In case you haven't heard, the Johnson & Johnson's Celebrity Hand-Me-Down auction is going on. They're selling "used" baby items from celebrities, all to raise money for charity. There are eight items in the auction, all from celebrity moms except Matt Damon, who is offering a diaper bag.
Here's where the "Celebrity Auction" starts to piss me off.
Casablanca Cribs in Jennifer Lopez's Nursery
Jennifer Lopez has a (typically) ostentatious nursery and published pictures of them in People Magazine. But the crib is actually quite nice if that kind of decor is up your alley.
Audible Launches New Kids Site
Download audio books for your kids and stop putting Spongebob on their iPods.
7 Days of BPA-Free Plastics: CamelBak Water Bottles
Something to check out when you reach post-sippy cup nirvana.
Jessica Alba Gives Tastybaby
Jessica Alba gives baby food as a party favor for her shower. Seriously.
Mariah Carey Has a Hello Kitty Boo-Boo on American Idol
Mariah Carey is obsessed with Helo Kitty apparently. And she wears the same Band-Aids on American Idol that my kids wear.
Big Deal: FLOR Carpet Tiles for Kids On Sale
FLOR has a couple of child themed carpets on sale now.
It's no secret I'm a big fan of the XBOX 360, but after playing with my new Nintendo Wii for a week or so, I have to say that it is much better suited for families. Although it's missing some features in my opinion, it's got the other systems beat in a few key areas.
First is the price. If you can find one in the stores, it's only going to cost you $250, which is $100 cheaper than the standard XBOX 360 and $250 cheaper than the standard Playstation 3. Sure it's not going to play BlueRay DVDs (or even regular DVDs) but for a next generation video game system (that plays great games) it's a bargain.
Next is the interface or "usability" of the system itself. Everything is based around using a remote control (or "Wiimote") and everyone that's tried to use it in my house - from my 3 year old daughter to my parents - understand how to use it immediately. Not only does the game know you're pointing it at the television, it also knows if you're rotating, tilting or moving it around anywhere. Personally I think it's easier to use than an XBOX 360 controller and way more approachable to kids and novice video game players.
And let's be honest, the biggest reason it's probably best for families is - it's Nintendo. Nintendo did something smart and didn't try to create a system that would be all things to all people. Instead they created a great little console that plays games (that are challenging but easy to play) with some of the most classic names in video game history like Mario, Zelda, Metroid and all the rest. One of my personal favorite things is that you can download via an internet connection old-school Nintendo games like Temco Bowl, Super Mario Brothers, Punch Out, and Wave Race 64 right to your Wii.
There are a few things I wish were different. You can view pictures on your Wii, but unfortunately you can't connect it to another computer in your house to view photos or listen to music like you can with an XBOX 360. I was able to download a web browser and view pictures on my flickr page, so it's kind of possible, but not as simple. The web browser (which the 360 doesn't have) is pretty useful - my aunt uses the web browser to listen to her Sirius Satellite Radio online through her home stereo, which works out well.
So if you're starting to think about a video game system for the family for Christmas this year, I'd definitely give the Wii some serious consideration. If you can find one.
WIth the second baby there are a lot of things we are re-using, but some things we had to double-up on, like a new monitor. Creature of habit that I am, at first I wanted one just like the old one, because it seemed to work pretty well at long distances and it operated in the 900 MHz band (between the cordless phones and WiFi the 2.4 GHz band was getting pretty crowded). But the old one wasn't available any more, so I had to settle on the new model, and I'm really glad I did.
There are a couple of enhancements to it, first and foremost being the fact that the receivers are rechargeable. With all the AAAs I was feeding into the old one, this new feature is great. Plus, it's got an LED screen telling how much battery life is left, the signal strength and what channel you're on. It will even beep at you if it isn't receiving any signal at all, or if the battery is dying.
It doesn't rumble like the old one did, but I'll gladly trade that in for a battery that recharges. It's not like I've got a lawn to mow while the baby is sleeping.
Get the Fisher Price "Private Connection" Monitor with Dual Receivers (one for upstairs, one for down) for $38.72 from Amazon via the Modern Day Dad Store.
Now that my six month old is almost out of "the bucket" and in a normal car seat, I figured I should give an update as to how Madame (my two year old) is doing with the Bugaboo Wheeled Board. At first I wasn't too sure it would be that useful, but I'm happy to report that it's working great. As she's fully in her two-year-old "I do myself" phase, it can be hard wrangling her sometimes, but that wheeled board has come in really handy. Mostly we use it for moments when we know that they'll be a long walk ahead of us, like from the car to the mall or to the doctor's office or the park. It's hard keeping her standing on it in a store or somewhere else there is a lot of distraction, but if she was sitting in a stroller I don't think it would be much easier.
As for safety, it's really not too bad - she stands up and holds on to the arms of the stroller and stays steady without a problem. And her sister really loves looking at her face to face when she's in it. The best part from my perspective is it doesn't take up any extra width (like a double-wide stroller would) and keeps the whole operation pretty compact. Which, when you're navigating a crowded mall or sidewalk, is pretty great.
Get the Bugaboo Wheeled Board for $79.95 from Amazon at the new Modern Day Dad Store.
For those of you who've read this blog before, you know I'm a pretty big fan of the greeting card ideas over at 2peas1pod, and I noticed today they have some new holiday card ideas ("Peace" pictured). There are lots of other design ideas too, and not just for the holidays. In addition to the great birth announcements, there are some really cool foreign adoption announcements which I'd never seen before.
Anyway, if you still haven't dealt with your card list (like me), this might be something you'll want to check out.
Hasn't anyone thought of this before? The Strollometer is a new gadget that attaches to your stroller and gives you your trip distance, time and speed. It seems obvious, but I haven't heard of one before. It seems like a good idea for avid jogging stroller dads and moms, but it seems kind of useless for everyone else. Knowing how far it is from the car to the drugstore or from Macy's to Gap Kids isn't going to make you loose weight any quicker.
The Strollometer will apparently be available for $45.95 this September. [via Sean via Gizmodo]
The new addition to our family is fast approaching, and I'm starting to realize that I've completely forgotten what it's like to have a newborn. What I should really say is that I've completely forgotten all of the sleepless nights, bodily fluids and that time between 6 and 9 we called "the witching hour." This selective amnesia is something that has to be hard-wired into all of us, because really, why would somone who's been through it once want to go through it all over again? (And I'm not even mentioning the trauma of the actual childbirth, the memory of which keeps me eternally grateful that I'm a man.)
A friend of mine who's a brand new dad was telling me how the other day he took his inconsolable daughter from her beleaguered mother and tried to calm her down. Nothing was working, but instead of passing her back he decided to tough it out, and just to take the edge off he put in some ear plugs. Eventually she calmed down, and he avoided tinnitus.
I'm sure he's not the only dad who's done this, but he's the first one whom I've ever talked to. And I have to say I was pretty impressed with the simple practicality of the solution. So maybe as I'm getting ready this summer for our new bundle of joy, I'll splurge and get some with a cord.
Even though we've already got a ton of baby/kid gear, this new baby we're having in July does present some twists to the kid-gear needs. The first and foremost in my mind is (of course) - how will this affect my Bugaboo?
So the Bugaboo only will stroll one kid at a time (obviously), and by the time the new baby arrives Madame will be barely two years old. Short of getting a new double-wide stroller there aren't many options.
Bugaboo does offer this "wheeled board" attachment (pictured). The idea is the kid stands on it, in front of you and facing forward; and kind of rides while holding on. I've never seen one used, and right now it's pretty hard to imagine Madame standing still on the back of a stroller while it's moving.
Has anyone used this attachment (or even seen someone who was using it)? Please leave a comment if you have. I'd be really interested to know.
Get the Bugaboo Wheeled Board for $79.95 from Amazon at the new Modern Day Dad Store.
Next on MDD - if the older kid is being strolled around in the normal non-bassinet seat, where is the new baby going to sleep?...
I'm a big fan of simple but good ideas, and "B.O.B." (I'm still not sure what the acronym means) from Hopscotch Technology is a pretty good one. Simply put, it's a lock box for a power plug. You plug whatever media device you want to restrict your child's use of (like a television or video game machine) and set a specific amount of time you want to allow your child to use the device. The kid logs into the box with their specific number, and the power to their TV turns on. You can also allow or disallow blocks of time too.
It's not just that I'm incredible thankful that such a device didn't exist when I was a kid (although I am), and it's not because I'm a parent now that I can imagine using such a device someday. It's my experience playing Halo 2 on XBOX Live that makes me wish more parents had this. If some of those kid's who I'm constantly losing to spent as much time on their homework as they do playing Halo, we'd be raising a generation of freaking super-geniuses.
When the hell did I turn into such a crotchety old man?
