FEED Bag

I was so excited to spot this very special bag highlighted on Daily Candy! The UN World Food Program feeds a child for an entire school year off of the proceeds of this bag (designed by Lauren Bush). To find out more about WFP go here. And to purchase this bag and read about Lauren's involvement with WFP check go here.

I recieved my bag a few weeks ago (it took about 3 weeks to arrive) and LOVE IT! I intended for it to be an occasional bag (beach, groceries, travel, etc.) but I've actually been carrying it as my every day Purse Etc. Bag! It's huge. It's reversible. It's organic. It's fabulous and it supports an amazing organization. Order one today!!!! Or I'll kill you. [What if I really said that? Wouldn't that have been weird?]

Wireless Amber Alerts

My dear (pretend) friend Elisabeth Hasselback turned me onto this site today: https://www.wirelessamberalerts.org/index.jsp

It's a free service and you will not be charged by your cell provider. When signing up for the service you enter upto 5 zip codes. When a child is missing from any of these areas a text message will be sent to subscribers. Studies show that the first 36 hours are the most crucial in finding a missing child. The more people reached, the better the chances of recovering the child!!

The Brodynator!

I'LL BE BAAAHHHKKK. Can you stand how freaking cute this baby is?! He is SERIOUSLY cool.

Bubba's Busted Lip

Last week Brody fell down at daycare and split his bottom lip wide open. WIDE open. Poor little guy. He's been such a champ about it. You can barely make it out in this pic but it's the part of his lower lip that he's sticking out to the camera. All poofy and crusted over. Oh my goodness! Little sweetie pie!

PIT!

Hello, Pit, my old friend....how I smile when I think about you. Warm, Mexican nights. Shouting at the top of our lungs, "TWWWOOOOO!!! TWOOOOOO!!!". Good times. Happy times. Great memories.

I found my new Pit at a Thrift Store for $2 and I can't be more excited! So excited that I'm actually blogging about it! Hope to get into a rousing game of Pit in the very near future. Stay tuned...

Vanity Fair Covers

I'm blown away! I know that charity is the 'in' thing these days but I just love the upcoming Special Africa Issue issue. There are 20 covers showing various celebries engaging in a 'visual chain letter' photographed by Annie Lebowitz. Check out the covers plus brief bio and list of charities supported at Vanity Fair's website.

Cover subjects include Oprah Winfrey, George W. Bush, Chris Rock, Maya Angelou, Condolezzie Rice, Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Goerge Clooney, Iman, Alicia Keys, Jay-Z and Brad Pitt. I'm so excited to read this issue which is stock full Africa articles!!

On an important side note, my pastor recently informed us that Africa is actually sending Christian missionaries to the US to evangelize!! It's exciting and depressing at the same time. God is moving in a HUGE way in Africa - how rad! With Christianity growing so rapidly in Africa, missionaries are coming to share faith with Americans! According to oh, gosh...a lot of websites Islam is allegedly the fastest growing religion in the world and somewhere among the top 5 fast growing in the US. Praise God that other countries are burdened for the salvation of Americans! And what an awesome inspiration for us to concentrate on our neighbors hearts and lives.

Election

I'm watching the Republican Presidental Debate...and that's it. Just wanted to let you all know just how civic-minded I am. Yea me!

Interesting Blogs

I love reading other people's blogs. It's so fun to see and read about what inspires people to blog. And it's sometimes inspiring to see what others are blogging!

This one makes me smile: http://lowercasel.blogspot.com/
This one makes me think: http://thesecomefromtrees.blogspot.com/
These makes me want to create: http://shimandsons.typepad.com/;
http://www.aliedwards.typepad.com/
This one impresses me again and again: http://opensourcephoto.blogspot.com/
This one encourages me: http://remarkablelives.blogspot.com/

These are just a few that I frequent often. The Lowercase L blog I just found today but you can bet I'm going to be on the look-out for these spelling enigmas! I also frequent my friend's blogs frequently and usually miander thru the blogs of their friends as well. It's all so very fun.

What blogs have caught any of your attention recently?! I'd love to check them out!

Home Sweet Home

I love when B asks to go "Home?". We'll be riding bikes, or running errands, or doing something fun (zoo, beach, park, etc.) and at some point he'll look at us and say, "Home?". I love that he views home as a fun place. His toys are there. His movies ("Sit on couch? Watch DVD?") are there. His family is there. Unlike most of my friend's children back home, B doesn't have many toys. He has a small collection of outside toys (none of which are slides, motor cars, sand boxes, or jungle gyms) and he has a small collection of toys in his room (most of which fit in one nice cube system in his closet) and he has a small collection of toys in the living room (contained in baskets within our console table. And that's it. Oh, and a few in the garage. When we were in Texas last November he was in PIG HEAVEN! Every one of my girlfriends have an entire room dedicated to toys. Oh my gosh, he hardly knew what to do with himself!

I love our little home too. It's never as clean as it should be. It's not as big as I sometime wish it were. There is always a project that needs to be done. And it's certainly not in the best neighborhood in all of Santa Barbara. But it's perfect for us. My family lives here in our happy little home!

[By the way, I made this cool mosaic here! I also used that site to make my very sweet blogger header. So cool. ]

And futhermore...

I read an article today in Family Circle Magazine about ways to be a better parent or something like that and one of the points was to Take Finances Seriously. It went on to say "plenty of parents make it a point to never discuss money in front of the kids, believe they need to be shielded. A recent survey by USAA found that 79% of all high school grads heading off to college have never had a budget conversation with their parents." This is my story, for sure. Not only did we never discuss finances or budgets but because of my parents lack of openness about money, I thought we were rich! I always had nice clothes, I got a car at 16, we went out to eat often, we had a pool (the very epitome of wealth in Texas), received tons and tons of gifts not only at Christmas but at just about every holiday. I received everything I ever asked for, quite frankly. Little did I know that my parents were slowly drowning in debt because of these luxuries. And because it's all legacy - since they never had financial guidance...they weren't equipped to pass on sound financial guidance.

Cut to Kevin's family. At the ripe age of 5, the Sturm kids earned allowances by completing basic household chores. By 16 they all had checking accounts and before they set off to college they had a credit card that they were responsible for paying off monthly. OK?! Is it any wonder that i came into this marriage in debt and my husband with a substantial savings? I've asked the Parents Sturm how they had the wisdom to talk about money with their kids from such an early age. They said they read a lot. I total appreciate that! They aggressively worked toward teaching their children about responsible money management and those efforts have paid off. Literally. Ha.

So the next time the convo of money comes up and you feel the urge to beat around the perverbial money bush try something new and actually announce how much money you're actually talking about! You might find that it's downright liberating. Ok, enough about monies for today.

Suze Orman has no secrets

I've seen Suze Orman twice on The View (yes, I watch it daily) and have learned just too much about the woman. But yesterday she made two statements that I'd like to touch on here - today.

(1) She thinks people shouldn't be so private about how much money they make. I am a fan of this idea! I think that the secrecy about income is absurd. Unless you are direct coworkers [obviously an uncomfortable situation], I don't see any reason to keep this info el secrado. Maybe that's because I'm proud to make $25/hr doing what I do? Or maybe it's because I'm extremely proud of my husband's income and how brilliant he is [I wont reveal his income b/c he's one of the one's who is not down for full-disclosure and it's not my place to 'out' others]? Or maybe it's because I live in a town that very few people can really afford to live in so the matters of money become almost as conversational as the weather. "It's supposed to be really hot this week. By the way, how much of a raise did you get with your promotion?". Certainly, we have no problem discussing the prices of our homes. Or the cost of preschools, cars, gym memberships, toys, etc. WHY then do we have to keep our finances so secret?! Who freaking cares? Am I wrong? And aren't we all curious? If we'd just talk about how rich/poor we are then it would save all the trouble of guesstimating with our spouses as to how much we suspect others make. Oh, you do it too! Don't pretend.

Last year, a group of our friends tried to start a financial study. We were following the Crown Ministries Biblical Financial Study. We decided early on to be very open with each other. I found this to be a really fun experience. I wasn't making any money at the time so I had little to expose. Kevin was visibly uncomfortable with the exercise as he made the most money. The two of us represented the poorest and richest of the group!

I just think that the secrecy about income makes money this really powerful, mysterious force that it doesn't need to be. If you live in this country you make more than 99% of the world so let's just drop the facade, people. We're all richer than somebody and more poor (poorer?) than someone else.

On a Christian side note, did you know that there are more than 2,350 verses on how to handle money in the bible. There are about 500 verses on prayer. According to the Crown Ministries study, Jesus said more about money than any other subject! They go on to give reasons why but ultimately it's because the world revolves around money and teaching about money was applicable to everyone.

(2) The second point she wanted to make is that women should have their own bank account period! Her point is that anything could happen and women should be smart about their money. She blatantly proclaims that women should 'stash' money into a secret account that is only theirs. How fatalistic is this? Personally, I do have my own bank account but it is absolutely NOT in order to keep my money separate from Kevin's or by any means to build up a secret stash in case I have to leave him or buy something that I don't want him to know about. This is sad to me. If a woman is in a place where she has to have a secret nest egg, I think there are some bigger issues at hand.

Agree with her or not, Suze Orman is a financial wizard and there's no debating that. Oh, and she makes $3-5 million a year "hopefully 10". This is sort of like me telling you that Kevin makes $50 - $250 thousand a year...hopefully $1 million! I'm sure even Kevin could handle this type of honesty! :)

SB Saturday: I Madonnari 2007

This year's Street Painting Festival was just as good as all the rest. It was a big more challenging this year than the others b/c little man is 2...and wild. We had to bribe, threaten and beat. Well...not beat but you get what I mean. I love this festival. It's probably our favorite of all the millions of festivals in Santa Barbara. Just the creativity and beauty of it all. This year my mom was here for it. My dad has been a couple of times in years past and last year Kevin's whole family was here during it. Oh, and Cara's first visit to SB was during this time. Weird. The past six years worth of I Madonnaris was marked by visits with loved ones!

Here are a few of our favorites. The tiger is amazing. Like you want to pet the thing! It's crazy.

Personally, I can't touch chalk. The fact that most these artists were literally covered in chalk dust gave me the heebie-geebies. Personal chalk predjuce aside, I am always so inspired by this event. I feel my creative juices flowing! Maybe I'll bust out the old scrapbook :)

One of our favorite artist is the man who created this masterpiece. Every year he chalks photos of his children. This year his plot had three columns each containing individual photos of three of his children. It's always a crowd favorite. So great!

You may have missed it this year but mark your calendar for next year! It's always Memorial Day weekend and totally kid friendly. http://www.imadonnarifestival.com/im.html

Grandmama

Brody doesn't get it yet but he will soon. She adores him. She spoils him. She hangs on his every word. She loves him way more than she does the rest of us! He's pretty taken with her too. This morning she was the first one he called "Graaaaandmaaamaaa!". He doesn't get the magnitude of her love yet and probably wont for a while. But he will. The adoration of a Grandmama. Huge. I love this picture. He's consumed with whatever he's playing with while she looks at him with a distant smile. Probably thinking how smart he is. And he is.

Honey Toes

I love Kevin's feet. Is there any wonder why?! Just look at them!
Yes, the outside toes tend to turn in...slightly. And yes, the toe nails tend to get slightly out of control. And there are times that Kevin cuts his big toe nail in an agonizingly sharp way (in a V shape!). But what you can't tell from the photo is that his feet are like silk. They are the softest, tastiest, most touchable feet on earth - with Brody's coming in a close second. Also, what you don't know is that the "pads" of his feet and toes are quite literally SQUISHY! Squishy in a good way. Not in an extra terrestrial-like way. But in a baby skin kind of way. Is that gross? It's not. It's fascinating and worthy of my obsession and I'll fight anyone who challenges me.

Love you, Honey Feet!

My Litas...my loves...

A tribute to my Litas: The beauties of my life.

I had the very good fortune of spending some time with my Lita Girls the other weekend. There were highs and there were lows but I at the end of the day I just love these girls with all of my heart. And they love me too! We've been friends for a long time...oh my gosh...so long. Our 'remember whens' could go on for days and days. And we can laugh together like it's nobodies business. Here are some things that you should know about these amazing women. Some things have been true of them our whole lives and some have developed with age and time. I adore everything about them and look forward to all the Lita Weekends to come. Even when we're 90 and our weekends turn into meeting in each other's room at the retirement home.

Tessalita con Mantiquilla de la Playa....truly my funniest friend. She can do impressions, she can time jokes perfectly, she can spin a mundane story into a 10 minute stand-up comedy routine. A voracious reader and amazing mother she constantly has a bag of stories in her hip pocket that make me double over in laughter. She is a design genius. She's a domestic goddess though step back if you dare to call her this to her face. She's a master organizer and a passionate instructor. She's never wrong. She makes a mean stuffed mushroom. She's tiny. She has a glorious hair - always perfect. She's one of the very few women I know who is able to look just as pretty without a stitch of make-up on her face as she does full blown done up. She is ferociously loyal. She's easily frustrated and yet remarkable patient. She loves with all of her. She's very popular. She's a talented choreographer (I still want to see the Devo act! YouTube?). She makes absolutely gorgeous babies. She's extremely independent and opinionated. She loves babies. She freaking builds houses. She has an amazing eye for color. She gets along with everyone...that she wants to.

Rachaelita con Naranja de la Manana....even today the most beautiful person I've ever known in real life. It's just true, people. She has an ridiculous body. And she works hard for it ("Do you think this just happens, Sophie?"]. She's a guys girl and a girls girl too. She's committed. She has an awesome sense of humor. And she can be funny too. She's down to earth. She's come to believe that she's almost as pretty as people have always told her she is. She's a tortured soul. She's incredibly driven. She's a wicked smart business woman. She's girlie. She loves hard core. She's a devoted friend, wife, mother and daughter. She just wants to be happy. She digs deep. She studies what she believes. She's secure with who she's become. She's MUCH more intelligent than some people give her credit for being. She too has magnificent hairs. She is really tall. She has a pretty enviable looking life but doesn't take it for granted. She knows her limitations. She's a bit of an overachiever...uh, twin girls!?! She wants to take care of people (and she secretly wants to be a nurse). She's vocal about her beliefs and philosophies. She shops at Target just like the rest of us. She has so much to offer this world. She's a force, for sure. She encourages those she loves. She's the definition of 'great friend'.

With out them, I could be considered attractive. Among them, I'm sheep dung. But whatever. They tell me I'm great so I'll keep them around as long as I can. We used to daydream about being neighbors and raising our children together and growing old together. The reality is that we're hundreds of miles apart from each other and our kids hardly know each other. But who knows what the future holds? So, until we can holler at each other from our kitchen windows...we'll have to just keep looking forward to our Lita Weekends! And no...I wont tell you where the "Lita" nickname came from.

Mommia!

My Funny Little Man has given us nicknames. After nap, he can be heard calling "Mooooommia!" or "Daaaaadddddia!" and sometimes even "Raaaah Rahhhhia". [Side note: he just woke up from nap and in addition to the nicknames he just yelled "Miss Heather!"] I am a big "nicknamer". Everyone special to me has at least one nickname. Bubba has about 50. It really warms my hear that my little funny man has created his own nicknames for us. And in Italian of all things! Oh, Bubbia. I love you.

Birthday Girl...er...Old Lady!

Exactly how did I become 34 years old? I was 27 like....a couple of years ago. Right? I like to think that I'm still young. Especially when I look at the media and see women over 40 having babies and looking amazing and starting businesses and saving the world! And then I think that when my mom was my age she had a 6 year old and a 16 year old and....WOW! But I feel young - except for my aching back, strained neck and ever-failing memory.

The exciting thing is that we have SO MUCH life left to live! We laugh about the thought of taking Brody to Six-Flags one day and having to ride roller coasters which make us both want to vomit. But we'll do it. Because we're young. Very young. Believe dat, yo!

Santa Barbara Saturdays: HIT THE BEACH!

We don't go often enough but when we do it's always wonderful. Over Easter weekend we had such a blast hanging out at East Beach with Grandmama, MorMor, PaPa, Aunt Tammy, Uncle Jon and Cousin "Lena". Brody was much more adventurous this time around. Our little Beach Baby has always been a tad skittish around the ocean waters but this time was different. He let his feet get wet and let the waves chase him up the beach. And he had a blast running around with Daddy! It was a special time and as my in-laws would say: a "very special memory" (I love that).

East Beach is our favorite beach in town. There is a great little toddler playground and lots and lots of open beach. Also, East Beach Grill is here located in the Cabrillo Arts Center. It's for sure our favorite beach eatery.

Other SB Beaches include:
* West Beach -- busier beach with lots of activity
* Ledbetter Beach -- great beach to spend the entire day enjoying
* Hendry's Beach -- gorgeous, more secluded beach
* Butterfly Beach -- across from the Biltmore this beach is great for 'celebrity watching' (we saw Mr. Miaggi at this beach once)

There are a ton more nearby beaches but these are a few of our favorite local spots. So, grab your sunblock, beach blanket and a playkit and HIT THE BEACH!!

We love Uncle Nooch!

Bubba's latest prize from Nooch. We always get excited we get a package from Paul. B has received some really cool gifts from him including a personalized Louisville slugger bat, a Star Wars ship and the Totoro movie!

The latest is this blue, plastic Tick doll and DVD. How randomly wonderful! Thanks, friend. You are by far the best gift-giver I'll ever know.

My Little Boob-Tube

What on earth can entrance a 2 year old like this? It can only be one thing: Finding Nemo!



1st it was CARS
Now it's NEMO
What next?

Kevin worries that B might have A.D.D. because he's so all-over-the-place when we go out in public. But I assure him that kids with A.D.D. do not sit thru an entire hour & 1/2 movie. On our lap no less.

That's another thing, I love that Bubba sits on our laps. He's such a sweet baby. This morning I reached my arm in front of him and he leaned over and kissed my arm. Can you imagine?! So precious.