CityMama™

You gotta see these links [+ a special Lands' End promo code for CityMama readers]

Patti twittered a link to this blog last night—Cheap Healthy Good—and I am LOVING it. (Plus they link to one of my favorite food blogs ever: Culinate.) It's everything that I am all about and you might be, too. I cook from scratch (and have since my brother and I would recreate Saturday morning cooking shows in our kitchen as kids) not only because I love it, but because I can cook things so much better and so much cheaper than if I were to buy the items already prepared. My husband often tells me that my pastas have ruined him for restaurants. He never orders pasta out and that's almost better than hearing, "I love you."

Cooking is my art (my music, my scrapbooking, my WoW) and I take great pleasure in selecting ingredients and preparing meals. If I had an unlimited budget, I like to say that my food costs would triple but maybe not (aside from the occassional fresh porcini or Brillat-Savarin purchases...). I highly recommend reading Cheap Healthy Good for inspiring shopping tips and recipes. If I could hug a blog, I would hug this one. And if I ever meet the contributors someday, they'll get hugs, too.

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Pssst. Did you hear that Amanda of Mandajuice has revived her Naked Ledger blog?  And just in time, too. Talk about inpsiring. If you need a guiding light through these rough economic times, make sure to add the Naked Ledger to your feed reader. And ask her all your financial questions, too. That lady knows her stuff.

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Kimchi Mamas has a brand-spanking-new look. Please check it out and let us know what you think.

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And finally, I'm talking about "greening your kitchen" over at Tonic News.  I've been in the midst of a greening process for about 10 years.  I share some tips but would love to hear some of yours as well.  And if you are interested in greening your life, please do check out our site.  My column, Normal Green, appears every Monday, and is all about greening your life if you are a "regular" person. (Baby steps, people, baby steps.) The entire site focuses on green news with a positive, uplifting spin.

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This Lands' End promotion code (valid October 13-20) is especially for YOU so you can receive free shipping using the UPS Basic shipping service (4-6 business day delivery).

Code: OUTERWEAR
Pin: 1013

I own several Lands' End down vests, coats and cashmere sweaters. They are the bestest.

 

Got any great new sites or links to share?  Leave 'em in the comments below!

Link Love

You can find me elsewhere on the internet...

At Blogs.com where I am sharing 10 Blogs Against Sarah Palin

At Tonic News Network where I am having a good, old-fashioned bitch session about being "green."

At CityMama's Stuff People Send Me where I am hosting a fab holiday card give-away and reviewing booze.

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And in case you haven't read the best case against Sarah Palin for VP, may I present my BFF Bad Kitty's brrrrilliant and searing indictment against her.

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I'll be at Blog World Expo tomorrow night through Saturday afternoon participating in a panel on pitching to (mom) bloggers.  If you're going, come find me! My alllll-grrrrrrl session is from 12:15-1:15 and apparently we're head-to-head with a similar session where the panel is nuthin' but stinky boys.

Link Love

My latest Normal Green column is up on the Tonic News Network. This week I'm talking about exceptions to the "Eat Local" rule.

And in case you missed it, here's my column from last week on eco-travel. Just what does that mean anyway?

Finally, would you like a chance at winning at $50 gift certificate from Tiny Prints? Click on over to CityMama's Free Stuff!

Link Love for 8/25/08

Sneaking in to share some linky goodness:

My Monday Normal Green column is up on Tonic News Network.

Over at blogs.com, check out my Top 10 Political Blogs Every Progressive Mother Should Read

Okay, back to the 80's! Bye!

Hot Links—7/25/08

Here's some good linkage for your Friday:

"Just" a mommyblogger?  Please to read this.

And I wouldn't be me (or a Libra) if I didn't follow that uplifting piece by making you reminisce about your heroin boyfriend.

I've updated CityMama's Stuff People Send Me.  Check out the latest stuff given to me for free (in exchange for my honest opinion). I want to know: would you spend money on that stuff? And don't forget to add CityMama's Stuff to your feedreader!

I have another post up at the Tonic News Network. This one's about clotheslines.  If you are interested in uplifting eco-conscious/green news and commentary, please also add the Tonic News Network to your feedreader. I'm writing there every Monday.

Like to chat about politics? Please join the MOMocrats for My Oovoo Day—Political Edition on Aug. 4 at 6pm PST/9pm EST. All you have to do is download the Oovoo software (on your desktop if you are on a Mac) and you're golden. If you have a headset mic even better.

More food stuff coming next week, I promise.

And lastly, check out this breakfasty cookbook from Tastebook and 3-A-Day. It comes with 22 recipes and space for you to personalize it by adding your own. I've seen examples of Tastebook cookbooks and they are really nice.

Friday Hot Links

• New Mom? You need this book: The Rookie Mom's Handbook.
• A Glow in the Woods. A very special place.
• My Mother's Day gift courtesy of Tivo. Now that's some wacky schwag!
• Check out Five Star Friday. Awesome.
• Ask for the "Joy Division" next time you get a pedicure. Mine.

Hot Links for 2/24/08

• Maria Niles is right on with her post, "How Non-Black Women Can Stop Feeling Guilty About Voting for Obama." So satisfying.
• Glennia Campbell nails it with her advice for Hillary Clinton. "Can We Talk?"

Friday Link Love (and stories)—12/14/07

Saw an advanced screening of the Kite Runner last night with 100 or so of my closest friends. The movie was good but not amazing. (Tho' the actor who played Amir's father was absolutely riveting. I loved every moment he was on screen.)

It was interesting to see a vision of what Kabul was like in 1978 (bustling, vibrant, a country on the verge of modernity though some aspects were strikingly contemporary) compared with what it is like circa 2000 (destroyed, a treeless wasteland full of crumbling buildings)...

The kite-flying was fantastic. It's hard to get a sense of the kite fights when you read the book if you don't have first hand knowledge of it (kind of like trying to picture a Quidditch game). To see the kites flying, diving, dancing in the sky, was thrilling.

I was up late which is probably why no one in my family woke up this morning until 7:53 AM. Including me. Considering I had to be at school at 8:25AM to drive for a field trip, that's kinda bad news. Since all four of us sleep in the same bed (as of about 2AM every night), it's amazing that no one, not even the three-year-old, got up. I put on the coffee, made two breakfasts, packed one lunch box, told one 5-year-old to get dressed (3 times),  brushed two bouncy pony-tails, threw on last night's boots and jeans, touched up last night's eyeliner, slapped on some deodorant, brushed my teeth, filled my go-cup with coffee, and we actually made it to school at exactly 8:25. Why? Because I'm a mom, and moms rule.

Now for this week's lovin':

Friday Link Love—11.30.07

I'm woefully behind on linking up the love, but I have a bunch o' stuff rolling around my desk that I have wanted to share for weeks now.  Brain dump alert!

I receive lots of solicitations from PR people and from companies. Look at this! Please blog this! Most of the emails end up getting deleted, but sometimes, 1 or 2 of them catch my eye.  If I mention goods or services it's because it meets one or more of the following criteria:

1. I would use it myself/My kids would use it.
2. It makes a parent's life easier.
3. It's a mom-based business.
4. There's something in it for you (the reader).
5. It's not totally lame.

• Discovery Girls is a magazine created by girls for girls. My gals are too young to read it, but it's something I wouldn't mind them taking a gander at when they are old enough. You might flip through it and think, "Wow. This is really...girly. It focuses a lot on 'stuff.'" But just think back to when you were 10. I was into: Judy Blume books, Andy Gibb, and trying on my mom's makeup. Not necessarily in that order. The friendship-focused books offer up simple, sensible, easy-to-swallow advice.
• Speaking of girls, Ubisoft is a videogame company that has created a line of Nintendo DS games aimed at girls. They are called "Imagine games" and include "Babyz," "Fashion Designer," "Pet Horsez," and "Master Chef." (PS: Kreeaytiv spelling drivz me nutz.) Did I want to review them? I agreed but asked, "Where are the doctor and president games for girls?" Their answer: focus group.  Again I had to think back to when I was a tween and what I would have been interested in. You had Fashion Plates and a giant Barbie Head, too? Mmmm hmmm, that's what I thought.  My 8yo niece tested the games out for a week over Thanksgiving.  In her words: "I like it." and "Fun!" Then she said her DS battery ran out. If you are looking for a techie holiday gift for your tween gal, you might want to check these out.
• And more with the girls, what can I say?  It takes a twirl to raise a girl is something you understand if you have girls and is the tagline for Twirly Girl, a mom-based biz that focuses on, you got, twirly dresses. These would make a special holiday gift for the twirliest girl on your list. The dresses are super-fun (layers and layers of fabric), super-soft, super-versatile (reversible), and most of all: super-duper-twirly. You can even design one of your own from the hippie-chic fabric. But the best part about these dresses is the little booklet that accompanies each one. Very sweet.
• Tis the season for online shopping and for me that includes gifts and flowers.  When the 1-800-Flowers folks said they would extend a $10 discount to you all, I said, okay, but there's always a catch, right? I'm supposed to reference two links to gifts they are trying to push (that's how these things go). If the gift ideas weren't cool, I would have taken a pass, but they are, so here: Check out the sweet Barefoot Contessa gift basket (love her) among other offerings from your fave celeb chefs, and the unique bouquets designed by celebrity floral designers (these would be beautiful gifts for a far away loved one or would be stunning on your holiday table or sideboard.)  Use the link above and coupon code: all2u. Enjoy!

Bon weekend `a  vous tous!

Friday Link Love—11/9/07

First, I can't believe it's already November 9. When I scan down my calendar, it's like Thanksgiving is tomorrow. Which reminds me, next week all my recipes will be devoted to Thanksgiving. I've been cooking my family's turkey dinner since I was 14. I've done it every which way from brined to barbecued, but the recipes I'm going to share aren't going to be the usual ones because let's face it, who doesn't know how to mash a potato? No, the recipes I'm going to share are going to be highly personal...the things my Thanksgiving meal can't be without.

I know I haven't been linking my love like I should lately, but this week, some righteous ish hit my inbox, so here we go with the sharing:

• I have a post up on Kango.com describing "three perfect days with your sweetie" in the San Francisco area. If you'll be visiting San Francisco (or are coming out for BlogHer next year and want to take a side trip), please consider my suggestions!
• Charlene and I have been yakking about giving eco-conscious Christmas gifts this year. Greenlemonaide, a Portland mama-owned biz, might be the perfect place to start...or at least provide inspiration for your presents. [Hat-tip to reader Courtney!]
• Speaking of green, I definitely am not giving toys for Christmas this year. I'm too disgusted with the toy recall situation. Consider giving an eco-gift in the form of a donation to a worthy cause courtesy of Conservation.org.
• Regarding the toy issue, join the "Not In My Cart" campaign. Toy safety shouldn't be an option, it should be a given.
• Recently, I was sent samples of new Tide, Downy, and Bounce Pure Essentials. (Get your free samples here.) I've been eschewing commercial laundry products in favor of greener products, my personal favorite being Ecos Magnolia & Lily flavor for HE, front-loading washers. I have to admit that I was sucked in by Tide and Downy's new spare and "nature-y" packaging design (I'm a sucker for lots of white space.) It's meant to convey that the products are earth-friendly. Still, they got my clothes clean and didn't have a strong perfumey scent which was nice. What more can you say about detergent? (I didn't try the Bounce because my dryer manufacturer recommends against dryer sheets.)
• Blogs I'm digging: Sopapilla and At Home In Rome (I read it and it's like I'm there.)