Sh*t #zombiemoms Say

Right before I went on mat leave, the Parenting Editor (the lovely Melissa Carter) for iVillage posted a story about some sort of new phenomena called the Zombie Moms.

I'm not going to lie, I didn't read it.

I saw the title and asked about it and someone in the office told me it was some sort of support group for new parents whose babies weren't sleeping through the night (read: every single parent who ever lived). But I didn't read it. I mean, my baby, my new baby, was going to be one of those sleeping babies. I didn't need no stinkin' support group.

Boy, was I wrong.

Dealing with a baby at 3am can be a lonely thing. Even if your partner is in bed beside you, even if they're a supportive spouse who brings you your baby, chances are, within 5 minutes, they're dead asleep in dreamland while you're wondering if you'll ever sleep again (the answer is no, not really but anyway...).

It was during one of these times, that, all of a sudden, I remembered something about this Zombie Moms article and I wondered... so I reached for my blackberry (which never ever leaves my side, btw) and while nursing, opened Twitter and typed #zombiemoms.

And all of a sudden, I wasn't alone. There, online, were tens of other moms with me, not sleeping. Sharing their thoughts, stresses, with some of the more seasoned moms, offering support.

Some highlights from last night:

- "Kid didn't fall asleep until after 8, now totally and inexplicably awake since 2am"
- "Currently: trying desperately not to lose my mind"
- "Got a nice 4hr stretch. Nursing and hopefully he settles again tonight... At least for a couple hrs"
- "And I'm still up with the baby. She is so cuddly, which I LOVE but I'm sooooo tired. I keep nodding off." [I totally do that!]
- "Freaking out. Baby is still awake, fed, changed, burped. Yet he's still screaming at the top of his lungs. Going on 1 hr."

Like I said, there is more than just complaining (although really it's just great to know you're not the only one). Last night, there was advice given about using a sleep-sack, a discussion about favourite lullabies, and a suggestion everyone get on Skype to chat (so I guess we all could see how desperate we all look at 3am?). If incorporated a martini into the chat, it would almost be like we were all out for a night on the town...

Almost. :)

The First Date (Playdate, that is)

I am a toddler and as such, will ignore you.

By Downtown Mama Mel


We know our days are numbered with being in complete control of our boys’ social calendar. It won’t be long before our toddler and infant are old enough to have their own friends that we have neither hand-picked nor pre-arranged for them to spend time with. The play date, then, is as much about the parents as it is the kids. And we will milk it for as long as we can.

My husband found a potential play mate for our toddler at one of our local parks this summer. Our boys seemed to get along well in the wading pool and the daddies succeeded in supervising the little ones while also engaging in small talk that actually, gasp, covered topics other than just parenting. Can you imagine?

So some e-mail tag and a few months (err, seasons?) later the Downtown Daddies were able to book a play date for our boys at our house. Jittery from too much coffee and nearly eight months of not enough sleep (our baby was born in May- do the math) my mind was reeling with the play date possibilities. What if our toddlers don’t get along?

But then reality set in. Of course they won’t get along. They’re toddlers. That’s what toddlers do: they switch back and forth from parallel play, which is basically ignoring one another, to snatching toys that are only deemed play-worthy because someone else is holding it at that moment.

And that’s basically what happened. In a ninety minute play date the boys went from ignoring each other while playing outside in the snow to ignoring each other while playing with cars and trains to snatching toys from each other for no apparent reason. There was one tumble on the stairs, two timeouts, three squeals, and a large number of words of encouragement about ‘sharing’ uttered from each of the adults. The parents managed to squeeze in a chat and have a few sips of coffee before it got cold.

All in all a success, don’t you think?


- stay tuned for Mel's tips on how to throw a successful playdate

The Wow-This-Day-Turned-Out-Better-Than-I-Thought Day

By Downtown Mama Mel

This looks cold but DM Mel claims it was a ton of fun

I’m not the most organized mother out there. I don’t know what I’m making for dinner yet tonight and the fridge is getting bare, I have bins in my bedroom of clean, folded laundry from three days ago that’s not yet put away and I have yet to book a hair appointment for myself as a cut and color are so direly needed that my strategic comb over to hide the gray in my hair is no longer successful.


Some days I do get organized and things can run so smoothly- like when I have healthy and tasty snacks for mamas and toddlers laid out on my favourite party tray before guests arrive. Or that one time I had an extra pair of socks on that my toddler needed to borrow (long story). Or when I actually wash, fold AND put away the laundry.

But Friday was not one of the days. I was expecting the day to be a disaster. I’d been up for hours and had fed the boys but hadn’t had breakfast yet myself. A friend was dropping in whom I hadn’t seen in months and my only meal plan for the day was to remove the blue box of ‘emergency pasta’ from the cupboard and sigh deeply while feeding us all suspiciously and shockingly orange macaroni.



But my friend showed up and the sun was shining and we loaded the boys up in the stroller and went out for lunch. And it wasn’t a disaster! Well, maybe for the server (who was lovely and patient) but not for us. One glass of water spilled, a few noodles on the floor, a sleeping infant in one arm, eating one-handedly, a toddler dipping a salad roll into a dish of peanut sauce WITHOUT spilling it. And some adult conversation peppered with a lot of “Mommy? Mommy?”s. My friend not only picked up the tab (Thanks, J!) but also helped dress the boys in their winter gear and roll us out onto the sidewalk well fed and content.

Will asked to go to the park so to the park we went. It was strange that on such a beautiful day no other children were playing there but it was fun having the park to ourselves. Markus and I watched Will run and play and slide and laugh. We left only because we started to get a little cold.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned being a parent, no day ever goes as you imagine it. That can be a good thing.

Your Yummy Tip for the Day

I don't know what you were like when you're nursing but I literally can't eat enough. You think you had cravings and ate a lot when you were pregnant? Well you ain't seen nothing until you're nursing. I literally feel like I might be starving to death if I don't have a snack near-by at all moment of the day.

Unfortunately, until now, my snacks haven't always been super healthy.

But today, I bought these Sweet Potato Tortilla Chips from No Frills and like pretty much everythingng else the "President" chooses, this is a total hit and will become my snack of choice for the near future. They are relatively low calorie and claim to have actual sweet potatoes in them. With a good salsa, delish. Now you know too.

Of course, on the same trip to No Frills, I also bought THE MOST DELICIOUS COOKIES YOU'LL EVER EAT - the Candy Cane "oreo" from President's Choice. We got them at the office during the holidays and I promptly went to Loblaws and bought my own box. When I went back to get more, they were sold out. I literally looked high and lo in every Loblaws or Superstore I went to and came up empty.

Until today. When I bought 5 boxes at like $2/box. I will attempt not to eat them all in one sitting, but can make no actual promises. I'm not going to tell you which No Frills I found them at for fear that you'll clean out my one known supplier. But go crazy on the Sweet Potato Tortilla chips. They're everywhere.

Hey, all's fair in love and cookies, right?

How to Have a Social Life (and Not Neglect Your Children)

This is not Mel's family but they could be friends...erm, maybe not.

By Downtown Mama Mel

Allow me to introduce you to my family: one Downtown Mama heading back to work, one Downtown Papa (hmm, ‘Downtown Daddy’ sounds better, no?) starting four months of parental leave with one Downtown Toddler and one Downtown Baby. 

Our goal is achieve and maintain an active social life as a family that is (in theory) enjoyable and eventful for all four of us.

I am in the final week of my final maternity leave and baby #2, Markus, is just shy of eight months old. I’ve not yet weaned him nor is he anywhere near sleeping through the night so shouldn’t I be freaking out right now instead of starting a blog?

Nope. You know why? It’s baby #2.

With baby #1 every single moment, change, challenge, bump, illness and milestone is recorded, discussed, researched and verified. As first time parents in our (late) thirties and without any family members in the same province as us we relied on parenting books, the internet and an extremely helpful mother’s group to figure out our exciting and frightening new roles as parents. I remember that with our first son, Willem (who is now almost 3 years old) we were stressed out about whether or not to vaccinate for the H1N1 flu and that it seemed that with all new parents we knew at that time that this ‘monumental decision’ would determine whether or not a child would survive the winter. (Shudder). I also recall having Willem on the waiting list for a daycare from before he was born (which is normal practice!), calling them every month or two to ensure he was still ‘on the list’ and then discovering one week before he was to start daycare that they ‘forgot to transfer his name onto the new list’ and that they would not have a spot for him for two more months. I had six business days to find him a full time daycare spot.

In the end everything worked out: our children all survived the winter and Willem thrived in a home daycare that he still attends today. In hindsight the extra stress and tears served nothing but to make me look just that much older.

Baby #2 is a different story:

• Baby #1 has always had the undivided attention of one or even two parents.

• Baby #2 will never experience the undivided attention of one or two parents.

• As needy as a newborn is your toddler will instantly become needier.

• Your newborn will survive a few extra minutes in the crib calling out for you. Your toddler who has run into another room and then is eerily and uncharacteristically quiet? He needs you post haste!

• Baby #1 has already exhausted your supply of micro-management skills. You no longer have the time nor the resources to focus on the minutia with Baby #2.

• Baby #2 receives a lot of stimulation joining you, via a sturdy sling, as you chase after Baby #1.

• Baby #1 will provide a lot of attention to Baby #2. Just make sure it’s supervised. A brotherly hug can, and does, turn instantly into a headlock.

I have learned that babies are resilient. They are learning and growing every second right in front of our eyes, whether our eyes are actually directed at them or not.

With baby #2 I sometimes worry that I don’t worry enough. But then I get too busy and I forget to even worry about that.

So join us, if you will, as we share our Downtown Family adventures with you in this blog and learn How to Have a Social Life (and Not Neglect Your Children).

Downtown Mama Mel Knows Stuff

How Isla and I are feeling these days

This last week has been rough y'all.

I think I sort of forgot what this stage was like. You're kinda in a honeymoon period for like the first 2 weeks. All your baby does is sleep, nurse and cuddle. You usually have family and spouse around to help with everything, people are bringing you food and gifts. It's pretty much Norman Rockwell perfect.

And then the crying starts. And sometimes doesn't stop....for months.

It's too soon to say if Isla has colic. When Archer was 3 weeks he started crying loudly and for what seemed like a long time and we were TOTALLY FREAKED OUT. Would it end? What was happening? Why did he hate us so much? We started playing the game all new parents play - Let's Try and Read our Baby's Mind.

It goes something like this:

"Do you think he's hungry?" husband asks.

"No, I just fed him. Maybe he's cold?" wife responds.

"Hmm, I'm actually pretty warm... maybe he's overheated," husband adds.

"He's really scrunching his fists - he probably has gas."

"He could be overtired. We should have told people to leave earlier - he got overstimulated."

"Have you changed him in the last hour?"

"Yes, but we should probably check again."

Said conversation is all happening over the screams of your little one who is probably just getting totally frustrated by how clueless you both are and why you, the supposed "grown-ups," just can't figure this out and make it better.

For Archer, the phase really only lasted for 2 weeks but it was a looong 2 weeks. I'm going to remain optimistic that with Isla, this will also be a short phase. But there is always that fear that you could have a colicky baby and it could last for months. I have a whole new level of respect for those parents who endured this for that level of time. You are good people.

So it was partly this reason and partly because I find her so darn funny and insightful that I asked my mama buddy, Melanie, to start writing for this blog. Who knows when I'll come back up for air!

We have a lot to learn from Mel. She has a 3 year old, an 8 month old and is always freakin' smiling and being funny. She and her hubby are always on the go, doing all sorts of cool things in the city with kids in tow. It's pretty annoying actually. But it makes me think that we can all learn from her. And she's on her way back to work which makes her story even more interesting I think.

Her first post follows this. So read on and enjoy. I need to stop this posting stat, which I have only been able to do because Isla is finally sleeping peacefully. Off to nap and possibly prepare for another long night ahead of us!

60% Sale Nursing & Maternity Wear - Evymama

June & Dane Nursing Top

I was never the kind of pregnant mama who could retrofit non-maternity clothing and make it work for my pregnant body. When I was pregnant with Archer, there were hardly even maternity clothes that would fit me by the end - I blew-up like a puffer-fish. It was lovely, let me tell you.

To give you a sense of how big I got, in the first week post-pregnancy I lost 40 lbs That's like a 5 year old child -  and I wasn't even half way done losing what I gained.... And if that weren't bad enough, all the weight was in my legs. Brad lovingly coined a new term just for me. Thighkles - like canckles but with your thighs. Hot.

And with Isla although I avoided Michelin Man proportions, I "popped" really early and so needed to move quite quickly to maternity.

Dote Nursing Tee

I envied some of my first time mama colleagues who just had a little belly and as such, could through on an oversized sweater or tunic and leggings and call it a day. But I lived because I was happy with the maternity alternatives I found for myself.

I'm not sure what I think about clothing specifically made for the purposes of nursing. I feel like it's a bit weird having strategically placed slits on clothes and not sure it really adds an extra level of modesty - although they are usually made so you avoid ever having to expose your belly. I'm pretty much ok letting anyone get a glimpse of side boob right now - they're completely utilitarian right now as such, cannot really be the source of embarrassment for me.

However, I will do *anything to avoid exposing my belly right now. I know, I know...I should wear my extra skin and flab with pride, but I'm not that person. And for this reason alone, I may take a look at some of the options at the Evymama sale, where most of their nursing and maternity options are 60% off right now.

I quite like the looks of the above grey top, regular $68 from June & Dane. I also like this little white tee from Dote at $78, regular price.

The topic of a future posting, dresses, which I love, can be a total pain when you're nursing (think about it - how are you getting access without getting all Lindsay Lohan on everyone?) - so a nursing dress may make the most sense of all. When I drop a little more weight, I think this Dote Harlow Dress, regular $108 might be pretty awesome for spring walks with Isla (ooh, we could do matching looks...side note: yaay, a girl!). I really like the black version too.

Evymama has two locations in Toronto - one in Bloor West Village and a new location on the Danforth. They also have a great online store and ship to the rest of Canada. Web customers use the code, TreatMyCloset at check-out.

Chilling Out, Baby Style

Isla hanging inside on a rainy cold day

You'd think coming from Winnipeg I'd be tougher.

When I was a kid growing up in the 'peg (please not "Winterpeg", Torontonians - you always use this term with Winnipegers, like we've never heard it before  - fyi, we have and we still don't think it's particularly clever or funny), cold or wet weather would never phase us.

7AM Enfant Bunting Bag

For the most part, unless the cold would actually kill you (which actually could happen on a few particular days in winter), you'd never hesitate to bundle up and get outside to play, skate, toboggan, whatever....


But today in Toronto, it's a wee bit cold and it's definitely wet and I'm totally pouting.

Do all Vancouver mamas have one of these?

Isla and I had big plans. Today, we were going to go for a nice long walk in our neighbourhood. I finally got her a good outdoor cover-up - this awesome piece from 7AM Enfant from Planet Kid in Roncesvalles (is it a coat or bunting bag? both! - top snaps off to be her coat when she's a little older *and someone way smarter than me actually thought to put a little slot in the bunting part for a car seat - brilliant). And I had a mission - go find high dose DHA supplements for myself at the corner health food store so Isla has the potential of having the biggest healthiest brain ever...

Pudge can teach me a lot about chilling

But said brain is going to have to wait a day or two to expand because while the cold doesn't bother me, the wet does. I mean, what do you do with a stroller and a baby and cold pounding rain?

Well, the answer for me and Isla today is not too much. Days like today become unscheduled nothing days.

It's good for such days to have some projects ready to go at home. For me, today involved the beginnings of cleaning out and organizing my post-maternity closet - I didn't get very far but the plans are in the works. Other ideas for future days like today could include the following:

1. Learn how to bake. I don't know about you, but baking never figured prominently in my working (outside the home) life. It sort of stresses me out with all its requirement for precision and prettiness but the outcomes are rewarding so well worth learning how to do this.

2. Organize cupboards. Our babysitter, Brad and I all have different rules when it comes to putting things away in the kitchen. And none of those rules are the same. Well, I'm taking control. I'm home so, for now, they are officially my cupboards. There will be a system. It will be my system. So there.

3. Work on thank you cards. I'm surfing Etsy and some other sites for some more creative solutions to thank you cards. I kinda like this idea...but think I can do a wee bit better. So if you're wondering where your thank you card is, this is why. I'm aiming for perfection, people!

4. Figure out daytime television. I'll say it. I miss Oprah! And although I have OWN, there's not enough Oprah on OWN to make up for missing my 4pm Oprah.  And there are all these new and not so good shows - The Chew is one that is pretty awful and I can't believe The Doctors still exists. It's super annoying. But I think I may be in love with Anderson Cooper. I would like to tell CTV, however, that they need to move Anderson to 4pm. Archer gets home at 5pm and then it's all Treehouse all the time.

5. Learn how to be happy just chilling. Not surprising to those who know me, this is *really really hard for me. But having a baby in the middle of winter - and having a second baby so you're even more extra tired, makes learning to chill a necessity  - something a seasoned and smart mom of two reminded me of yesterday when I was complaining about being a little bored. It's rare in life when you're actually allowed to do nothing. And even rarer still when you are able to do nothing with someone you love so deeply. This definitely will be top of the list for our next unscheduled nothing day. I can't wait.

The shirt so nice, she bought it twice...and other amazing deals today

Sparkly & Stripy

...and just as quickly as he succumbed to croup, Archer has made a miraculous recovery.  It goes to show you that in all things kids, there's no point in getting overly stressed or upset because it always gets better just when you think it won't.


And so, to celebrate, I went to Dufferin Mall and finally did my grocery shopping.

Hey, what were you expecting? These are the things that make me happy (when I can't up and go to a tropical island or realistically book a 40th birthday trip to Coachella - side note, have you seen the line-up this year?? Crazy good).

I love me a good deal too.

You know what else makes me happy? A good deal. I started off my good deal day by purchasing what is seemingly the BEST GROUPON DEAL EVER.... Seriously. I almost don't believe it but this morning I bought 40 Blow Outs at Doll Bar on Queen for $99. That's like $2.25 a blow dry. I go for my first tomorrow and I'm half expecting that when I show up they're going to hand me the blow dryer and tell me to do my own hair but if they even do my hair half decently, count me pretty much the happiest girl in the world.

I am a shallow shallow woman. I acknowledge that.

Second best deal? These 2 sparkly stripy shirts from Walmart for $5 each. I am a sucker for all things stripy. It makes me feel a little like my ultimate style hero Jenna Lyons. Because, she'd totally shop at Walmart, right?1?

Anyone?

And m final great deal? My groceries. A week + worth, with diapers, mostly organic produce, all for $115. Yay me.

A good day. Hope you had one too.

Happy Birthday David Bowie...

David channeling his own Downtown Mama. Loves it.

Follow-up to the last posting...

Since I know you're all on the edge of your seats to see how my first day out alone with Isla went, let me update you...

I'm home.

...with Archer who has croup and is now maybe on the verge of pneumonia and I'm doing my best to not let Isla get sick from him. Our only trip out was to the docs to confirm all this.

Looks like Archer will be home with us all week. Bring on endless episodes of Thomas, Waybayloo and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse with a healthy dose of toddler iPad playing to boot.

So this is what 2 kids is like... rrrriiight.

Deep breath...

The Good Wife - Season 2

Loving the DVD. This has nothing to do with this post.

Archer was almost 2 months old when I started this blog. By the 2 month mark, I was ready to go. I was sick of being at home but wasn't quite sure what to do with my time or rather, how to spend my time with this little crying, pooping, cutie (literally) attached to me for many hours a day.

My mom helped me out a lot with this. When she came to stay with us, she showed me quite literally how to go out with Archer, how get basic chores done both in and out of the house with Archer and how to meal plan, grocery shop and cook with Archer.

In short, like my best law professors taught me how to be a lawyer (actually none of them taught me how to be a lawyer but that's another blog altogether), my mom taught me lessons on how to "own" my home in my new life as a mom. How to be a "Good Wife". It's sounds all very1950s Mad Men doesn't it? But I am eternally grateful for those lessons. And I will happily pass them on to both Isla and Archer when they grow older.

Boys should know all of this too.

But as I write this, with my little girl now just 2 weeks old, with my husband going back to work full-time tomorrow and my mom thousands of miles away in Hawaii (sigh...), I am on my own. And I'm not sure if I'm ready for all of this again! But I have gone back to some of my earlier blogs for a bit of a refresher course. And I've learned that before I figure out anything else, I must figure out food.

It's back to meal planning! Woo hoo! So without further a do, here is the plan for the Week of January 9, 2012:

Monday - Meatloaf and Sweet Potato Mash
Meatloaf recipe: 
1 lb. g. beef or g turkey 
1 c bread crumbs ¼ c milk 
1 beaten egg 
Dash worchestireshire sauce 
Seasoning: 
¼ c. finely chopped onion 
½ tsp mustard Mix well together . Form into loaf . Drizzle ketchup over top & bake in oiled loaf pan 1 hr @ 375. Let sit 10 min before slicing.

Sweet Potato Mash (from Everyday Food):
Bake 3 Sweet potatoes at 400 for 1 hour and when cool scoop and mash along with 2 tbls butter and 1/8 cup maple syrup and s/p until smooth

Tuesday - Slowcooker Chicken Chili Tacos  

Wednesday - Order in (actually, will eat delicious lasagna cooked from a friend)

Thurs - Asian Turkey Meatballs & Carrot Rice (from Everyday Food)


Preheat oven to 450. In a medium saucepan bring 1 1/2 cups salted water to a boil. Add 1 cup long grain white rice and boil. Cover, simmer for 15 minutes. Remove and let stand for 5 minutes and stir in 1 carrot shredded and fluff.

Meanwhile, combine 3/4 cup breadcrumbs and 3 tblsp water. Let stand 5 minutes. Add 1 1/2 lbs ground turkey, 3 chopped scallions, 1/3 cup chopped cilantro, 4 tsp fish sauce, 4 tsp hot pepper sauce, 4 tsp sugar, 1 minced garlic clove and salt. Mix into 12 meatballs. Fry in non-stick skillet with 1 tsp oil on medium-high for about 10 minutes and then transfer to baking sheet and cook for 10 minutes.

Friday - Grocery Rotisserie Chicken dinner (will make a chicken casserole with leftovers for weekend).

Grocery List:
6 Chicken Thighs
Taco Shells
Ground beef
Ground turkey
3 Sweet Potatoes
Carrots
Rice
Breadcrumbs
Cilantro
Scallions
Garlic
Monterey Jack Cheese
Salsa
Eggs

Tomorrow, we're doing our first solo grocery shop with my new mat leave budget in mind. Wish me luck!

Shop My Closet

So you know how I really really know I'm not having any more babies (well other than biologically speaking, it would take a small miracle)? I'm getting rid of my maternity clothes.

Like right now.

Wanna buy my coat? You'll totally look like her

The last go around, I held on to my maternity clothes for a long time. I had some really good pieces and wanted to use them again. But then we decided to live with our one-child state and I gave away my maternity clothes - all of them... one week before I found out I was pregnant with Isla.

Yes, you read that right. One week before. Life is funny like that, huh?

Anyway, I'm sure it won't be a total shocker to you that I had no problems rebuilding my maternity wardrobe and I think overall, I did pretty well. I discovered the ASOS maternity shop online and visited the Top Shop maternity section when I did a business trip to NYC. And of course my dear H&M maternity. Love it. Indeed, there are many pieces I wish I could make work in my postpartum state. Other than my maternity pants... which...sigh...still work just fine. Hrmph.

So maybe it's my fashion ego or maybe it's my desire to start building a new "2012 mom of 2 wardrobe" (hey, that's a thing) but I feel like others might be interested in my maternity wardrobe and why can't I make a little cash on the side to fund the new duds?

So to Craigslist I have gone and yesterday posted a few of my favourites, pictured here for your viewing pleasure.

One of my have pieces from H&M

I have done a lot of Craigslisting in the last couple years. I have bought great pieces - like Archer's barely used Stokke crib or Thomas the Train playtable we got him for Christmas (why are these over $250 new, people, why??) and I have sold some good stuff too - notably splurge purses and coats. It makes an expensive purchase more palatable and it's good for the environment, right? It's recycling. Oh yes it is.

I have found the secret to a successful Craigslist posting to be as follows:

1. A good picture. Where you can, find the picture of the original new piece online. Taking a picture of the piece yourself never does it justice. But finding the retail picture can be hard since things turn-over so quickly in stores and online. If you think you have bought a piece you may want to sell again, why not take a copy of that picture then and save it for future use?

2. Think about your description. Of course, include all the basic info - size, colour - but add some colour to your description. How many times did you wear it (worn twice is a phrase sadly I've been able to use a little too often)? What kind of uses might one make of the item? Is it for work? For a party dress? If it is a designer piece make sure you mention it in the headline - it will jump out.

Sexy Mama Dress For Almost Nothing!

3. If you're selling a bunch of pieces, I recommend against lumping them all in one posting. They get lost amongst the thousands of other postings. Not everything you have is worth selling either (am I the only one that gets grossed out by people selling like maternity bras or pyjamas?). But for those that are worth selling - particularly coats, bags, designer pieces - post individually or sell a couple pieces together (like buy 2 for $40 or 1 for $25).

4. Make sure your pieces are clean and for coats offer to dry clean or discount if you don't.

5. If you haven't got a hit on Craigslist in the first couple days of posting, try Kijiji or even your mom Meetup group message board.

Tomorrow my first "customer" is coming to pick up her purchase and it will be both with a little pride but also a little sadness that I will part with the piece. It will be the end of an era... but also the beginning of another.

Bring it.

I Can Cluster Feed Too, You Know...

This soup has kale and I still love it.

Isla has been sleeping for 3 hours this morning. This is typical text-book post-cluster feeding behaviour. You know what cluster-feeding is, right? Well, lemme paint the picture. Last night, no word of a lie, the lovely Isla was up to nurse EVERY HOUR. Without fail. The longest stretch of consecutive sleep I got was 45 minutes.

Cluster feeding relates to a growth spurt in baby and when this first happened with Archer, I literally thought I was going to die. Now I try to take it all in stride and today, although we had all these ambitions to get out and do stuff, we are staying close to home. Watching more episodes of The Good Wife and we just started Source Code with Jake Gyllenhaal. I hear the chemistry between him and Michelle Monaghan is through the roof. I'll keep you posted on that...

Anyway, it's days like this, that I'm glad I have friends like E who bring me food. As if I have any energy to make anything myself.

And her food was soooo good, I needed to share.

Soup. The best soup ever.

When E told me her soup was a Chatelaine recipe I wasn't surprised. Whether from the magazine or the cookbook they recently published, I have yet to try a recipe that hasn't been simple and delicious. Their website has all the recipes they publish too so check it out.

This is a hearty soup with all sorts of goodness packed in, including a healthy dose of kale, which I have to tell you, I'm usually fairly skeptical about... it just seems too green and healthy... you know what I mean? But in this soup, it's great and I will endeavor, because of this soup, to use it more (although you just can't convince me that kale chips are good so don't try).

Anyway, you don't need to be sleep deprived to love this recipe, so enjoy. Isla and I are getting back to Jake...

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 Italian sausages
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 leek (white part only), sliced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 156 ml can tomato paste
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• 8 cups chopped kale leaves, about 1 small bunch
• 540 ml can lentils, rinsed and drained
• grated parmesan (optional)

Heat a large, wide saucepan over medium. Add oil, then sausages. Turn sausages occasionally until they lose their pink colour, 4 to 6 min. Remove to a plate. Add onion, leek, carrots and garlic to pan. Cook until onion starts to soften, about 3 min. Meanwhile, thinly slice sausages. Stir in tomato paste, coriander, salt, sausages and any juices. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until flavour develops, 5 more min. Pour in 4 cups water. Bring to a boil. Stir in kale and reduce heat to medium. Cover and gently boil, stirring occasionally, until kale is tender, 5 to 7 min. Stir in lentils. If soup is too thick, stir in more water. Ladle soup into bowls. Sprinkle with parmesan. Serve immediately.

Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen As Stylist for New Mamas

This is a weird picture to take with your sister.

I love me a good mall. Particularly on mat leave. In addition to just generally loving to shop (even window shop), it was a good excuse to get out, to meet friends, to get some exercise. Archer loved it too -- so much so that even last night as we were driving home from a friends house, we drove by Dufferin Mall and Archer lost his mind when he realized we weren't actually going in...

For reals.

But it's cold out and I'm still figuring out how we actually leave our house with two of them. We ventured out to Yorkdale yesterday and no word of a lie it took us like an hour and a half to get ready by which time, Archer was decidedly ready for a nap. By the time we got there, the trip was strictly restricted to our "must-do" list - returns, exchanges, etc. - i.e., no fun for me (well, it was still pretty fun but you know...).

And from a very practical perspective, I need a few clothes - particularly tops. I don't see myself getting out of my maternity pants any time soon (boo!) but the maternity tops ain't working for me already. Things hang where they shouldn't, they aren't particularly nursing friendly... not attractive my friends.

So how happy was I to discover StyleMint.com?

When I had Archer, online shopping in Canada was in its infancy. We were just able to order from US retailers like Banana Republic or the Gap and amazing sites like Dealuxe.ca didn't exist all. All great options now, but still a little pricey for my mat leave pay cheque.

StyleMint combines a bunch of my favourite frivolous pop culture icons (I already feel you judging me btw): Elle's Joe Zee, Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen and my favourite go-to style website WhoWhatWear.com, all wrapped up in a Columbia Music House record club business model.

Let me explain.



























For 29.99/month, you acquire credits to be used against uber-affordable, and super cute tops designed by MK & A, personally curated for you (based on a short survey) by the diminutive divas or guest stylists like Joe Zee or Katherine Power from WhoWhatWear (I'm sure they're totally just waiting on the other end of the internet to do this personally for me, right? :)). No tee is more than $29.99 (Canadians end up paying a little more because of shipping). And I'm just saying, their flowy shapes are perfect for new mamas. Here are a couple tops I found that I think will work well. Wear them over-top a little cami and they'll work great for nursing (use the old lift the top, pull down the tank trick).

I may hate StyleMint in a month because like Columbia Records, if you don't use your $29.99 or actively "pass" on an emailed style selection, your card will be charged. We'll see. But right now, totally fun.