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Old Navy Best Tees

Every spring I head to Old Navy to pick up a dozen few of their “Best Tees.” The tees have changed over the years – when I first started buying them they were cut short and kind of boxy, and then they got longer but boxy, longer and fitted, etc. They change with the trends. So when I had the opportunity to review one of this year’s tees, I was all over it.

This year, I must say, is the best Best Tee yet.

These shirts are super soft and comfortable, and the fit is quite feminine and flattering. I have the v-neck version, but they also come in crew neck, long-sleeved, cami, and hoodie versions, and prices range from $8.50 to $22.94. Best Tees are also available for men, children and toddlers.

Don’t believe me? Ask Mr. T.

I liked the one they sent me so well that I went to Old Navy yesterday and bought a couple more. (On sale two for $15, score!) They’re having a huge Easter sale right now, so I also bought this.

And this (which I am slightly obsessed with and may have worn both yesterday AND today).

And this.

And also some other things I can’t remember right now. And maybe some things for the kids.

WHAT???? The Easter sale was too good to pass up!

So follow my lead and go to Old Navy to get some Best Tees, and then pick up six or eight other things that catch your eye.

*****
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Old Navy and received a product sample to facilitate my review, and a promotional item to thank me for participating. Everything mentioned above except the one t-shirt I bought with my very own money.

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The Minivan Moment

A couple weeks ago, I read “The Journey,” written by Tammy at Notes from the Homefront. In it, she chronicles her recent trip to the car dealership to trade in her minivan, and she reflects on the transition in her life the change in her vehicle represents. (Click over and read the post, she explains it much more eloquently than I can.)

The post really resonated with me. What stuck with me most was the ending – her excitement about what the future holds made me feel optimistic about my future as well.

Then on Sunday I went for a long walk down a quiet country road, all by myself, trying to become reacquainted with my own thoughts (and perhaps burn a few calories. Whichever came first.). I dreamed up lots of good ideas (just ask Jenny – I was texting them to her as they occurred to me) and one of them was that Andy and I should buy a new car. We’d had our two Toyotas for eight and 10 years respectively, and while neither had any huge mechanical issues, they both had upwards of 170,000 miles on them. Our Camry, in particular, was old and noisy and beat up. However, we didn’t have a reason to replace either of them.

It was about the time I was texting my dad wondering how I could arrange for our car to get hit by a school bus that I started to think – what are we waiting for? Our Camry was 10 years old. If we buy a new car today and drive it for 10 more years, I thought to myself, Kate will be sixteen.

As if that thought wasn’t traumatic enough in and of itself, I then realized that Kate was in fact no longer six and that in 10 years she would actually be 18.

I thought back to Tammy’s post and decided there was no time like the present to become a minivan mom.

So we went out and bought this.

One hundred percent necessary? Of course not. One hundred percent worth it? Absolutely.

Because here’s the thing. This time in our lives, this Minivan Moment – it won’t last very long. We need to embrace it, we need to live it.

And then we need to look forward to what comes next.

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Cupcake Wars

Kate and I have a new obsession… Cupcake Wars on the Food Network.

Have you seen it? It’s basically American Idol meets Survivor meets, um, cupcakes. They start out with four contestants and a theme (some of my favorite episode themes include Girl Scout Cookies, I Love Lucy, and Monster Truck Jam). The first round is all about taste, and it’s when the bakers whip up something like this:

Red Hot Velvet Cupcakes With Fiery Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Luscious red velvet meets hot cayenne pepper in a combination of sweet and spicy that is just right. Topped with a cinnamon schnapps-infused frosting, these cupcakes are sinfully decadent.

They put the most random things in cupcakes – jalapenos, pesto, goat cheese. And booze, lots of booze. (See why I like this show? Alcohol-infused sugar. Sign me up.)

Then, the panel of judges gets to shatter the hopes and dreams of one contestant and vote them off the island.

In the second round they make three different cupcakes, judged on both taste and presentation. Then judges give a rose to the final two contestants, who have to make a display of 1,000 cupcakes.

They pick a winner, and everyone lives happily ever after.

It is awesome.

Over the weekend, Kate and Sam were inspired by what they’d seen on TV, so they got out our Williams-Sonoma kids’ cookbooks and picked a couple recipes to try. We whipped up a chocolate chip cookie cake and some chocolate mousse, all the while running around the kitchen like chicken with our heads cut off, yelling things like “Oh my gosh, we only have five minutes and I haven’t even started the fondant motorcycle helmets” and “This ganache isn’t right, I’m going to have to start over” and “I dropped the strawberry compote!!!”

It was fabulous.

And much less traumatizing than when Jenny and Sophie play Toddlers and Tiaras.

What shows do you like to watch with your kids?

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