WFMW: Diaper and Panty Storage

It is Wednesday again, which means that it is time for me to pass on bits of home-management advice. To find out what others know, check out Rocks in My Dryer.

If the core principle of home organization is that everything must have a place, and that that place should be near its point of usage, than y'all will love my diaper and panty displays.

I have been to some homes where the changing table is off in the master bedroom or nursery. Not so at casa warillever -- it is located smack dab in the center of the home where it doubles as the playroom toy shelf. This way I can wipe off wee bottoms while everyone else plays happily within my sight.

The drawer on the middle shelf holds a week's worth of diapers in all three sizes, and extra stock is stored in the closet off stage left.

Now with potty training, things became a bit more difficult. I want F to get used to going into the bathroom for "those needs," even if she has already had an accident. But I didn't want pullups and dry pants and underwear all over the counter. My solution: a pretty basket that all of her "items" go into.

The basket fits right on top of our "tomorrow drawers," and actually classes the joint up a bit.

The warillevers do Washington (2008 ed.)

We just returned from our annual pilgrimage to our nation's capital for the March for Life. We go every January, arriving a day or so early to see the sights.


Washington is wonderful in the winter -- the crowds are smaller, the weather is quite pleasant, and the pandas are more active. Plus Uncle 7 has a bit more spare time to be our tour guide. This year's tourist highlights were the National Zoo, the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the National Building Museum, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

For anyone with toddlers or budding engineers, the Building Museum is a must-see. Here is a 7-foot tall arch that we built:

Eggs Unplugged

Several of my e-friends post a themed project every Monday, and I figured that I would give it a whirl this week. You can check out their projects (and others) at Unplug You Kids.

Our afternoon projects are always open-ended. I merely puled out two egg cartons, opened the bin of oddball supplies, and let the kids' imaginations go.


Even Baby P got involved, moving ribbons on F's abstract rainbow piece. I made a boring ole' person with a cotton ball head. Agent 004 took my idea and ran -- she has cotton ball people sitting on an egg carton bus. Agent 002 thought that the bus looked like a stop light, so he made a similar structure, but colored his cotton balls red, yellow, and green.

I love to see how the ideas flow.

Next week's theme is "pipe cleaners." I can't wait to see what we come up with.

I'm a Grammy!

It is official -- Agent 004 is Kayley Warillever's mommy for ever and ever and ever.

In a ceremony that mimicked Cousin P's adoption finalization to the "T," Agent 004 signed her Cabbage Patch Kid's adoption certificate yesterday in front of a judge (me). Then, just like we did for P, we had tea and cake to celebrate.

Updated 1/30/08 to include a picture of me holding my first precious grandchild.

I Always Considered Myself a Piglet

Take the 100 Acre Personality Quiz!

First Blood

There have been a lot of milestones over the past week.

• P's adoption was finalized, and he also began to walk and got his first tooth.
• Agents 002 and 004 have started writing phonetic words to go along with their drawings -- "LD BG" for ladybug and "PgLeT" for Piglet.
• Cousin F has started writing "F"s spontaneously and recognizably every time she gets hold of a crayon.
• Agent 004 and Cousin F had their first knock-down, drag-out fight. Okay, not their first, but the first one in which one was covered in blood and the other needed an ice pack. Who said that boys are rough?
  

There once was a Mommy named B

I haven't shared any poetry in a while.

There once was a mommy named B
Home with baby and toddlers three.
Four kids and a cat,
Plus a man that's all that,
Who wouldn't want to be me?

more limericks at Rocks in My Dryer.

Grand Adventures

Not that this is anything new, but you may have noticed that I am behind on my blog posting. I have a good excuse this time, I swear. We have been out of the country on a grand adventure -- five days in the Canadian backwoods.

Okay, not really the backwoods, but we did spend five days playing outdoors in Canada. Grandma's Christmas present to the entire clan was a 5-day stay at a ski resort. Our home for the week was a luxurious log cabin ten-minutes from a large alpine ski resort and within a national park (or is that parc national?).

It was amazing, astonishing, extraordinary, incredible and lots of other initial-vowel adjectives. Did I mention that it was really nice?

The big kids (which includes Agent 002) spent three full days skiing on the mountain, while the little folks (including Agent 004) tried out the bunny hill and explored the village.

Aunt K, Uncle Ichabod and I got a chance to head out on cross-country skis for an afternoon while the dads took the kids snow-tubing.

A marvelous time.

Now to explain the dearth of blogging. Have you ever packed for an outdoor cold-weather vacation? On the day after Christmas? While trying to keep the rear window unobstructed for the six-hour drive?

Impossible, I tell you. Well, not if you have mr warillever around. He pulled out the van's back bench and built a ski rack along the floor. Then we piled our baggage on top of that. It was an act of sure genius. We managed to fit eight pairs of skis (we each have a pair for cross-country and downhill), as well as snowsuits, mittens, hats, clothing, and Christmas gifts.

And then there is all the work after a trip. Laundry (loads and loads of laundry), finding places for all of the new toys that generous aunts and uncles gifted, and dealing with young children on a post holiday, post-vacation let-down.

But the laundry is almost done, the toys are mostly away, and the children are falling back into a normal routine. And it really was a grand adventure.