A Ban on Cough and Cold Medicine for Kids?

I covered this story for DotMoms back in February, and it's in the news again today: cough and cold medicine isn't safe for children, research indicates. Now the FDA is considering banning decongestants for children under age 2, and antihistamines for children under the age of 6.

I shudder to think how many times I've given my kids these medicines.

Between 2004 and 2005, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study showed that taking decongestants caused "serious health problems" in more than 1,500 children under age 2, according to the New York Times. The study prompted Baltimore's health commissioner, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, to petition the FDA for action on the matter.

"The basic question is, why should a product be so relentlessly marketed when it's not safe or effective?" said Sharfstein. "It does not make sense, in the absence of information, to say 'consult a physician,' because they do not have superhuman powers. They cannot make a product safe or effective."

Also of concern are unapproved prescription medicines containing the painkiller and cough suppressant hydrocodone that are being marketed to children under age 6. The drug, which is combined with acetomenophine in Vicodin, is still on the market. Manufacturers have until March 2008 to stop shipping them, or face consequences by the FDA.

I'm not sure why they're waiting until then. Meanwhile, I guess it's up to parent to read labels.

My New Anthem

Updated to add: Here's her Web site. Chick's got it going on.

Have you seen this YouTube video of Anita Renfroe's take on the William Tell Overture? If not, you must. Right now.

It is so funny and true. By the end, tears streamed down my face, because of how hard I was laughing but also because, holy crap, mothering is hard. No wonder I'm so damned tired all the time.

10 Foods That Are Helping Me Lose Weight

When my last baby was born just over two years ago, I decided to be unconventional and gain a bunch of weight after she was born. By the time she reached age 20 months, I was 30 pounds over my "happy weight." And, boy, was I pissed off.

Since then, I have worshipped at the altar of Dr. Oz and, while I haven't cut out as many calories as I probably should to reach my goal, I have lost 13 pounds. Now I am just slightly annoyed.

I realize 13 pounds in seven months isn't earth-shattering, but I'm working on incremental changes. Baby steps, people. Baby steps.

After two years of stuffing my gullet with all the white flour, sugar and grease I could find, I've realized that other many other American consumers must have been doing the opposite and putting pressure on the food manufacturers to step up. Because, hello, Chips Ahoy! with the words "Whole grains" on the package? I feel like Rumpelstiltskin.

The grocery store has been full of happy surprises. Here are, in no particular order, the top 10 foods that have made losing weight a little more pleasant for me (and no I didn't receive any of these to review):

1. Celestial Seasonings Zingers To Go. Since I've been betrayed by my "harmless" caffeine-free diet cola, which recent studies show is the equivilent of drinking battery acid, and since beer makes you fat and stupid, I've had to find a new evening drink. These little packets of fruity goodness have no calories, no dyes, and no artificial sweeteners. No, they're not made of air. They get their yummy flavor from herbs, fruit extracts and stevia, a natural sweetener. Once in a while I put one in my boys' water bottles, and I'm an instant rock star. (Yes, they are THAT deprived.)

2. Newman's Own Spelt Pretzels. I found these on sale at Amazon and I'm so glad I like them because I had to buy 50 bags to get the deal. I am so sick of the "whole grain" pretzels sold in stores that have white flour listed as the first ingredient and zero grams of fiber per serving. These pretzels taste entirely normal and have 4 grams of fiber and 4 grams of protein per serving. Protein! I'm in love, with pretzels! I can also feel good about giving these to my kids.

3. Stacy's Baked Soy Crisps. I am new to the soy crisp, but due to another Amazon sale and a box crushed in delivery, I am the proud owner of 144 snack-size bags of them. After sampling both the Sweet BBQ and the Sticky Bun varieties, my boys deemed them "so disgusting." Because that, my friends, is murphy's law. However, I like them, as do my mom and husband, so from now on my boys aren't ALLOWED to have them. They are for the ADULTS. The kids can have pretzels. And water. At 390 mg of sodium per serving, they are a bit salty. However, each serving has 3 grams of fiber, 6 grams of protein and just 2 grams of sugar and 16 total carbs. Not bad for munching with beer, and much better than the nachos and cheese I was eating before.

4. Lean Cuisine Spa entrees. I thought I was hallucinating when I noticed these Lean Cuisines, which use brown rice or 100% whole grain pastas and pack double the usual amount of vegetables. This ain't your mama's Lean Cuisine. And with a little extra pasta or rice thrown in, they're downright filling. (Yeah, I know I should supplement it with a salad or something. Who do you think I am, Nicole Richie?)

5. Trader Joe's Organic Brown Rice, Frozen. Speaking of adding brown rice to my Lean Cuisine, Trader Joe's now sells boxes of frozen brown rice. Each bag has about two cups in it, and you can just zap it in the microwave for three minutes and, voila! Peasant food! I also use it when we order Chinese food. That way I don't have to feel so guilty about the egg rolls and the General Gau's chicken. It all evens out. Sort of.

6. Bird's Eye Steam Fresh Vegetables. Now, I know this is the third item in a row that entails microwaving things in plastic. I'm not big on microwaving in plastic. But I figure, once a week or so won't hurt me too much. And I try to use them just for me, not the kids. Anyway, it's nice to be able to nuke some veggies when hunger strikes and that veggie burger just isn't cutting it. I'm just saying.

7. Thomas' 100% Whole Wheat English Muffins. It used to be, if I wanted whole wheat English muffins, they cost $5 a package and had the texture of a hockey puck. But now, Thomas' has decided to join the 21st century. Whoo! These are surprisingly good around a veggie burger with some spaghetti sauce and lettuce (a suggestion from Dr. Oz). It somehow makes the burger more substantial and filling than a regular whole wheat roll does. Whole grain breads, in general, are more readily available and affordable now than ever before. If Thomas' would just start making whole wheat RAISIN English muffins, my world would be complete. Well, that and if Iran's leader would, um, die for Allah. That would be great, too.

8. Smart Balance Spreads. This company saved me from soy butter when nursing my last baby, who was lactose intolerant. They have a great line of spreads which are, I believe, all dairy free: a soft spread for muffins and rolls, spreads containing flax and omega-3 oils, and melty spreads for cooking and baking and slathering over pasta. (You're beginning to see why my weight loss has been slow, aren't you.)

9. Morningstar Farms. I know I've mentioned this company before, but it bears mentioning again because, dude, I can make a healthy sausage egg and cheese at home, using MF's sausage patties. And every time I do this, it saves me about 3,987 calories and 14,947 mg of sodium over McDonald's version. I like the "chicken" pucks too, which are WAY healthier than the usual versions, and my kids can't tell the difference.

10. Coffee and Dark Chocolate. Dark chocolate? Good for you? I can't really talk about that because I might start to weep. But did you notice Hershey's now makes dark chocolate chips? Sweet. And, in case you missed the news, coffee is now good for you, too. Here I was feeling all guilty for drinking caffeinated coffee. What a waste of guilt that was. I just wish I could drink coffee in the afternoon, but if I do, I end up staring at the ceiling at 3 am, worrying about how I'll pay three college tuitions and what my face will look like in 20 years. Maybe as I grow old and so ... very ... tired ..., a mid-afternoon coffee won't keep me awake at night. Now, that's something to look forward to.

For more brilliant tips, visit Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer, host of Works of Me Wednesday.

Tags: [works for me wednesday], [dieting], [weight loss], [Dr. Oz]

Chicco Stroller Giveaway: The Winner

The winner of the Wonder Mom stroller giveaway is ...

Mama Relle!

Congrats to you, Relle. Please send your address to me at clouth@gmail.com, and I'll have the folks at Chicco get the stroller out to you.

As always, thanks to all who entered. My desk is getting crowded with books and DVDs, so the next week will probably bring more giveaways of the book/DVD variety. Stay tuned!

Quotes of the Week

Last night, after a let out a big sneeze in the kitchen, Ava's voice comes over the monitor: Bless you, Mom!

This morning, as we're packing to leave for Story Land, my five year old yells: Here Daaaaad. Here's your big underwear!

She's on to me.

One of the first phrases Ava, now 2, ever said was "Stop it, Mama." She said this when she wanted me to get off the computer and go play with her.

Soon, "Stop it, Mama," morphed into "Stop workin', Mama." I'm not sure why she thought I was working, but who was I to correct her?

"Mama just has to do a few more things," I'd tell her, "then I'll come play with you."

This went on for several months, until yesterday.

"Mama, stop playin' on your 'puter. Right now. That's 'nuff!"

Wow. If this is what I get at age 2, what's next?

"Mom, do you really think you need that donut?"

"Mom, do you really think you can afford another Starbucks coffee?"

"Mom, don't you think it's time you get off your butt and go find a job?"

And here I thought having a girl would be fun.

P.S. I'm giving away a Chicco stroller this week. Well, actually, Chicco's giving it away, I'm just allowing them to use me for your benefit. If you're interested, there's still time to enter!

The Obligatory Pictures

Since you all were kind enough to listen to me whine last week, and even offer some advice, I thought I'd come through with a few pictures.


The happy couple. Gosh, I look a little pasty, don't I?

For those of you keeping score, the pashmina wrap that I ordered from Amazon didn't come by Friday, so I went looking for a substitute Friday night. I couldn't find anything except beige, brown and gold wraps, so Saturday morning I made a last ditch attempt and went to Macy's. I found the Jones New York wrap you see here. When I got home, the wrap I had ordered was here (of course). But they sent me a two-tone turquoise wrap, so that one end was dark and the other end was light. Yeah ... no. I'm glad I got the Macy's one. Teal definitely turned out to be the better choice. (Thanks, Bridget!)


You know, I feel like I looked pretty good: comfortable, not too conspicuous. So, in the end, the hours at the mall *shudder* paid off. I'm just taken back a bit by how much work it took to get to this point. I really need to get out more.

(I added some notes in Flickr.)

My Biggest Giveaway Yet: A Chicco Ct 0.1 Stroller!

Last week, a representative from Chicco emailed to tell me about the company's big stroller giveaway. From September 1 through September 30, Chicco is giving away one Ct 0.1 stroller every day. There are no strings attached. Anyone interested in winning just needs to fill out this survey to be eligible. Chicco is an Italian company that produces high-quality, safe and stylish products, and the Ct 0.1 is a premier stroller in its line.

At first I was not going to mention the giveaway here because, well, I wanted to win. Why lower my chances by getting more people to enter? Yes, I'm selfish. Now you know.

However, the rep went on to say that Chicco would let me give away one of their strollers right here on my own Web site. Since I would never deny you guys a decent shot at winning a quality, lightweight, collapsible stroller, I agreed to become a tool of the Chicco Public Relations Machine.

See what I do for you?

To enter Chicco's stroller giveaway, go to Chicco.com and fill out this survey. You only need to fill it out once, and you will be entered for the daily giveaways through the end of September. But do it now, to maximize your chance to win!

To enter the Wonder Mom stroller giveaway, in which I will choose the winner by random drawing, you can do three things:

1. For one chance, leave me a comment on this post. Tell me why you want the stroller, who you want to give it to, what a piece of crap your stroller is, how much you love me. You know, whatever.

2. To earn two chances for your comment instead of one, leave your comment in the form of a stroller-themed haiku.

3. To earn two BONUS chances, post about my giveaway on your blog, with a link back to this post. Make sure to email me so that I know you've done this. You've got to do this by Thursday, September 20, at midnight EST.

If your desire for this stroller borders on obsession, you can also do a Google blog search on "Chicco stroller" to find other blogs giving away the Ct 0.1. I'm sure that I am not the only blogger Chicco approached.

Entries will be accepted until Saturday, September 22, at midnight, EST. I'll post the winner by Monday.

Now, if I could just figure out how to get a free stroller for myself ...

Tags: [Chicco], [stroller], [giveaways]

It Takes a Lollipop

"Ava, I have something special for you today."

She thinks for a second. "Lollipop?"

"No, new big-girl underwear!"

"No. Lollipop."

"Wait until you see them. They're very cute and cozy. And pink."

"No, you don't have big-girl underwear, you have lollipop!"

So far, she's made it to the potty once and peed on my family room rug once.

Time to stock up on lollipops.

potty training

Dress shopping started to get fun again, until ...

I got the dress today. It doesn't look great on me. I think that once I lose another 15 pounds or so it will look nice. But right now, at 148 pounds, not so great. The skirt's a little poofy on the sides, adding to my hips. Worse, the sleeves are too tight, which was my biggest fear realized. They are elastic and they dig in, making my arms look like sausages bursting out of the case.

Crap. I wish I had my own personal Susan who I could carry around in my purse.

On the positive side, I do like the accessories I got: this purse and this pashmina. I bought two pairs of shoes and I'm still deciding which to keep. My favorite is that purse. I love it! Endless Shoes also has my undying loyalty thanks to their $5 discount for overnight shipping and free returns.

I'm bummed about the dress, though. I'm kind of screwed, actually. The boring dress is now on back order in my size. Drat! Maybe this dress, in brown? With the same accessories? I'll have to pay a million dollars for shipping though. If I could just get this figured out, I'll be set for my 20th high school reunion in November, too.

I'm going to the mall tonight to look around. Hold me.

Book Review: The Sneaky Chef

When I had my first baby, I spent a lot of time with the Super Baby Food book. Not just reading it, but rocking it: steaming, pureeing, freezing, thawing. A food cube maniac, I was.

Then the kids became toddlers and more likely to refuse the fruit of my labors. Oh, I've tried several different "for kids" cookbooks over the years. I remember one english muffin pizza, in particular. It had a face and it scared the ever-living hell out of Ben, who was 2 at the time. Black olives for eyes. No wonder he was scared.

While I was the pious puree queen with the babies, when it came to "fun food for kids," I pretty much gave up. Anything remotely good for them got rejected. Anything they liked seemed to be loaded with fat and simple carbs. They were too picky, I was sick of cooking food that didn't get eaten, and, for crap's sake, just EAT, for ONCE in your life!

Them, not you. Anyway ...

Lest you think I'm exaggerating: Ben won't eat meat, PB&Js, or mac and cheese. John, too, hates mac and cheese, won't touch pasta, bellows "gross" every night when he sits down for dinner, pretty much regardless of what I serve. Both won't eat rice and are touch and go with grilled cheese and chicken nuggets. I serve a roasted chicken with mashed potatoes and you would think I'd unveiled monkey brains with magget pudding.

So, my first thought when I received for review the The Sneaky Chef*, by Missy Chase Lapine, was "Yeah, my kids won't eat it." But I gave it a shot.

Lapine is a professional chef and the former publisher of Eating Well magazine. She makes it clear upfront that she knows first hand the frustration of trying to get your kids to eat healthy and failing, miserably.

But with her culinary expertise, and a food processor, Lapine tackled her kids' undeveloped palates using the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" approach. She embraced the classics of kids' comfort food -- chocolate chip pancakes, cookies, grilled cheese, pizza, chicken tenders, even SpaghettiOs -- and slipped some "don't ask don't tell" nutrition in there.

My experience with Super Baby Food made it easier for me to get used to Lapine's recipes. There's not many you can try without first making some of the 13 special purees, breadings, juices and flour blends. Once you've got some of these in the freezer, you're ready to try your hand at supersleuth cooking.

I kept putting off writing about this book, because there were always (and still are) more recipes that I want to try. To date, I've made:

Chocolate chip pancakes. Very flavorful. Not crumbly, and not too dense. My only gripe is she uses white flour in them, and I'm willing to bet they'd be just as good with 100% whole wheat pastry flour. I'll update you if I try it.

Breakfast cookies. These taste like eating cereal, but in a good way. Both of my boys liked them, which was cool, since I got to be the "good guy" who served cookies for breakfast. They have a light cinnamon taste, and they might be even better with some raisins or other chopped dried fruit thrown in. With whole wheat cereal (e.g., Wheaties), eggs, and ricotta cheese, they've got enough fiber and protein to stave off the mid-morning hungries.

Guerilla Grilled Cheese: This calls for spreading some "orange puree" (sweet potatos, among other things) on the bread, under the cheese. A mistake in the proofing of the book, the recipe specifically calls for yellow cheese rather than orange. When I was watching John eat his, his bread kept flapping open, exposing the orange mush. My guerilla tactics, obviously, needed work. He didn't notice, and I was thrilled to escape a "you served me orange mush" freakout.

Magic Meatballs: My kids LOVE these. And I have so much fun watching them eat the spinach, brocolli and peas that were hidden inside. Heh. I need to set aside a weekend to make about a million meatballs for my freezer. I do want to try it with a vegetarian "ground meat" substitute. We'll see how that goes.

Gotta Lotta Lasagna: This calls for Lapine's "white puree," which contains cauliflower and zucchini. I found that the puree made the lasagna especially flavorful, and my kids liked it too, after being forced at gun point to take that first bite. (Kidding. We use time outs and starvation, not weaponry.)

Crispy No-Fry Fries: These were kind of dry, but I cut them in wedges and was heavy handed with the corn meal. Next time I'll cut them like regular fries (I've since bought a fry cutter -- woo!), and stick to the recipe on the corn meal.

Unbelievable Chocolate Chip Cookies: These should be called "unbelievably SMALL chocolate chip cookies." Lapine advises dropping 1/2 teaspoon for each cookie. I did it for one batch and, let's just say I wanted to serve them in a cereal bowl with milk and a spoon. Hello, Cookie Crisp! I made them a little bigger, and they were pretty good. My picky nephew was over (I mean "picky" in the most lovable way), and I got my kicks for the day by watching him eat pureed white beans and almonds. Hah.

I do have some gripes for the editors of the book. I bought ricotta cheese to make the lasagna and had some left over. Since ricotta wasn't listed in the index, I didn't know that I could have used it up by making the breakfast cookies. Well, not until weeks later, when it had already gone bad. Also relating to the index, when I went to look up "lasagna," I couldn't find it. Turns out, it was listed under G. You know, for "Gotta Lotta Lasagna." Of course!

Also, throughout the book, Lapine refers to her make-ahead purees/juices by number, i.e., puree #1. So, the reader has to go to the page that lists the purees to get the page number, then go to the puree's recipe page. Annoying.

And finally, in my culinary travels through the book, I did find a few snafus, in addition to the aforementioned grilled cheese goof-up. In the directions for Quick Fixes for Boxed Mac and Cheese, it says to melt a slice of cheese into the cheese mix. I don't know about you, but in New England, we don't cook the cheese for boxed mac and cheese. I threw the cheese into the hot pasta and it worked fine. But a less-brilliant improvisational chef might not have been so lucky.

One of the funnest parts of this books are the quick fixes for oatmeal, boxed mac and cheese and store-bought ranch dressing, tomato sauce, chocolate pudding, brownie mix and lemonade. One option for the latter is pomegranate juice. The kids love it! Lapine is nothing if not a realist. Well, she's a professional gourmand, too, a fact that's evident thoughout the book.

If you don't think you'll make the purees, this probably isn't the book for you. As for me, there are many, many more recipes I want to make, and Lapine covers all the kid-food bases: fish sticks, burgers, sloppy joes, chicken parm, granola bars, chocolate donuts. Way too many to list. This book will keep me busy until they're in junior high. Best of all, it's gotten me interested in cooking for my kids again.


*If you're interested in purchasing the book, it happens to be on sale for 50 percent off at Amazon right now.

I love dress shopping (shoot me now)

We're going to a wedding this Saturday night. An old friend of ours is finally taking the plunge at 41 years old. We haven't seen him in about 10 years, but we've kept in touch through Christmas cards and the odd phone call. We will surely see some old college acquaintances, and this event has been in the back of my mind all summer as I've tried to carve a few pounds off and take better care of myself.

So, why am I panicking at the last minute, looking for something to wear? Good question.

I spent several HOURS yesterday online, shopping at Macy's, Nordstrom, Talbots, Bloomingdales, Bluefly and, in a moment of desperation, even Old Navy. Dress shopping should be fun! But dressing for weddings is tricky for me. I don't want my dress to be too sexy or too boring, too bridesmaid-like or too expensive. I want to look mamalicious (Writer Mama's word), but not like a tart.

After looking at literally hundreds (or was it thousands?) of dresses, I still had nothing but empty shopping carts.

I wish I could tell off the authors of every one of my fashion books right now. What Not to Wear for Every Occasion offered ridiculous options for a summer evening wedding, with their peacock feathers sticking out of their heads and their fur shrugs. The Pocket Stylist warns that sleeveless dressing are "not your friend if you don't have toned arms." Well, hello, this is a summer wedding, and try finding a cocktail dress with sleeves. Despite having keratosis pilaris on my arms, I have resigned myself to exposing them because THERE IS A CONSPIRACY AGAINST DRESSES WITH SLEEVES. Then, on the page offering dress ideas for my body type, The Pocket Stylist offers just one: a halter dress. Helpful, because so many halter dresses cover your arms. I did consider many halter dresses but most of them are backless and I don't feel like being half-naked.

By 11 o'clock last night, the entire online dress shopping extravaganza had become Not Fun, and I turned to Friday Style for some wisdom. Turns out, I should have started there. I found a few solid options at Banana Republic. I'm thinking of going with the first one, which I could dress up with a sparkly clutch and earrings, with maybe a pashmina over it (again following Susan's advice).

What do you guys think? Is it dressy enough? Should I brave the bare back instead?

Tags: weddings, dress shopping, fashion advice

Toddlers, They Never Get Old

This afternoon became hectic. Brian went to the Red Sox game rather than dutifully coming home after work. Ben's first day of school was followed by an impromptu playdate. Ava woke up from her nap with a runny nose and a red, swollen eye, none to pleased when I whisked her into the car for John's late afternoon speech therapy appointment. (Where all the receptionist could say was, "Um ... her... eye." Yes her eye is red. Spray some damn Lysol.)

Anway, when I sat down to relax at my desk after cooking, serving, choking down and cleaning up dinner, I was amused to watch Ava go into the bathroom and emerge with a pad. (That's sanitary napkin, for those of you who thought I meant shoulder pad, or some other sort of padding product.)

I wasn't too concerned because 1) it was new, freshly ripped from its package, and 2), as with the toothpaste, at least she wasn't eating it.

She came into the family room, where I noticed she'd carefully rolled the pad up like a little burrito. She cradled it in her arms, saying, "This is my baby. Oh, my baby so cute. Don't worry, baby, I take care o' you." Then she set the pad on the couch and disappeared back into the bathroom to repeat the entire process.

Much later, when I managed to get off my butt and pick up the family room for five minutes, I got to the pads on the couch. I'd hoped that she left the paper on the sticky parts, so I could still use them. However, as I approached, I noticed the pads were rather, uh, bloated.

"Hey," I thought to myself, "that wasn't pee all over my butt when I used the toilet a minute ago. Cool!"

No, it was toilet water, from when Ava soaked eight pads, one by one, in my toilet before rolling them up and bringing them to rest on my leather couch.

"Don't worry, baby, I rescue you from drowning in pee pee lake."

"Oh, baby, you're so cute when you're swollen with two pounds of toilet water."

Two things come to mind: Thank God the toilet was flushed! and, No wonder the poor kid is sick, I let her play in toilets!

Speaking of brand loyalty, these were generic/store-brand pads, which I recently decided to try because I'm sick of shelling out $6 a pack for Stayfree. I wasn't sure how the quality would compare, but now I know: Not one drop of water landed on the floor between the bathroom and the couch, not even in the bathroom! And where the pads sat on my leather couch for an hour and a half? Totally dry (although, ew, her shirt was wet now that I think of it). This, of course, means that I never have to buy Stayfree again.

It is so great having another woman in the house.

Tags: toddlers; humor; parenting

My 11 Favorite Brands

Hey, what's up?

I didn't mean to take the summer off from blogging, but that's pretty much what happened.

Despite the whining I did in my last post, I had a great summer. So great that I'm not even dancing on the table because my oldest started school this morning and John starts kindergarten on Monday. Although, I am excited to have a bit of time to myself again. Very excited. I'm going to get all crazy and clean my house, blog and look for writing work. Woooo!

In honor of The First Day of School, I'm recommitting to posting here again. And what better way to start than with my first-ever post for Works for Me Wednesday, hosted by the unstoppable Shannon of Rocks In My Dryer?

This week's an easy one: The Brand-Loyal Edition. Sometimes, nothing but my favorite brand will satisfy me (Shannon and I have a few in common).

Morningstar Farms: Waaaay back in 1992, I became a vegetarian. I started eating meat again when I got pregnant in 2000. Although I doubt I'll ever be a full-fledged vegetarian again, I still try to keep meat in the condiment category, and Morningstar makes the process much more pleasant. I like their hot dogs, their breaksfast sausage, and their "chicken" patties. But my favorite, by far, is their Garden Veggie Burgers. They are so yummy, soy burgers taste like rotting cardboard in comparison.

Heinz Ketchup: I keep trying to go healthy and buy the healthy ketchup, you know, without the high-fructose corn syrup in it. But Heinz just keeps luring me back. Despite the John Kerry connection.

Maxwell House: Not very sexy, I know. But I've been drinking Maxwell House Lite coffee for years, and while I buy the occassional pound of Dunkin' Donuts, Starbucks, or Green Mountain coffee, I'm quite content with my old stand by. It's, you know, good to the last drop.

Tide: Early in my marriage Brian chastised me a few times for buying cheaper detergents. And believe me, to punish him for trying to CONTROL ME, I wanted to stick to the cheaper brands. In the end, I had to admit it: Tide just works better. I'll buy super cheap detergents from time to time, just to annoy Brian. But I always go back to Tide, stocking up when it's on sale for $10 for 200 oz.

Dawn: It's all about the bubbles, man.

Scott: I'm talking about the toilet paper here, and it has to be the 1000-sheet rolls, and it has to be on sale for 50 cents a roll. I NEVER deviate from this. It's the law.

Cetaphyl and Dove soap: I have sensitive skin. So sensitive that I can't use Dove Sensitive Skin on my face. It's a curse. My family uses the Dove, I use the Cetaphyl.

Feria: My hair is naturally a kind of mousy brown, but I've been dying it since junior high. For years I lightened it, then about 10 years ago I started dying it red. Red fades quickly, and if you're not careful, you end up looking like your head's on fire. Feria's the best, in terms of looking natural and lasting without fading and getting brassy. I like their version of dark auburn brown the best, although I tried to link to it and don't see my color on their site. I'm more than a little nervous about that.

Oral B: I cannot have pointy bristles jutting out from my toothbrush. I cannot function without the little blue strip in the middle to tell me when it's time to throw my toothbrush out. I would never make it on Survivor.

Canon cameras: When Ben and John were babies, I used my trusty Canon point-and-shoot film camera. It took the most beautiful pictures. It snapped the picture when I pressed the button! Then I got a digital, non-Canon camera when Ava was born, and spent the next year and a half missing all the shots, having the flash go off in broad daylight, and getting pissed off when Brian told me I just wasn't using it right. Grrr. Last October, he bought me a Canon digital Rebel for my birthday, thus restoring my photo-taking happiness. I doubt I'll ever buy a non-Canon camera again.

Honda: Brian does not share my love of the Honda. In fact, he grouses every time he drives it. The arm rest is in the wrong place, the seatbelt locks up on him, he has to push too many buttons to get the GPS system going. Me? I'm happy. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a car with impeccable safety and reliabililty ratings.

Well, I'm sure there are more, but I'm off to pay attention to my two little ones who did not start school today. If you want to play too, head over to see Shannon, at Rocks In My Dryer.

Tags: WFMW; favorite brands