Consumer Reports

Over the past few months, our home has acquired a few needed, (and not so needed), items. Just for fun, and because I really have nothing else to talk about this week, I have reviewed these items for you.

STOP LIGHT ALARM CLOCK

PRO: Telling Josh to wait until the red light turns green has kept him in slumber mode a little longer every morning.

CON: He is still up and ready for serious action by 6:45 am, green light or not. And, not that I would EVER run a red light, but Josh is now extremely observant of what you can/can not do when a light is red.

Overall Grade: D+

MOMMY'S NEW CANDLE STICKS

PRO: These candles satisfied my need for retail therapy after going on a local home tour. They also work delightfully as a fire house for Josh's firefighters.

CON: Chris's traditional style vetoed them almost instantly, "Al, what's with those candle sticks in the living room?

It's never a good sign when someone starts a sentence, "what's with....?"

Overall Grade: F. Returned the next day.

DOUBLE OVEN

PRO: One word. ALLELUIA!!!

Ummm, how do I narrow the benefits down. Cooking two casseroles AND a pie at the same time! The door is not 500 pounds and doesn't break every time you open it. It only takes about 10 minutes to preheat, and only 7 when using the "fast heat" function. I don't have to break my back or do a set of squats each time I get something out of the oven. I could go on, but instead, just come over for dinner one night and I'll show you.

CON: Adding several hundred calories to my diet due to my excessive baking. Including, but not limited to baking Sopaipilla Cheesecake (my first dish baked in my new oven), lasagna, and serving warm chocolate chip cookies... EVERY NIGHT after dinner.

Trouble.

Overall Grade: A.

BLOG BOOKS from Blurb.com:

PRO: Preserving our blog posts and family memories in a hardback book with archival paper. The program used to "slurp" (their word, not mine) the blog contents into book form is super easy to use and only took 20 minutes. There are hundreds of ways to customize your blog book to meet your creative preference. You can also pick and choose which posts to print. I went classic, as you can see. OH! And they are reasonable! Only about $50 a book, totally worth it, in my opinion.

CON: Now that the blog is in hard copy, Josh can hold every embarrassing thing I've said about him against me. Oopsy. Also, they don't include reader comments and some of the pictures aren't cropped properly.

Overall Grade: A

LEATHER SOFAS

PRO: NO MORE DOG HAIR!!! My old couches would suck hair off of Murphy if she came within 5 feet of them. Also, easy clean up for Josh's messes. Wipe, wipe, wipe and I'm done!

CON: I can't keep anything on them. My blankets, my pillows, everything is always sliding off onto the floor. One evening I was wearing running shorts and I couldn't keep myself on the couch, and I hadn't even been drinking!

Overall Grade: B

FISHER PRICE BICYCLE VIDEO GAME

(Goggles not included.)

PRO: "Walk the child without leaving the house!" This game/toy is awesome, especially for rainy days. Josh learned how to pedal using this bicycle while learning letters, numbers, and shapes.

CON: As with anything, Josh's attention span only lasts about 7 minutes, max. And Jackson is scared of the bicycle. Weenie dog.

Overall Grade: A

Nothing Bundt Cakes

PRO: Melt in your mouth delicious. I could (and have) eat the icing by the spoonful. Look at the cute decorations they add for a special occasion. Adorable.

CON: I can't really think of anything bad about a cake with cream cheese icing that is all dressed up for a party and/or to make some one's day brighter.

Overall Grade: A

HANDMADE MOTHER'S DAY GIFT FROM JOSH

PRO: His sweet smile, big bear hug, and excited voice as he gave it to me and said, "Happy Mother's Day, Mommy!!!" (He then quickly turned around and ran off to play with his friends).

CON: What, a con? NEVER!!! Best gift ever!!!

Overall Grade: A+