Tragic Sandwich

Tag: Costco

  • My 5 Favorite Things (for newborns and new moms)

    After I had Baguette, several friends had babies of their own. Since then, several others have as well. I’ve sent each of them a series of e-mails with products that worked or didn’t work for me; somehow it seemed that I would have to spend $45 to discover that the Awesome! Thing! That Saves Your Sanity! was something that Baguette just couldn’t stand–and I wanted to share my learning curve, in the hope of saving them at least some of those $45 increments.

    What were our standouts?

    • Diapers: We used disposables, and have found that Pampers provide Baguette with the best combination of fit and absorbancy. Our plan was to use cloth diapers, but it almost immediately became clear that disposables were the only things saving our sanity in the early days. However, we did find that cloth diapers make amazing burp cloths! I really liked these pre-folds, from Cotton Babies.
    • Nail care: These Summer Infant Dr. Mom clippers worked much better than whatever I bought the first time. And this glass nail file worked wonders on those clipped edges–plus it’s washable.
    • Swing: Lots of people swear by the bouncy chair. Baguette never took to hers, but she loved the open top Fisher-Price swing. I liked that it had a small footprint and was portable. But I don’t think there’s a way to know which your baby will prefer, so this may not save you anything. (Sorry.)
    • Treating diaper rash: Fortunately, Baguette hasn’t had this often. But she has had some really nasty bouts of it, and the absolute best thing I’ve found is Bag Balm. Even when her delicate skin has been at its most raw, this has helped her heal in a day.
    • Everything: Amazon.com. This was the hands-down winner. Between their Amazon Mom program and Amazon Prime, you can get great deals (disposable diapers cheaper than at Costco!) and–most importantly–two-day shipping. I found early on that I didn’t just need things, I needed to know when they were going to arrive. You can buy nearly anything on Amazon, and an awful lot of it will show up in two days, guaranteed.

    Oh, wait–that’s six things. Ooh, a bonus item! So what worked for you? And what didn’t?

  • What I Wore

    While the column on socialite Muffie Potter bugged (a lot), I’m less annoyed by the earlier column on The Good Wife’s Archie Panjabi–probably because magazines inundate me with celebrities and labels like the ones named here.

    But it got me thinking: What would a column about me look like? Much as I enjoy clothes, my days of working full-time out of the house, commuting, and being a mother to Baguette simply don’t afford me the time to shop–even though there are some specific garments that I know would help round out my wardrobe at work and at home. But in the interests of accuracy, here’s What I Wore:

    Monday, December 5
    I had to go to work and conduct one last interview for a video project, but I wasn’t leaving my building. So I wore a blue turtleneck of unknown provenance and a black Jones New York skirt with kick pleats, along with my black Aerosoles Mary Janes that I think of as my “commuting shoes”–but if I’m honest, I rarely get around to changing into the black Tahari pumps that I keep at the office. When I got home, I changed the skirt for Gloria Vanderbilt jeans that I bought at Costco and the shoes for Saucony running shoes. (I am not a runner. However, we do take Baguette and Wicket out for a walk after we all get home.)

    Tuesday, December 6
    Baguette woke up in the middle night and vomited twice; all of us were up for about four hours. Neither Mr. Sandwich nor I went to work, and Baguette stayed home from day care (she was fine from then on; as we suspected at the time, it was something she ate). I haven’t the faintest idea what I wore, although I know that I did go out to Whole Foods at one point. Let’s assume it was a yellow and grey long-sleeved shirt I bought at Penney’s and the aforementioned jeans.

    Wednesday, December 7
    We had an all-staff meeting for my division at work, which included the video I’d worked on. (BTW, I am not a videographer; I work behind the behind-the-camera people.) I wore a lavender cotton sweater set, a grey Calvin Klein a-line skirt, and the Aerosoles. After work I changed into some kind of t-shirt-like top, the jeans from Costco, and the Sauconys.

    Thursday, December 8
    No idea.

    Friday, December 9
    I was not at work and feeling lousy, so I wore the yellow-and-grey shirt and fleece cargo pants purchased on sale from Columbia, along with the Sauconys.

    Saturday, December 10
    I remember wearing jeans yesterday.

    Sunday, December 11
    Still feeling lousy; I’m wearing the fleece cargo pants, but this time with a blue cotton shirt with 3/4-length sleeves and vertical ruffles around the buttons and placket, courtesy of Old Navy.

    So what are the takeaways? Well, I have a small wardrobe, and I probably repeat items more frequently than I should. I am willing to spend some money on my work clothes, particularly staples that I expect to wear a lot, but otherwise I shop sales and discount stores for my casual clothes.

    Stacy London and Clinton Kelly would probably hate me.

  • Marital Harmony

    Mr. Sandwich and I rarely fight. We have disagreements, a few of them heated. But let’s just say they’ll never make an Oscar-winning movie about us, because “and then they communicated well, and found a mutually acceptable solution” just isn’t great drama. At least, not to Hollywood.

    Every now and then, though, we come up with a reason to argue. Not a good reason. And not a real argument. Just one designed to look ridiculous to strangers who have the misfortune to be shopping at Costco when we are there:

    Mr. Sandwich: [pointing at canopy] We should buy Baguette this for when she wants to go to the beach.
    Me: Or when she plays soccer with her friends.
    Mr. Sandwich: [gritting his teeth] When she goes to the beach!
    Me: She doesn’t WANT go to go the beach. She WANTS to pay SOCCER with her FRIENDS.

    This is the point at which people start moving away from us. Because we are fighting about how our daughter prefers to spend her time. And on that occasion, she was all of five months old.

    If only they knew how hilarious we think we are.

  • Baguette Fears Nothing. Except the Roomba.

    Wicket couldn’t care less about the Roomba. The first time we ran it after she came home, we wondered how she’d react–run away, or ride it like a cat? The answer: neither. From her perch on the couch, she looked at it, put her head down, and went to sleep.

    Baguette does not share that equanimity. She finds the Roomba to be an agent of evil, set on killing us all. One day I ran it while we were out. When we came back, it had stalled under a chair. She would not even let me put it back on its base in the other room–it was clearly too dangerous to touch. She still checks under that chair periodically.

    While Roomba is very convenient most of the time–no one needs to be home while the vacuuming takes place–there are times when we still need a traditional vacuum. Want to do a quick touch-up before the party? Roomba is not what you’re looking for. Last month we started vacuum-shopping on a trip to Costco, and today we decided to take the plunge. We are now the proud owners of a Hoover Rewind Plus, which was incredibly easy to assemble, has easy-access accessories for cleaning, and pulled an alarming amount of dirt out of our living room carpet.

    No one is frightened. And I think I’m in love.

  • The Sandwiches Eat Food on Kauai

    One of the benefits of vacationing in a condo is that you have a kitchen. While I don’t harbor much interest in cooking while on vacation, I’m perfectly happy to buy bagels at the local Costco, and yogurt, hot dogs, and other items at my favorite markets in Koloa: Big Save and Sueoka’s. I even bought a T-shirt at Sueoka’s, as if it were a concert and not a grocery store.

    But we didn’t eat every meal in the condo, and naturally we made a point of visiting some old favorites. Upon arrival we had plate lunches at L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, and when dinner arrived it was time for calzones at Pizzetta. One evening we had a lavish and delightful meal at Plantation Gardens, which has become a Kauai tradition for us.

    On Friday, after snorkeling at Anini Beach but before leaving for Ha’ena and Tunnels Beaches, we paused for a bite at the Anini Beach Lunch Shak. It isn’t really a Shak, or even a Shack; it’s a lunch truck, serving a variety of tacos and burritos. I went for the fish tacos, and Mr. Sandwich had a kalua pig burrito. (This does not involve an entire pig, at least not at the time that you’re eating it.) Everything was good, but a little bland; the addition of the truly excellent salsa made it quite tasty. Dinner was actually breakfast-for-dinner at Lihue’s Oki Diner, which touts its pancakes and offers a variety of syrups (I opted for coconut). Verdict? Okay, but not amazing. I think their main strength is that they are open 22 hours on an island where most restaurants seem to close at 3 p.m. Our visit must have come at their slow time, because we were the only patrons, and we didn’t stay anywhere near 22 hours.

    Alas, the Camp House Grill in Kalaheo is closed, which means no more of their delicious pies. However, across the street is the Ohana Cafe, which makes excellent burgers, fries, and saimin. Note: a small bowl of saimin here is a meal, but we were really hungry. Then, by the end of our visit, we were really full. However, I did take home a slice of their ola pie, which is a Fig Newton crust filled with banana ice cream, peanut butter, and chocolate. Even lasting for two days, it was a little overwhelming–tasty, but with a lot going on. The answer, I think, is to concentrate on the main course, which they do really well; their menu is limited, but focused.

    Duane’s Ono Char Burger in Anahola is an institution. I opted for the teriyaki burger and a marionberry shake. I have no idea what a marionberry is, but I do know that it makes a great shake. The burgers were messy but good, and the fries were amazing.

    We had still more burgers at Kalapaki Beach Hut in Lihue. From the top deck you can see part of the bay at Lihue. You can also feed french fries to birds, although we probably weren’t supposed to do that. My conclusion is that, overall, Kauai is a good place for burgers. Especially teri burgers. I think I’m in love with them.

    Our last meal in Hawaii was at the Olympic Cafe. It’s open after 3, and we were in the middle of the aforementioned deluge. Service wasn’t fast, but it was friendly, and our meals (kalua pig burrito, kalua pig sandwich) were tasty and enormous. The result was that the restaurant was a nice place to while away both a rainstorm and a few hours before our flight–and we had a great view of the weirdly brown ocean.

    We also tried malasadas, a Portuguese donut (more spherical, no hole) at two locations: Hanalima Bakery and the Kauai Coffee visitor center. Both were good, but we determined that the best malasadas we had were on our last trip, at a stand outside the K-Mart. The secret? They were fresh, which takes a malasada from good to delectable.

    On the whole, we ate well. A little too well, I fear. But that’s vacation for you.