Zeno's Bar & Grill

Pull up a chair and pop open a Pacifico. It's time for Thirsty Thursday. Join us if you want, invite a friend, and/or come back next week when we'll have a new Special. This week’s theme: Shameless Commercialism.

What’s the baby/child product you couldn’t live without?

Melanie: The extremely compact Evenflo backpack that I bought at Toys-R-Us with my first daughter. I sewed a braided trim to hide the Evenflo logo that annoyed me at the time. But I wore that backpack everywhere (but mostly in my house) when each of my kids were about 6mo-1yr of age. It’s the only way I managed to do the dishes, open mail in peace and generally save my sanity. I always, always tell new moms about The Backpack.

Kelly: Mine is close to Melanie’s, but I had the Bjorn. My youngest son was colicky and this was the only way I could get anything done.

What was your most useless baby/child purchase that gathered dust until you finally donated it to Goodwill?

Melanie: Hmmm. It seems there are so many, but I can’t think of one. I did buy a humongous side-by-side double Simo stroller once that I ended up selling on eBay.

Kelly: Again I’m with Melanie on this one. So many products, so much dust! I would have to say the co-sleeper, because I bought it for my second and I really should have known better at that point.

Where is your favorite place to shop for children’s clothes and other odds and ends?

Melanie: The internet. I find I'm developing a close, personal relationship with my UPS man, who probably thinks I am a shopaholic. What he doesn’t know is that I *never* go shopping anywhere else if I can help it (I have been known to order toilet paper from drugstore dot com). Whether it’s eBay (always NWT or NIB—you know what I’m talking about), Land’s End or boutique-y type places, if they’re online, they’re the ones for me.

Kelly: I don’t have a favorite place to shop for the kids. I just kind of buy their stuff at random places. Though, (again repeating Melanie’s answer) I did just get them some cute spring stuff from Lands End.