Replacement Weekend

I saw Will Arnett in Buy Buy Baby this afternoon. He was buying a little Joovy play yard and various other baby necessities, presumably for Archie, his son with wife Amy Poehler. I find him hilarious (on 30 Rock and various other comedies) and for a split second I thought about telling him that, since we also have a friend in common, but then I figured the poor guy is defenseless in Buy Buy Baby and probably just wants to get what poor Archie needs and get the heck out of there. So I moved on to the portable toilet seats.

I was there because this became the weekend of replacing things that I had but had just gotten wrecked, stopped working, and/or were just plain old. And really, is there nothing more annoying than spending money on things that you already spent money on?

Padded for Comfort

So first up was a new toilet seat for Addison, and that potty-trained tush of hers. The one we had from when Austin was a babe was a little grody. Virtually every one Buy Buy Baby carried had some sort of character or logo on it. I much prefer something more understated, so I went with the Contoured Cushie Tushie seat by Mother’s Helper, with a few ducks on it. I like that it has a hook for easy storage on the back of the bathroom door when it’s not in use. ($9.99)

Next up were some new mattress pads for Addison’s crib. All of hers had been ripped to literal shreds, which is very disappointing considering we’re not doing anything more strenuous than washing them weekly. The truth is, although it’s something that I’d like to skimp on since it’s not exactly front and center, you really need to buy decent mattress pads so you’re not back to buy another one in a few months. Sealy makes a decent one for $19.99.

Then, in perhaps the most annoying replacement story of the weekend, we had to get a new mattress for Addison’s crib. Not exactly what I was planning to spend $175 on this weekend. (We discovered that the other one was ripping apart and leaking its innards when both of my kids projectile vomited last night, but I’ll spare you the story of me picking chunks of mussels and red velvet cake from their sheets so Ken could take them and wash them. OK, maybe I didn’t spare you the whole story.) What I learned is that innerspring is a little better for older kids, since it’s a little less firm than foam. Many people think you should have an organic mattress. I did not get one, as they started at $350 and I’m not entirely sure what it gets you since there’s a mattress cover and a sheet between the kid and the mattress…but I’m sure many people would disagree.

Microplane Paddle Graters

In the kitchen, I made a zucchini frittata for breakfast on Saturday, and realized that my grater was cracked. So I headed over to Williams-Sonoma and picked up a new Microplane Gourmet Paddle grater. I think they make the best, easiest to store graters. I have a zester from them that is excellent, too. I find the paddles work just as well as the box graters, but take up much less space. (Most run around $16.95)

Then I had a lovely stainless steel aerosol container to spray olive oil in a fine mist. It stopped working. When I told the woman working at Williams-Sonoma that I had bought it there and needed a replacement, she said, “Oh yeah, those never worked.” Which scared me, because then why were they selling it? I bought a new Orka by Mastrad brand, which seems to work so far. ($15.95)

Then my hand held milk frother had bit the dust. It had been an Aerolatte and frankly hadn’t gotten that much use, so I was not going to buy the same brand again. Williams-Sonoma carries one by Primo, so I decided to go with that. I haven’t tried it out yet. I’ll have to report back. ($19.95)

So hopefully now I’m set for a while and everything will stay in working order. Enough!

Be In the Know

Here’s a little Buy Buy Baby tip: they’ll accept Bed, Bath and Beyond coupons — you know, those ubiquitous 20% coupons — as long as they’re not expired. They’re owned by the same company, and the only other catch is that Bed, Bath and Beyond needs to carry the item online. In most cases, they do. So the next time you head there, bring your Bed, Bath and Beyond coupons! Every little bit helps, I like to say.

Resto Wrap Up

We had a nice dinner with Abby and Bruce on Friday night at Monte’s on Macdougal. I don’t even eat meat and the bolognese is delicious. They had it as a special with spinach fettucine. They also had a duo in for some live music, and they’re so nice there they didn’t rush us. We ended up having a great time for almost 3 hours.

This morning my friend Erica and her daughter Clio were in from Los Angeles, so Austin and I met them for brunch at Steak Frites, newly returned to Union Square. The food was good and they were super kid-friendly. They came over with french fries right away, and they offered Shirley Temples, although I turned them down. Plus they accommodated our off-menu requests. The prix-fixe brunch is $15.95 and includes coffee, tea, juice, a bloody mary or mimosa. I had moules frites and everyone else had omelettes and eggs — all were content. My only complaint was that I saw the Tropicana carton sitting on the bar, making it clear the OJ wasn’t exactly fresh-squeezed. We know it’s probably not, but don’t be so obvious!

Etc.

The weather was quite lovely here this weekend — very Fall, sunny with a chill in the air.

All Ken and I wanted to do was go to bed early last night when we were hit with some scene out of the Exorcist in the kids room. So instead he was up past midnight doing laundry. Oh well. Parenting is SO glamorous!

I have weirdly been craving pizza all weekend.

Is everyone ready for Oprah’s long goodbye?!

Hope you had a rootin’, tootin’ good time!