haus's Profile

We live in just under 1500 square feet, and my best friend and her family came to stay for Halloween one year. We had 4 adults and 5 kids squeezed into our little house -- the girls in my daughter's room, the boys in my son's room, the other adults in the basement on a futon. Not perfect, but we had a lot of fun anyway. The only thing I had to stock up on before their arrival were CHAIRS - I didn't have enough chairs for the kitchen area for everyone to sit down together. Plus our table only seats 6 normally... so we ended up putting the older kids at the kitchen island, and parents and younger kids at the table. A few new chairs and we were set. :)

Our Siberian Husky used to sleep on the bed curled up, nose under tail, behind my knees. We adopted him when my husband was working night shift, so I liked having him close. Even after the hubby got moved to days, though, Jake would hop up to sleep at the foot of the bed (often hopping down again after we'd fallen asleep). He liked being close to the rest of his pack at night. Washable duvet covers kept the fur at bay.

My 6 yr old is into comic books as well as Angry Birds. We might get one of these eventually since it should be comic-book friendly - the price is great, and the content in general is looking pretty good.

My Droid Incredible is 2 yrs old and I still love it. Thanks for the pro-droid article! I know lots of people are big fans of the iPhone, but my Droid phone is perfect for me, and if I had to replace it tomorrow I'd pick another Droid. Your Mac articles are helpful, but more Droid articles would be very welcome -- not all of us own Apple everything.

What a smart solution to a horrible situation - I hope your family is able to get back into a permanent home soon! How awful for all of you. :(

I think bedding would go a longest way to making this feel homey, especially a quilt to top off the bunk. Mismatched (or at least not all-matched) sheets and pillowcases might make it feel like it has some history. Also love the idea of taking out the table to create a reading nook using the built-in seat, and getting a comfy rug or Flor tiles to finish off the floor.

For the upper bunks, maybe use clear storage boxes to help keep the light coming in and make it easier to see what's in the box. You could line them with pretty paper if the contents are too cluttery, which would also add some pattern and color.

Good luck and best wishes - I'm so sorry for your loss.

And always check with your local library. OverDrive is a big player right now, you can check out current/new releases with your library card. Open Library looks promising for more current stuff too, you can access additional content if your library participates.

Julia5 - yes, reading *anything* while nursing is easier on the Kindle. That's when I really started using ours -- the one-handed feature is awesome, so is the ability to search for, purchase, and download a new book without disturbing the baby sleeping on your shoulder.

As a librarian I'm around books all day, and I think e-readers are genius. As a mom I've already decided that the old Kindle might be useful for my son once he starts reading juvenile fiction to himself. The ability to make text larger, turn pages with a click, and carry a lightweight device instead of a heavy text will probably make e-readers as attractive to him as they are to me.

Yes! Don't forget your public library - my small public library is part of a big OverDrive consortium with lots of digital audio titles. I even have the app for OverDrive on my smartphone, so I can find and download new audio books without having to go on-line and sync up an mp3 player.

Cookie and Wondertime were the only two parenting magazines I really enjoyed and found useful. They were FUN. I have been saving all my issues of Cookie for their travel articles, "what's for dinner" spreads, and great reviews of books, games and movies. I couldn't afford a lot of the "stuff" in Cookie, but it definitely inspired me to think beyond the usual suburban routine.

Ditto on still missing Domino, Cottage Living, Mary Engelbreit, Blueprint... are there to be no accessible-yet-creative/artsy magazines left for us?

Yes! My husband and I toured Casa Loma a couple of years ago when our son was a baby. A great way to spend a summer afternoon in Toronto - the gardens are gorgeous, and there are some nice historical displays to go with the house itself.