I’m not normally a hat-wearer. I’ll pull on my gorgeous Girl32 beanie and my LL Bean puffy jacket for the sake of warmth, and I look about as cute as anyone wearing a beanie and a puffy jacket can look. But when I’m going out and want to look chic and pulled together, I forego the hat and just shiver.

So I was admittedly skeptical when I heard from the folks at Wallaroo Hat Company. They’re located here in Colorado (up in Boulder), so I figured their hats would be sporty or jaunty. I definitely didn’t expect them to be elegant - or for me to look elegant wearing one.

What a pleasant surprise! They sent me a Tamworth hat in black tweed, and I love it. It looks great with my black leather jacket and my black wool coat, and it really does make a difference in warmth. Plus it doesn’t mess up my hair (and my hair doesn’t look stupid under this hat, like it does when I wear any other hat).

My Tamworth hat has a light blue satin lining, and there’s actually touches of that same light blue in the black and cream herringbone pattern. It’s also got an inner drawstring that helps customize the fit. It’s light and comfortable, and it stays put even when I’m buckling squirming kids into the car on a windy day. Plus, it’s UPF 50+, which is a pro for us bottle-blondes who live at high elevations.

The Tamworth is part of the W Collection, and it retails for $40. I’m also partial to the Bella (a newsboy style in angora), and the Hampton for summer (way more attractive than the grungy baseball caps I see on moms at the pool).

Even if you don’t normally wear a hat, you ought to check these out. At the very least, your colorist will thank you.

Saturday afternoons at our house usually aren’t very exciting, especially when we’ve had snow for the past six weeks straight and would prefer to lounge around with SpongeBob.  But this past Saturday, we had big plans - thanks to The Parent Bloggers Network and the fantastic people behind Baby Loves Disco.

The Denver show was held at the Gothic Theatre, and being the eager beavers that we are, we arrived right on time to get the party started.  We’d never been to the Gothic before, but it’s apparently a venue for small indie shows or old skool revival shows.

We piled our coats and bags on a couple chairs and headed straight for the dance floor - an open area in front of the stage where the DJ was set up in front of a huge screen where “Fantasia” was playing.  There were baskets of egg shakers and filmy scarves up there, along with mini hula hoops and helium-filled balloons tied to the edge of the stage.

The girls took a while to warm up on the dance floor.  Like mother, like daughters - they waited until it was a bit more crowded before shaking their groove thangs.  Once the kids started untying the balloons, they both enjoyed bouncing around with those - and even when CJ let go of hers and watched it float up to the high ceiling while whimpering “Bah-oooooon!”, there were plenty of others to take its place.

I think the girls really enjoyed watching Kyle and me dance, and all four of us loved watching all the other kids and parents dancing together.  I loved how so many parents were out on the floor with their kids, not sitting back at the tables, watching from afar.

The music was great too - classic 70s disco, with a few 80s tunes mixed in for good measure.  At one point, I was washing my hands in the bathroom when I heard a song that I really liked, and I rushed back to the dance floor - just like I used to do at clubs in high school and college.  It’s fun to feel that way again, even if you’ve got a toddler in tow.

Our only disappointment with the music was that they didn’t play any ABBA!  How can you call it a disco if there’s no ABBA?!  Then again, I didn’t ask if the DJ was taking requests, so perhaps next time I’ll just have to make it known that I expect to hear ABBA.

I was blown away by the food - what a spread!  The show was catered by Wild Oats, and while we’re not opposed to whole foods, we’re kind of cheap.  I don’t think any of us had ever eaten that much organic food in one sitting.  But it was all delicious (except for the Veggie Booty - I stay far, FAR away from Veggie Booty), and I might actually feel a bit healthier today.

After they wore themselves out dancing, the girls settled down with Kyle and read a book together.  They had tents filled with pillows, surrounded by books and small toys, for the kids who were ready to take a break.  Plus, they had diaper-changing stations set up, with cushioned pads and wipes - especially welcome in a venue where it’s almost certain that the restrooms won’t have changing tables.

Each child got a party favor - Baby Legs legwarmers, which can be worn on the legs or on the arms.  Tacy’s already got a pair, thanks to Cool Mom Picks, and now we’ve got two more.  I’ll take that kind of party favor over a plastic bag full of plastic toys any day.

What Kyle and I both noticed and appreciated greatly was that the event was truly a family affair.  Lots of dads - and not just sitting back at the tables, nursing pints of beer, but out on the dance floor with their kids.  We saw such a cross-section of families and children of all ages - even a teeny tiny baby in a sling.  It was comforting to see that Denver really does have a great deal of diversity.

We’re already planning to head back to the Gothic in February for the next show - Tacy’s already asking me how long she has to wait until the next one, and I hope to work with the Denver host mom to spread the word even further.