Tag: Friday

A Little Friday in Your Coffee

“I put a little Friday in your coffee.  You’re welcome!” – as seen on the internet

So, I got a text alert yesterday informing parents and kids at my children’s high school that ordering food through Uber Eats to be delivered to the high school, is not allowed.  There is an 8-year difference between my eldest and youngest child.  It’s amazing the changes in text alerts from the high school that have happened in just those eight years!  I’m pretty sure that we didn’t even get text alerts in the first couple of years that my eldest son was in high school.  We live in a fast-paced, quick-changing world, for sure.

Anyway, it’s FRIDAY!!!  Yeah, baby!! New readers, first of all thank you for coming.  It warms my heart to connect with all of my readers every morning.  I love starting my days thinking of you and being grateful for our connection!  I keep it fun on Friday.  I call Fridays – FTF – Favorite Things Friday.  On Fridays, I list three favorites of mine that I think are wonderful additions to my life and therefore, I recommend them to you.  PLEASE tell us some of your favorites in the comments section.  Fridays usually put all of us in the consuming frame-of-mind!

Just got paid, Friday night
Party huntin’, feelin’ right
Body shakin’, all around (Body shakin’ all around)
No one thinks when I’m gettin’ down  – Johnny Kemp

Here we go:

Tusk Leather Products –  Probably two decades ago, is when I first discovered Tusk leather wallets.  I purchased the most beautiful Tusk checkbook cover I have ever owned or will ever own again.  Tusk leather is so so soft, so well-done and the neatest part of their collection that is that there is usually a special “twist” in their products.  Meaning my gorgeous checkbook cover has a brown alligator look on the outside, but has a vibrant, bright red soft leather interior.  I also have a fabulous lime green zebra print passport cover made by Tusk that has a vivid orange interior and a lush dark purple make-up bag.  I will never give these items up, no matter how tattered they get, that is how much I love them.   Just yum!!

Bar Necklace by My Name Necklace – So when you are at informative, intellectual websites and you see those annoying flashing advertisements on the side of the website, usually flashing products that you have already looked at but passed on, do you wonder to yourself, “Oh, please, who gets sucked into clicking on these ads and buying those things??”  Ummm, me.  I admit it, and now I am recommending one of those products.  As you all know by now, I have four kids.  I purchased this bar necklace that has all four of my children’s names engraved on each side of the bar and I love it!  It’s become one of my favorite pieces of jewelry and I have A LOT of jewelry.  This website has so many variations on engrave-able jewelry and it’s nice quality and won’t break the bank.  Their items would make great gifts for any mothers on your list.

Kenra Blow-Dry Spray – I read about this hair product in an article about the best-selling, most highly rated products on Amazon.  It claimed to cut the time that it takes to blow-dry your hair, in half.  I’m not sure that the time has been cut in half, but it is definitely a shortened amount of time.  The smell of this product is so lovely and I love the effects it has on my hair and my mood and my joints (from not having to hold up my blow dryer for such a long time!).  Try it, you’ll like it.

As always, we end on a serious note on Friday (not!):

“It’s amazing to me how much exercise and extra fries sound alike.” – Penny’s Passion

Happy weekend, my friends!!  Love you!!

 

Friday, I’m in Love

“Hi, Friday.  I’ve been looking for you since Monday.” – Dea Vita

I’ve spent some of this morning looking for my daughter’s Halloween candy bag to admittedly sneak a couple of pieces.  She’s the only one of my kids who still goes trick-or-treating.  She went “all out” dressing like a pirate this year.  So, even though she is almost 15, she worked for her candy and she deserves it.  My son admitted that he’s been looking for her bag, too.  My husband said that she probably has one of those doorbell cameras on it.  Kids from big families learn quickly to be very protective of their own stuff, particularly food.

While we’re talking about our “stuff”, new readers, I change it up on Friday by discussing three of anything (usually consumer items) that I think add to the good quality of my life.  I encourage anyone to share the love of their favorite items in the comments section.  Shall we begin??

Bath & Body Works Wallflowers Stress Relief Eucalyptus + Spearmint Refill –  I live in a male dominated home with two large dogs.  Our home naturally smells, shall I call it “earthy”?  I walked into an old antique store once, which was filled with a lot of old, decaying stuff.  It smelled so good in that place, miraculously!!!  I asked the clerk why the store smelled so good, and this is when I discovered the Wallflowers, but most particularly the Eucalyptus+Spearmint scent.  My daughter swears that the Hot Cocoa refill smells the best, but I always go back to E+S.  Trust me, it’s a great aroma and works wonders in a home filled with stinky sneakers, cast off gym clothes, fishing gear and whatever the dogs dragged in.

Building the Best You – Two Year Discovery Journal by Caroline Harper – I don’t know if this book is still in print, to be honest.  Still this journal is the only journal that I have been able to keep on a consistent daily basis for over 5 years now.  Why?  Because all you have to do is answer 6 simple questions every day and there is just a small space to answer the questions. (think – three word answers, tops) Then the next year, you answer the same questions next to the same day of the previous year.  Intermittently (every three months or so), there are more thought-provoking questions and on the next page those same questions are there for you to answer the following year.    If you reliably keep up with writing in this journal (and it is very easy to do), it is so simple to spot areas in your life where you may be “stuck in a dysfunctional pattern”, but also shows you areas where you have grown and matured.  I found it in Barnes and Noble one time and after using it faithfully and in fears of it going out of print, I ended up buying around 20 of them.  (40 years worth!).  I’m currently working on my third journal.

Dollar Tree Chinese Paper Lanterns – Talk about “bang for your buck”, literally!!  These lanterns are adorable and festive and have so many different cute patterns on them.  They have LED lights at the bottom and hooks on the top so you can hang them anywhere that you want to add an element of fun, nostalgia, or whimsy.    The one I am looking at right now has an “under the sea” motif.  Sometimes it’s the littlest of things that can give you the biggest of “pick me ups.”  My daughter and I just love them!

Have a great weekend, my beloved readers and friends!

“I don’t care if Monday’s blue, Tuesday’s gray and Wednesday too. Thursday I don’t care about you. It’s Friday I’m in love with.“
Unknown

Frinally!

“If Friday had a face, I would kiss it.” – Empowered Partnerships

Happy Friday, my friends!!  “Frinally!”- Empowered Partnerships (again)

I can’t kiss anything today, actually.  My lips won’t pucker due to the tooth/gum surgery I had yesterday.  It’s like a flashback to the traumatic time back when I was a teenager and I had my impacted wisdom teeth removed.  I look like Alvin’s or Theodore’s girlfriend.

Friday always puts me in a good mood, in a good mental space, but today is more of a low-key, chill, good mood.   It might have something to do with the pain meds . . . .

New readers, first of all, thanks for reading!  I love all of my readers.  You make me feel so happy and heard.  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.  Fridays, I stay at the superficial level and write about three favorite things such as products, songs, twitter feeds, etc. that just make my life a little more peachy!  Please check out previous Fridays for ideas.  There are so many Favorite Things Fridays now, it might as well be a catalog.

Here goes today’s favorites:

Rubbermaid Animal Stopper Garbage Can – I don’t like writing reviews on Amazon, but this garbage can is so effective, I think that I did take the time to write a review about this one.  We keep our garbage cans on the outside of our house.  We had a giant raccoon who decided to become a next-door neighbor to our garbage cans.  He felt like he had hit the jackpot and our garbage became his nightly buffet, like he was on a cruise or something.  His ability to spread garbage on our lawn was legendary.  Every morning, we wondered what kind of mess we would be waking up to and we would fight over who got to clean it up that day. We tried all the different anti-animal sprays on the market.  We tried all sorts of bungee ties and different garbage cans and this is the only garbage can that actually worked!  Ranger Rick finally moved on.  There are claw and teeth marks all over our garbage can and it was tipped on its side a lot of days, but that masked bandit could not get this garbage can lid off!  Worth every penny!

Lancome Advanced Genifique Yeux Light-Pearl Eye Illuminator –  Yikes, try saying that three times while chewing some peanuts.  I really wish I didn’t like this under-eye treatment.  I’m all about being able to get away with drug store brands if I can, but this stuff is really good.  I have never found an eye serum I have liked until now.  Now, no cream is a miracle when you are approaching 50, but this is the first one that I saw a marked difference in the skin under my eyes within a few days of using it.  Pricey, yes.  Worth it, yes.  The Lancome counters at the department stores and at Ulta, carry samples of this, so ask for some samples first to see if it works for you.  Then, break open the piggy bank and treat yourself.  It’s Friday!

Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse Thin & Crispy Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies – When my husband and I first got married, we lived near to a Pepperidge Farm Outlet.  That place made me as happy as our friend the raccoon was, before we got the Animal Stopper garbage can.  I love all things Pepperidge Farm, but this particular flavor of cookie is over-the-top yum.  It’s a new-ish addition to the Pepperidge Farm Family of All Things Delicious.  A bag of these cookies doesn’t last a hot minute in our household (unless you find a good hiding spot for the bag.  SHHHH!)  Come on, moms, don’t pretend like you don’t have your own little hidden hideaways for “treats for harried heads of household.”

Okay, time to get back to icing my cheeks.  Feel free to send sympathy and love to me via the Comments section and add favorite things of your own while you’re at it.  I won’t mind at all.

“May Today Be The Fridayest Friday That Ever Fridayed.” – Lilybels.Co.Uk

The Golden Child

I think that we could break down the days of the week into different roles of a dysfunctional family.  Here goes . . .  Meet the The Weekly Family:

Saturday – The Family Clown.  The Good Times Guy.  The Party Person.

Sunday – The Saintly Child with a Tinge of Melancholia.

Monday – The Bad Seed.  The Ornery Brat from Hell.  The Total PITA with Personality Disorders Galore.

Tuesday – The Hard Worker.  The Do-er.  The One You Go to When You Need to Get Things Done.  The One Who Organizes Family Reunions and Does All of the Clean-Up Afterwards.  The Martyr.

Wednesday – The Ignored Middle Child.  The Red-Headed Step-Child.

Thursday – The Drama Queen.  The One Living on the Edge. . . .

Living on the edge of what, you ask?  Well, on the edge of Friday, of course!!!

Friday!!! – Everyone’s Favorite!  The Golden Child!!  The Reason for the Rest of The Weekly Family’s existence!!!

Happy Friday, my friends!!!!  Today we are all Friday kids!!!  Today, you are Mom’s Favorite!!

I’m in a looney mood today, obviously.  Friday brings it out in me.  So, I’m going to try something different with my three favorites on Favorite Things Friday.  (New readers, I typically go “all practical” on Fridays and stay on the surface by listing three things/tips/songs/products/books, etc. that I like and recommend to my beloved readers.  Please see all previous Friday posts for ideas.)  That being said, this Friday is different.  Being an animal/nature lover, I have decided to start a virtual farm.  I have added three amazingly cool and heart-achingly cute animals to my virtual farm.  I will tell you a little about my beautiful additions to my Favorite Things Friday farm, but I will require you to go on a virtual scavenger hunt to look them up for yourselves.  No links are being added.  Trust me, I don’t make any money on this blog, but the value I get from being connected to you, my beloved readers, is PRICELESS!

Welcome to the F-T-F Ranch (although none of these animals are getting branded or sold to slaughterhouses; they are totally free-range).  Meet my beautiful animals:

Valais Blacknose Sheep – I have a whole herd of cuteness with these babies on my virtual farm!  I can’t get enough of these precious sheep.  They are the perfect mix of ebony and ivory.  Stevie Wonder would agree. They originated in Switzerland.  I think everything in Switzerland must be cute.  These sheep are good on mountains and really good on the eyes.  Look them up for your fill of overall, amazing every-day cuteness.

Narwhals –  All girls love unicorns, but we have to understand that unicorns aren’t really real.  However, these adorable whales that look like “under-water unicorns” and live in the arctic waters on my virtual farm, are really real.  They are in the same family as Beluga whales and can live up to 50 years.  That 4-10 feet long horn that they swim around with is actually a tooth!  There are only about 75,000 narwhals left in existence, so I’m very fortunate to have some swimming around the F-T-F Ranch.

Long-Tailed Tit Bird – These little birds are sometimes called “flying lollipops.”  I kid you not!  Talk about Cute with a Capital “C”!  Oh, my gosh!  I have flocks of these precious tit birds flying around my virtual farm.  These “Darling Dum-dums” (I came up with that nickname, I like it better than “tit bird”) are commonly found flying the friendly  European and Asian skies.  These are teeny, tiny featherballs and they are just so precious to look at and delight in.

Okay, so please tell me what other creatures (preferably incredibly cute) that I should add to my virtual farm.  I highly recommend starting your own virtual farm/ranch.  They are very easy to maintain and are pretty cheap to run.  The enjoyment you get learning about your virtual animals and being able to view their pictures and action videos will make you so grateful and in awe of our Maker and Mother Nature.  I promise you.

I leave you with this quote.  Have a wonderful weekend, my dear Friday friends!  Don’t be afraid to let your inner child out for some fun.

“There are no seven wonders of the world in the eyes of a child.   There are seven million.” – Walt Streightiff

A Friday is Born!

“Why is Monday so far away from Friday but Friday is so close to Monday?”- Unknown

But let’s not focus on the negative . . . . It’s Favorite Things Friday!!!!  I just reserved movie tickets for my husband and I tonight, for the movie A Star is Born.  We might get little cricks in our necks but at least we can sit beside each other.  I am very excited (not sure about my husband, but he is a good sport)!

New readers, I share three “favorites” of mine every Friday.  These favorites can be anything: products, tips, songs, movies, whatever!  I encourage my readers to post their favorites in the Comments section.  Please check out former Favorite Things Friday postings, as good things never go out of style! 

Thinking about A Star is Born got me to thinking about all of the songs I love to sing out loud to when I’m driving.  James Corden knew what he was doing when he created “Carpool Karaoke.”  Last night, after I picked up my daughter from her tennis lesson, we belted out out Florida Georgia Line’s Cruise.  Earlier this week we were in unison with Billy Joel’s Piano Man.   Yesterday, I made a fool of myself rocking to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Sweet Home Alabama.  Tom Petty’s Won’t Back Down and anything by Everclear tend to make my Carpool Karaoke list frequently as well.  Creep by Radiohead is a good one, too.  Readers, do you have any Carpool Karaoke suggestions to make this Friday even more complete???

Hey, did you just skip down to the Favorite Things Part?!?

Here goes:

Huichol bracelets –  I love bracelets!  I love stacking bracelets!  I love beaded yoga bracelets and gold bangle bracelets.  I have small wrists so bracelets that are adjustable or that secure with knot are good for me.  Do you remember the 80s when Madonna turned us all on to rubber bracelets?!?  My sister wore so many of them it’s a wonder that she could bend her arms.  Anyway, I think Huichol bracelets are going to make a BIG COMEBACK.  I noticed that an online store that I like to peruse was offering Huichol bracelets featuring horses and they were sold out.  And they were asking almost $70 a piece for them!  Ladies, forget that!  Go to Etsy.  For half the price, the selection is amazing!  What is a Huichol bracelet?  You’ll know it when you see it.  You’ve had them before.  These are the beautiful beaded bracelets made in Mexico.  Get yourself one!  It’s Friday and believe me, they are going to be the new “it” thing and you’re going to be “in the know” because of what is on your wrist.

Morning Glamour Satin Pillowcases –  I think when our moms all had Beehive hairdos, everyone slept with Satin pillowcases to keep their hair in check until the next weekly salon appointment.  Well, I don’t have a Beehive, but I don’t wake up with snarls and mattes in my hair anymore. Supposedly these pillowcases help stave off wrinkles, too.  I do love the cool, crisp feel when I lay my head on my pillow.  At the very least, these pillowcases make me feel very retro-glamorous.

Palm Beach blooms Room Fragrance – I’ve mentioned before that I love anything that smells good.  Smelling might even be my favorite sense.  This spray smells so amazing!  I keep a bottle by my desk, in my car, in my bathroom (of course), and up my nose (kidding).  Seriously, as a “scented candle/ perfume/ plug-in-aholic”, for this to make my top five favorite scents of all time is saying something.  It is kind of hard to find. It is made by apfrangrance.  It comes in an adorable little royal blue bottle.

In honor of A Star is Born, I’m going to end FTF with a Lady Gaga quote:

I am a walking piece of art every day, with my dreams and my ambitions forward at all times in an effort to inspire my fans to lead their life in that way.

Hello Friday!

Happy Friday!  “Sassy, classy, and still kickin’ assy!” – Maxine

“I know every day is a gift, but where’s the receipt for Mondays? I want to exchange it for another Friday.” -Anonymous  

So, my daughter has been telling me for weeks about an item that she thinks that I should add to my Favorite Things Friday blogpost. (New readers, I show my ultimate superficial side on Fridays, by pimping retail stuff that I like and I encourage you to share about the stuff you like, too, in the Comments section.)  So, I was going to add her item today until I saw that it has been discontinued. (Please see my previous blog post Where Did You Go? for a rant on how terrible it is when our favorite things get relegated to the Discontinued box.)  As per my rant, I saw that this previous cheap drugstore item, now retails on ebay for around $32 and my daughter saw one on Amazon for over $700 this morning.  If you have “funny money” to burn, the item is called Band-aid Friction Block stick.  My daughter claims that this has been a lifesaver protecting her from the painful blisters that all of her new school shoes have been causing on her pretty little feet.  I hope that she uses this block sparingly, because this is the last one that we’re going to spring for, at those prices.

Let’s go for some more realistic recommendations on Favorite Things Friday:

Natural Life Toothbrush Cover – I love the entire line of stuff from Natural Life  It is such a cute, upbeat, wholesome company.  Natural Life is like the Chick-fil-A of cute, girly stuff, in my mind.  I’m sure I’ll feature other items from Natural Life down the line, but I had to start with their wonderful toothbrush covers.  They are like adorable hair clips for the top of your toothbrush.  The plastic cover clips over your toothbrush, protecting it from germs, broken blush, and exploded face cream, when you travel.  I have two of them.  One says, “No More Cooties!” and it has flowers and rhinestones and the other says “Llive Happy” and it features an adorable llama.  It’s things like these that make being a female so much fun!

Avalanche Travel Dog Bowl –  In case you haven’t noticed in previous blogs, we have two dogs.  We are slaves to our dogs.  My friend has dubbed our lab, “Prince Ralphie.”  This collapsible silicone dog bowl, is perfect for when we take our dogs on hikes, the beach and other adventures, like escaping from hurricanes.  (Thoughts and prayers go out to all of our dear friends in the Carolinas and Virginia and all other areas being affected by Florence!  Hurricanes are horrible.)  Anyway, these bowls are silicone and collapsible, so they are light, easy to carry and easy to store.  They are perfectly easy to set up and fill with water and food for your furry princes and princesses!  Then, when the fur babies are finished, the bowls are very easy to clean.

La Croix Sparkling Water – After being a Diet Coke addict for years and burning a couple of holes in my stomach, I decided I needed to change some of my habits.  I drank a lot of water, but then I got bored.  I missed my fizz fix.  I tried all of the sparkling waters on the market, but this is “the one”.  I keep coming back to La Croix and it totally satisfies me.  My husband feels the same way.  No calories, no salt, no artificial anything, and yet it still satisfies.  It’s an acquired taste if you are used to a lot of sugar and flavor in your drinks, but once you accept the change, there’s no going back.  La Croix is the bomb!  It’s got that perfect amount of “sparkiness” that I like in my healthy drinks.

Okay, one more Friday funny and then let’s all go have a really nice weekend!

“Every Friday I feel like I deserve a new addition to my closet for all of my hard work during the week.”

Funny, but true.  Go get yourself a cutesy toothbrush cover, at least.

 

 

Woop! Woop! Friday!!

RIP – Burt Reynolds   Gosh, lately it feels like RIP has become a feature on my blog.  I am also getting a realization of my own aging, as my kids were like, “Who’s Burt Reynolds?”  I clearly remember the Cosmopolitan spread.  Don’t you?

Here’s the Friday funny – “It’s Friday.  Time to go make stories for Monday.”

Here’s the Favorites Things Friday part (for those of you new to my blog, this is where I feature my consumer side and recommend my favorite purchases, every Friday.  Feel free to check out previous Fridays for recommendations and please feel free to share your own in the Comments section):

Buggins Natural Bug Spray – I love the idea of “all natural” anything, but the old-fashioned, raised on chemicals part of me sometimes is a tad skeptical that “all natural” works just as well.  This stuff does work just as well as any chemical bug spray!  My husband and I discovered this at an outdoor restaurant that also serves food to dogs. They had bottles of this on the tables.  I thought it was a kind, cute touch, but then I fell in love.  I would buy Buggins for the smell alone.  It smells so good!

Oxo Measuring Glass – I always feel a tad ridiculous offering up any cooking or baking recommendations because it feels like I’m Ronald McDonald telling Julia Child how to prepare her bouillabaisse.  That being said, I do make Minute Rice on a frequent basis, and this cup is the best for measuring, because you can’t mess up.  Instead of trying to keep your hand steady and bringing the measuring glass to eye level like you’re in Chemistry class, all you have to do is look down on the glass as you’re filling it with water and the measurement is perfect.  It is a patented glass.  It’s that good, plus it has a good rubber grip handle, so less chance of flour spills that would take hours to clean up.  You’re welcome, Rachel Ray! 😉

Lumify Eye Drops – I have one eye that frequently looks like it has been exposed to a toxic blend of smoke, pollen, and cat hair on a regular basis.  It’s mostly just the one eye.  I must wink a lot.  Anyway, I have tried every eye drop on the market and this stuff is the bomb!  It is a relatively new product from Bausch + Lomb.  They make the promise that it will keep your eyes clear for eight hours and so far, I agree with that statement.   I imagine certain people in California and Colorado are going to be stocking up on this product.  Just saying.

I saw another Friday quote.  It said, “Friday is my second favorite F word.  My first is Food, definitely Food.”  I agree with that statement.  I’m headed to another favorite tonight.  Red Lobster’s Endless Shrimp has started.  I’m with Bubba on this one!  Shrimp tastes great no matter how you prepare it and I’m all in!!!

Have a great weekend!  Thanks for reading.  Readership goes up every day and I thank you for that.  As much as I love writing, it’s nice to know that I’m not just writing to cyber space. 🙂

 

Boom Shakalaka

It’s Friday!  And even better than that, it’s a Friday before a three-day weekend!  Bonus!!  I bought this little wooden plaque at an arts market a couple of years ago.  It’s darling and colorful.  It says, “get shit done”.  I keep it on my desk as a good reminder and motivator every morning.  On Fridays, I tend to take the plaque a little less seriously.  I add an imaginary “maybe” to the start of it or an imaginary “or not” to the end of it.  It’s a versatile plaque.  One of my favorite things, actually.

This quote cracks me up:  “We experience moments absolutely free from worry.  These brief respites are called panic.” – humorist Cullen Hightower

On to the purpose of this blog.  Favorite Things Friday!!!

Clean & Clear Persa-Gel 10 –  It is not fair to be almost 50 and still be getting the occasional zit.  I buy this stuff in bulk for my teenagers and me.  It is the best individual zit zapper out there, in my opinion.  It dries those nasty little red mounds of pus in a matter of hours.  I’m not sure of its overall capabilities for full-on acne, but when used on an individual blemish, it is spot on!  (on an aside, I looked up synonyms for the word “pimple” and the term “beauty spot” appeared on the list.  Huh??  Now granted, when I was growing up we called brown moles, “beauty marks”, but that makes sense. HA!)

Trigon – This is a phone app/game that has become my new obsession.  This is what I do when I’m not following my above-mentioned plaque’s orders.  I think I’m developing carpal tunnel syndrome from it, but it’s worth it.  Back in college, I loved Tetris like my middle sons love Fortnite.  I skipped classes, dates, meals, potty breaks and showers for Tetris.  If you love those “fitting shapes into other shapes” kinds of games, you’ll love Trigon.  It’s like a Rubik’s cube on steroids; when the Rubik’s cube was turned into a truncated icosahedron.  (look it up, it’s good to learn something new every day, even on Fridays) Anyway, it’s a free game/app; you just have to watch some dumb ads, when you lose.  So, don’t lose.

Starbucks Refreshers (in a can) –  These are for impatient people like me who do not have time to wait around for a barista to concoct my caffeine hit.  You know, I’m busy “getting shit done.”  Actually, I like a lot of Starbucks drinks, but I order these from Amazon when I don’t have time to drive to the six Starbucks stores within a mile of my house.  They are a delicious mix of fruit juice, coconut water and green coffee.  They have less than 100 calories.  They’re just a real nice treat, especially on Friday afternoons!

I’ll end with a Fun Friday quote that I saw on a sign:  “I haven’t been so excited about Friday since last Friday.”

Favorite Things Friday the 2nd

Happy Friday!!!!  Why are Fridays so great?  I think it’s all about the anticipation.  Even if you don’t have weekend plans, it’s the deliciousness of not having plans, to be free to your whims is what makes weekends so much fun.  For years and years and years our weekends were taken up by travel soccer, softball, basketball tournaments, robotics events, etc. etc. etc.  My husband and I were often two ships passing each other on our ways to opposite ends of our city or our state, depending on the events.  When we first started having free weekends, we were a little shell-shocked.  It was hard to be without a schedule.  Now, we embrace our freedom to explore and to adventure together.  Life is magic!

On to favorite things:

Aityvert Solar Torch Lights – Oh my!  This is my latest set of favorite things in the world. They make me excited for darkness!  Last weekend my husband and I took a walk around a neighborhood we don’t typically walk around. (On an aside, I have read that walking in areas that are new to you is not just great for you physically, but is also wonderful for your mental health.  It helps you see things/issues/problems in new perspectives.  Try it!)  Anyway, we saw these wonderful sidewalk lights decorating this beautiful, old Victorian home.  I thought they must be gas powered because they look exactly like real fire.  But they are not!  They are solar powered.  They don’t even require batteries!  My son didn’t know that we bought them and he almost ran out to our backyard with a hose because he thought someone had kept a summer campfire going.  These are just awesome. 🙂

Grey Free by Guiliano – These “mascara wand style” grey hairs coverage are my go-to helpers in between my salon appointments.  Gone are the days for me, when my beauty routine was “quick and easy”.  Everything is a chore and a drawn out process.  My salon appointments take at least half a day, so I spread them out as long as I possibly can.  I’ve tried crayons and shampoo-in type grey coverage, but I always come back to these babies.  My greys tend to be in clumps in different sections of my hair, so this mascara wand style really works for me and the color stays put until it is washed out.  They are inexpensive and come in many different shades.  The only downside is that they don’t seem to have a long shelf life.  They get an “off smell” if they are kept too long.

No. 7 Airbrush Away Pore Minimizing Primer – I found out about this wonderful product through one of those magazine articles that takes reader polls about “the best of the best” in beauty products.   I find beauty product selections so overwhelming these days that I prefer to go with recommendations from friends and trusted sources.  This primer is absolutely perfect when you need to “save face” – meaning that you don’t want to look like the Joker by the end of a hot and humid summer day.  If you want your make-up to have staying power, than start with this product and you’ll be good to go for the whole day!  The best part is that you can buy it in places like Target and Walgreens.

Three’s the magic number.  Thank you for reading my blog!  Have a fantastic weekend!