Items this Ringmaster Loves Part II

As I stated before, these are items that make my life or my family's lives easier or more fun.

I bought an iPad 2 a few months ago and my husband insisted that I also but this smart cover and I am grateful he did. This thing is awesome!!! It connects to your iPad via magnet on the side. The cool parts about this cover are that it is super slim, the iPad will go to sleep when you close this cover and it can conform into a stand that holds the iPad in different positions. It is a great addition to have on something that I use everyday!



Apple MC941LL/A Polyurethane Smart Cover for iPad 2 (Pink)

The next thing that I use often is our double stroller. We have given this thing a trip around Disneyland more that once and it does great everytime (I have also seen a ton of other people there with the same stroller). Our son is 9 months old and he has been using the carseat that matches the stroller since he was a month old. I have washed the cover multiple times and it still looks new. We have not used the stroller as a 'Sit N Stand' yet because our 3 year old is sleeping most times I get it out so until she is too big I will just continue using it as a... Sit N Sit? (lol, yes I amuse myself)



Baby Trend Sit 'n Stand Double Baby Stroller - Sonic

Last year we and by 'we' I mean 'I', decided that our family were going to become campers! I was so excited that I researched tents until I was almost able to recit reviews on models and makers almost as easily as I can recit my birthdate. Then came the day that I had saved enough money to actually buy the tent and I purchased the Swiss Gear Family Dome. Now for the funny part, umm we have never actually went camping... YET, but we will. We have however set the tent up multiple times and have even let our friends use it for camping and the tent is perfect! This tent sleeps 12 and I'm sure you are thinking that is probably a little overkill but if you have kept up with my blog then you know we rarely do anything on a small scale. Besides we have 6 members in our family and 4 are girls so we actually use up a couple extra spots with all the non camping items we take (or will take) camping, you know- when we actually go. Plus what if our kids want a couple of friends to go camping with us? Now our 12 person tent isn't sounding so ridiculous huh? The tent size makes us even cooler parents and we will take any bonus points we can get!



SwissGear Outdoor Montreaux Family Dome Tent

Here is one that actually makes my mom's life easier. It is the Ames True Temper Lawn Buddy. She uses this thing a lot and has had it for a few years. My mom stores her clippers, twine, seeds, garden tape and all kinds of gardening items in the little cart that she can pull around behind her. There are compartments for everything! It also has big enough wheels that she has no problem pulling it through the grass to get to the garden beds. The feature that I like the most is that she can sit on the lid and still do the planting or weeding without bending over or kneeling down. It is those kinds of qualities that make the difference. I have watched her garden all of my life and I am glad that even though she is not in the same good health as before, she can still enjoy her hobbies and this cart by Ames is the key reason she can still garden.



Ames True Temper 2466010 Lawn Buddy

OK last but not least- my Kitchenaid Pro 600 Series!!! O my I can actually hear the "O watcha makin Mom?" already and that makes me smile. I use my mixer at least 3-4 times a week. I make our bread, english muffins, cookies, pasta (raviolis, lasanga noodles, linguini, etc), cake batter and all kinds of other super yummy goodies. I use to make all these things by hand but then Christmas was close and when I was asked what I wanted I said "A Kitchenaid mixer PLEASE!" and Santa listened. If you are anything like me, I should have owned one a long time ago!



KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer KP26M1XQpm 6 Quart Pearl Metallic Large 10-speed Very Dark Grey beautiful color.

So there you have it, I love these products! I have provided links to these items in the hope that it helps you read reviews and find a great price because I firmly believe that researching and compairing before you buy an item is important and can save you time and money. If you own any of these items or do purchase them I would love to hear about your experiences. If you have questions please do not hestiate to ask.

Chicken Update

First off Happy St. Patricks Day!!!

The hens are getting to look like real chickens and it is pretty cool to have them pecking around in the yard while we are doing the outdoor chores. Our 3 year old daughter is the "Mommy Hen" of the group, and who am I to argue?

This is Ariel in weed heaven. She is one of the Rhode Island Reds.

Last weekend we moved the chickens box outside to the back patio area and Thor built a chicken run out of these pieces of wood from Lowes for .75 each and some plastic chicken wire mesh. During the mornings this past week I've been going out and opening the lid on their covered box then 'Mommy Hen' and I hustle them into the run. I can tell you that our cats are not very amused by the mesh lol.

They are weed pecking machines! In the evening we let them out to run/fly around the yard before we put them back. Usually they spend this time exploring everything, trying to stay in a flock and  they try to get into the house and sometimes they succeed.

Eveie in the front. She is a Plymouth/Barred Rock and she is a brave one.

Ariel and he sister Henny Penny the Rhode Island Reds.

The problem is that we do not have a shingled roof for the box or the run... And a big storm is coming through this weekend! Thor was able to put a tarp over them and secure it so the water doesn't pool. I'm sure this will be our rude awakening on how quickly we need to get the complete coop built. I could have sworn that in a previous post I bragged about how we still had another 5 weeks before they would be old enough to go outside and that would be PLENTY of time to build a coop... Oops!

Before we moved the chickens outside our other cat, Shaka, discovered that we had birds living in our house.

Some days I would find her just checking in on them

"Really?!? You won't let us in the house but you let birds in there!!!???"

I don't want anyone to worry, we do not let the cats near the chickens when they are out of the run. In fact I think the cats maybe a little baffled at how big the hens actually are... either way, we keep a close eye on the chickens.
That is my update so far. From what I have gathered the hens should start laying eggs around 5 months of age and that would be around the end of June and I already have plenty of friends that have asked for eggs ;-)

Items that this Ringmaster loves!

Part 1

I was looking around at the inanimate objects that I use often because one of my girlfriends recently commented that "You always have cool stuff". I was flattered, that is an awesome compliment! When I thought about it I realized that I often put some real thought behind my purchases and usually do research for reviews and comparisons. We are not financially wealthy so when we do decide to purchase something I want to know what I am getting myself and the Fam Bam into. I am going to break down my list of things that make my life or my children's lives easier, more fun or what have you.

#1- My Canon DSLR Rebel T3i Camera
     My latest addition to my arsenal of making myself into "That Mom"! This camera has been one of our biggest purchases in a while and I have never been so happy with a camera, EVER! I really had a tough time with making the decision to put that amount of money into something that I have no experience with but luckily I have a cousin who is a professional photographer. He took the time to have a conversation with me about the pros and cons of Nikon and Canon and between the point and clicks or the DSLR. After I hung up the phone I felt comfortable diving into the world of DSLR's. If you are ready to buy a new camera I feel confident that you would like some of the reviews that I also read.



Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera and DIGIC 4 Imaging with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

The link below is my favorite review because he took the time to take pictures with the Nikon 6100 (Canon T3i equivalent) and to show the differences.
http://thediscerningphotographer.com/2011/08/28/nikon-d5100-vs-canon-rebel-t3i-camera-review/

This is one that upgraded his camera and is happy with his T3i
http://www.digitalcamerareviewing.com/canon/canon-eos-rebel-t3i-user-reviews/rebel-t3i-successful-dslr.html#comment-177

#2- Metal shelves in my garage
     I know that this may sound silly but I have had these 2 shelving units for a while now and we are going to be buying 2 more. They really helped to organize my stockpile and extra items in the garage. Trust me when I say that our poor garage needs all the help it can get! We actually bought ours at Costco a few years ago but I have seen them at many stores. My suggestion is to buy a couple, load them up and enjoy the new found space!

#3- 12ft Play Parachute for Kids
     This parachute has entertained everyone from my husband and I down to our 8 month old baby boy and all the kids in between (and their friends). I saw a play parachute for sale in a School Supply store about 3 months ago when I was buying some items for our kids' playroom but the problem is that they wanted almost $80 for the 12 ft parachute and over $100 for the 20 ft! I searched online and found one with great reviews and a very reasonable price. After many kids playing with it and over 2 months of being thrown around it is still in great condition! I will be buying the 20ft parachute soon because my older daughters (11 and 12) love the one we have now but they want to be able to make it "bubble up" so that they can sit down on the ground and have it hover like a dome. Check this out, you and your kids will love it!


12' Ripstop Playchute Parachute


#4- Baby Bullet!
     This is an amazing helper when it comes to making your own baby food! I understand that that is exactly what it is supposed to be but I am always happy when a product delivers on what it promises to do. I have ran out before to get something that I thought would be a great product only to find out that it sucked at doing what it said it would do. Being a busy mom it really ticks me off to have to take the item all the way back to the store. So when I asked for this a Christmas gift and here we are a few months later and it still works perfectly, I am happy! Once or twice a week I will make food for the baby and freeze part of it in the tray provided. Our household has made the switch from eating processed food to organic, fresh food and the Baby Bullet has been the perfect compliment.


Baby Bullet Complete Baby Care System

I am going to stop here and review the other items that I added to my amazon list in a later post. If you have any questions, comments or reviews of the items that I discussed please feel free to leave them!

Housewives need to grow a set

Don't these housewives have anything better to do? What the hell! I thought it would be interesting to see what my fellow housewives are posting out there on their blogs. It is the same crap over and over again. If I see one more headline about "Confessions of a something something Housewife" or "I'm a retro housewife" I may throw up! Here's some confessions.
A) My 3 year old daughter threw up all over my bed this morning and since it takes 4 loads of laundry to wash my bedding and I have a crazy busy life, we will all be sleeping on a bed that is half ass put together.
B) Yes I said WE WILL ALL... because we all co sleep, the 3 year old, 8 month old, the hubby and I. Why? Because we don't have the guts to get them out of our bed. They cry, we feel bad, and they are back. One day I'll fix it, today however is not the day.
C) Our house is a fucking mess! My girlfriends think I've got this whole being a housewife thing down pat, which is a huge compliment but I don't exactly. Open my cabinets and drawers and look in my office and it is uggglllyyy! I'm working on it but mean while I am busy, being a mom, working part time, starting businesses and helping friends clean up their credit reports!
D) My OCD, yes I really have OCD is a pain in the ass to my husband more than me ;-)

Those are confessions! Saying that you like a tv show or that your guilty pleasure is Bon Bons (when you're obviously chunky) are not confessions!!! No one cares that you love the color pink, write something that is interesting!
Anyhow, ugh! All I wanted was some inspiration to bring to my blog and all I got was pissed off at housewives.
My computer locked up so fingers crossed our friend who is an IT whiz will fix it. I'm heading outside tomorrow with chickens and yard work so I'll post pics. Maybe I will be a little more calm too, lol.
BTW when I say someone needs to "grow a set" I think back to Betty White saying "why would you want balls? They are tiny and sensitive. If you really want to be tough, grow a vagina!" I probably just messed that up but you get the point. After giving birth to 4 children I have to agree 110%

The Conservative Hippie

I really don't know another way to explain myself sometimes. I believe we should be able to arm ourselves but do everything we can to be more green. I can picture it now, a Terminator type dude sorting his recycling lol! But in all seriousness one of my pet peeves is that some of my closest friends roll their eyes when I talk about my garden, chickens or what's in the supermarket food. The encouraging part though is that for every 1 friend that rolls their eyes there are 4 friends who feel the same way I do and are trying to grow gardens, buy organic and/or shop at farmers markets. I so badly want to point out that the ones who think that I'm a little crazy and that buying organic is too expensive are also the ones who have a $400 car payment, eat out often and drink soda like water. Then they will turn around and say that the reason for the car with a $400 car payment is because the car has great safety features or something along those lines. Hmm so putting food into your kids mouths that is not covered in pesticides or grown from genetically modified seeds isnt a saftey feature or costs too much??? To me it is all in the same boat as far as buying stuff that is good for us. Listen, I'm far from perfect and I am sure that finding something I do wrong wouldn't take long but this is my blog and my opinion. I get to be on my soap box whenever I feel like it :-) There is always a balance between costs, safety and whatever each of us finds to be important. I just don't like to be told that buying organic would cost too much so that person never buys one thing organic. Here is the deal, buy organic and don't eat as much or plant a garden to offset the costs. Gardens= nothing but positive things- time spent outside, kids get to spend time with mom or dad or both and help, plus watch what they planted grow, you get to eat healthier, get exercise and save money! I just told a friend the other day that I'm not raising 6 chickens because I think that we need that many eggs. We have 6 chickens because I want to be able to give my friends eggs often. I want more than just my family to benefit from our efforts to go green. This conservative hippie is out to arm friends with knowledge and free fresh organic eggs ;-)