The above photo was taken of father and (second) son on June 26, 2005, when our new baby was 10 days old. It can also be seen in a larger size at Flickr.

This afternoon I witnessed one of the most disturbing daytime TV ads I've ever seen and had to share... I call it "When Men (Obviously) Run Ad Agencies".

Scene: An animated Always maxi pad, being tucked gently into bed under a sheet below a starry nighttime sky [click here for screencap]

Slogan: Have a happy period. Always.

Now I've described my periods as a lot of things since my early teen years. But HAPPY?!? Well then might I offer in return my own slogan to the Always ad-man: "Have a jolly kidney stone. . "

When I said, "What I wouldn't give to hear just one new more song..." Well, let me take a moment for us and clarify. I meant with Michael Hutchence singing. Not some chick with cheap- tattoos. Not some dude with a spiky mohawk. This show is total sacrilege. They are bastardizing my memories of INXS and of my teen girl fantasies of Hutchence in tight leather pants! The lead singer of INXS should be MALE. Screw PC and "womyn's lib". The INXS lead singer should croon to me with bedroom eyes and make me swoon. Not make my husband say, "Let's watch the 'fancy foods' episode of Unwrapped instead."

Todd found an interesting article over the weekend on evolution and childbirth. I particularly liked this passage:

And speaking of birth...this photo goes out to the grabby-hands clerk at Home Depot.

Still in the baby category...if you just can't wait 'til the ultrasound to find out the gender of your baby, now you can fork over $250+ for a "99.9% accuracy gender test" as early as 5 weeks along. Not that we weren't on the edge of the exam table hoping to hear "it's a boy!" both times by week 18 — but for that kind of cash, I think I'd rather just fork over five bucks for a bottle of Drano crystals instead. We're 2-for-2 with that test now.

And if you were anxiously awaiting the review of my new super-shoulder boulder holder... It has arrived, and I absolutely love it! It fits so much better than the ones from Target and Motherhood Maternity (somewhat ironic since the sizing for this brand is S, M, L, and XL which made me a bit nervous to order it). And I no longer feel like I raided the armoires at the local nursing home (no pun intended) for my lingerie needs. Most importantly, the husband was extremely pleased to not be staring at the "Cross Your Heart" catalog come-to-life for a change. Next payday, I'll be adding the aqua (and possibly salmon) versions to my collection. Hasta la bye-bye granny whites!

I give the Belabumbum Copacabana Lace Nursing Bra four out of five mommy- —
it loses one star because the cup-clasps are plastic and a bit more difficult one-handed