Apples & Beatles

I've been so fascinated by the outcome of Beatles on iTunes, and I can't seem to get over it! I just find it so incredible that the music my parents grew up on is top-selling on iTunes today!! Am I the only one who finds this so impeccably enthralling?? Maybe it's because I grew up listening to a "Best of the Beatles" cassette tape on my walkman and felt very cool that I was enjoying the music of my parent's era, or maybe because my childhood best friend and I would put on "Beatles Shows" on the couch in her family's living room, or maybe because I thought "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" was about Candy Land - either way, somehow, I'm completely inspired by the awesomeness of Apple's ability in managing to completely erase the five-decade difference between generations - bringing the Beatles on vinyl to the Beatles on iPod. Simply wondrous!

This video clip gives me chills:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mUXwnEWEnE]

Plus, this commercial makes me laugh!!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X75XahmP3x8&feature=related]

Their ad campaign has been simplistically incredible, as well. I guess their music will never really die... My husband and I sat in the second row at the broadway Rain (we loved it!!), and my 2 year old is a little die-hard Ringo Starr wannabe (and one of her favorite songs is "All you Need is Love")! Some things are simply too good to grow old...

Now if only we could reduce the parent/child generation gap in a few more ways than music. :)

P.S. I'm totally smitten by this "Beatles Ten Great Years" print from Max Dalton! How cute?? (via A Cup of Jo)

On a Jet Plane...

Took a flight out to Arizona to spend some time with my family. My parents came in from Chicago to spend some of Chanukah with the Scottsdale-based grandchildren, and Freida and I flew here to meet up with them for an extended weekend together. Apologies in advance if the postings are sparse... P.S. There is something so magical about the expressions that splash across the face of a child during an airplane trip... It was one of our most sweetest hours together. She cried when it was time to get off the plane! Had the whole Southwest crew cracking up by saying, "don't wanna get off! wanna sit down fly again!". There is so much joy in observing the little ones discover the small miracles of the universe...

(Granted, it was a one hour flight - don't think I'd be so la-dee-da on a 4 hour.) :)

Year One!

Shocked at how quickly time passes! Can't believe it's been one whole year since I started blogging...

This whole web venture started out with this post (though, this was the first actual post), and was initially intended as a spot to store, save, and share my bookmarks and favorites with family and friends. I had never imagined the volume of feedback that would be received! This has evolved into a wonderful journey, sharing in a sisterhood, of sorts, with other mothers, wives, and homemakers. Over this year, I met with and spoke with so many fabulously talented people in the design industry, blogosphere, and preschools - would never have had so many opportunities if not for all you dear readers!

So whether you've been with me since the beginning or are reading this here on your very first visit, want to give you a gigantic shout-out of thanks! Thanks for reading this blog and supporting my work!! Could never have done it without you!

Please continue to share your finds, experiences, tips etc. And spread the FreidaFroo joy to all your girlfreinds!

Cheers! Here's to another year of design, style, and function; of adding some sparkle to potty-training, a touch of glamour to washing dishes, and to finding and keeping the fun vested in the best jobs on earth!!

(Celebratory image via urbancitylife.flickr photostream)

Dreidel in a Jar

Introduce this sweet and simple classic Chanukah gambling game with a whimsical dreidel game in a jar! Here's to cheap thrills!

Remove the label from a baby-food jar (these are useful for so many things!), and add a coat of spray-paint to the lid. Fill with chocolate gelt and fasten a dreidel to the top with some hot glue. A cute ribbon and colorful label wouldn't hurt either!

Light Up with Magnets

Happy Chanukah, dear readers! I hope you all enjoy these eight crazy nights - to the fullest. Chanukah is the most delicious when it's spend with family - so get snuggly, indulge in some greasy goodies, and savor the bright light your family brings to your life...  Here's to those miracles!

I decided to dodge out of the impending power-struggle that would surely ensue every Friday night following us allowing Freida to light her own Menorah. She had been begging to light Shabbos candles for months now, and while I'm not against a two-year-old lighting in theory... I do feel it's unnecessarily dangerous. Three-year-old girls lighting their own candles was perfect guidance - seems to be just the right age for understanding the importance and the responsibility. I knew if I let her light her own candles on Chanukah, I would never hear the end of it come Shabbos. Therefore, I nixed the idea of crafting her Menorah altogether, and went with a simple magnetic flame cut-out.

I cut up some construction paper and let her stamp it out her style - via, do-a-dots. She also used some stickers left over from her Chanukah crown (thanks Sara - they went a loooong way!). I cut out some flames from foam sheets, and glued some magnets on the paper and on the flames. Much more toddler friendly, much more fun, and way less nerve-wracking. She can light her own candles next year, once she's three. Until then, it's magnets for my little dreidel-loving maydel!

Chag Sameach, Mamas!!