Chelsea Day and her husband, Nate, have a special ritual whenever they’re alone with the baby for any length of time. They take pictures of their little one alone like alone alone (dare I say abandoned?) and text them to each other. We met Chelsea at the Mom 2.0 conference on a bus and she received one of the pictures while we were together.

She says, “Lack of sleep + demanding jobs that take us away from each other often = parents finding bizarrely creative ways to keep each other up-to-date”. Love it!

Your assignment: Put your baby safely ALONE and snap a picture. Share a link with us after you send to your partner!

Chelsea and Nate blog at Someday I’ll Learn about all the stuff they didn’t learn in college about being grown-ups and having a family. Stay tuned for their “dangerous baby” and “lonely toddler” pics that I’ll share with you soon.

[all photos provided by Chelsea and they belong to her]

I received a pitch for this product today from the folks who represent Moby wraps.

Available in 24 different team colors with logos, this Moby wrap costs $62.

I want to know if you’re into it or not.

Days at home alone with a baby can be soooo long. On the bright side, he’s a very captive audience and interested in all your innermost thoughts. Tell your baby about what you are doing to him when you change his diaper, lift him up, feed him. Narrate life’s little adventures when you clip your toenails, pee, or fold the laundry. I knew we were a family when I caught myself saying, “And this is mommy’s underwear” and he wasn’t in the room.

Alec discovered that this little trick also works for doing the dishes, but if you want to keep putting off doing dishes, I completely support that!

If having a constant companion share your inner dialog isn’t motivation enough, pediatric research shows that frequently talking to your baby can make him smarter. To up the ante, point at what you’re talking about.

“And now we’re going to pick up Mommy’s very hot coffee.”

You be the judge.

This product is sold online for $29.99, though I saw it on LivingSocial Deal for $15.

According to the manufacturer:

• Guide your little one’s steps without constantly bending over
• CPSIA-compliant product teaches tots to balance and walk naturally
• Fully adjustable straps for comfort
• Machine-washable, 100% polyester shell; ideal for infants up to 24 pounds

Is this something you’d like to own or give as a gift?

The teeny tiny bubble wrap is perfect as a physical outlet for moms trying not to scream at their kids. (Confession: I have done this dozens of times)

This is how it works:

1. Get frustrated or annoyed to the point of wanting to scream.
2. Gently, set baby in crib or other safe place.
3. Walk over to the desk with the little bubble wrap.
4. Squeeze and pop until everything is funny again.

I learned this little trick from a post-partum stress class, so it must be true, right? Ripping tissues should also work but won’t have that satisfying snap-snap sound.

In about ten minutes, you can make someone feel loved for Valentine’s Day. Here are five fresh ideas for you using stuff you probably have around the house:

1. Mix up a love potion

Follow the tasty (and fast) instructions from the lovely Marie at makeandtakes. Serve your love for breakfast, snack or dessert.

2. Turn your baby into a conversation heart

Got construction paper and a cute baby? Now you just need a sense of humor and your camera to make a funny conversation heart greeting. When creativity is failing, Love ya! works.

3. Crank out some decorations

If you have paper or fabric scraps, you can make quickie hearts to hang about the room. It really sets the tone for your daytime date.

4. (Heart) someone or something

All you need is a Sharpie and a plain white tee to make your baby be the bearer of your message of love. See instructions for speedy onesie customizing.

5. Have sex or something like it

If you don’t have time for a full-on session of making whoopie, might we suggest the “5 minute fix” from Babyproofing Your Marriage? If that’s not to your liking, there are many other great sexy, fast, and easy ideas from Kristen Chase’s sexual resolution (like wear a thong, make a sexy playlist, or give a massage).

Now, I really hope that someone is planning an eleven minute surprise that will knock your socks off!

Photos: delicious smoothie: Marie; Conversation heart: reader who wishes to remain nameless; Fabric hearts: Whitney; Heart onesie: Thompson Tribune.

For a quick and questionably tasty science experiment, microwave a marshmallow for about a minute and enjoy the results.

Wondering what will happen? The marshmallow will puff up to four times its original size like a poofy souffle. It will be a hot gooey mess before cooling into a crispy pancake.

Expect smiles and sticky fingers.

We tried this yesterday before bed on a paper towel to keep the microwave from getting nasty. Use wax paper if you want to eat the finished product! Ours were destined for the compost bin.

Taking pictures of new standers, cruisers, and walkers is most adorable from the backside. Allow me to demonstrate.

The following is an excerpt from our new book Stuff Every Mom Should Know. We’re giving you little tastes of the book all week in hopes you will buy one to keep in your purse for just such situations. And one for the car.

Increasingly we all have smart phones loaded with apps, videos, and family photos to keep our kiddos happy. But doesn’t it always seem like the longest waits are unexpected when you’re totally unprepared?

Whether you’re standing in a long line or waiting for an eternity at a restaurant, here are a few mom tricks that can pass the time when that phone battery dies:

Finger puppets. Use a pen to draw some faces on your fingertips and create an impromptu finger puppet show.

Racetrack. Keep your pen out to draw a road or city scene on a piece of paper. Use coins from your purse as cars or characters in your adventure.

I spy . . .  Even little kids can catch on to this simple guessing game. Find an object and provide a hint: “I spy with my little eye, something that is blue” and everyone guesses. This oldie but goodie is perfect for waiting rooms and traffic jams.

Spoon on the nose. Need a classy distraction for a long wait at a restaurant? Look elsewhere. Wipe your thumb across the inside of a metal spoon, breathe hard on it (like you’re saying “HAH!”), then dangle it from your schnoz.

If you want to keep a small set of props on-hand for next time, stickers are a great, flat diversion and pair well with scrap paper and your pen.

Find Stuff Every Mom Should Know at Amazon.com. Fingers and race track by Heather Flett.

We got a great tip from longtime reader, Ghanimatrix, about how she squeezes in more me time. She says:

The best way for me to find “me time” is to either stay on top of chores so that nap time becomes leisure time, OR to go run an errand when my husband gets home and stop for a hot chocolate and space out before I head home.

Though I don’t exactly stay on top of my chores, she had me at hot chocolate.

I have been blessed with three beautiful hairless baby boys. Their resemblance to one another is so strong that sometimes I have to look at the date of a picture to know which child it is. The face recognition on iPhoto doesn’t do much better. So, without further ado, I invite you to play “Name that bald baby!”

Your choices are Holden (2005), Milo (2007), Sawyer (2011), and a decoy bald baby that I did not birth. Hint: each of my sons is pictured at least once.

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

F.

Too wet to go out? Too cold to play ball? Too sick for preschool? With a can of shaving cream or a bar of soap, here is lots of good fun that is funny:

Microwave Ivory Soap. Take a cue from our friend Wendy and put a quarter bar of Ivory soap in the microwave for 90 seconds. Ooze. Squish. Awesome. Great for preschoolers through adults. Though it is incredibly cool, Wendy cautions, “Be forewarned — it only takes about 5 minutes, so don’t plan your day around it or anything.” Do it yourself or click the picture to see the incredible results.

Squishy fun. For toddlers who can’t grasp the amazement of microwave science, spray a dollop of shaving cream into a bowl and let them go for it. Sensory nirvana. Details and more pictures at champuru.net.

Santa beard. Seasonal fun for all ages. Pant on a shaving cream beard and take pictures. Could this be your very clever holiday card?

I’ll be sharing a few foamy art projects in two weeks, in the meantime, what clean fun can you get into with shaving cream or soap?

[photos by wendolonia, champuru, and portraitsimple]