Round-To-It Recommends: Produce Bag

Like a lot of people, I started carrying my own shopping bags a while ago (remember to clean them out after carrying meat!), but I didn't have a solution for carrying my produce. I had tried just piling everything into a bag, but stuff was getting smushed and it took the checkers forever to sort it all out when they were ringing it up. There are bags that you can buy, but that would just add to the pile of bags already in my trunk - there had to be a better solution.

I finally hit on an idea a couple of weeks ago that has been working really well, and it uses a bag that we already had hanging around. It's a divided wine carrier bag! The bag has 6 sections, each of which is large enough to hold two or three apples, pears, or peaches, a bunch of green onions, a bunch of broccoli, or just about any other produce we buy. It's easy for the checkers because the same items are stacked together and all the food is protected and easy to carry.

I now manage to use plastic bags just for meat, which I don't buy all that often. If I could find a bag that was really easy to clean, I'd stop using them for it, too. Maybe my insulated cooler bag would do the trick...

Round-To-It Recommends: Walden West

Our older kids just finished a week of camp at Walden West Science Center in Saratoga, CA.  It was an incredible experience for both of them and they both said they'd love to go back next year.

Their main camps are day camps (they do offer backpacking trips for kids 12-16), the summer camp for kids ages 7-12 and the Wild Things camp for kids ages 5-7.  Both are held at the Walden West facility in the Saratoga hills, with buses taking the kids from a local elementary school and returning them in the afternoon.  The older kids have the option of camping out on Thursday night, if they choose.

The focus of the camps at both levels is environmental awareness and providing an outdoor experience.  So many kids today spend the vast majority of their time indoors and these camps hope to counteract that by showing kids the beauty and excitement of the natural areas that are so accessable to us.  Most of the activities are traditional camp activities: hiking, gardening, swimming, arts and crafts, games, songs, climbing wall, and ropes course.  The camp songs are a bit different from most of those that I've heard since they focus on things like the importance of worms, banana slugs, and scat, but the silly actions and enthusiasm of the counselors and campers are exactly what you'd expect!  There is a good balance between planned group activities, like hikes, and individual choice, where the kids have a number of options for how to use their time.  Our kids spent a good amount of time in the pool, but also tried archery, crafts, and group games that they had never played before. 

The older campers all chose nature names for the week, to go along with the nature names of all of the counselors.  Our son was "Python" and his counselor was "Big Brown Bat".  Our daughter's counsleors were "Clam Chowder", "Aurora",  and "Poppy", to name a few.  According to a friend, whose sixteen-year-old daughter has been going to Walden West since she was nine, the kids often keep their nature names from year to year.  Her daughter has been "Blue Jay" for the last seven years.

The two big events for our son this week were the climbing wall and the campout.  He had never done either, but wasn't particularly nervous about them.  His group did the wall on Wednesday afternoon, spending the whole afternoon giving the kids the chance to try climbing multiple times.  His only disappointment was that there was no way to actually climb on top of the wall when he got there - apparently there wasn't any place to put his hands or feet when he tried.  The campout was the first time he had spent a night away from home - not for any partcular reason, he's just never had the opportunity.  It was also the first time he'd slept out under the stars, which he didn't speak so highly of.  It was pretty darn chilly last night (maybe 50 degrees) and really damp, so everything was pretty wet during the night.  They woke up to ground fog, making the morning "freaky", in his words.  He did enjoy being away for the night, though, eating with the group of kids in the lodge, and just generally being responsible for himself.

Our daughter's week was less dramatic, but she loved the experience and true to her nature, got to know absolutely everyone in the program.  She also liked the fact that they got to choose their afternoon activities and often tried multiple things in one afternoon.  This afternoon when we asked her how her day was, she replied, "It was okay."  That was a luke-warm response compared to the lengthy explanations we had been getting, so we questioned her about why it was only "okay".  She said, "It was only okay because it was the last day and I won't get to see my friends any more."  Testimony enough for us that it was a great experience for her, too.

I went up for the evening program on Thursday night and it was very clear that there were many families whose kids had been attending the camps there for years.  That spoke volumes to me about the quality and draw of their programs and I definitely see us being in those ranks as all of our kids make their way through the programs.  For them, it's less the importance of getting time outside since we do spend a good amount of time doing outdoor activities.  It's really more the traditional camp experience of goofy counselors, meeting new kids, and experiencing a good amount of independence that make it a really worthwhile week.

Round-to-it Recommends - Make It and Love It

You may have noticed I added a button to the left side of this page. It's for a craft site called "Make It and Love It" and they have some great craft ideas. They also do some terrific give-aways. Right now, they are doing one for a new sponsor called "Beautiful Baby Boutique" that has the cutest hair clips I have ever seen. Really creative and great prices. Check it out and see what you think!

And if you're looking for gift ideas for my girls...

Round-to-it Recommends - Chocolate

El Rey Icoa white and Gran Saman dark chocolate

This is the most amazing chocolate. Mike and I love chocolate and we try every new chocolate that we see, especially the really dark ones. I, frankly, don't even like white chocolate, but this stuff is amazing. It is the first white chocolate I've had that actually tastes like chocolate and it is absolutely irresistible. Mike says it is the only non-deodorized white chocolate ever produced, which is why it actually tastes like chocolate. It is also the only white chocolate we have ever seen listed with a cacao percentage (34%). The dark chocolate is 70% cacao, which is lower than we usually like, but it has a lovely complex flavor, with a nice wine foretaste and berry aftertaste. The discos melt really well and are great for dipping. Mike found these at our local Whole Foods a couple of weeks ago and we've been indulging in them ever since.

Round-to-it Recommends - Identification

Personal identification can literally save your life, even if you don't have a specific medical condition that requires you to wear it all the time. Here are two companies that I have used and can recommend their products.

1) Road ID
I have the wrist ID for myself for when I work out or race and I have them for each of my kids for when we travel or go to places where they might get lost. They know that once we go through security at the airport, their wrist bands go on and they don't come off until we get to our destination. Their bands have their names, my and my husband's cell numbers, their blood types, birth dates, and allergies. Mine has my name, contact information for my husband, and my medical information.

2) Lauren's Hope medical ID bracelets
In the past, if you had to wear a medical bracelet, you only had the option of a silver chain bracelet or a dog tag, both of which were noticeable and not attractive. This company designs interchangeable bracelets that are really pretty, but still attach to a medical tag to let responders know about your medical condition. I have ordered from them a couple of times and their bracelets arrive very quickly and look very nice. You can also buy just a new bracelet and attach it to your old tag, so you don't need to get a new tag if you want to wear a different bracelet. The one downside is that they don't have an online contact service, so if you have complicated medical needs that can't be easily explained on a tag, these won't really work for you. But for most people, these will work just fine.

Round-to-it Recommends - Vacation Items

Here are some of the things we have found to be really useful when we travel. Feel free to add your suggestions in the comments!

1) Phil & Ted's Traveler portable crib
We have the older (slightly heavier) version of this crib and it has been fantastic. I much prefer having my own crib for my little one, so we don't have to keep our fingers crossed that the ones where we stay are safe/clean/comfortable. This one is small and light enough to pack in our daughter's duffle bag and still have room for her clothes and toys. It is also great for a little one at the beach to keep her out of the sand and give her a place to sleep at nap time. Well worth the cost!

2) Waterproof camera housing
We have a Panasonic Lumix digital camera right now, but many of the higher end digitals have a housing available. We keep our camera in this most of the time and are able to take pictures while snorkeling, in the pool, and anywhere else without having to worry about it getting ruined. Some of our favorite vacation photos have been captured because we were able to take our camera in places that would otherwise have destroyed it.

3) Inflatable booster seat
We have gotten tons of use out of our seat. It has lasted through 2 kids and would definitely last through more. This one collapses down fairly flat, so it is easy to pack (in the same bag with the crib) and weighs almost nothing. It's also good to have at home when friends come over with their kids. Definitely beats using the phone book!

4) UV protective rash guards
If you look back at our vacation photos, you can see that we all wear rash guards any time we are out in the water. We learned long ago that getting burned is just miserable and this is the best and easiest way to keep that from happening. the kids are currently wearing the ones from Lands' End and I really like the the quality of the fabric. My favorite ones for me are from the Pacific Whale Foundation store, but those are harder to come by. Wearing these also means it takes about half the time to sunscreen everyone.

5) A really good guidebook
Since we mostly travel to Hawaii, I can recomend one series of books. Maui Revealed (and the books for the other islands, as well) is the absolute best guidebook for travel to Maui. We're not completely fond of their food recommendations, but aside from that, it is spot on for things to do and safety considerations. Even though we have been to Maui many times, we still take the most recent version of the book along with us for reference.

6) Headphones
This may seem silly, but they make all the difference for when your kids want to play video games or watch the movie or beg you to do something on your computer to kill time. We have simple over-the-head ones for our kids, but there are lots of options.

7) Handheld video games
We're not big on letting our kids plug in and tune out, but for travelling, we do what we must to pass the time. Our kids have the Leapster (for the younger two) and the Didj (for our oldest). The games are educational and for the Didj, we can set the learning level for the games by hooking it up to the computer. It keeps him challenged and he is working on math skills he hasn't gotten in school yet.

Round-to-it Recommends - Dog Shampoo

Buddy Wash and Buddy Rinse
I love this shampoo and conditioner! It leaves the dog smelling clean, but not perfume-y, the conditioner leaves Zatarain's coat incredibly soft, and the effects last for at least a week. It takes very little of the shampoo to wash the whole dog and even less conditioner to keep him soft and detangled. It may be more expensive than a lot of dog shampoos out there, but it's well worth it for how great the dog looks afterwards.

Round-to-it Recommends

This week's recommendations are for the grown-ups.

1) Acorn slippers
They don't make the exact model I have, but I would definitely buy any of their slippers again. I LOVE these things! I wear them around the house all the time and they are extremely comfortable. To the point that I have forgotten I have them on and gone to a friend's for dinner. Looked a bit funny, but I was comfortable! Mine are a suede outside and sheepskin inside and look a bit like elf shoes, but I don't really care because of how they feel. Did I mention these are seriously comfortable?

2) Parcel 104 Restaurant
This is our favorite restaurant in the Bay Area. It is in the unlikely location of the Santa Clara Marriott, which is great for us because it is about 5 minutes from our house. The current chef, Anthony Ippolito, is the nicest guy and an amazing chef. We really think the food, which has always been good, has gotten even better since he took over. They do several special dinners during the year, including the Wine and Cheesemakers Dinner, where every course has some kind of cheese in it, and the 104-Mile Dinner, where all of the ingredients (and I mean ALL of them) come from within 104 miles of the restaurant (good thing we live in California and not in Nebraska or it'd be pretty slim pickin's). There aren't really words to adequately describe how much we like this place, aside from saying that any time we get an evening out, this is where we head. Just go and check it out for yourself.

Round-to-it Recommends

Each week I'll put up products and/or services that I have used and will happily recommend to others. These are not paid endorsements (ha!), but things that I personally like and want to share. Hopefully they'll be helpful to you, too.

1) Soft back/front pack child carriers
I have 2 different brands - the Ergo and the Beco.
This is the Ergo, which has more padding on the shoulder straps than the Beco, but is a bit bulkier. I like this one better for longer hikes. I don't have a picture of the Beco, but it's very similar. It is my daily activity pack, for things like grocery shopping or going into stores with narrow aisles and breakable things. The Beco has a longer back, so it is a bit more supportive for the baby, although mine doesn't seem to mind either one. At 2 years old and about 28 pounds, I can still comfortably hike for several miles with her on my back and have my hands free to handle the dog.

2) AVAC Swim School
We have been at AVAC for 6 1/2 years now, since my son was a year old. I love this program and recommend it to anyone who asks (and I am super picky about swim programs after having taught swimming for so many years). The pool is indoors and 90 degrees, so I don't mind getting in it for the parent-child classes (kids go on their own starting at age 3). It was built specifically for swim lessons, so the shallow end is only 2 feet deep, allowing even really little kids to be able to stand so they don't have to hang on the wall. The methodology makes sure that kids master a set of skills before they move on, so their stroke technique once they put it all together is excellent. Their teacher training is comprehensive and the instruction is fairly consistent from one instructor to the next (differences in personality can make a big difference in the overall experience, though). All 3 of my kids love it there and have become excellent swimmers and are very comfortable and confident in the water.