Mommy Brain Monday

This is shaping up to be the Back-To-School edition of Mommy Brain Monday. Enjoy!

Why Wait on Hold When You Could Be Playing Angry Birds? If you’re not a fan of calling customer service, putting your phone on “speaker”, and listening to that annoying compu-human tell you that “all representatives are busy” over and over again, then FastCustomer is for you. FastCustomer is a free app for Android and iPhone that allows you to choose the company you need to chat with, and wait for *your* phone to ring when the infamous “representative” is on the line and ready for you. Companies include FPL, AT&T, Bank of America, Dell, AAA, and about 2,000 more...including the IRS.

Adorable Step-by-Step Hairstyles for Girls All moms of girls have their go-to hairstyle. Whether it’s a ponytail, pigtails, or barrettes, you’ve got something that you can whip your kid’s hair into when it looks like it has been hit by a mini-tornado on a school morning. But I’m willing to bet that your go-to isn’t a Bohemian Fishtail Braid, or a Twistback Flip Under...am I right? Well, this hair-sorceress Mindy has come up with a website with hundreds of “Cute Girls Hairstyles” and instructional YouTube videos to match. So hook your little girl up for back-to-school by learning something cool, like the Quick Slide-Up Braid below.

How to Make Peepshi Yeah, you read that right. It's Peeps Sushi...I suppose a more accurate equation would be Peeps + Rice Krispy Treats + Fruit by the Foot = Totally Adorable Junk Food That Looks Like Sushi. Props to Punchfork (my food porn website of choice) for this find. Sneak this into your kid's bento lunchbox this September, and you'll be a hero.

Florida’s Tax Free-Weekend Coming Up This August 12 - 14 Just a reminder: school supplies and clothing will be tax-free this weekend if they meet certain, pretty simple requirements, so this weekend is THE weekend to do your back-to-school shopping. No back-to-school shopping for you? Then this is THE weekend to go to the beach and avoid the overcrowded malls.


Back-to-School Backpack Brilliance The smarties at Garnet Hill have come up with a “Backpack Jr.” that is the perfect size for younger kids (Pre-K through 2nd, I'd say.) Not too big, so they won’t topple over, and not too small so it’s not “for babies.” AND the designs are supercute (Elle chose Violet Flutterbies; my fave was the Painted Ponies.) AND you can have them monogrammed. AND each backpack comes with a free matching lunchpack through September 6. AND free shipping through August 9 (better hurry...that’s tomorrow).

photo credit: sxc.hu/rcperez