I didn’t buy these. In fact, I’m pretty sure I scoffed at those who did and said something like “suckers!”

The bad news is….

These were love at first sight.  I’m now eating my words.  How can anyone say no to Cynthia Rowley? Don’t all city toddlers need designer diapers?  I thought so.

Just in case Tar-jay currently has them on sale…

-Kacey

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© kacey for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 31 comments |

Sure she’s not Barbie but she’s Barbie-like, and it’s a slippery slope, my friends.  I’ll just go ahead and put it out there…I hate Barbie!  Admittedly though, I can’t really pinpoint why.



Oh yeah.  That’s why.

Yes, in my eyes Barbie is a ho.  I can’t help but snowball the effect of Barbie’s potential influence on Emi.  For some reason I feel if she plays with Barbie dolls she might grow up having conversations like this:

Kristin: OMG!  I totally went to get my hair done the other day and I ran in to Lauren who was…brace yourself…wearing the exact same thing she wore 8 days ago!! Can you believe it?

Heidi: Shut up!  Like how can she live with herself?  So I might quit fashion school.  I don’t really care for having to think about stuff after two o’clock.

Enter American Girl dolls.  Worldly, not shallow.  Fashionable, yet demure.   Intelligent, but not snobbish.  Not only do American Girls promote great self-image and confidence but many of their dolls teach young girls about important historical events.  Undoubtedly, you can expect your daughters to be holding such conversations as below while playing with American Girl Dolls.

Kaya:  The idea that there are a finite number of discrete human populations, that individuals worldwide can be definitively lumped together, is ridiculous.

Felicity: I do agree that race is a social construct–loosely based on a collectively perceived reality, but in brief, I think that not “believing” in race is dangerous and irresponsible.

Last week I posted about American Girl’s Shine On Now initiative.  This week I wanted to tell you about their new My American Girls.  This new line lets your create your own doll.  I was lucky to create this one from American Girl and it eerily looks just like Emi.  I’m saving it for her birthday but I know she is going to love having a mini me.

American Girl has generously offered a doll to giveaway to one of our Mayhem & Moxie readers.  In the spirit of Shine On Now, please tell me about a deserving young girl you know and how she helps others. Or how you and your family helps your community, big or small.  The winner will get to create their own My American Girl doll.  The giveaway will end July 29, 2010 at midnight PST.

Don’t forget you can still add stars to the Shine On Now initiative until July 31, 2010. Please help them give $1 million to four worthy causes.

American Girl generously provided me with my own My Girl Doll, and one to giveaway. However all opinions and content expressed here are purely my own.

Kacey

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© kacey for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 32 comments |

Here’s a short video about the innovative campaign. When girls sign up to become American Girl Ambassadors they will receive a free, downloadable tool kit filled with fun and actionable tips as well as ideas for fundraising, volunteering, or donating to the four worthy charities participating in the Shine On Now campaign.

Starting tomorrow, July 13, girls can go to their website and contribute up to 100 FREE stars each day to help American Girl reach its goal of collecting one million stars by the end of the program on July 31, 2010. If the target is reached, American Girl will donate $1 million in clothes, books, dolls, and money to the four designated charities: Kids in Distressed Situations, The National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions, National Wildlife Federation, and Save the Children.

In addition, American Girl is launching a new virtual campus, Innerstar University a fun, safe interactive website with games, quizzes and other enriching activity to boost their confidence and strength.  American Girl is committed to maximizing the potential of their consumers and this website is no different and best suited for girls ages 3-12.

Help spread the word and there just might be a related giveaway announced next week.  I’m just saying…

Shine On Now my friends!

-Kacey

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© kacey for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 6 comments |

"What!! I can't have a bunny? What's the point of going to a petting zoo? Then you'll get this face for your camera!"

"What tactic should I use to ask the parent for the ice cream over there?"

"Give up Mom! Really, I'm not going to smile."

After trying a couple of tactics Tyler and I gave in and went to Disneyland.  We figured if you can’t smile at the “happiest place on earth” then we were screwed.

Posing with her cousin Taya a.k.a. most photogenic child on the planet.

Literally after 20 shots this is the best one of her with Mickey Mouse…the girl can’t even look my way.  Beyond annoying.

Tyler's tactic to get Emi to look at the camera..."Hey there's Sleeping Beauty!"

"Get used to this look." My favorite, I keep this one in my wallet to show her off.

Taking a closer at this photo is seems pretty clear that Emi’s inability to smile may come from her father’s DNA…just putting it out there.

Today at the park the sun, stars and moon must have been aligned because I got this:

Still not quite looking at the camera but it is solid proof that her childhood wasn’t all grey clouds and rain.

-Kacey

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© kacey for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 43 comments |

I’ve read a few tweets referring to the problem as a “capacity issue”, but let’s simplify and do away with the technical terms.

Twitter don’t work right.

Hopefully I’m not the only one having problems.  Anyone else?

My fear is that maybe it IS just me.

I swear every time I log in, Twitter drops at least 10 of my followers.

I don’t understand.

Am I being punished for being a bad user?

I’ll admit to having a few less than desirable Twitter habits that should be changed…

• I usually remember #FollowFriday on the wrong day…like Tuesday, which by that time I figure it is too late or too early.
• When I finally manage to say something worthwhile, I inevitably have to leave Twitter immediately because my boy has managed to make our toilet overflow or I catch my daughter attempting to eat her chapstick again.
• I don’t know what ÜT: 1.362939, 103.845175 means.  Am I supposed to do something with this info?  Are these your longitude and latitude coordinates in case I need to find you on a map and stalk you?
• I follow people because their Twitter background makes me happy.  Not always so interested in what they have to say.

This is probably why I can’t seem to catch a break on Twitter.

I swear I spend more time looking at the fail whale image than I do my actual home page.

Here is my typical experience:

1. Spend 20 minutes trying to come up with something to say.
2. Type it into Twitter.  Realize that it is 256 characters and then spend another 20 minutes trying to shorten it to 140 characters.
3. Click Tweet.
4. Nothing.
5. Click Tweet, click Tweet, click Tweet, click Tweet.
6. Look at the dreaded fail whale at each interval.
7. Am now frustrated and no longer think what I have to say is funny or entertaining or worthwhile.
8. Abandon cause completely.

In honor of the amount of time I spend looking at the fail whale, I’ve been thinking that it would be fun for Twitter to come up with alternate images.  {Surely they have an intern that could work on this project.}

Not only would it be incredibly entertaining, but it could also become something akin to a failed community of users.  My people could submit ideas, favorite a fail image, or send a fail image to a failed friend.

Possibilities!!!

I even went the extra mile and collected a few fail images to help Twitter get on its way:

The Fail Snail: In case Twitter is still desperate for things to rhyme.

The Male Fail: Because if something technical is wrong, it is usually a man's fault. At least it is in my house.

The Bathroom Fail: Everyone loves a little bathroom humor. Plus, this one just makes me laugh.

Wedding Invite Fail: By the time you finish reading this, you *may* actually forget that you are angry with Twitter. Or you'll feel good that you are not as lame as these people. Either way, win!

Bait and Switch Fail: This would take attention off of Twitter's glaring problem and help users realize that Twitter isn't the only business in the world that can't get it together.

-Francesca

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© francesca for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 41 comments |

Give me the chance to work with someone I like/admire/stalk, and I’m all over it.  I like to think it’s similar to bloggers coming together and singing Kumbaya…loudly.

It also helps that ProBlogger said as much.  And since he seems to be doing alright, I follow his advice.

I just wish I was better at it.

Jill (aka Scary Mommy) and I have been talking about a guest post for a while.  I finally delivered a post…a week late.

The 10 Commandments of Motherhood

I was also late with my guest post for SITS over the weekend.  Turns out you actually have to hit publish in order to your content to be seen by readers.  Who knew?

I eventually caught on.

How To Be A Vlogging Superstar

Amanda from parenting BY dummies asked me to write a post on how to survive the summer with your kids.  Given how much I adore her, I was excited to oblige.  I even had a draft started about how I read up on this topic on ParentsConnect.com, but am failing miserably (again) as a mom.

Sadly, I didn’t get the post to her on time.  I missed my deadline yet again.  Being ever hilarious and creative, Amanda was not deterred.  She wrote this on my behalf:

Make New ifriends Monday.  A Pseudo Guest Post.

The world needs more bloggers like her.

I’ll even admit to being painfully behind on writing a post about the changing seasons of my life and drinking.  Maybe someday I’ll actually get those done.

Until then, I’ll just send my lame apology e-mails and smile.

I want people to feel my love through their computer screen.

-Francesca

{Comments off.}

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© francesca for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | No comment |

Her leaving changed my world dramatically.

As a way to keep in touch, we decided to write to one another via blog posts from time to time.  The series has been named, Letters to the Boot…

Hello, lovely,

So you did it.  You got on the plane.  Is it weird to admit that I was somewhat surprised?  I dealt with your leaving as I do all difficult things in my life; I ignore them as long as possible.  Take starting this post series for example.  I’ve sat down to write more times that I care to count last week, but somehow I’d end up doing something entirely different on-line, like watching the video entries for the Wii Just Dance Contest or clicking through the latest OMG celebrity photos to figure out what Lindsay Lohan was thinking when she wore this:

But, I’m committed.  Letters to the Boot should start today because all good things start on a Monday Wednesday…and because I should probably do more with my time than wait for BPGlobalPR’s next tweet.

I don’t have too much to report from my end.  I’m still pregnant, which means on a hot day you can find me standing in front of our freezer with the door open in order to cool off.

You’ll probably get a kick out of hearing that I ran into a highschool classmate last week at my OB appointment.  As she came walking towards me, I seriously looked for someplace to hide.  She looked the same, still 10 feet tall, still impossibly thin, and for some unknown reason, still wearing braces.

What is it about running into certain people that makes you act like an utter ass?  Nearly 20 years have passed since I last saw her, but I swear to God I transformed into my 16 year old self, dressed in my blue and white striped jean mini-skirt from the Wet Seal and off-the-shoulder knit white sweater.

The conversation went something like this:

Her: Hey, Fran!  OMG!!!  Look at you!  How are you?  What are you doing here?

Me: I’m good.  So great to see you.  You look amazing!  I’m here for my OB appointment. Pregnant with #3.

Her: Oh, how cute is that?  A THIRD baby?  You couldn’t get me past two, but good for you!  ANYWAYS, so crazy I ran into you.  I was JUST talking about you to our old crowd.  We’re having a party this weekend at one of the old stomping grounds and you MUST be there.  Kacey too.

Me: Wow!  You’re still getting together at what’s-his-name’s parents’ house?  That sounds great!  I’d love to be there.  Count us in!  I’ll see what Kacey’s doing too.

{Cue awkward hug.}

I know.

What was I thinking?

What in the hell would compel me to say I’d love to go to a party with people I haven’t spoken to in 20 years at someone’s parent’s house?  Did the calendar just flip back to 1993 and no one told me?

xoxo
F.

PS:  Clearly I am in need of counseling.  Maybe finding a therapist should be this week’s project.

********************************************************

My dearest sister,

From a peninsula in the Mediterranean thousands of miles away, I’m sending you this electronic message.  Although an ocean, a handful of countries, and practically an entire continent lie between us, I feel that the distance that separates us is small.  It isn’t hard to understand why this is, considering that we spoke three days ago by phone, we saw each other yesterday via Skype, and I am preparing to e-mail you quite soon.  If I’m lucky, I may even be able to fit in a Facebook message while sitting in my master’s program classroom in the Savoy royal estate Pollenzo, Italy.  I like to refer to it simply as “the castle”.

It’s amazing to me how far technology has come, particularly in Italy.  While my love for “the boot” runs deep, there is no denying that the country is about as fast to adopt new technologies as you are to exercise.  (Hence why I am attending Slow Food school in the country of the movement’s origin.)  From your time in San Casiano with the brick-sized cell phone to my first study abroad program in Florence when everything involving the internet had to be paid for at my local “Internet Train” store, the time has finally arrived for WiFi in apartments and iPhone messages from the castle.

Needless to say, I guess that we’ll be seeing a lot of each other during the coming year.  It’s probably more appropriate to say that I will be seeing a whole lot of your children.  With Lucia sticking her face as close as possible to the webcam and Giancarlo asking if I can see his nose and showing me the bottom of his shoe, they seem to both have fully embraced Skype.

Un bacio,
Gianna

PS: Damn straight you need counseling.  Approaching 40 and still partying at someone’s parent’s house?  Wicked cool.

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© francesca for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 32 comments |

Looking for a good home this summer, potty training needed.

It got me thinking about making my own summer list.  I figure this will guarantee my summer isn’t wasted away on the couch catching up on episodes of Keeping up with the Kardashians.  I truly want to make the most of my 8 week summer.   Here’s what I’ve come with so far:

1. Gently nudge Tyler to do the laundry.
2. Figure out how to stream Netflix into my TV.
3. Coordinate weekly playdate with Francesca and convince her to host all of them at her home.
4. Potty train Emi Have Tyler and/or possibly Grandma to potty train Emi.
5. Contact postmaster and complain about US magazine arriving two days late.  Unacceptable!
6. Remember to pick up delivery menu from favorite restaurants.
7. Refrain from watching House Hunters, Property Virgins, & Income Property.  Much too depressing.  Houses under 200K in America?  (Sigh.)
8. Post 3 times a week twice a month on blog.

You may notice I’ve set the bar pretty high.  I’m serious about my goals this summer.

If I did not know better, it would seem that the universe is against me.  Just to give you an idea, here is what came my way today and what basically stood between me and my to do list.

Enter the oddest time waster on the web:

I guarantee you’ll play this game at least 2 times and then proceed to send it to your best friend.  It took up a good part of my time today as well as getting sucked into a color test another friend sent me.  According to this personality test, I’m intellectual and intelligent. I’m pretty sure this test is spot on.

You are 44 % extrovert and 56 % introvert.

You are creative, you always have new ideas, and your inspiration comes from the inside.

You are also intellectual and intelligent.  You wonder and you inquire before taking any action.

You often have writers block and are often unable to come up with anything worthy to post.  Your blog suffers from your content but you often get “A” for effort.  We take that back, you really need to step up your game or your blogging partner may in fact leave you.

You are charismatic and good in communication.  You know how to attract and manage people.

Finally, for those of you “list type” of people, you know who you are (Francesca), here’s a site that you can thank me for later.  If I ever get my act together, you can bet I’ll be printing out some of these lists.

Hoping to entertain you with fun stories in the coming week as I embark on a solo plane flight with my lovely two and a half year old tomorrow.  Lord help me.  Do they serve “drinks” on flights at 9:30 AM?

-Kacey

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© kacey for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 18 comments |

Thanks to everyone who played along!

My quest for a summer internship with a big name blogger isn’t going well.  After sending out my cover letter two weeks ago, I haven’t stopped hitting refresh on my e-mail.  I even took the filter off my account to ensure that nothing was inadvertently marked as spam.  Other than learning that I won 750,000 Euros from the Swiss Lottery, nothing has come my way from Jenny or Heather.  That Zen guy never wrote me back either, BUT I did learn that he and his family are moving to San Francisco this month.  And that he’s into vegan food, homeschooling, and buying stuff second-hand, none of which really do much for me, but whatev.  We’re both bloggers.  I’m sure that will be enough to impress him.

I did get a few people who were interested, like Alexis from Depressions and Confessions.  She wrote me with this tempting offer:

i have read your qualifications and decided that you are the perfect candidate to be my summer intern. my blog is only read by like 14 people (give or take a couple hundred), and mostly i write about how to maintain your down-there-hair and whether or not i pooped on the delivery table when i was delivering either of my children, but i feel like you could learn a lot from me.

for instance, i could teach you the best way to pick up dog crap with a paper towel, how to alienate friends and family by writing about them on your blog, and the rate at which you will gain weight from constantly bingeing on oreos and other assorted snack items.

i can only pay you $20 (not per hour, $20 for the entire summer), but trust me, you’re going to want to pay me for everything you’ll be getting from this business relationship.

looking forward to hearing from you.

alexis

{Alexis: THANK YOU! You’re $20 for the summer will totally buy me two of these from Etsy that I’ve had my heart set on.  Maybe I’ll even buy one for you.  Know that I am filing your e-mail in my Crappy Opportunities When Stuff Doesn’t Work Out file.  And bonus, you’re on the top of the heap!  KIT, Fran}

I’m thinking I need to do more to impress those I really want to work with.  You know, go the distance and edge out the unpaid competition.

So I spent some time over the weekend doing some hard core blog reading, especially posts that focus on pregnancy.  I learned a few things…

1. Serious bloggers use fancy fonts.
2. Being pregnant means that you post monthly updates of your naked belly on-line.  (Why?  Because bellies are hawt.  As are big boobs, acne, and all the other physical side-effects that come with being pregnant.)
3. Writing letters to your unborn child is pretty much mandatory.

When I sat back and thought all this through, I realized that I deserved an epic fail when it comes to our blog and being pregnant.  I’ve done none of these things.

So, on Friday night, rather than falling asleep on the couch, I became a serious blogger.  I’m pretty sure I scared the hell out of my husband while tromping in and out of our garage at midnight with the camera, but it was for a good cause.  I tried to become as real as possible, modeling my photos after what seems to be working for other people.

http://www.dooce.com/2009/05/26/36-weeks

I went to an event last week that showed pregnant girls how to let their “high wattage beauty shine.”  As you can tell, I took notes.  Can’t wait to meet you!

Kisses,
Your Mama

http://www.captainporkchops.com/2010/03/22-weeks.html

What up, Baby Girl!

It’s been a good week!  I officially lost sight of all body parts below my protruding belly.  And, given my strict out of sight, out of mind policy, this means goodbye swollen feet and cankles!  (I’m even canceling my order from ByeByeCankles.com.)  On the downside, you are still most active at night, which means I rarely sleep, except while doing something potentially dangerous, like driving.  Let’s strive for improvement going forward.

Hugs,
Your Mama

http://pacingthepanicroom.blogspot.com/2009/05/week-34.html

My OB assures me that you’re still coming by the end of August, which means I should probably stop taking those Flintstone chewies & try to stomach pre-natals instead.  I’ve also decided to use that 25-30 weight gain rule more as a loose guideline.  You’re welcome.

All the love in my heart,
Your Mama

PS: Know that name suggestions are welcome.

If this doesn’t get me somewhere, I don’t know what will.

-Francesca

*********************************

THE GIVEAWAY

In honor of pregnancy and photography and artwork that kicks ass, we are joining up today with Modern Bird Studios to offer one of our lucky readers the chance win a 12″ x 12″ personalized piece, valued at $215.

Or, put another way, you can do this:

Turn Your Photo into a Work of Art

Modern Bird Studios creates personalized, modern art from your photographs.  Each work is a one-of-a-kind, original studio piece created with a combination of digital, hand, and painting processes on an Oak composite.  Megan and Gregg Deal, the owners behind this business, take your photograph, and break it down into a two-color image.  They then choose two contrasting colors to create the painting.  The result is a marriage between technology and traditional painting, which creates a hip urban-style art piece and enriches your home.

Just like you see here:

Want to go ahead and order your own piece now?  All our readers are eligible for a 15% discount off of the Modern Bird Studios website now through Friday, June 18.  Simply enter the code MAYHEM at check-out.

In addition to the piece from Modern Bird Studios, we’re also giving away a Wi-Fi 16GB iPad.

Have you heard of it? It’s a little something Apple dreamed up.

They’re lovely.  And you can have one.  Maybe.

Simply leave a comment on this post to enter.

For extra entries, leave a separate comment letting us know that you:

• Follow us our Twitter.
• Subscribe to our RSS feed.
• Follow Bloggy Boot Camp on the BlogFrog.
• Follow Modern Bird Studios on Twitter and Facebook.
• Tweeted this message:  An iPad AND @modern_bird giveaway on @mayhemandmoxie? I’ll tweet to that! http://bit.ly/b9xgHX.

Because the FTC asked…
This giveaway is open to anyone in the lower 48 states, so, sorry Canada.  It will end on Friday, June 18 at noon PST.  Two winners will be selected using random.org and notified via e-mail.

There is no limit to the number of entries, comments, or love that you show us.  However, if you have won a portrait from Modern Bird Studios previously, you aren’t eligible for another.  Life is all sorts of unfair, I know.  You can still enter to win the iPad, and, if you’re lucky, you and said iPad can live happily ever after.

Kacey and I were not compensated for this giveaway.  In the interest of full disclosure, I’ll mention that we received a complimentary portrait from Modern Bird Studios.  I’m thinking I’ll have a custom piece made from one of the above images and give it to Kacey as a birthday gift and/or incentive to embrace pregnancy a second time.  I’m pretty sure she’ll be out of her mind excited once she reads this.

Good luck!

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© francesca for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 1388 comments |

It doesn’t help that San Francisco is a city full of micro climates, and I happen to live in the foggiest part of the city.

When I arrive to school I often find myself  wearing 3 layers too many.  Obviously, there are bigger problems in the world but it is still annoying, and complaining is my forte.  If I were smarter, I’d plan my outfits the night before, check the weather in that part of town, and have everything ready for the next morning…

…but, I’m a slow learner and apparently like to torture myself at 6:30 in the morning. If you are wondering, this is exactly the kind of outfit  I wear to school to teach 20 darling first graders.

Enter my new best friend, the Swoozy.  Just saying that name makes me smile, Sw-oooo—zy.  Jones New York recently launched j. jones, their newest line.  The collection is made of up low maintenance easy-to-wear fabrics.  The company was gracious enough to send me this Swoozy, and really, it’s become a staple in my closet.

It’s comfortable, stylish, and perfect for Bay Area weather, which fluctuates mile to mile.  I love the fact that I can throw this over a tank top and jeans and instantly I’m ready for my kid’s play date.  My husband likes the fact that it is not like my other teacher clothes (ouch!).  What he doesn’t know is that comment has given me the green light.  There WILL be some serious shopping this weekend.

Jones New York has generously offered one of our loyal readers a Swoozy of their very own. Simply leave a comment to enter.  I’d love to hear what your get ready secret is for the morning (or night).  The giveaway will conclude at midnight PST on Friday June 4th.  Good Luck!

On the bright side I only have four more days of school, which = only four more days of dressing dilemmas!

-Kacey

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© kacey for Mayhem and Moxie, 2010. | Permalink | 52 comments |