stuff we weren't intending to buy, just because it was there and a great deal.  See ya!

Ditto the weekly organic vegetable CSA-type box from various places. I was never great at staying on top of it (how healthy we'd be if I was!) and it was more than I'd spend on just the things I know we'd eat, even at Whole Foods, so we dropped it.

But the one thing I haven't quit is our Amazon subscription orders for various household items.  For many items, like non-perishable foods, cleaning products, personal care stuff, and dog food (yay!), Amazon has a special "Subscribe and Save" option that allows you to get that item regularly.  You choose the interval from 1 to 6 months, and you can "skip" months, or postpone deliveries if you don't need it right away. If you have 5 or more items arriving each month, you get 20% off on the whole thing, and that's where the magic happens.

When you don't get the 20%, the subscription is probably slightly more expensive than buying the equivalent item at Target. But for the convenience it can't be beat, especially for things like a 30lb bag of dog food - shlepping that and a 25lb baby to the car at the same time is physically impossible for me.  And now that I've figured out what we need on a regular basis, I've got 5 items every month, so I always get the 20%, which makes it slightly less expensive (and that doesn't even count the gas and time needed to go to the specialty pet store, Target, and the grocery store). 

Amazon has changed the program over time - you no longer get to "lock in" the price at which you subscribed, so I've noticed some things rising in price over time and have had to cancel a few when they got too expensive.  They moved to shipping all subscription items together on the same day each month and I can't adjust that if I need something sooner. You also don't get Prime 2-day shipping on the items, so it can take a week for them to arrive (but they are excellent about getting here before the day Amazon tells me they should arrive).

For the first few months, I had to log in mid-month and adjust things as I figured out how we used them, but now that I've been doing this for a year, most of the "regulars" are set up perfectly.  

Here's a quick list of the things I have on subscription:

• Soy milk - 8 64oz shelf-stable cartons. Only a few dollars more (total) than Trader Joe's and they show up at my door. We go through more than this in one month, but it's a good start.
• Wellness "Old Dog" food - this can only be found locally in specialty stores, for almost $20 more than we pay on Amazon. Plus the bag is HEAVY.
• Organic Applesauce Cups - I use these for T's lunches and quick snacks. Shelf-stable and hard to find locally.
• Peter Rabbit Organics "Squeezy Fruit" - hard to find locally and much cheaper than individual packs at Whole Foods
• Larabars - both girls love these, and the price is comparable to Trader Joe's individual price
• Cetaphil Restoraderm Body Wash - the only thing that works on T's eczema. Not always available locally.
• Toilet paper - I hate running out of paper products so we buy the big box.
• Paper towels - Ditto
• Huggies Overnight Diapers - comparable price to Target which doesn't always have them
• All Free & Clear Laundry "Pods" - can't find these locally

I'm not a personal finance expert, so I won't claim this is some fantastic money saving trick, but it does help me avoid extra trips to Target, affectionately known as the "$50 store". In addition, we rarely run out of the essentials like toilet paper, overnight diapers, or our favorite kid snacks, so there aren't as many "emergency runs" to the grocery store.  Did I mention I dislike grocery shopping?

If we ever have to go into financial lockdown, I'll re-evaluate whether we need all of these things, but for now it works really well for us to have them just show up at various intervals.  If you're on the fence about setting up a subscription, I'd recommend trying it.  You can cancel items anytime before they ship and adjust the timing as needed. I love it, especially since we don't have any kind of "warehouse club" membership.

And yes, I do have Amazon ads on my blog, but I wrote this post spontaneously. I love me some Amazon shopping.

Five Year Journal - The Easy Way

**I like to consolidate all my writing here. This originally appeared on my blog at The Papercraft Lab a few months ago.

I get lost in the Internet sometimes, clicking around to different blogs, reading papercrafting message boards, browsing Etsy shops.  A few weeks ago, I found a really neat DIY project - making a five year journal.  Each day of the year has a page, and you write 1-2 lines on it for each of 5 years.  After the first year, you can look back at what you did that same day the previous year. Very cool, right? As expected for women in my demographic, I pinned it to my "someday" list of projects.

Right now, I'm trying to get my business off the ground. I'm also home with 2 little kids all day, since preschool is not yet back in session. We're currently in the middle of a home addition project, which means we need to find space in our house to move things out of the construction zone - aka massive decluttering. I don't NEED another project right now, no matter how cool it is. 

As is the Way of the Internet, I got another nudge to do this by Laura Vanderkam, one of my favorite nonfiction authors. She talks about keeping a short file of "awesome things" as a sort of quick journal.

The final push was via email from a close friend. She sent me a DesignSponge post about making (guess what?) a five year journal. Hah. Clearly the universe is telling me I need to do this now.

It's something that appeals to me a lot. I have a daily planner where I've been jotting down daily memories to include in our family's Project Life scrapbook, which details our day-to-day lives.  (more on that in another post!)  But when the year is over, I'm not sure I want to keep this planner around.  

So I finally gave up the idea of *making* a five year journal, because I don't have time for that right now. I went to Amazon and ordered one.  I had several options, and chose the robins-egg-blue one from Chronicle books, thanks to its hardcover and elegant gold lettering and pages. 

I started writing in it back in August. Sometimes you just have to choose the solution that works best now and gets those memories on paper, instead of the pie-in-the-sky DIY project, no matter how cool it sounds.

Tuesday Lovin': Fiskars ProCision Paper Cutter

Like the ubiquitous printer question, another one you'll see often on papercrafting forums is "what paper trimmer do you use?"

First, let me back up and say that before I got into paper crafts, I had no idea such a wondrous tool existed for cutting straight lines. I remembered the terrifying "guillotine"-style paper cutters in elementary school with the giant, heavy sharp blade, but didn't know there was a safer option that is an indispensable tool for scrapbookers and card makers.  My friend Jenn clued me in to this and I bought an inexpensive Fiskars Personal Trimmer with a replaceable sliding blade.

Cutting paper is hard on metal blades.  I found that my trusty trimmer would stop working well after a month or two and the edges would be jagged, it would stop cutting through photo paper, or cuts would start looking crooked even though I swore I had lined up the paper properly.  Switching the blade helped a bit, but didn't help the crooked cut aspect.

I got frustrated a lot so I started looking around to "trade up".  Some people raved (and ranted) about really expensive Genesis or Tonic brand trimmers that were hundreds of dollars.  I love me some tools, but just wasn't ready to invest that much in something I wasn't sure I'd love.

I found the Marvy Uchida Paper Trimming Buddy on Amazon and liked the idea that the blade was somewhat protected in the cartridge (not as dangerous for little fingers) and that the trimmer itself seemed more substantial than my small one, so it wouldn't slip around on the table.  I also LOVED that it had other blades to cut scallop edges, and score paper (but not cut through it).  So I took a chance on it thanks to the good reviews it had.

And it worked beautifully for a few months (don't they all!).  Then it started to cut jagged edges on my photos, so I tried to fix it by flipping over the rubber strip that the blade sits on.  No luck.  I tried a new blade, and still no luck.  Cuts were still crooked and uneven. Sigh.

People on the 2Peas message board were raving about the ProCision Trimmer, which has a "forever" blade, as in, NEVER needs to be replaced.  I looked it up and thought the $120 MSRP was more than I wanted to spend and just muddled along with my Marvy Uchida cutter and retrimmed ragged edges with scissors (grrrr).

While I was debating what to do next, Black Friday approached. All Fiskars tools were 60% off at Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft, and I got a coupon in the mail for an additional 25% off.  I couldn't get to the store fast enough. I snapped up that ProCision and paid less than $40 for it. (Seriously.)

It's huge and substantial, but not too heavy to move if I need space on my desk.  The cutting blade is anchored on a set of rails so it doesn't get squirrelly and move sideways unexpectedly.  When I'm cutting shorter lengths, I can leave it folded up so it takes up less space.

I've been using it a LOT since Thanksgiving and I LOVE it.  It can cut multiple sheets at once. The ruler lines are easy to see so I rarely have to measure and mark anything before cutting.  The blade is still sharp after 7 months of regular use. Fiskars products come with a lifetime warranty, which is pretty amazing.  Now that I've used it, I think it's well worth the MSRP to never have to buy new blades or deal with wonky cuts.  So it's even more of a bonus that there are good deals to be had on it.

There are just a few things I don't love about it.  The 6" mark is right where the unit folds, so it's hard to line up correctly. I believe there are workarounds for this on YouTube - I just haven't been annoyed enough to figure that out yet.

Sometimes, when sliding the blade away from me to cut, I get a slightly more ragged edge.  Nothing I need to re-trim, but it's just more "fuzzy" than cutting the other way.  I haven't figured out if that's just for a certain paper type, or if it's the way I'm pushing it.

My new craft space is small and this trimmer is big.  I need my trimmer to be handy most of the time, so I leave it out, but I'm always moving it to get the things stored behind it.  If I had the Craftroom of My Dreams, I'd have plenty of room to keep this thing unfolded on my desk.

But overall, I HIGHLY recommend it.  It's dreamy.  It might be my Forever Paper Trimmer.  And that's saying a lot.

(No one paid me to write this.  I just really, really LOVE this trimmer!)

And my heart's numbered beats

The title is from one of my favorite songs ever.  Super extra bonus points if you can guess it :)

One of the delightful things I've discovered in my craft supply addiction is "warehouse sales" or "warehouse boxes".  Paper manufacturers seem to do this once or twice a year to clear out stock before new lines are released.  In many cases they have an open sale at their warehouse, which doesn't help me because I don't think any of the companies I love are in Seattle.  BUT many of them sell "warehouse boxes" online - a grab box of goodies for one flat price.

I love, love, love the surprise element here.  Especially if I choose a manufacturer where I like most of their designs and products. Not to mention it's usually a screamin' deal per piece compared to retail prices.

Last week I ordered a box from Pink Paislee.  I actually wasn't very familiar with their recent products, except for the very excellent Portfolio line, but a quick search online gave me the impression that I'd like a lot of their stuff.  It was around $56 including shipping, and arrived in one of the USPS Medium Flat Rate boxes, packed full.

It was amazing!  In total, I got 34 items in the box, each with retail prices from $2.99 up to $28.  Nearly all of it was stuff I would use - there were just a few things that were a little too boho, floral, vintage, or cottage/shabby for my taste.  But the items were all from recent collections: City Sidewalks (Christmas), Christy Tomlinson, Luxe (yay!), Portfolio, Secret Crush (Valentine's), Artisan, and Heidi Swapp.

oh, my goodness, Pink Paislee.

The lot included a ton of paper - a 6x6 pack, two 8x8 packs, a 12x12 collection pack, and a stack of around 28 12x12 sheets from all of the collections. I also got a few mini albums, embellishments, stickers, rub-ons and masks for stenciling or misting.

The big surprise for me was discovering the Luxe line.  It is AMAZING.  Shiny, simple and geometric. I want all of it now, so maybe Pink Paislee will get me at retail price for the rest of the collection! The gold and silver paper pack is available with Amazon Prime, so I just 1-clicked it.  Woot.

I found someone who wanted a few of the things that were not my style so we arranged a trade, which means I'll get a few more items I can use.  I'm pretty excited about that, even if I'm not able to sell or trade the remaining few pieces that aren't my style.  (T can always use more crafting supplies, right?)

Here's a complete list of what I got in my box (be amazed, papercrafters!):

28 sheets of 12x12 papers from all collections

Secret Crush:
photograms frames
element stickers
photo frames
photo tabs

Luxe (swoon!):
12x12 paper pack in copper/black
2 packs of rub-ons
3 placemats/masks in gold and silver

City Sidewalks:
8x8 paper pack
paper garland
collage sheets

Artisan:
chipboard arrows
2 packs of mistable fabric trim
2 packs of puffy stickers
8x8 resist paper pack
canvas album covers
album tabs
photo corners
3d flowers
3d butterflies

Christy Tomlinson:
6x6 paper pack
2 masks
3 packs of rub-ons

Heidi Swapp:
3 wood mini albums (heart, star, scroll)

Hope Chest: (will be finding a new home for these)
burlap butterfly embellishments
journal cards

Cottage Farms: (will be finding a new home for these too)
photo frames
journal cards

This was definitely a great deal, and the anticipation of delivery and the fun of pulling tons of little things out of the box made my weekend even better.  I'd totally buy this again.

So, have you gotten one of these magic boxes?  From where?  Did you like it?

Isn't it lucky?

We had amazing weather this weekend - temperature in the high 60s (Fahrenheit!), bright sunshine and dry. It was just enough to remind me why we live here and put up with 9 months of grey.

TJ took T to a birthday party yesterday - her first one where we don't know the parents. It seems like a sort of milestone. She had a great time, of course. While they were gone, BabyM and I headed over to our local outdoor mall to walk and shop. I wanted to find some cute outfits for the girls to wear for our family photos next week.

Cute matching tutus from naartjie.com

I got lucky and found these gorgeous blue tutu skirts on sale at Naartjie. Oddly, the only one they had left, in size XXXL (9 years) fits T just fine.  It's a little long, but the waist fits just right. Crazy. And I was able to find one for BabyM as well. I'm a sucker for little girls in tutus.  But not the super short ones - I definitely prefer the ones that can be worn as skirts.

I like having coordinating outfits for family photo shoots - not totally matching, but I like the girls to match, and TJ and I will both wear black shirts and jeans. I found a nice black shirt at Eddie Bauer, so I can see the end of the nursing-wear tunnel, finally.  BabyM eats a lot less frequently than she used to, so I can try to wear some normal shirts again.



Awesome necklace from anntaylor.com

We passed the Ann Taylor store on the way back to the car, and an item in the window display stopped me in my tracks. It was a  bold sparkly necklace with round clear stones edged in aqua metal. Very retro cool. I had to have it. I walked into the store, ready to pay dearly for it, and was thrilled to find out it was "only" $58, but even better, IT WAS ON SALE. 30% off, baby.

So it's now mine, and will also make an appearance in our photo shoot. I'm excited because the aqua matches the cute shirt I bought for T, so we'll be matching too!

Today TJ made us waffles for breakfast, I had some crafting time, he took a motorcycle ride, the girls napped at the same time for a whole hour, and we had a picnic in the park with some good friends.

This weekend really felt like an unexpected gift. (Insert sigh of contentment here.)

And now a word from our sponsors

I occasionally get a request through BlogHer to write a sponsored post. I try to make it personal and relevant because you don't come here to read ad copy. Plus, I'm really not a marketing type.

But this post is about skincare, which I do have interest in. I had the typical icky skin as a teenager - thanks to hormones, I'd always get these HUGE ugly pimples at inopportune times. You know, the kind that makes a girl want to hide in her house for a week or two. A very nice dermatologist told me the arsenal of creams and scrubs I was using was doing me NO favors and pointed me to a very simple cleanser and instructed me to use a moisturizer with sunscreen in it.

Fortunately that craziness cleared up in my late 20s, and now I've got the opposite problem as I approach 40 - my skin leans towards dry now, especially in the winter. So I'm pretty careful and sparing about what I use on my skin. I don't wear much makeup, and not every day. I clean it off at night before bed. I remember to moisturize before bed (but I'm still not high maintenance!).

DDF is onto the ancient secrets
of Indian grandmothers

So far things look ok, probably because we don't get much sun here in Seattle, but I know as time goes on, I'll need to spend a little time on skincare if I want it to stay healthy. I haven't settled on a daily cleanser or moisturizer that I absolutely love, so I was pretty stoked to get the opportunity for this sponsored post.

DDF Skincare is offering a special coupon to try their products. Buy one, get the second half off, and free shipping on your order through Jan 31. Use code DDFSKIN when you checkout.

What's cool is that they have a very detailed online skin consultation on their site so you can get an idea of what you might need. You can also check out their products in person - our local Macy's and Sephora stores have them. Their site is easy to navigate, and even has an option to do a live consultation about your skin online.  How cool is that? I love technology.

Anyway, if you try it out, or have used DDF in the past, let me know what you think!

Christmas presents for a 3 year old

Since T doesn't read my blog (yet), I figured I'd share what we got her for Christmas.  I did this last year, too. I am pleased to say my shopping is 95% DONE.  Woot.

I read about someone else's family gift-giving tradition and loved it so we're trying it out this year.  

Each person gets four presents:

• Something they want
• Something they need
• Something to eat
• Something to read

This works nicely for TJ and me, because we're often at a loss for what to get each other. Most things we want, we just buy. This way TJ can also get some things for the girls on his own, since last year it was just me buying random things and signing them "Love, Mama and Daddy" (and also some from Peanut and Spike). 

However, I do love to shop, so T is going to end up with more than four gifts.  A lot of them are little things, because she got (and uses) the big stuff already - Kettler tricycle, play kitchen, Balance Bike.

Here's what she's getting this year:

Pure Fun Trampoline - T's friend E has a similar one at her house and T enjoyed bouncing on it. It's compact and can be used indoors, which is great given our crappy weather. This is the "something she needs" because our girl will sit and read books or draw all day long. We need to gently nudge her to be more active.

Hello Kitty Science Class - I know, this is totally girly and pink, which I usually hate. But T LOVES Hello Kitty. And the fact that it's a science class play set makes me feel marginally better about it. Incidentally, they had it at Kohl's for twice the price on Amazon. Not sure what that's all about. Thanks to my trusty smartphone, I ordered it on Amazon while standing in Kohl's trying to understand why it was $17. Definitely in the "something she wants" category, as is everything with Hello Kitty on it.

This super cute beaded necklace from J. Crew's kids' line. The color is called "neon azalea" and it matches her glasses exactly. I probably could have made something similar, but didn't have time to track down beads and ribbon in these exact colors.  I'm not crazy about expensive jewelry on little kids, but this is plastic and ribbon and the price was right. And I know T will *love* it. It also comes in a nice shiny silver box.

Hello Kitty Pez dispenser.  T saw one of these at a craft store and thought it was the coolest thing ever. She has a MAJOR sweet tooth and sadly, has a couple of cavities already, so we restrict sugar as much as we can. But it's Christmas, and this fills in the 'something to eat' part.  Plus she'll dig the dispenser long after the candy is gone.  Just to balance it out, I'll also put a clementine in her stocking and ask her to eat that before she eats any candy. Because we're sneaky like that.

On the "something she needs" front, I bought her some clothes from the Gap and Old Navy. She's been growing like crazy and is now over 3 feet and close to 40 lbs. Size 3T is WAY too small, 4T fits just barely, so most things I buy for her now are size 5, which is big, but likely not for long. She really likes cats for some reason (probably because we don't have any, and did I mention Hello Kitty?!) so I figured this kitty with glasses T shirt would be a big hit.  I wish it wasn't pink (story of my life).


I saw this cute Kikkerland owl keychain at Target and grabbed him on impulse. T loves owls and anything little and cute that she can play "pretend" with. I expect he'll be a big hit, though TJ may do surgery on him to remove the hooting sound. (TJ has a tendency to operate on squeaky and noisy toys in this house because they disrupt his chi.)



For "something to read", the last two books in our Book Advent are new. For Christmas Eve, we'll be reading Olive the Other Reindeer.

What's not to love about a dog who thinks he's a reindeer? But the book I'm really excited about is the one for Christmas Day, called Me...Jane.  It's a book about Jane Goodall as a little girl. A librarian friend of mine told me that little kids don't quite "get" that Jane in the story grew up to be a famous scientist, but I'm cool with that.  Just the idea of a female character as a scientist-to-be in a kids' book rocks my world.

There's one more gift I'm excited about, but it's a joint gift for TJ and T together, so I can't write about it yet.

We didn't buy T a ton of stuff this year, nor did we buy her anything really expensive, and I'm ok with that. We noticed on her birthday that T gets overwhelmed by too many gifts. I'm sure that'll change as she gets older, but for now, we may space out some of the gifts and open some on Christmas Eve.

I'm curious to see how she'll react. She is starting to understand that she'll get presents at Christmas, but I don't think she has a sense of anticipation just yet. Maybe next year.

Happy Holidays to you, and hope your shopping is done, or close!

Dove Visible Care Creme Body Wash Review, Coupon and Contest

I'm a leisurely shower kind of girl. In fact, I like the shower as a place to think and work out things that are bothering me. It's too bad I'm not one of those people who does that while running - I'd be a lot thinner, for sure...

T, me, and BabyX'

When T was a newborn, aside from the lack of sleep, it was the lack of time to take a leisurely shower that was a hard adjustment to new mama-hood. Invariably, Miss Baby would start wailing for a feeding 5 minutes after I stepped in the shower. Not to mention all the times in the shower I'd hear phantom baby crying, jump out in a hurry, only to find her fast asleep still. Hormones will do that to you, I guess.

Now that we're long past that stage, and haven't embarked on it just yet with Baby X', I jumped at the chance to review a new premium body wash by Dove. I'm not a mass-market bar soap kind of girl. I don't wear perfume, so I like my bath products to smell good, and they also need to keep my dry skin moisturized.

I used to have a *thing* about buying bath products and I still have trouble resisting cute packaging and yummy scents. So when the box from BlogHer showed up, revealing a full size bottle of Dove Visible Care Renewing Creme Body Wash, I was pretty stoked to try it out. (There's something cool about getting free stuff delivered to my door!)

After using it for a week, my skin feels good. I'm huge and pregnant and getting lotion on my swollen legs and feet isn't as easy as it used to be. I can actually skip it and do just fine with this Dove body wash only, so thumbs up for that. The scent is a nice floral that's not overpowering, and I'm super picky about scents. The feel of the body wash is nice and creamy without being weirdly greasy. It rinses off easily and doesn't leave any residue on my skin. There are no parabens listed in the ingredients. I'm a fan.

Thanks to the BlogHer review program, you can get $1 off your next purchase via the coupon below *and* also register to win a $500 SpaFinder gift certificate.

That would be one heck of a spa day, for sure. I'd use part of that to get the usual stuff: haircut, color and eyebrow waxing, but would also try to sneak in a massage and a mani/pedi as well. And maybe a facial.

What would you do with $500 of free spa goodness? Inquiring minds want to know.

Visit Dove^® VisibleCare^® to get a coupon for $1 off!

Enter to win one of two $500 Spafinder gift certificates!
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY
COMMENTS TO THIS POST ARE NOT SWEEPSTAKES ENTRIES. PLEASE SEE BELOW FOR ENTRY METHODS FOR THIS SWEEPSTAKES.
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Be sure to visit the Dove^® VisibleCare™ Crème Body Wash brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

Enjoying maternity clothes?!

I've been wearing maternity clothes for about 3 months now and it was a gradual transition from mostly my regular clothes and a few maternity pieces to nearly all maternity stuff now.  Last time I was disappointed by my shrinking wardrobe options, but I'm seeing some definite benefits right now.

Luckily I got pregnant at the exact same time this year as I did a few years ago, so my clothes are all in the right season.  Well, to be honest, this summer is a lot cooler than that last one so I haven't busted out the summer pieces as much.  There's still hope, right?

What I did this time, though, was weed out everything that didn't fit right or I just plain didn't like.  I had a momentary pang of "oh, it's only for a few months, so I should just deal with it" but I realized that when I already feel like I'm inhabiting someone else's swelling body, I should at least *like* what I'm wearing.  So out went the horrible synthetic fabric dress pants, the misshapen tunics and the one pair of jeans that was tight in all the wrong places.

Though this is likely the last time I'll be pregnant, I allowed myself to buy a couple of new things, and kept away from Old Navy and Target, which are cheap and have lots of sizes, but whose stuff never quite fits right or wears well over time.  As a reformed cheapie clothes shopper (volume over quality) this is a big step for me.

I bit the bullet and upgraded to Gap's maternity options, which are fewer but much better quality.  I got a pair of jeans which will work for at least a couple more weeks, and post-partum, but likely will get too uncomfortable for the last month or so.  I can feel the pinch already, sadly. 

I am in absolute and total love with their Pure Body T-shirts and tanks and bought 3 of those, even though I have plenty of other shirts (both maternity and not) I can still wear.  They are nice cotton shirts with a lot of stretch in vibrant colors.  They fit snugly, which I like in a T-shirt and are super soft and keep their shape after multiple washes.  I wish I had discovered them last time!

So my entire wardrobe right now is fairly limited - 5 tank tops, 10 t-shirts (short and long sleeved), 2 pairs of jeans, 2 pairs of yoga pants/sweats, 1 hoodie, 1 pair of shorts and 1 pair of capris barely hanging in there.

Photo by Elvira-Ciboulette

Oddly, I love it.  It's easy to find something to wear, because it all fits right and I like it.  I've removed everything from my closet that doesn't fit right now to a couple of bins so I don't have to look at them or play the trying-on game every morning.

I'm looking forward to the time when I can go back to my regular clothes after we're done nursing 100x a day and I've regained some semblance of my pre-baby body.  I have a much better idea of what I really *need* and can spend the cash to buy nicer options that I *want* to wear.

In the meantime, I'm going to revel in the brilliance behind pants with an elastic waist.  And maybe eat some more pie.

Tuesday Lovin': Castle Logix

When we went to Ireland in April, I wanted to buy one new toy for T that could hold her attention for a while so we didn't have to drag her whole toybox with us.

I've written about my toy pickiness previously, so you know I didn't want anything that makes noises or lights up, or is drowning in pink plastic and/or "just for girls".  I thought we might bring it out on the plane, so I didn't want a lot of tiny pieces either.

I decided to buy her a puzzle game called Castle Logix which I learned about from Cloud's blog.   It's made of sturdy wood, has just a few large-ish pieces, and best of all, helps kids work on their spatial skills, something I am *sorely* lacking. 

Once I took a horrific engineering aptitude test which had a bunch of pictures of exploded 3-D shapes and I had to choose what they would look like when assembled.  Torture, I tell you.  I'm not sure I got a single one correct.

Castle Logix in action.  In Ireland!

The recommended age range is 3 - 8 years old.  And in fact, we adults had fun with it too.  It's a one-player puzzle, where you look at a photo and combine the blocks and towers to make a castle that looks like the one in the photo.  The puzzles range from easy to 'expert'.  On the expert level, the colors of the blocks aren't specified, only the outlines, so it's even challenging for adults.

I wasn't sure if T was ready for it, and she knocked my socks off.  After a few tries and some coaxing (my girl likes to get things right the first time - something else we need to work on!), she was off and running.  She would play with this toy for 45 minutes straight, a major bonus for any parent with a toddler, right?

Three months later, she still likes it, and will work on it by herself at home.  She is very methodical about the order in which she does the puzzles, and can do most of the ones in the first two sections of the book.  (Starter and Junior levels, I think.) 

It's definitely helping her spatial skills - yesterday we made an American flag out of construction paper and I printed out a photo so she could see what it looked like.  I asked her to tell me where the blue rectangle went, and where the stars and stripes went, and she could place them correctly on her paper based on the photo.  Very cool.  I had no idea a 2 year old could do that!

I also love that this toy will grow with her, and be challenging for more than a few months (as long as she doesn't get sick of it!).  We do rotate the toys we leave out, so after some time "in hiding" it's new again.  Tricky parents!

I love that I found a toy that's educational and fits all my crunchy granola parameters, that T actually likes and plays with.  That's no small feat.

Smart Games is the company that makes it, and they have a TON of other logic games like these, at different age ranges, so I can't wait to explore more of them as T gets older.  A few are already marked for her wish list!

Have you played with this?  What do you think?

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Polish Strips - Review

I used to get regular biweekly manicures when I had my first real job.  In college, my friend K and I discovered the wonders of the LA nail salon where you could get a manicure for less than $10. 

Prior to that, in high school, I liked to paint my nails all sorts of "weird" colors.  My very chic French teacher was appalled by my "flamingo French" manicure that was opaque baby pink with black tips.  Granted, it was also very messy, because I *suck* at applying my own nail polish.

I feel justified now that OPI and other top respectable cosmetics brands (not just Wet N Wild, y'all) have a rainbow of colors available, and not just the usual pinks and reds.

I don't get regular manicures anymore because there's rarely time for me to go every 2 weeks as needed, and with all the crafty stuff I do, my nails get wrecked pretty quick.

When I saw the Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish "stickers" at Target, I was smitten.  They came in *patterns*!  I don't do fake nails so elaborate nail art is not an option for me.  I bought a super cute package of black and white houndstooth and promptly forgot about them.

Today at Target I found a bunch of the Salon Effects patterns on clearance for $4.48 - they're probably discontinued as they were all bright, spring-y colors.  There was a super-cute plaid pattern called Mad for Plaid, so I figured I'd give it a shot (for real this time!)

They're made of real nail polish so they're a bit smelly, but they're also flexible and easy to stick.  They come in a pack of 16, with different sizes so you can match them to your nail width.  The instructions are clear and not that complicated for cosmetically incompetent folks like me.

They came out looking better than I expected, though it took a LONG time to apply them - probably about an hour for me to do all 10 fingers.  I might get faster with practice, but I can get a manicure in 30 minutes or less, so I'm not sure how many times I'll invest in these.  But again, the cute patterns might win me over.

i'm not a hand model, thank goodness.

Tips: 

• Wider is better so if you're between sizes, pick the larger one and use the included pointy stick to peel off the excess once you've applied it (carefully!)

• A manicurist told me once that these last longer if you add some top coat after applying.  Not exactly mess-free or instantly dry, but clear topcoat is easy to deal with and dries pretty fast.

• If you have a multicolored pattern like a plaid and very short nails, you might need to do some creative placement to make sure your nails all look similar.  I have one nail that didn't get any of the hot pink lines from the plaid and it looks a little odd. 

Have you tried these?  What did you think?

Strange Coincidences

In the past week, two things happened which were unexpected and very cool.

I got another one of those "free drink" coupons at Starbucks that comes from using my Starbucks card way too much.  I've been hoarding it for the right time as I'm trying to save some money.  I love my chai, but I don't *need* one every day to make me happy.  Maybe just a couple of times a week.  I was wishfully thinking about how I could get more free Starbucks drinks.

And then, the next day, we got a letter in the mail from our mortgage broker.  With a $25 gift card from Starbucks, because TJ referred someone to them.  How freaky cool is that??

Second weird coincidence:  last week I had to get blood drawn.  In my doctor's office there were these really awesome paper collages - cute sunny scenes that made me happy.  Here's the one I liked best:

Dandies in a Field by Kate Endle

I couldn't find the artist's name, and had to hurry out of there to get back to work.  Through the week I thought about those collages and wondered who the artist was.  I have another appointment in a few weeks so I vowed to ask then.

Last night I was reading a coworker's lovely blog, and saw she had a link to the new Caspar Babypants album Hot Dog! and a quick mention that his wife was also very talented, with a link to an Etsy shop.  So I clicked over and what did I see?  My beloved collage from the doctor's office!  Hooray.  I was *so* surprised.

I am thrilled to know the artist's name, and that her work is affordable.  Once we figure out Baby X's sex and theme for his/her room, I'm totally coming back to her shop.  And I may even get a little something for my new craft room. 

Both of these things reminded me of something we talked about in my Mondo Beyondo class last year - little random good things that happen that move us forward towards one of our dreams.  These two things are so trivial, but what amazes me is just the thought in my head of "I wish..." resulted in me getting just a tiny bit more happiness in my life.

Obviously, I should be wishing for things like winning the lottery, right?  Heh.

If you are contemplating taking Mondo Beyondo, they are running a HUGE sale right now to get the $99 class for only $49.  It's so totally worth it.  Use coupon code mamasrock49 at checkout, but this is only good through the end of day Sunday (tomorrow).

Let me know if you decide to sign up?  I'm in for the Dream Lab class in June (you can also use the coupon for that too!).

How to buy eyeglasses online, really.

When I first heard about ordering glasses online, I was fascinated.  Even more so when I found out the prices were MUCH cheaper than my local optician. I know I should support local businesses, but got frustrated when I could NEVER find a pair of decent glasses whose cost was covered by my insurance allowance (which is not stingy!).

My first foray into ordering glasses online was in 2008 and it ended poorly.  I saw a gorgeous pair of frames online, ordered them, and when they showed up they were all wrong.  I couldn't see well, and they wouldn't stay on.  They sat around, inciting wasted-money guilt every time I saw them.  I finally took them to an optician to see if they could adjust them, and was told that they were completely the wrong size for my face.  She wasn't exactly nice about it, but I can understand that.  I had to donate them to charity and felt really crappy about wasting the money.

But I was determined to make it work.  Thousands of people do it and the price is right.  Last year I  ordered contact lenses with my insurance allowance so I couldn't get new glasses.  Since I wear disposable contacts regularly, there's pretty much *never* a year where I'd rather order glasses than get more contacts.

This past fall, I did some research first, to see if I could be more successful online.  I found the info on 39dollarglasses.com very helpful (and no, they're not paying me to write this!).  Here's what I learned:

1.  Get prescription.  Go to your eye doctor and get an eye exam.  Don't use a prescription that's more than a year old.  You also need a different prescription for glasses than you have for contact lenses, so ask for both at your eye exam and get a copy for yourself.

2.  Get measurements.  Ask your eye doctor to measure your PD, or pupillary distance.  Mine wouldn't do it because he doesn't believe in ordering glasses online, but others are more obliging. Optician's offices can also measure this (though if you're not buying anything there they may decline.)  You can do it yourself, but you'll need a second person to hold the ruler and read the measurement.  Do it 3 times and take an average, to be sure you're getting the best reading.

Another set of measurements that's really important is your frame size (in mm).  Find an old pair of glasses that fits you well.  Sometimes they have the measurements printed on them inside the glasses, which makes it easy. 

I had to measure mine directly with a tape measure. You'll need:  temple arm length (end to end), lens width, lens height, and the distance between the lenses (bridge).  You'll also want the frame width, end to end (this was my mistake last time!).  Here's the photo that helped me:

from 39dollarglasses.com

This seems like a huge hassle, but I promise it'll be worth it.  Write down all the measurements, and keep your prescription handy as well.

3.  Search frames.  This is the fun part. But don't do what I did and just pick the first cute pair you see.  You actually need to make sure the new frames will fit.  Since you can't try on in person, you'll have to go by the measurements.  Compare each frame's listed measurements with what you wrote down.  If they're significantly off, it's probably not a good candidate, but there's a buffer of a few mm here and there. 

For me, the most important were the frame width and temple length.  Apparently I have a narrow head that's not very bulbous, so my frame choice was limited.  Some sites didn't even have frames for me that were the width I needed, though I suppose some of the larger kids' frames might have fit.  If you have a more "average" head size, you'll have better choices.

4.  Select options.  Once you've selected your frames, you'll need to enter your prescription, PD measurement, and choose lens options.  This is where most of the places online will try to upsell you, so keep a close eye on total cost.  On a few sites, the super-cheap $7 frames were offset by extra charges for stronger prescriptions, plastic lenses instead of glass,  high shipping costs, etc.  Spend some time and comparison shop here, if you want a good deal.  Check the return policy of each place before you commit - some have a strict no-return policy and others will happily take them back minus shipping.  Since you're buying these sight unseen and they have to work, you need a flexible return policy.

One of the options was the anti-reflective coating, which I didn't get on my first pair.  (It was a significant cost for a $40 pair of glasses.)  I regret it now, though, because in photos, and when working on the computer or driving, the glare is distracting.  But I skipped the scratch-resistant coating and other fancy lens options, despite having a pretty strong prescription.  On my second pair I wised up and paid for the anti-glare coating and I'm glad to have it.

5. Use coupon codes.  Your last step before checkout is to scour the Internet for coupon codes to buy your glasses.  I found a $15 off coupon (EYE15) for 39dollarglasses.com so my first pair was only $29!  You can find coupon codes on retailmenot.com or on Facebook and Twitter.

After you order, the hardest part is waiting for them to show up.  I ended up ordering all three of my pairs (the poorly fitting ones and 2 good ones) at 39dollarglasses.com because their website is easy to navigate and they had cute colorful styles. 

A close contender was Warby Parker, a new company that has its own hip designs, and an innovative program where you can choose 5 frames to try on at home.  They ship the trial pairs super-fast and it was really nice to be able to see them in person before I ordered.  They also donate a pair of eyeglasses for every one they sell. But they were nearly twice as expensive for my strong prescription, so I tried the cheaper site first.

Here are the two pairs I ended up with:

I love bold, square-ish glasses and am thrilled that I finally figured out how to order them online.  Since BabyT now wears glasses, I wear mine more often as a show of solidarity.  So I'm glad to have a couple of options.  (Also, please note that Sanford the Fox has his own blue plastic glasses, which Mr Potatohead kindly let him borrow.)

What do you think?  Have you ordered eyeglasses online?  Any tips and tricks to share?

Tuesday Lovin': Mascara

Am I a weirdo because I compose blog posts and topics in my head when I'm nowhere near the computer?  I finally have a nice tab in OneNote where I can capture this stuff before it floats away into the ether. 


Anyway, one of the ideas is a series of things I love.  I know, no one really cares, but that's what personal blogging's all about, right?  hehe.  I tried to come up with some witty phrase, like "Wordless Wednesday", except I'm all about the words and there's nothing that comes to mind for Tuesday.

But everyone's Tuesday could use a little happy, right?  It's the second day of the work week, the long days stretching ahead, and nothing fun is ever scheduled on this day.  Perfect for a little shot of awesome.  This idea started with Cloud, who posted about things her family is into right now.

One of the things I've discovered recently is mascara.  I know, it's nothing new or exciting, but I've never worn it regularly until now.  I'm lucky to have black eyelashes, so there was never a need to make my lashes more visible, like my friends with light hair had to do.

The woman who did my wedding makeup told me I should always wear it to make my eyes "pop", whatever that means, but it seemed like a lot of work.  And mascara is one of those things you really need to toss after a few months - it gets gooey and clumpy, harbors bacteria, and c'mon people, you're putting it on your EYE.

So the pattern was:  I'd buy a really expensive tube of MAC or Lancome mascara, wear it a few times, and then throw it away a year later, horrified that I still had it.

I recently flipped through How Not to Look Old because apparently at 36 I'm supposed to start caring about that. I don't really, but the author is way into wearing mascara.  So I figured I'd give it a try (again).

This time I wised up. I bought a $7 tube of Cover Girl water-resistant mascara at Target. And OMG, I love it. I love it more than the expensive ones. It's crazy how it makes my lashes look LONGER and doesn't get weird clumpy bits. I can skip both eye shadow and liner with it, and still look good.  It doesn't bother my eyes when I'm wearing contacts or get streaky when my eyes water. I finally GET what people mean about eye-popping.

I *LOVE* it when the cheap product is BETTER than more expensive ones. I'm totally hooked now.  I even took it with me to Mama Weekend Away.

Really cool mascara art by catchydesign on Flickr

Are you pro- or anti-mascara?  Do you have a brand that you swear by?

Hot pink makes everything better

Today my baby girl picked out her first pair of glasses. 

With a little help from us and the extremely knowledgable folks at Woodlawn Optical in Redmond, she picked a pair that are hot pink on the outside, and bright orange inside. I wish they made them in my size.

We took her to the eye doctor last month because I had noticed one of her eyes crossing inward occasionally.  I wasn't sure if I was making it up, or if eyes were supposed to do that, because really, how often do you look that close at someone's eyes?   But the doc confirmed what he saw at her exam a year ago - her eyes are farsighted, with one significantly worse than the other.

She could read the letters and numbers on the standard eye chart to the 20/30 line so she's not having trouble seeing, but the good eye is REALLY overcompensating for the other one.  So in order to train the muscles in the weaker one, the doc recommended glasses. 

My heart sank.  My gorgeous girl, in glasses at age 2?  I've had horrible vision since I was 9 so I'm no stranger to glasses.  But I wasn't ready to hear that my baby needed them already. 

Not because I thought her toddler friends would make fun of her.  They don't talk much, yet.  At least not to each other.

I just don't want her to become "the little girl with the glasses".  I don't want her to have to worry about wearing them when she's running, jumping, climbing or throwing balls around.  I'm not looking forward to that first couple of weeks when she doesn't want to wear them and we can't make her understand *why* she has to keep them on all the time.

It's not that different from managing her dairy allergy, but it's so much more visible.  I don't want people making assumptions about her - that she must be very careful, that she shouldn't get dirty, that she is quiet and studious, that they need to talk loudly and slowly, or any number of other things that adults think when they see a tiny girl with glasses.

For me, this is one of the harder parts of being a parent. Making your child do something she doesn't like, because you know it's the best thing for her long-term. Pretending to be excited about it, in the hope that she will get excited too.  Feeling like I can't protect her from people who are going to say stupid or hurtful things.

Maybe I'm overthinking this.  I hope that when the world sees her rockin' her supercute hot pink frames, they see my smart, funny, serious BabyT.  Not as I see her, because I've got my mama-goggles on.  But as an interesting little person just like any other 2 year old.  

Stalking my mailbox for craft supplies

Another little known source of craft supplies is my mailbox!

Nah, I'm not talking about something as cool as repurposing junk mail, though I do that for backings on my GeekMagnets.

It's just that with a toddler, going to the craft store is not the relaxing, solitary pursuit it used to be.  Her new trick is to repeat "Mama, all done" when she's tired of whatever we're doing.  I heard it many times today at the grocery, the bookstore, and in the car.  It's cute, but also just a tiny bit stressful, because I can't tell if it's going to turn into a huge meltdown and then therapy when she's 30 because her mama dragged her all over town to find the best deal on patterned paper. 

 So now I order things online after Miss Baby goes to bed. On a side note, hooray for a baby that goes to bed willingly at 6:30pm, to allow mama more online shopping/supply stalking/crafting time!

[caption id="attachment_82" align="aligncenter" width="514" caption="Photos by nycole.etsy.com and scrapnick.etsy.com"][/caption]

So what am I waiting for now, with bated breath?  That's right, more paper.  Because a girl can always use more paper, right?  To be precise, I'm waiting for 550 sheets of paper, from two different shops on Etsy.  Again, it's an assortment, so I'm not sure what I'm getting, but I can't wait to go through it.

And my paper-lovin' friend Jenn will benefit from it too, because she often likes the stuff I don't for her scrapbooks.  So hooray for paper!  Of course, I'll post photos of the good stuff when it arrives. 

But right now, I'm being very diligent about checking the mail and following the USPS tracking website.  Is it here yet?  How about now?  Now?

The Most Wonderful Elusive Pen in the World - Uniball Jetstream

(reposted, slightly updated from my personal blog at http://www.ramancreath.com/anandi)

When I was a kid, I LOVED back-to-school shopping – all those new writing implements, pristine notebooks, folders, planners, yay!

I would start out perfectly organized, using my best handwriting for my notes (this was in the Dark Ages, before laptops were common). In college, I even had a system of using multiple colored pens and highlighters to take lecture notes. And those were some pretty notes. It hurt to put them in the recycle bin after lugging them from house to house for 10 years.

I now have free access to (mediocre) office supplies at work so I don’t have any major occasions to shop for stationery or school supplies. But I crave them.

[caption id="attachment_76" align="alignleft" width="168" caption="photo from www.jetpens.com "][/caption]

I found a pen on my desk the day I returned from maternity leave and it was a Marvelous Pen. It was like the Pen Fairy had left me a present welcoming me back to work – the perfect combination of rollerball/gel pen, with a nice squashy grip and unbelievably smooth writing action. I loved that pen. Until my coworker Michelle saw it one day, and told me it was her lost pen. She knew it was a Marvelous Pen, and she wanted it back, so I grudgingly gave it back to her.

For months I sought that pen: Target, Office Depot, Staples. For some reason I never bought the right one – I knew the brand (Uniball Jet Stream RT), but every pack I bought wasn’t quite right.

The Target pens were too light and plasticky and were more traditional ballpoint than rollerball.

TJ bought one pack for me at Office Depot, but those were too inky and not “gel” enough.

I bought another set at Staples, but the point was far too fine. At that point, I had enough pens that we’d never need to buy more, but the quest still continued.

A few months ago, I bought what I thought was a set of 3 Marvelous Pens. Bold, rollerball, from Office Depot, with a nice weight to them. But sadly, these are not the droids (um, pens) I was looking for either. They are too ball-pointy, and don’t have the nice squishy grip.  They are the closest match, but still not quite right.  I feel like Goldilocks.

I thought I was destined not to ever find these pens, but I have one last place to try.  Another coworker introduced me to JetPens, a site that sells Japanese office supplies.  Their Uniball JetStream selection is different, so I'm hopeful.  I haven't placed the order yet, though, because I'm not ready to face the disappointment if they're not the right ones.  Soon, though.

Do you have a pen story?

Newbie Papercrafters, Shop Craigslist!

When you pick up a new crafty hobby, part of the fun is buying all the new and exciting supplies, right?  It would be great if supply money grew on trees! Then you could just go down to the nearest scrapbook store, throw down $1000 and buy everything your heart desires.

Unfortunately the real world doesn't work that way, or at least not here in my real world.  I keep my craft supply money strictly separate from my "day to day life" money, otherwise we'd be broke.  My tag and jewelry business keeps itself running and also funds my other crafty pursuits, so I keep a close eye on those finances.

And of course the startup costs to get into an entirely new hobby can be high - new tools, new consumable supplies, new storage and workspace, etc.  The list goes on.  So I try to save money where I can, especially on supplies.

One of my super-secret (ok, not really) resources for supplies is Craigslist.  Here in Seattle, it's a very active site, so you can find all sorts of deals.   For those who aren't familiar, it's a free local classified ads site, available in many parts of the world.   Transactions are carried out in person, and the site just hosts the ads - it's not responsible for any part of the transaction.  You contact the person via the email address in the listing and work out the details from there.  The site is more active in some locales than others, so check your own city to see what's going on.

Many crafters turn to Craigslist to get rid of old supplies, especially if they're moving on to a different craft, clearing out space for a new baby, or just one day realize they have way too many supplies.  (I can't imagine how that would happen!)

Scrapbooking seems to be a popular craft to downsize, so there's almost always paper and rubber stamping supplies to be found.  But you need to do a little legwork and research on your own to determine whether you're really getting a good deal.  Since you're just buying from another individual, there's no "money back guarantee" if you're not happy.

[caption id="attachment_61" align="aligncenter" width="524" caption="Photo by nycole.etsy.com "][/caption]

My tips for supply shopping on Craigslist (CL):

 

• Look for photos.  CL has lots of listings without photos.  It's hard to know exactly what condition and type of supplies you're getting without them.  Listings with photos tend to have more responsive and honest sellers, in my experience.  It's worth sending a message to see if someone has photos of a listing you're interested in.


• Know retail prices.   I occasionally see supply listings on Craigslist asking for full retail price or more (!).  If I'm going to pay that much, I'd rather buy my supplies at a shop with a return policy.   CL is for bargains and deep discounts.  For example, with scrapbook paper, I know the high end stuff typically retails for $0.75 to $1.00 per sheet.  I don't buy paper on CL unless it's 20 cents a sheet or less.  And I'd only pay 20 cents for the high end designer stuff.


• Ask questions.  This is especially important for tools.  Ask if they're in good shape, still in working condition and whether they have replacement parts.  Do some online research to find out if the replacement parts are available - for example, if you buy a circle cutter, can you still find replacement blades?  Ask how old the tool is and why they're  selling it.


• Be safe.  CL has gotten a lot of bad publicity lately, with people getting into bad situations after agreeing to meet.  Don't go to someone's house to pick up your items - meet in a public place in daylight hours.  This is probably less of an issue with someone getting rid of craft supplies, but you just never know.


• Expect some disappointments.  Yes, sometimes you'll buy a "grab bag" of paper and embellishments and then find out that none of them are your style.  Maybe you can swap with a friend, donate them to a school, or resell them.  Minimize this by researching what you'll get before you spend the money.


• Calculate the real cost.  Someone might be selling a whole boatload of awesome supplies for $5 but they live 50 miles and a ferry ride away.  If it's going to take me all day to get there and back, is it really worth it?  It's not just the price tag, but your time and effort as well. 


• Bargain confidently.  In general, Americans are not comfortable with bargaining.  I know, because I'm one of them.  But with CL postings, I always ask if a specific lower price is possible - somehow over email it seems less intimidating and awkward.  For example, if they're offering a lot of paper for $25, I ask if they'll take $20 for it.  The worst they can do is say no.  And the secret truth is that I'd probably still buy it anyway.  But it's always nice to spend less money, if the person is willing to take it.  Settle on the price before you meet to pick up the item to avoid awkwardness.


• Keep checking back.  In active locations like Seattle and the Bay Area, new listings are constantly posted.  Check often to get great deals and jump on them as soon as you can.

I've gotten some really great deals on Craigslist.  I especially like "grab bags" of supplies where I have a general idea of what I'm getting (paper, stickers, stamps) but don't know the specifics of everything that's included.  Part of the fun is getting everything home and then going through it!  I'll highlight a few of my really great finds in some upcoming blog posts.  Happy shopping!

Now, your turn!  Have you used Craigslist to buy supplies for your craft?  What were your big scores?

I will find a way and I will have you

When I was a kid, I LOVED back-to-school shopping - all those new writing implements, pristine notebooks, folders, planners, yay!

I would start out perfectly organized, using my best handwriting for my notes (this was in the Dark Ages, before laptops were common). In college, I even had a system of using multiple colored pens and highlighters to take lecture notes. And those were some pretty notes. It pained me to put them in the recycle bin after lugging them from house to house for 10 years without using them.

As an adult, I have free access to decent office supplies at work (for job-related stuff) so I don't have any occasions to shop for stationery or school supplies. But I crave them.

I found a pen on my desk the day I returned from maternity leave and it was a Marvelous Pen. It was like the Pen Fairy had left me a present welcoming me back to work - the perfect combination of rollerball/gel pen, with a nice squashy grip and unbelievably smooth writing action. I loved that pen. Until my coworker Michelle saw it one day, and told me it was her lost pen. She knew it was a Marvelous Pen, and she wanted it back, so I grudgingly gave it back to her.

For months I sought that pen: Target, Office Depot, Staples. For some reason I never bought the right one - I knew the brand (Uniball Jet Stream RT), but every pack I bought wasn't quite right.

The Target pens were too light and plasticky and were more traditional ballpoint than rollerball.

TJ bought one pack for me at Office Depot, but those were too inky and not "gel" enough.

I bought another set that were ok, but the point was far too fine. At that point, I had enough pens that we'd never need to buy more, but the quest still continued.

Yesterday, I bought what I thought was a set of 3 Marvelous Pens. Bold, rollerball, from Office Depot, with a nice weight to them. But sadly, these are not the droids (um, pens) I was looking for either. They are too ball-pointy, and don't have the nice squishy grip.

Aaaghh. Am I destined to never find these pens again?