I cleaned out and packed away a couple of drawers of stuff today. Among many more practical items, I discovered I own:

1 pair black fishnet tights
1 pair nude fishnet tights
1 pair nude pantyhose
1 pair nude thigh-highs with rubber grippers
1 pair black thigh-highs with rubber grippers
2 pair black thigh-highs to be worn with a garter belt
1.5 pair black seamed thigh-highs to be worn with a garter belt
1 black lace garter belt

The last time I wore any of these? Ummm... I know I wore hose to L.'s wedding, in October 2002...

I kept 'em all. They're very small, and some day I may yet again have a hose-wearing life.

I won a pair of new-with-tags Gap Long and Lean Jeans on ebay yesterday. $21 including shipping. I love the internet, I rilly rilly do.

My 10 basics, for Susan (http://fridaystyle.blogspot.com/2008/03/whats-on-your-top-ten-list-time-to-tell.html)
Basics for a 35 year old mother of two under 5, who works in an academic setting:
1. Jeans that make you feel sexy and are also comfortable.
2. A-line skirt to the knee.
3. Comfortable shoes (I like Dansko clogs).
4. Wide-leg pants.
5. Strappy shelf-bra camisole.
6. Woolly cardigan.
7. Black tights.
8. Princess-seamed blouse (that FITS).
9. A signature piece of jewelry.
10. Flattering cotton-spandex t-shirt.

I did a pretty good job.

I bought Dillo some new shoes from ebay - the exact same blue boots that were Casper's first Stride Rites (except hers were a 7.5 and his are a 5.5!)

I bought pea, basil, parsely and thyme seeds. We planted peas yesterday!

I bought Dillo 2 Hanna Andersson onesies from ebay. Right size, cute stuff, good deal - but the reason I bought them was I was having a really hard few days. Still, a sensible $10 purchase is definitely the way to go if you're going to be doing emotional shopping.

I bought a $9 decent quality bucket from the grocery store to collect shower-warming-up water for watering the garden. Our drought is easing off a bit for now, but it's the wettest time of the year for us. We'll be back in extreme drought this summer, I have no doubt. And why waste water? (mr. flea also noted that the bucket would be good for mopping. Which it would if we ever, you know, mopped.)

I have been window-shopping a LOT lately, though - spring catalogs, ebay, and this weekend's pants extravaganza. I am probably going to buy some jeans ($20 I hope) and a cardigan (ditto) on ebay in the next couple of days.

I tried on 20 pairs of pants in 4 stores this morning, in about an hour and 15 minutes. I could have gone on longer but the troops were growing restless, so we had to stop and get ice cream to mollify them.

Things I learned:

A 6 long at J. Crew and the Gap fit me really well, with only minor nuances between the fits. A J. Crew "city fit" is pretty darn low-rise, though. Hello hip bones.

A 6 long at Lands End is the right size, but all the styles they had were too loose in the hips and too tight in the waist. "Classic fit" makes this happen; if I order anything I should stick to "modern fit," and maybe consider a 4.

A 6 long at J. Jill would fit if I lost approximately 2 pounds. (An 8 long was too big.) (This surprised me, since I would have expected J. Jill to run bigger than, for example, J. Crew.) Anything that sits at the waist at J. Jill is also a no (this means "tried and true" fit is out.)

I really like wide-leg pants.

Only Gap actually had any longs at all in the store. At J. Crew I could order from the store for free shipping, and at J. Jill for a flat fee of $5.95. Lands' End had only 28 or 31 inch inseams to try on (I need at least a 34)!

J. Crew and Gap have decent lighting in their dressing rooms (at J. Crew there is a switch that allows you to check "day" lighting and "night" lighting); J. Jill is too dark (I needed the flash); about the Sears dressing rooms, no more needs be said. All mirrors were pretty dirty.

I wanted to look at Banana and Talbot's and Levi's and Docker's and Ralph Lauren, but maybe another day (the mall doesn't have an Old Navy.)

I've got lower-rise jeans and higher-cut underpants on today. Must note bad combo in future! Luckily I have a tunic sweater on, so it's not like this is a visible problem.

Also, I am doing boring stuff and want to go home now. Having a hard time resisting the online windowshopping today.

Dillo peed on the floor. Well, I was letting him run around with no pants on; you'll have that.

I picked up a skirt from the dry cleaner's yesterday, wore it today, and got macaroni and cheese on it at the office Christmas party.

Casper peed on the floor, making this the first day ever when BOTH children peed on the floor. In her defense, she was in the bathroom pulling down her tights when it happened.

That kind of a day. But, I now have 7 days off in a row! Hoping to sleep in tomorrow.

I have had two conversations with coworkers this week about personal finance, and in both cases I had the role of the financial advisor. Which is so funny, given my family finances, but actually, since in both cases the coworkers were in situations where they were looking to find out exactly what they were spending and reduce outflow (one family living above their means and needs to cut back, other family expecting first child and anticipating the associated expenses) I guess I am a good person to talk to.

The funniest past was when my colleague said they were saving lots of money since they had stopped drinking during the week, and were now only drinking two bottles of wine a week. Hmm.

I am starting on the Only Wear Things I Like project. Yesterday night I sorted out sweaters and packed in a drawer those that are out of season (one very summery one and three heavy wintery ones it never gets cold enough for here) and those I don't really like. Don't really like includes some I never wear, and some I wear all the time but hate.

I am left with the following in current rotation: red cotton J. Jill, 2006 (wearing today); purple boucle cardigan, Eileen Fisher (new to me from ebay); grey boucle cardigan, Eileen Fisher, 2002 and worn really to death, especially compared to the new-to-me one; black ribbed merino v-neck, J. Crew, 2001?; camel fine wool turtleneck, Benetton, 2004; navy thick wool turtleneck tunic, Benetton, 2001; black with white tipping zip-front cardigan, J. Crew, thrift store 2004; pea green bateau neck Pringle cashmere, rather formal, 2002. That's 8 sweaters; you'd think I could get by with that, right? We'll see.

I have been doing some rearranging and have come to the conclusion that I am in desperate need of work pants, especially black pants. Since I am always in desperate need of black pants this is not too surprising. If I were willing to pay $80 I could get some easily, but I am not, so I am waiting for sale time. There's a $40 possible at LL Bean that I many put on my Xmas list.

First, it is my birthday, but I'm sort of over it already. I've got a lot going on today (must do all homework for the week, and pack, since we're driving to visit friends in VA right after work tomorrow). I accidentally opened my (very nice) present from my mother, though I asked mr. flea to wrap it since Casper thinks "birthday = opening presents." Not sure what/if he got me anything. Don't expect much else; I bought myself some Dansko Roxys in purple suede off ebay (finally! only $51 including shipping!) but they won't come for a while yet.

My current obsession is this: http://www.flickr.com/groups/theworkingcloset/pool/ A blog I read has people posting what they wear to work every day for the month of September. It's mostly mothers - working at work, working from home, working as a mother. Well, it's keeping me off the streets, anyway.

The new routine has begun, mostly: I am working 8-4:30. mr. flea does the morning domestic shift, getting Dillo to daycare at around 8:30 and Casper to school by 9. At 3:30, Beth picks up Casper and Emmett at school. Yesterday they went to the library. I leave work at 4:30, get Dillo and am usually home by about 5. I have been carrying him from the bus in my arms, but today I'm trying the big Kelty backpack. We switch to the double jogger and walk up to pick up Casper from Emmett's house - about 12 minutes. Then home. So, with all swiftness, it's about 5:30 by the time we are all home, and I'm all sweaty (at least when it's 95 degrees). So I'm going to have to work on pre-prepping meals, weekend cooking, that sort of thing, which we've done before. I got spoiled over the summer when mr. flea picked us all up at 4. This way he will get more work done, though.

1. I have booked plane tickets to Boston for March 23-26.

2. I am not going to be paying for them.

3. The Feds are giving us money (returning all we gave them, and then giving us SOME MORE! It is good to be a poor breeder); the state is giving us back some.

4. I am going out to dinner with my husband and no children tomorrow night! I will eat steak frites, I hope!

5. La Leche League tonight means seeing other people's cute babies and showing off my own (I only go for the social interaction anymore - I pretty much know all I'm ever going to learn about breastfeeding at this point.)

6. When I get home from work: chocolate raspberry cheesecake.

7. I had a lot of fun looking at Hanna Anderssons on ebay this morning, and didn't actually buy anything. But I might. OR maybe I can get my mother to buy them.

1. Casper is rather better. Still have 2 more doses of antibiotic, but she's rarely coughing now and has decresed the blue circles under her eyes considerably.

2. Mother (and, trailing distantly in her wake, her husband) have arrived. Had a very nice afternoon with them yesterday, receiving presents (distinct from actual Xmas presents), working on The Dillo's stocking, me cooking Indian dinner. Casper very excited to see Grandma. Dillo literally looked at her and laughed (and she wasn't even making Twee Voice at the time.)

3. Mother brought 4 long-sleeve onesies I bought off ebay for the Dillo and had shipped to her. Hanna Andersson 70s, good price, and they are lovely - thick, warm, like new, adorable, cute (pale blue, navy with white stripe, white with pale blue stripe, white with yellow stripe.) I am only writing about these because man, they are making me happy!

4. I would have posted that the Dillo's sleep is getting WORSE, but last night was decent. The night before, though, WIDE awake at 3am. mr. flea wins the parenting prize for taking care of that AND the subsequent 5am wake-up. Last night, down at 7, cried & nursed at 11:45, nursed at 2:45 because he was wiggly if mostly asleep but I was awake and my breast was about to explode, up at about 5:15. He is going to bed and sleeping the whole night in our bed again - so much for all my good intentions about the crib.