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Come on in and make yourself at home! A Mommy’s Life is a mommy blog but also a mall of sorts. I’ve partnered with one-of-a-kind children’s boutiques, national retailers and everything in between so you’re sure to find something that catches your attention here. Grab your favorite hot beverage, put those bunny-slippered feet up and shop around!

To help you navigate, I’ll give you a few highlights here first. Check out the navigation bar on the right to find links to the stores.

In the Mommy’s Life Christmas shop , I’ve highlighted some items that may be of interest to you…toys, holiday home decor, holiday party ideas and supplies. Make sure to check out the Letters From Santa category for a special treat for your little one! Just click on the link above or the CHRISTMAS SHOP link to your right.

If you’re looking for personalized gifts and/or clothing:
2Blockheads.com
B. Swanky Children’s Boutique - Custom Christmas Outfits, Boutique Clothing & Gifts
GoToBaby.com - Unique Gifts for the Unique Baby
Engraveable Gift Collection

If you’re looking for cute holiday clothing (or just cute clothes, for that matter!) for your little one:
Dimples and Dandelions
B. Swanky Children’s Boutique - Custom Christmas Outfits, Boutique Clothing & Gifts
Christmas Dresses
TinyTotDressShop.com
Don’t forget to check out the rest of the clothing stores on the navigation bar to the right. There are some cute and clever non-holiday items there!

Sometimes a gift basket is the best solution to a gift-giving dilemma:
Design It Yourself Gift Baskets
Baby Gift Baskets From GoToBaby.com

If you’re shopping for someone who is a big collector (dolls, plates, figurines, etc.):
collectiblestoday.com

For Christian/Religious gifts:
Browse the best in Christian products at FamilyChristian.com.
.99 shipping for a limited time! Check out their Willow Tree collection of figurines and ornaments!

If you’re looking for toys for the kiddos, you can either click on the Mommy’s Life Christmas shop link or visit the Toy Store category to the right.
www.allaboardtoys.com
is having free shipping on orders $49 or over (be sure to read the exclusions). They have a lot of character toys, bedding and accessories!

If you’re looking for Christmas pjs, find fun sleepwear for the whole family at CrazyforBargains.com They’ve got a cute selection of Christmas pajamas as well as character pjs for toddlers, animal slippers, robes and pajama bottoms for guys. $5 flat rate shipping up to $75 and free shipping over $75!

I hope that these highlights have been helpful! Feel free to click around and take a look at all the stores…if you have any feedback about the site and your experience, feel free to comment or email me at themommy@amommyslife.com!

Simple Shoes clearance is going on now! Save 40-90% on footwear for women. Free shipping for a limited time!
Simple Shoes is committed to finding more sustainable ways of making shoes and it shows They don’t just list sizes and colors, they give you the “ingredients” of their shoes too! And, they now have selected styles that are usually from $28-$90 on sale for $10.90-$19.90. As Tater Tot says “Go! Go! Go!” But come back, okay?

Get up to 50% off during the Biggest Sale of the Season at drugstore.com. Shop Now! If I can’t find a particular brand of natural personal care product at my local health food store, I go to drugstore.com. They carry a selection of alternative brands at reasonable prices. A couple of things that caught my eye were the 20% off of Tom’s of Maine products, the Burt’s Bees freebie with purchase, and 20% off Seventh Generation products. Savings are greater on the major brands, of course but it’s nice to see a little bit of discount on the alternative brands, too! Check ‘em out…they sell just about everything there.

Yeah, doesn’t sound like much, does it? But it is Tater Tots favorite meal. Let me translate for you. “Nanee” (not sure of the spelling here, I’m in uncharted ToddlerSpeak territory) is Mac and Cheese. Don’t ask me how it became nanee. But that’s what it is. “Bo’s” is all my fault. I started by playfully calling her vegetables “vegetabos” so she, naturally, shortened it to “bo’s”. Good job, Mommy. “Appy” is applesauce and surprises me since she can say “apple” quite clearly but it has taken on a life of its’ own. So “appy” it is. Of course, most of the time I try to use the correct words for them but I find myself slipping into her language more often than I’d like. It’s just too cute!

She still has no interest in moving from pureed vegetables to steamed/chopped/anything-but-pureed vegetables so I think I’m going to have to get creative. Add to that a resistance to using a spoon and you have goopy, messy, colorful vegetables all over The Tot, the placemat, the booster seat, the lovely dining room table, and the floor. Luckily I’m not all that uptight about stuff not getting everywhere. There will be time to be neat. This is not the time. I feel pretty strongly about not restricting her from doing stuff just because it creates more work for me. It’s my job. This is the time for her to explore smooshing vegetables and other foods all over her face and in her hands and smacking them on the table to see what happens. Never mind that they splatter on my Momiform .

Luckily, we have come a ways since that post last summer. I’ve made some strides toward reclaiming a modicum of style although the white t-shirts are still in part-time residence and the style is quite casual. The hair…well, it’s still in a ponytail most of the time but at least it’s well-maintained with a nice cut and highlights. And I’ve added some earrings most days. Little studs that are difficult to grab and rip out of my earlobes. The shoes are still flip flops or tennies but I don’t think that’s going to change any time soon.

Maybe I’m just remedial when it comes to Mommyhood but it seems like it’s taken me this long to really settle into feeling comfortable with my Mommyness and find my Mommy Style. I’ve always loved being Princess Tater Tot’s Mommy but it has taken me a while to become more confident in my Mommy Skills and with the changes in my Mommy Body. Less freaking out at every little thing and over-analyzing every little decision. Not that I’m all the way there yet. But I feel good.

I have found the perfect pair of shorts. Actually, The Daddy found them. He came home from working in his classroom one day last weekend and said “I hope you don’t mind that I brought presents”. Uh, why would I mind presents, exactly? Oh, yeah. We have no money. Huh. Nope. I don’t mind. He’s earning it so, if he wants to spend it on me, far be it from me to say no.

Back to the shorts. They don’t look like much, especially in the picture above. If I had seen the picture before I saw the shorts, I would not have given them a chance. But, since The Daddy came home with them and had obviously been listening to my recent lamentations over only having two pairs of shorts that fit me, I tried them on. Oh Happy Day! They fit low in the waist like I like and have plenty of room in the hips. They’re made of an organic stretch cotton so they bend and move with me instead of binding and making me feel like a huge MUFFINTOP! The length is just long enough to hide the post-childbirth (and let’s face it, the has-always-been-there) cellulite but short enough to feel sporty and not like your grandma’s shorts. Or “Gamma”, as Tater Tot says. They also come in three colors. The “stucco” above, “burlap”, and “green earth”. The weird thing is that these shorts look better on me than on the model above. And I’ve got HIPS. And I NEVER think anything looks better on me than the model. They’re not cheap but they’re worth it!

Today at the beach Tater Tot pointed to our big, red Radio Flyer All-Terrain Cargo Wagon and said, clear as day, “wagon”. Well, yes, that is our wagon. First new spontaneous word of the day. Then she is running on the beach and, since The Daddy had been doing some marine biology education last weekend, she points to the kelp that had washed up on the shore and says “kelpo”. Well, yes, that is kelp, Honey! What a smart girl! Second new spontaneous word of the day. While bathing with The Mommy after getting all sandy and gross, she points to The Mommy’s blue exfoliating glove thingy and says “blue”. Well, yes, you are knocking The Mommy’s socks off today by recognizing that the glove thingy is blue! Third new spontaneous word of the day. The dots are connecting and it’s so fun to see.

I also just have to say that, even with the occasional tantrum (okay, sometimes more than occasional), she is at such a fun age and I am so grateful to be able to stay at home with her. Not that it’s all fun and, as I mentioned yesterday, it makes a HUGE difference that she is taking 1 1/2 to 2 hour naps once a day. But most of the time we’re just havin’ a great time! She does this thing that makes me laugh and melts my heart every time. She presses her forehead and nose against my forehead and nose so our eyes are really, really close together and we’re basically cross-eyed looking at each other. It is so unbelievably cute that I can’t stand it!

On a totally unrelated note: Just Call Me “Sucker”! I was running with Taylor around our neighborhood this morning and I saw this wicker chair out with the trash a ways down our street. I might have passed this by but, as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I’m fixing up the balcony outside Tater Tot’s room and trying to do it for free or low cost. Also, I’m just the BIGGEST SUCKER IN THE UNIVERSE for a renovation/rehab project. I like to take things that are old but still usable and rehab them. It’s actually more than a like. It’s kind of an obsession. So I checked it out and it looked pretty good. A little unraveling of the wicker around the bottom of the legs but otherwise not bad. Nothing a hot glue gun couldn’t remedy. Now for the real test: is it sturdy enough to hold the weight of my Mommy Butt? It was! There was minimal breakage to the wicker overall. So, after our run, I loaded The Tot in the truck and off we went to retrieve my treasure! Just now I checked to see how it would clean up/sand off and it looks like it’s do-able. The top layer of grime sands off pretty easily so I think I’m going to sand it down, stain it a honey color, and buy a cushion to match the chaise lounge cushion I bought. I love it when things come together!

Update: The Tot has added “turtle”, “roggie” (froggie), and “comb” to her spontaneous new words for the day! There were a couple more but I didn’t write them down. Everyone around here knows that if I don’t write it down it doesn’t happen.

If you’re a Pregnant Mommy (or any other Mommy for that matter!) out there who needs a little bit of pampering, I’ve got a few ideas for you! You can hint shamelessly to your Significant Other (or anyone else who will listen!) that you’d like a gift card or gift basket from Spa Finder. To redeem the gift card, you can search for a spa in your area on Spa Finder and book your appointment to go get pampered! Make sure you let them know if you’re pregnant so they can tell you if the service you want is safe for you. So go call that sitter and get yourself a Pregnant Mommy massage!

If you’re on a budget, your Significant Other just doesn’t get the hint, or you’re concerned about all those potentially harmful chemicals in beauty products, check out Spa Mama: Pampering for the Mother-to-Be. I bought this for myself when I was pregnant with Princess Tater Tot and it’s got some great, all natural beauty care product recipes that you can make for really cheap! From the Chardonnay clarifying mask to Fresh Cheeks toner and Scrub-A-Dub-Dub body scrub, they’ve got you covered from head to toe. For those Mommies who are pregnant, they give some great tips and even recipes to help you with nausea and to stay healthy. Definitely a must-have if you are looking for beauty aids that don’t involve chemicals you can’t pronounce!

Hey there! Good morning! I’m on the last half of my coveted cup of morning coffee and I’m almost finished going through the twenty kazillion emails that I get per day from all kinds of concievable sources. Some of them are solicited and others, well, let’s just say I don’t have any freakin’ clue what I have done to get on their mailing list. I try to unsubscribe from as many as I can but that takes more time than just deleting the suckers so…

Swell.com sent me an email letting me know that there are all kinds of summer stuff on sale over at their site right now. They’ve got some cute summer dresses on sale, mostly in the $25 range but some as low as $17! Now This Mommy may be using some of them as TOPS because I’m just not a teenager anymore and probably can’t pull off anything that short but if you can, more power to ya’! They’ve got some cool graphic tees, too. Mostly around $15. If you’re big on off-season stocking up, there are some long-sleeved tees on sale. I haven’t checked out the stuff for guys yet but it’s on sale, too and so is the surf gear. AND they’ve got $5 flat rate shipping! Head on over and check ‘em out!

I took a good look at my feet the other day since it’s time to bust out the flip flops here in So Cal and realized that it’s time to get those Mommy Feet in shape! I will spare you the details but let’s just say they look just short of the pic above. Not pretty. I went rootin’ around at Drugstore.com and found a few natural alternative pedicure products that can help a Mommy get those feet Summer ready!

Treat your feet to a foot massage to reduce stress, improve circulation,and soothe knots and tension in the arches and toes. The Burt’s Bees Pedicure Kit contains Coconut Foot Creme with Vitamin E, and Exfoliating Pumice Stone, and cute Burt’s Bees socks embossed with their bee logo.	The rich cremes and penetrating overnight treatments in the Burt’s Bees Tips n’ Toes Hands & Feet gift set are loaded with emollient Cocoa Butter and Beeswax, vitamin enriched oils and botanical extracts of Rosemary, Lemon and Mint to naturally soften rough skin and cure brittle nails, for unsurpassed softness, naturally.
Barielle’s essential oil lubricants and exfoliating sea salts will get those rough feet in shape in no time!	Soak, scrub, moisturize and protect your feet naturally with this kit from Gilden Tree using traditional healing ingredients like Aloe Vera, Jojoba, Shea Butter, Vitamin E and Comfrey Root Extract.

Once you’ve got your feet soft and beautiful, you might need some polish to brighten them up. Try this great color from Maybelline! How can you go wrong with this vibrant red, Cherry Rain?

Or try this pretty pale pink from Cover Girl for a more natural look!

If all of that just seems like a bit too much work, head on over to Spa Finder and search for a spa in your area! You can search by location, type of spa, and even the services they provide. Let somebody else work on those tired Mommy dogs!

Mommy Tip: Spafinder gift cards are a great (and easy) gift for your Significant Other to get for you, whatever the occasion. The Daddy has done this in the past and it’s great because I can choose the spa that I go to and the services that I want.

Once you’ve got those tootsies in shape, look at these great sandals from zappos.com
to put on ‘em! You’ll have the best looking Mommy Feet on the block!

These are my favorite flip flops of ALL TIME! They are soft. They are comfy. They are good. Reef Costa Rica flip flops.	Or for those days when you feel like standing out, the hot pink Reef Morocho is just the ticket! They’ve got other colors, too, for those days you don’t quite feel like standing out that much.
If you like a sportier flip flop, the Reef Fanning is the model for you! If you can’t tell, I’m a flip flop girl. Nothin’ better!	If you’re looking for something dressier, check out this cute mule from Luichiny! What a great “Summer-ey” shoe!
This red Nine West sandal would look great with jeans or a cute sundress. They could even dress up shorts during the day! If you’re the mother of someone over the age of 10, of course. Tater would run me ragged in these! I’ll have to save them for a night out with The Daddy.	Oooh! Here’s a cute sandal that I could wear running after The Tater Tot!

Well, I’m off to spend some quality time with my Mommy Feet. I think I’m going to need to do this in installments, they’re that bad. Pass the pumice stone!

I just got my hair done and it feels like I am human again. There’s something about a long, stringy hairdo(n’t) with three inches of roots showing that just kills my spirit. hbvbbvbv mn~Z knihkhijbk c,nm

A little message from Tater Tot there. Where was I? Oh yeah. I feel human again! It’s so expensive that I don’t even want to think about it but I feel so much better when my hair is professionally cared for. I had three and one half inches lopped off and it feels so much better! And it looks healthier. It still reaches my bra strap in the back so it’s still long. And no roots showing. Imagine that. I feel so much better!

Oh my God! The Daddy just gave me my Mother’s Day present and guess what it is? Never mind, I can’t wait for you to guess! It’s a new laptop! I was sooooo not expecting that. I wasn’t expecting anything, really. I just figured that he was gonna let me surf dawn patrol tomorrow and take me out to lunch and that would be good enough for me! But this is ALL TIME! I don’t know how we’re affording that but I’m not going to argue. He’s the one earning the money so if he feels comfortable spending it, who am I to say anything?! It’s so pretty! I was gonna blog about a few other things but I’m distracted by my shiny new computer so I’m going to go check it out. I’ll blog ya’ later!