Hello Kitty!

Part of my killer nesting instinct has related to food. New recipes, interesting presentation, fun and creative ideas that kids might like. My cousin sent me a link to the blog Bakerella and this has made me hope for a little girl: Hello Kitty Cake Pops.


These are the NEATEST THINGS EVER. The making-of post can be found here. They are so stinkin' cute I can hardly believe they're totally edible. They make me smile. There are other fantastic posts up as well; the woman can work a fondant, people. I will definitely continue to follow this blog if this is her usual standard of quality.

Diaper Bag

When choosing a diaper bag for our registry, there were a few requirements. Had to be rugged, no plastic, no cartoon characters, and (harkening back to my brother-in-law forced to carry a pastel Winnie the Pooh bag against his will) had to be sufficiently "manly" for Tom. Here were some of the contenders.

DadGear wearable diaper vest. Rejected on the grounds that even though we wear roughly the same size, it's just too flippin' hot in Hawaii for such a garment. If we have our next baby in a wintry climate, I would consider this one for me. I like a coat of many pockets and this amused me greatly.
This Tommy Hilfiger bag is not manly at all, but I thought the colors were bold and fun enough that Tom wouldn't necessarily mind carrying it. Alas, I thought the internal sorting storage pockets could have been better. Cute bag though; might have considered it as a messenger just for me when I commuted via train every day.




Speaking of messenger bags, this Diaper Dude goes into a category I like to call the Urban Baby Assault Pack. This bag is serious about hauling baby gear. Would be great for daily use and not so obviously a carrying case for pastel onesies and fresh diapers. At the original price of $100 and even with the sale price of $80, it's a touch rich for my tastes and was thus rejected.


Ultimately we (and our Amazon gift certificate) went with what appears to be the urban yuppie standard for baby bags, even though we are no longer urban and don't make nearly enough to qualify for true yuppiehood: the SkipHop Duo Deluxe in orange. It's bright but not truly babyish, rugged, has lots of nifty pockets, and I like all of the magnetic closures. This should hold up to multiple children and their daily outings quite well, I think. And there are no pesky commercial cartoon characters to be seen.

Coffee Mugs

We have guests coming! The parents and grandparents are coming this May to visit us and the new baby. Because my husband doesn't drink coffee and I've been put on caffeine probation and never had the motivation to brew it myself anyway (why, when I can have coworkers brew it for me?) we only have one coffee mug in the house. So I went searching for vintage and handmade coffee mugs on Etsy.

These are Japanese in origin; I love the shape and the different fonts.


Of course, considering the occasion, I might have to get this #1 Grandpa one for my father and father in law. Are finger-guns genetic?



I don't know how well glass mugs retain heat, but I love these Irish coffee glass mugs. Elegant and funky all at once.


And of course, who doesn't want a reminder to shave with their morning cup? Mustache mug!

MK Etsy!

My friend MK, a DC-based wedding photographer and photojournalist, is incredibly talented. She did my wedding tw0-and-some years ago and I would recommend her without any hesitation whatsoever to anyone in the DC area.

And now she has an Etsy shop for her prints!! There are a lot of gorgeous shots from Burma, a place and cause dear to her heart, and others. I love these two below.




So go buy them. Then she'll post more! And then buy those too. I'm loving that green door for my newly Kermit-ized bedroom, if only I didn't need to save some wall space for the baby!

Project Nursery

If I knew I was having a girl instead of waiting to find out, I would have absolutely borrowed ideas from this nursery featured on Project Nursery. It's for twin girls. I love the contemporary look, the purple touches, and the soft butterfly accents. It's a relaxed, calm baby haven and it just makes me want to take a nap. It's so clean and elegant and still baby-appropriate. I adore it.