My Laundry Closet Makeover: Before & After

So I love a good before and after.  For once I finally remembered to take a before picture so I decided to document it here in case any one should ever search for a laundry room makeover.  I am particularly proud of this one, and it makes my daily laundry gig that much easier when surrounded by glamorous Elitis Kandy Brit pop wallpaper.

The shelves were installed TODAY, hence my excitement here.  They are from Desq, which I would liken to a California Closet type of company but with a more modern vibe.  They also did my master closet which I need to document at some point because I'm house proud of that too.

42 Weeks Later

My newest little baby boy Charlie, only 12 days old today!

I can't say enough about ibuprofen. My 600 mg comes promptly every six hours and it works wonders! Even though I had an unmedicated natural childbirth (albeit 2 weeks overdue) the after pains have sent my body reaching into the medicine cabinet at regular intervals. Amidst all of the sleep deprivation and itty-bitty baby cuddling it's been hard to remember when to take my medicine and when I last nursed, thankfully my genius husband designed the Shared Baby Timer app for the iPhone. It's like an Itzbeen but it's truly one-of-a-kind because it allows me to share my timer with my husband or any another iOS device.

Screenshot of Shared Baby Timer app, I use the sleep timer as a wildcard to time my meds because my son never sleeps longer than 1.5 hours.  

For example if I am in the glider upstairs or at the couch downstairs and perhaps forgot my iPhone to see what side I last nursed on I can reach for the nearest iPod or ask my husband to check his iPhone, which he always carries on him, and since the app can be shared on multiple devices I can see the display. Once I update the timer information it will automatically sync with my iPhone as well. It's awesome! This app is free so any new mamas out there give it a try you only have to buy the in-app purchase if you want the ability to share the timer with another device.
Being 12 days postpartum I need any extra help that I can get and that's really why we've developed this app.
As for our new addition to the family my husband and I are so happy but scrambling every second with a preschooler and an infant in tow. It's one wild ride. It feels pretty crazy during midnight car rides to comfort the baby, or making dinner while wearing baby in the sling and the preschooler around the hip. Either way we are loving every minute of it!

These are the people in my neighborhood

A true art lover will never criticize any work of art.  They will try to see the sweetness or genius within the piece even if it's just a flipping blue circle against a white backdrop.  I am trying to keep this in mind as I watch my neighbor hang outside her window this morning and hand paint flowers and grass on the outside of her house.

I ask her if I can take a picture of her masterpiece and she smiles and enthusiastically says I can and asks if I have any requests for what she is to paint next.  "Ummm how about just plain white paint across your entire house?" is how I want to respond, but I am trying not to laugh too loudly.

Further down the street I see another neighbor has hung a chalkboard from her shed, because chalkboards belong outside apparently, and has written a sweet message to everyone who passes.

"Hey there beautiful" it says.

I think I have decided that property values are over-rated and that quirky neighbors are cool.  I guess I am feeling extra patient today.

Little Kids and Right Brain Learning Techniques

As a parent of a young child I am continuously astounded by the new things my son learns every day. This last year I have been spending time reading about how children learn while my husband has been working on a series of right-brain learning apps with a business partner. I thought it was about time to blog about these learning techniques after recently having a discussion about Western vs Asian approaches to learning. Right-brain learning is a fascinating topic, especially when discussing it during a 3 course fondue dinner with an expert. ;) 


The right side of your brain, often called the image brain, absorbs information instantly and automatically. Most of us have well-developed left brain functions but an underdeveloped right brain function in key areas. Memory linking and photographic high-speed imaging (rapid flashing) are right brain functions that children can do very easily. In fact, everything we see is instantly stored in our subconscious right brain mind. The problem is, most of us don't have the ability to bring those image memories out to our conscious left brain at will; we haven't developed the right brain left brain connections that enable it. Dr. Makato Schichida is a pioneer in the development and success of right brain accelerated learning methods. He founded over 400 Child Academies in Japan and has written more than 100 books on the subject of right brain education. Basically it all comes down to practicing how to make these connections between the two hemispheres of your brain. The learning apps we just released use these right-brained learning techniques, such as rapid flashing, to make the connection between right brain left brain learning in children ages 6 months to 12 years. 


We have 5 new iPad apps with hundreds of images and flash cards included and did I mention they are free in the App Store, currently available for the iPad. There has been a lot of hard work and research that has gone into these apps and for all the parents I know I hope they try these out, my son Sebastian is 2.5 and he loves them. You can't go wrong when something is free, educational, and entertaining for your child. Would love any feedback on these apps either in the form of a review on iTunes or via email/comment. 
Thanks for reading!