I never tire of the hunt for a better baby bag. Something more fashionable, more functional, more fun. Even after a decade of diaper bag toting I still thrill to the chase. Sometimes I find inspiration in unlikely places. Which is why I’m going to tell you to ditch the diaper bag, and pick up this purl of wisdom. Namaste Bags, designed for crafters to tote their projects in, also make fantastic diaper/mom bags. These are not your granny’s knitting bags!

I knew something was up when three friends recommended Namaste bags to me in the course of one week. Two were knitters, but the third was just a bag freak like me. And one who was more likely to be found shopping for a new Vuitton than a diaper bag of any sort. But Namaste bags, she insisted, were just gorgeous. Lightweight, terrific selection of colors and super well organized. I had to get the scoop. So I investigated two models from their Cali Collection: the Laguna and the Malibu. The Laguna is the teal bag in the slide show and the Malibu is the gray one!

First impression of these bags was a good one. They are made from animal friendly, PVC free faux leather. It’s extremely durable and soft to the touch, plus (yay!) wipes clean in a flash. I was immediately impressed by the details galore. The findings are all extremely high quality and make me think of high end handbags. People are constantly stopping me when I carry these bags, often doing a double take to admire them. They look expensive, and wear well. This is of course due to the high quality materials and attention to small details – for example, the bags have metal feet. Small touches that make a huge difference. Check out my photos of how all my stuff fits into these bags! I really put them both to the test recently while travelling. I had to have my baby stuff, my mom stuff and my crafting stuff on me at all times as we took a ferry and hotel hopped on our own Southern Cali adventure.

I also love the accessory organizers from Namaste. They make the bags even more functional.The “Oh Snap” Mesh pouches are perfect for storing both crafting needs and baby diapers and wipes. All the things you need to be able to see and find in a flash. The Catalina pouch actually came with me to Catalina Island recently and was the perfect size to store my makeup essentials.

Break out of your bag rut, get your crafty groove back on and check out Namaste Bags. It’s a perfect pick for trendsetting moms.

About a year and a half ago, I reviewed the Mia Moda Cielo, an award winning, space saving stroller. I described it as “a traveler’s dream.” And it still is.

But in 2008, Mia Moda took the unique Cielo and evolved it into the Cielo Evolution. The Evolution, at its bare-bones, is still the Cielo. It still has the fabulous 3 step fold that becomes no bigger, and no heavier, than a piece of luggage. It will still fit comfortably into a small car trunk. And it comes in a carry bag that, folded, the stroller will zip back into and sling over your shoulder. As before, the perfect travel stroller.

But they added more to the Evolution. First, it weighs about 4 pounds more (Totaling just over 18 pounds, to the Cielo’s 14). The fold size is also a little bit more, but the open size, nearly the same. But here’s what I love so much more about the Cielo Evolution and makes it so much more worth it to me: The seat, which seems more cushioned, has stronger side cushions. (I’m not really sure what to call these, but they frame the side of the seat, kind of like a pillow for the baby.) A combination of the stronger cushion and the new adjustable armrests made me feel much more secure with a 6-month-old in the seat: a lot less wiggle room makes for a much more comfortable strolling mama.

Both the Evolution and the original have amazing turn radius’s and super smooth pushes. The brakes are easy to control with just one foot. Set-up and fold are simple, but take a bit of practice in the beginning, namely because they’re so different than the typical stroller.

Available at Strollers.com, the Cielo Evolution ships for free, no code needed. Recommended for children ages 6 months – 40 pounds.

No one wants to plan for an emergency, but a little bit of planning goes a long way towards making the most of your vacation days and can help prevent a tragedy. Worth the effort!

If you are planning a trip then you will want to check out some of the offerrings at the Chicks and Cubs website.  Some picks to consider:

1. Physical IDs for children to have all the information they need, ON them, to get back to parents quickly if they become lost. ID bracelets, Shoe Stickers, Shoe Tags, Dog Tags, Temporary Tattoos, Electronic Child Locator ($8.00-$30.00)

2. Wallet IDs These are great for putting all the important information in one place. Parents carry the card and hand it over to authorities if you child is lost. Also great for giving to other caregivers (child care on a cruise, playdates,…). This can also be a physical ID for tweens/teens – since they don’t have a drivers license yet. ($10.00 for 5 cards)

3. Parking Pal Magnet This is a magnet that you put on your car. It gives children something to do while you get babies and/or other gear out of the car so they don’t dart out into traffic in a parking lot. (set of 2 magnets for $16.00)

4. Information for before you go on a trip (to busy, crowded places!!). Kid Escape! from Child Abductors DVD – teaches kids physical moves to try there very best to ESCAPE from an abductor.  ($12.00)

5. Mini First Aid  Kit This first aid kit is great for little scrapes. Great size for diaper bag, camera bag, purse. ($6.00)

Did you know that you are a brilliant photographer? Yeah you, the mom on the other side of my screen blinking confusedly at me. So your pictures are all out of focus lately, and you can’t figure out why the faces looks so washed out. So you’ve never ventured off the "auto" setting on your digital SLR. So what? It’s not your fault. You just haven’t had the chance to reach your potential. Because you’ve never met Me Ra Koh.

Me Ra Koh is a brilliant photographer, an inspiring speaker, and a wanna-be-photographer-mom’s very best friend. She’s nothing at all like the scary photography instructors you may have run across in past attempts to learn how to use a camera. She won’t make you memorize the manual or do calculus. But in just a few short moments, she will have you using your camera, and seeing the world in an entirely new way. Like the artist she knows you are.

I had the great fortune of meeting Me Ra at a one day workshop in La Jolla several months ago. Her in person workshops are often booked out months in advance, and I can see why. She makes it all so simple, and encourages everyone to learn by experimenting. Pick up a camera and start using it. Learn one setting at a time. Simple! There is no definite right or wrong with her approach (although taking the lens cap off is somewhat essential!). Spend a few moments with her and terms like aperature, ISO, F-stop and shutter speed, which may have seemed daunting in the past, suddenly make perfect sense. She has a way of simplifying and explaining all your camera settings in a way that just works. Case in point is her description of white balance. She compares it to applying make-up indoors, when you know you are going to be seen outside. Something most women understand all too well – you have to adjust for the light. Who knew using my camera was as simple as applying my foundation?

After meeting with Me Ra Koh I brought home her videos, "Refuse to Say Cheese" and "Beyond the Green Box" and watched them with my husband. He’s a scientific type and had struggled through photography classes in high school and college, grasping some of the mechanics, but perhaps less of the gestalt of photography. After watching her videos he understood that he was coming at it from the wrong angle. Instead of assessing the scene and the lighting and choosing the "best" general settings for the camera (which is what the auto feature essentially does), he was inspired to make the camera do his bidding instead. Making the camera see the scene the way he saw it. Both of us were excited to head out and try out the techniques discussed on the two videos. The videos make it easy for you to build your skills at home. Each section contains a photography exercise that targets a specific skill set. As you complete each task, you add to your bag of tricks. Want to blur a background? No problem. Capture solar flare? You can do it.

I cannot recommend these videos enough to my fellow moms. We, more than almost any other group of people, have the ability, the responsibility, to make a huge impact with our cameras. We have the ability to document our kids’ lives. And with Me Ra Koh’s advice, it really is not such a stretch for us to do this with style. So order the Refuse to Say Cheese and Beyond the Green Box videos and get ready to impress your friends and family with your brilliance! Can’t wait for the videos to arrive and looking for a little inspiration? Check out Me Ra’s Top Ten tips for Mom Photographers from BlogHer ’08.

“On top of Old Smoky, all covered with …”

You may have run out of storage space in your brain for the names of your sibling’s latest girlfriends, but chances are you have a bunch of cheesy song lyrics rattling around in there, hogging up that vital bandwidth. Turn this annoyance into an asset on your upcoming holiday roadtrips, by cranking Susie Tallman & Friends “Let’s Go” travel, camp and car songs CD. Not only will your children be impressed by your heartfelt singing of “Blowin’ in the Wind”, you will impress yourself when you realize the beltway miles that have flown by while you were all belting out tunes. This collection of songs brings you back to childhood in a good way, with acoustic guitars accompanied by non irritating, actually-talented singers. With 26 songs to choose from, you may even say “Are we there already?”