Diana and Me

With William and Kate's wedding less than a month away, I have a bunch of royal-wedding-themed goodies I want to show you at the blog. But, before I do, I want to tell you more about the special association I have with the Royal Family, which has brought up many emotions for me as William and Kate's Big Day approaches. If you didn't already know, Princess Diana was my childhood idol from the time I was eight years old (when I woke up early to watch her wedding in July 1981) until the day of her death (a devastating day for me). Diana was truly my role model while I was growing up (second to my parents, of course). It's hard to put into words exactly the influence she had on me, but it had a lot to do not only with every little girl's fantasy of becoming a Princess, but also of this particular Princess's amazing gift for connecting with people, inspiring them, and doing good.

I followed everything that happened in Diana's life after she got married. I watched her through her 20s and 30s, as she became a famous icon, "The People's Princess", and a devoted mother to her two boys. I vividly remember the day that William was born--June 21, 1982. I was 9 years old and in the middle of my Monday afternoon piano lesson when my sister excitedly told me she heard the news on the radio that Princess Diana had her baby and it was a boy! So besides feeling very old that that same new baby is now getting married (!), I also feel that William and Kate's wedding will bring me "full circle" since my own interest in the Royal Family began almost exactly 30 years ago. Most of all, I am so sad that Diana won't be there to see her son get married. Since I have my own little boy now, I understand the connection Diana and her boys had. The idea that she didn't live to see the young men they have become--and won't be at William's most important day--is even more heartbreaking to me now that I am a parent myself.

I was lucky enough to meet Diana in person a few times, both in London and New York. Those are other stories for other times. But I promised you all awhile ago that I would share some of my photos of her, so I've posted two of them above. They were taken in June 1997, when she was here in New York (for what would be ultimately be her last visit here) for the auction of her dresses at Christie's. I took the close-up photo of her myself. And in the other photo--well, that is me giving her flowers (another story), and someone else in the crowd took the photo. She was tall (larger than life), beautiful, sweet and kind. These pictures are exactly how I will always remember her.

I'm sure many of you will be watching the wedding live on the morning of April 29th, too. I sure will be. And I hope that somewhere, Diana will be watching too.

For the Long Wait till Season 5

If you're a "Maddict" like me, you're probably also disappointed to hear that Don Draper and company aren't returning for a new season until early 2012. Ugh. So we will have to make do with poring over previous seasons of Mad Men on DVD, including the episodes with director's commentary. Perhaps the soften the news of a late Season 5, Mad Men: Season Four on DVD was just released two days ago. Memorable moments of this season include Anna Draper's death, Joan's pregnancy, Lucky Strike's exit, Sally's escape, Mrs. Blankenship's finale, and, of course, Don's surprise proposal in the last episode. Oh, I can't wait for more.

Buy Mad Men: Season Four at Amazon.com for $27.99 (retail price $49.99).

Personalized Seder Plates

My kids always enjoy Passover seders (especially my daughter) so I jumped at the chance to try out these personalized seder plates from the Etsy shop Charlotte and Mia. Our plates just arrived (with about 3 weeks to go before Passover, which begins the evening of Monday, April 18th) and the kids love them. They are made of kid-friendly melamine and they are dishwasher-safe, too. R. got the girls' Hebrew version and S. got the boys' Hebrew version, but there are English-only versions available too. You customize your plate with background colors and your child's features and name (check out the personalization options). I've reviewed plenty of personalized kids' plates at this blog, but I've never seen seder plate versions before and it is a welcome change! I think the kids will be asking to use these not only at the seders, but for the rest of the 8-day Passover holiday as well. Hopefully it will make all of that matzvah a bit more appetizing to them. Buy a personalized Seder plate for $30 (personalization included) at Charlotte and Mia.

Wordless Wednesday: Quilts at the Armory

If you are in the neighborhood today, go check out this cool (and free) exhibition Infinite Variety: Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts at the Park Avenue Armory. Last day is today.

Super Cool Kids Clothing from Canada

I met Super Cool Kids Clothing--a Canadian company with a self-explanatory name--at the ENK Children's Show. The company was launched by a mom/grandma team who wanted something just a little bit different for their kids, and created an impressive mix-and-matchable line of clothing for girls and boys sizes newborn through 10. Above are some photos of new items from the upcoming Fall '11 collection (my favorite is the baseball jersey-style dress), but in the meantime you can shop current SCKC clothing on its website, with automatic free Canadian shipping until March 31, 2011.

Tanner's Tasty Paste

My sensory-sensitive kids tend to balk when it's time to brush their teeth. They're picky about toothpaste flavors (they don't like the common ones like bubblegum, berry, or mint). Despite our tooth-brushing battles, though, they've never had any cavities. I was floored when S's new dentist (Dr. Jed Best, whom I recommended in my New York Family article about 20 Tips for Parents of Kids with Special Needs) told me that I "must be doing a great job brushing his [S's] teeth." And I was even more shocked when R. eagerly tried a sample tube of Tanner's Tasty Paste from Dr. Best's office that night. The flavor was "Banilla Bling," and since she's refused most new flavors before, I was skeptical. Turns out, she loves using it. Hooray! I just bought her another tube of Banilla Bling direct from Tanner's website. It cost $6 but I would've paid even more for it. Tooth-brushing time has become much less of a battle with her. Wish I could say the same for her brother! If they made Pepperidge Farm goldfish-flavored toothpaste, I'd be all set. Buy this or other "special" toothpastes at Tanner's Tasty Paste.

Name Your Design

I used shop credit at Zulily recently to purchase a gift certificate to Name Your Design, on online boutique featuring personalized gifts like Wall Art, growth charts, and notepads. Yes, my kind of stuff exactly. I chose these 8 x 10 wall art prints ($20 each) for R. and S.:

Dollie and Me (priced from $20 for an 8 x 10 art print, up to $150 for a 24 x 24 canvas print)

Zooom in Gray (priced from $20 for an 8 x 10 art print, up to $150 for a 24 x 24 canvas print)


Ours turned out great and I am going to frame them (white for R's, maple for S's) for each kid's room. At $20 apiece, I'd definitely recommend these for baby gifts or birthday gifts. Visit Name Your Design.

Shop Report: Carlo's Bakery

UPDATED: Buddy from Cake Boss mentioned us on Twitter! R. is going to be so excited when she sees this.


Have I mentioned that my 7 1/2-year-old daughter is obsessed with TLC's Cake Boss? She knows every episode by heart. I'm not kidding. So during our "mommy/daughter" weekend this past weekend (S. went to the 'burbs with Grandma and Grandpa), I knew that a perfect field trip would be an outing to the famous Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken, New Jersey.

I did my research and learned that to avoid the longest lines, you have to arrive at Carlo's verrrry early, i.e. as close to the 7am opening as possible. We got there at 8am on Saturday morning, and there were already about 20 people ahead of us in line outside (plus the bakery was already filled with customers inside).

R. posed for a picture outside and got some ideas about future celebrations of her own...


We had to wait outside for about half an hour, but it was totally worth it when we were called inside the warm bakery and got to view (and sniff) all the delicious goodies:













Most of the customers were fans of the show like us, and/or tourists. But some people were actually there to pick up cake orders, mostly for birthdays:





We eventually chose two cupcakes, plus 1 "lobster tail" (a flaky croissant-like pastry filled with vanilla custard), and some coffee cake. These were the cupcakes which we gobbled on the way home:



Of course, there are souvenirs to buy, too. R. conned me into buying her a talking Buddy bobblehead for a whopping $27.


The customers of course are all on the lookout for Cake Boss "Buddy." He wasn't there (he was touring in Ohio), but R. immediately recognized these supporting cast members:

Mauro, Buddy's right-hand-man and brother-in-law:


Grace, Buddy's eldest sister:


And Buddy's mother Mary, who is absolutely hysterical. She had the crowd in stitches. R. took a little video of her which you can watch here.


It was definitely worth the trip for us. If you have a Cake Boss fan in your family, I highly recommend a visit to Carlo's!

Bargain Alert: 50% off at Carters.com

Through tonight only, the Carters website has everything automatically marked 50% off (or more). Good time to stock up on onesies, sleepers, summer clothes, and even baby gifts. This Beach Bum outfit now costs $28 head-to-toe in toddler sizes, including the sandals (was $58 before sale).

Bonus: Get an additional 20% off your already discounted order of $50 or more at Carters.com with code "NEWBORN".

Spring '11 "Swilty"

I've written before about R's fondness for wearing a "swilty" (i.e. quilted) jacket for Fall and Spring. They must be pink, of course, and she's added a new requirement--the pockets must be deep. She's outgrown her Old Navy swilty which lasted her since Fall '09, and now she's settled on this Diamond Quilted Jacket ($38) by Weatherproof Kids. Lucky for me, she chose this one over the much pricier Annalise Barn Jacket ($100) by Ralph Lauren. R's new "Swilty" is available in sizes small (7/8) through extra large (16) at Zappos; they carry it in smaller sizes as well.

Train and Plane Box Playsets

How cool are these wooden box playsets from Rare Device? Two different sets (train and plane) are shown in this photo; each folds up for easy storage and costs $40 (not bad for quality wooden play sets like these). They're made here in the U.S. by Diggin Active.

Letterpress Business Cards

With the National Stationery Show less than 2 months away, my thoughts are turning to all things paper--especially luscious letterpress. I found these beautiful letterpress calling cards at the Etsy shop Vermilion Star Press. They sure beat your typical "mommy cards," right? I like the first design best--which one is your favorite?

Free Shipping, Always, at L.L. Bean

Starting today, L.L. Bean is offering free shipping on all orders to both the U.S. and Canada, all the time, with no minimum order required. And it's a permanent change--not expiring at any time. No code necessary; it's just automatic. Sweet, isn't it? I'm guessing this will give Lands End a run for its money. Go shop and enjoy at L.L. Bean.

At right: Sun-and-Surf Bodysuit ($29.50, sizes 3-6mos to 4T)

Love That Max

If you have a child with special needs, you may already know about Ellen Seidman's award-winning blog Love That Max. Ellen explores nearly every topic out there in the special needs parenting world with keen perception and sensitivity, not to mention a very funny (and self-deprecating) sense of humor. She is an awesome mom and I'm proud to call her my friend, too (she and I met at BlogHer last summer). I'm honored to have a guest post up at Love That Max this week about sensory-friendly clothing for kids with special needs. Take a look and let me know what you think. And while you're there, check out some of my favorite posts at Love That Max, including The Sisterhood of the Special Needs Child, This is How I Do It, and The Eighth Birthday Party. All are wonderful reading for any mom.

Photo: Boys' Airplane Shirt by By Kids Only.

Ask MyMomShops: Couples Notecards

Dear MyMomShops,

I stumbled onto your site while I was searching for cute sibling thank you card ideas...you had such great suggestions and I ultimately purchased the sarah+abraham silhouette card. I have received such a great response from people about it- thank you! So now I turn to you with this question....I'm looking for a modern classic, inexpensive couples notecard...any suggestions?

Thanks!

Oooh, a stationery question. My favorite!

While it's been a few years since I've ordered couples stationery for myself (ahem), I've kept tabs on the best ones and have given some as engagement or bridal shower gifts. These are my favorites and I hope that they include something that catches your fancy.

Vana Chupp of Le Papier Studio makes these sweet Couple Portraiture Cards (24 for $28) using your choice of pre-designed silhouettes, or for just an additional $10, you can have her create a custom silhouette of you and your sweetie based on a digital photo. Other colors/designs available, too.

Minted--besides making glorious holiday cards--has some eye-catching thank you cards (some are designed as wedding thank-yous including a date, but you can opt for personalization with names only). I like these Mosaic Thank You Cards (20 for $57).

Wedding Paper Divas (a sister company of Tiny Prints) has pretty couple thank-yous including these Pristine Pinstripe Notes (starting at $1.45 each).

I gave these homey Couch Couple notecards (20 for $30) by Pixie Chicago recently as a bridal shower gift and they were a real hit. Other colors available, too.

Fabulous Stationery makes colorful, mod couples notecards like these ULTRA notecards in blue (20 for $55)

Etsy is also a good place to search for inexpensive personalized stationery. Today I found this Personalized Letterpress Stationery Card Set (20 for $45) by Pink Orchid Press...


....and also this Mr. and Mrs. Notecards Set (12 for $15) at Gabrielle Kearney. Also check out the sweet, vintage-y Bicycle-Built-For-2 Notecards


Want something simpler? Try these Slender Notes (25 for $27.95) at American Stationery....


....or Personalized Border Cards (50 for $39.95) at The Stationery Studio.


I hope this helps! Please let us know what you end up choosing.

Love and Happy Shopping,
MyMomShops