Cheaping Girls

Where to Find The Cheaping Girls

2011-01-09T18:38:00.004-07:00

We have had so much fun writing this blog, but we seem to have lost our steam in the last few months, no? Life has been and continues to be crazy so we're going off to do our own thing(s) for now. If you want to see what we're up to, check out Natalie's new blog, at www.natnote.com. She'll have Cheaping Girls updates along with tales from her own life.

XOXO,

The Cheaping Girls

29 Looks from Emily's Closet

2010-10-19T22:17:00.017-06:00

Our friend Emily recently became a Certified Specialist of Wine (CSW) and just started a new job with a local wine distributor here in Salt Lake. She has been working as a bartender/sommelier at a FAH-BULOUS Italian restaurant here in Salt Lake called Lugano and has worn a uniform to work for years. She asked us for some advice on what to wear to her final job interview, so we raided her closet and came up with a few options. After she got the job she asked us to raid her closet again and come up with some new work looks for her.

Her new sales job involves all kinds of fun and fabulous activities including meeting with proprietors of Salt Lake Clubs, hosting tasting events and dining out at lots of yummy restaurants. She needs looks that are professional and fun and casual at the same time.

Emily's closet is full of so-great-I-want-to-steal-them jeans and boots along with great staples from Ann Taylor, Zara, and Banana Republic. She told us that her style inspiration is Jennifer Aniston. With that in mind we put together these looks:

Print skirt with black top and pumps. Perfect for meetings or a lunch appointment.

Khaki skirt with military jacket and ruched top with black boots. These black boots were a favorite of ours.

The first of many many pairs of fantastic skinny jeans. We loved this motorcycle jacket. With a sparkly little top underneath and some fun heels, this is great for a night out.

This was my favorite outfit. I wanted to steal it. Seriously. Dark skinny jeans, drapey top with cardigan and wicked high heels.

Loved grey with grey with a pop of color.

This is a great outfit and super simple - LBD and animal print ruffle kitten heel. Yum.

This is great for an afternoon of wine tasting, no?

We loved this great dress and tried to find a way to make it work for fall. Pair with skinny black jeans and voila!

This is a great basic work outfit - khaki pencil skirt, black sweater and heels.

Oh! I loved this grey trench coat and great patent leather heels. I may be in a bit of a grey period right now. ANYWAY, we paired it with a print top and dark jeans.

MMMMMMmmmm. Love these boots. Pair with skinny jeans and military jacket.

We say don't be afraid of horizontal strips - on top and on bottom! We loved this combo.

Gray v-neck sweater with distressed jeans and ankle boots.

Same sweater with khaki pencil skirt and silver heels dresses it up a bit.

Striped skirt with black sweater, opaque tights and those yummy black boots.

Emily has lots of great jackets. Very Jennifer Aniston!

Another great jacket. Paired with a black pencil skirt and our favorite black boots.

Yes, it's those boots again! This time with a long grey skirt and black top.

These boots were another favorite of ours.

Skinny black jeans and a fun top with a black cardigan and THE boots.

Drapey grey top, skinny jeans and the fab patent leather pumps.

Chanel-y jacket with striped top and jeans with silver pumps.

Another great pair of jeans, great pair of boots with my coveted cardigan and paisley top.

This is pretty much what I wear to work every day. Simple black dress and black heels. So easy to pull together in the morning.

Another great pair of boots. Paired with a bomber jacket and button up top.

Long drapey sweater vest with skinny jeans and a great heel.

The same great pieces - grey top, military jacket, black boots, pencil skirt - used in a new combination.

Another combination of pieces - striped skirt, black cardigan, black heels. Totally new outfit!

The fun part of this was that we pulled this together with just the pieces that were in her closet. Try it! It's like shopping with stuff that you already have!

Whew!!

2010-10-04T22:02:00.006-06:00

We've all breathed a sigh of relief. Jodi from A Yummy Life did it again. If the sneak peek is any indication, our family pictures not only turned out OK, they actually turned out to be quite YUMMY. Why did we have doubts you ask??

1. Alek and I (well, mostly me because we were already there and I LUURRRVE to try and get one more thing done if I can squeeze it in) had decided to clean out the chicken coop and were running late. Or rather, were running on Natalie standard time.
2. The Weavers were also running late. Which provided great air cover for my own lateness. Of course, they have a child to get ready, what was my excuse? Hey, those shoes DID take a long time to buckle up.
3. It was hot. And I mean hot. Each layer of our carefully crafted "Fall" outfits suddenly seemed like a bad idea. I had a SIGG and kept forgetting it as we moved from location to location. Every time I would turn around to go back for it Eliza would have it in her little hands. I would thank her for remembering it and she would say "It's OK Auntie, I was REALLY thirsty anyway."
4. The Kewpie Doll was grumpy. And we couldn't really blame her. A 7 month old in black tights, a black long sleeved leotard with a leopard sweater over the top and sequined shoes? Really? Hey, who knew it would be 90 Degrees on October 2nd??
5. G doesn't like bows in her hair. G doesn't like to be held. Or stand still. Or stop eating. Or stop running. Or stop playing. Or stop eating rocks or digging in the dirt. Ever. And she'll give you the biggest smiles in the world as long as you're not trying to keep a bow in her hair and hold her and keep her still and clean. (Damn, I love that kid.)

In the end you'd never know we harried and hot and absolutely desperate for more dogs to wander by to charm the babies. Jodi, you are AMAZING. http://www.ayummylife.blogspot.com/

P.S. We've been asked for a wardrobe breakdown and here's what I know:

I am wearing a ruffly lime green sweater and red bow tie belt from Mom's closet (both were scored at Ross). Dress is Merona brand from Tar-jay (I bought it last fall for my Betty Draper Halloween Costume). The shoes are a really really really cheap knock off of Christian Louboutin Dillian Flower Pumps. I am morally against knock-offs of brand name products but totally in favor of BANANAS red shoes for the family picture and, well, there you have it. You reap what you sow because the heel is already starting to break off. But they look great in the picture and that was the point!

Janaan is wearing the rose print sheath dress from White House Black Market. Her fabulous blue pumps are the Glo Women's Jayden Pump in Royal Blue from, drum roll please...KMart!

Mom's necklace is made from vintage jewelry and was bought on Etsy. The store is Raquel Castillo. There are similar styles at Forever 21.

Eliza is wearing a leopard print cardigan from Forever 21. And Alexis a leopard skirt from Wal-Mart and all three babies are wearing red sequined Mary Jane's, also from tha Wal-Marts.

Being Yippies Pays Off: Egg Recall

2010-08-23T20:59:00.007-06:00

When we went to pick up the first delivery of meat from our CSA Janaan said that everyone in the parking lot was a Yuppie (Porsche, Range Rover) or a Hippie (Subaru, 4Runner). We decided that we were a hybrid because while I drive a Subaru and Janaan drives a 4Runner, we really both want to be driving Range Rovers. So we started calling ourselves Hyuppies. Then my friend Lisa said that Yippie had a better ring to it, and we agreed. So, we are now proud Yippies. Sidebar: we were at a family reunion this summer and I was so intent on recycling as much as possible that my aunt told me she was going to buy me a green swastika. That was possibly my proudest moment as a yippie, and for the record we took home THREE 55 gallon bags of recyclables from the reunion.

This summer we joined a meat CSA (more on that in another post), we have been going to the farmer's market almost weekly, Janaan has a garden, Mom and Dad are growing herbs and tomatoes and Mom and Janaan are currently canning like mad women (more on that too in another post). But perhaps our biggest commitment to yippiehood to date has been our chickens. (The whole process has been so epic and we've been blathering on so much about it that our sister Christina has told us that she does not want to hear another word about chickens at Sunday dinner. So, yeah, OK, we've been pretty obsessed.)

Janaan started doing research on urban chickens after we watched Food Inc. earlier this year. Then our Uncle Perry came to town and got us all jazzed up. He lives in Los Angeles and he has had backyard chickens for almost 20 years. So we formed a coop co-op (get it: coop co-op, heh heh heh) consisting of Janaan and Ed, me and Alek and our friends Barrett and Danielle. More or less, the deal was Barrett and Danielle would keep the chickens in their HUGE yard, Alek and I would build the coop and Ed and Janaan would raise the chicks. Then all of us would split the costs for feed and take turns cleaning the coop and we would feast on farm fresh eggs for 20 years! MWAHAHAHAHA!!!

So, Janaan did a bunch of research and found out which chickens laid the best eggs, were winter hearty and were easy on the eyes. We ordered them from Murray McMurray and they arrived on a Sunday in June. You have to order them in batches of 24 and you get a "surprise" 25th chicken for free. Somehow we ended up with 27 healthy happy baby chicks which Janaan and Ed raised with lots of love until they were ready for transport to the coop. (We've since had two casualties due to a backyard predator of some sort and one is M.I.A. and presumed dead.)

Now I'm not going to lie, this chicken thing has been a total pain in the ass. Yes, that's right, I just wrote ass. Coordinating the six of us to decide to go ahead with this (love you sister!), figuring out which breeds to buy (thanks Uncle Perry!), building the coop on the coldest, rainiest day of summer - the ONLY day that we had time to build it (thanks Dad for all of your help and your tools!), the drama of getting the chicks on Sunday (a special thank you to the USPS agent at the downtown SLC office for making a special delivery that day!), keeping the chicks alive (thanks farmer Ed!), transporting the chicks to the coop, making sure they are fed and have fresh water every day (thanks Barrett and Danielle!), and rebuilding the coop so that varmints (yes, that's right, I just wrote varmints) can't get in and kill them has been quite an endeavor.

And after all this the chickens won't produce eggs for a while, maybe not until next spring if they really don't lay in the winter. But after today's recall of 500 million eggs (yes, 500 MILLION!!) all of the effort is TOTALLY WORTH IT.

If you're as excited about backyard chicken keeping as we are, be sure to check out the Martha Stewart Chicken Show, we know it really put us over the top with our chicken mania.

Shade Clothing Going Out of Business

2010-08-16T08:45:00.003-06:00

Get 'em while they're hot.

Although, we're holding off until the prices drop just a little bit more.

Hopefully they will still have some decent sizes left.

Eat.Pray.Love. I'm.So.Excited.

2010-08-12T18:52:00.004-06:00

I absolutely adored this book. ADORED IT. I think I may have cried when we talked about it book club. Alright, I know I cried. And yes, it was the ugly cry.

When I heard it was being made into a movie starring Julia Roberts, I was like "eh."

I didn't see how all of that brilliant writing, that writing that spoke to me, that WAS me, that stirred my soul and put onto paper so much of what I have gone through and was going through and still going through, that expressed what I was actually living, could be a movie starring Julia Roberts.

And then I saw the preview.

And I got the chills.

And I must admit, I cannot wait to see this movie.

Happy Birthday Papa!

2010-08-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

Today is Dad's birthday. AND, (I'm not making this up) he is at the outlet mall with Mom as I write this, which I suppose shows the ultimate commitment to the Cheaping Girls.

Dad, you are really the backbone of our operation, whether it's carrying our bags, making sure that our cars stay on the road, building our chicken coops, making a comfy bed out of your truck so we don't ever have to officially "camp", or (as much as it infuriates me sometimes) never letting us pay for dinner or a movie.

We love your enthusiasm for politics, your commitment to your hobbies, your love of the wild wild west, and how you always want the best things that life has to offer. We love that you give us good advice without telling us what to do and no matter what, that you are ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS there when we need you.

Happy Birthday.

All Our Love,

The Cheaping Girls
Pam, Natalie, Janaan, Christina, Eliza, Alexis and G.

"That was pretty much the coolest thing I've ever seen you do."

2010-08-03T21:19:00.008-06:00

So Mom and Dad (a.k.a. Papa and Gigi) have created a fun new adult toy: The Candy Cannon. (Now don't get it twisted, this is a family friendly blog, you'll understand why it's an adult toy in a minute.)

Mom and Dad actually got the idea for the candy cannon from their friends, the Schiffgen's, who take grandparenting to a whole new level.

Mom and Dad borrowed the Schiffgen's candy cannon for our family reunion at Bear Lake last weekend and it was a smashing success. So, of course, they had to have one. Here's how it works:

Step 1: Find yourself a hollow steel tube that is sealed at the bottom with a metal plate. Or, in our case, Papa Schiffgen found one at The NPS Store and gave it to my Dad as a gift so my Dad could live out his candy cannon dreams. (Sidebar: Not only are the Schiffgen's the ultimate grandparents but they're probably the nicest, most giving people I've ever met. Another Sidebar: The NPS Store is the weirdest, dirtiest, grossest, most spectacular store ever. You can literally find everything there. It deserves a post all on its own.)

Step 2: Cut a hole in the top of the tube using your plasma cutter. (What? You don't have a plasma cutter? Well, Papa Jake does, because you never know when you'll need it to make a candy cannon.)

Step 3: This step is only necessary if you are a Jenkins, because, well, this is how we operate. Take said steel tube and clean off completely. Goo Gone all of the weird stickers that were on it, etc. Then take your Cricut machine and cut "DANGER: CANDY CANNON" out of vinyl. Apply to steel tube. Cut red flames out of vinyl. Apply flames to candy cannon. There, THAT'S more like it.

Now you're ready to use your candy cannon.

Step 4: You'll need paper cups that fit into the hole at the top of your candy cannon. Fill paper cups up about 1/2 way with candy. Choose "soft candy" (i.e. Tootsie Rolls, Saltwater Taffy). Why soft candy? Well, let's just say that as they're falling on your head like rocks delivered by the wrathful hand of God from the sky, those Blow Pops won't seem like such a good idea. Papa and Gigi also came up with the idea to roll up dollar bills and put them in the cups to make things more interesting.

Step 5: Make a dry ice bomb. This is the part where the candy cannon becomes an adult toy. I didn't know how to make a dry ice bomb, but apparently this is something that men just know how to do. Or, just Google it. We found that a standard 16 oz water bottle works best. (P.S. Use common sense and good judgment, blah blah blah, etc. etc. if you decide to do this, OK? Thanks. Love you guys.)

Step 6: Drop dry ice bomb into candy cannon. Place cup on top of the candy cannon. Run a safe distance away from the candy cannon. Wait for it....WAIT FOR IT!!!!

Step 7: BOOM!!! Dry ice bomb explodes. Candy and dollar bills shoot up in the air. HIGH up in the air. Like, you may or may not find candy on your roof later. Children are laughing, shoving candy in their mouths and dollar bills in their pockets. Your man just got to legitimately re-live the days of his wayward youth. Everybody is happy.

We took the candy cannon to Alek's family BBQ last Saturday and it was a huge hit. I, personally, didn't love the whole experience (see photo above where I'm nervously clutching the next batch of candy, head on Alek's shoulder like a security blanket, waiting in nervous anticipation for the bomb to explode). You know how when you open up a can of Pillsbury crescent rolls and at some point the can explodes open? And you don't know when it's coming, you just know it's coming at some point, and the anticipation is building, and your heart is pounding and that damn can of crescent rolls popping open scares you way more than it should? Well, the candy cannon is kind of like that.

All that said, it was TOTALLY worth it. After the last batch of candy and dollar bills were shot into the sky, Alek's nephew turned around and said "That was pretty much the coolest thing I've ever seen you do."

Thanks Papa and Gigi.

P.S. Check out Gizmodo's hilarous take on the candy cannon. ;-)

I'm Sorry Mama...I'm Cleaning Out My Closet

2010-07-30T16:08:00.006-06:00

My super-cute neighbor Taylor has organized a garage sale for everyone in my building. MMM. I LOVE a garage sale. Wheeling, dealing, cash burning a hole in my pocket, empty spaces in my closet to be filled...WHOOP!

Stop by and check it out!

Saturday, July 31st, 2010
8:00 AM - 1:00 PM
200 West 300 South
Salt Lake City

Here's what you'll find from me:
- Stuff in my closet that I've never worn, and must acknowledge that I'll never wear
- Stuff that is too "young" for my age (bye bye Miley Cyrus tank/tulle dresses!)
- Stuff that requires me to wear leggings underneath (bye bye tunics that make me look pregnant!)
- Stuff that is lovely but makes me feel sad inside (bye bye Swarovski crystal ring and little Longchamp Bag!)
- A table with six chairs that Alek refinished in distressed white with a charcoal stain. I want to keep this thing in storage for my someday house, but if it can sell, it will sell!

Next week I'll blog about all of the stuff I bought with my cash. Mwahahahaha!!!

Possibilities

2010-07-15T22:06:00.002-06:00

I LOVE LOVE LOVE a blank journal. Aaaahhhh, the possibilities. Every blank journal makes me think "YYEESSS. All I need is this journal and I will be WONDERFUL."

So of course at the Arts Festival this year I was sucked into the Iona Handcrafted Books tent...for like 30 minutes. I'm sure my friends were loving that but they totally indulged me. (Hugs!)

The tent was full of THE most gorgeous hand crafted journals. OH! They were so lovely. I bought a 200 page "Original" with an orange cover, but I DREAM of owning an Ultima. I think I'm going to put all of my Polaroids in my Iona and I may just plan a trip to Austin so I can drop by the studio. I may never leave.

I Will Love You All The Days of My Life

2010-07-02T08:00:00.002-06:00

Mom has been busy helping her boss prepare his condolences for a funeral today. The funeral is for a close family friend's 17-year old daughter who passed away very suddenly.

She asked what he was thinking in terms of flowers and he suggested 99 Roses, because 99 Roses means "I will love you all the days of my life."

Isn't that just the most lovely, lovely thought?

Now we are all intrigued about the secret language of flowers.

We don't really think about the meaning of flowers today whenever we give them, we just pick out a pretty flower and we give it to someone but actually the real meaning behind flowers and their secret language has been lost.

The Victorians used flowers as a discreet form of communication. During the 18th century sending flower messages based on a Turkish secret language of flowers became popular. This was known as sending a 'Persian Salaam' - a coded bouquet to reveal your feelings of love or attraction. The Victorians became very knowledgeable in flower language and chose and arranged their bouquets carefully.

The study of the meaning of flowers is an actual science known as floriography, and it reveals an extra underlying meaning to sending or receiving flowers - subtle and secret messages can be passed through the different type of flowers. -- The Language and Meaning of Flowers

Good News For All You Wanna Be Photographers Out There

2010-06-29T10:33:00.019-06:00

Good news for all you wannabe photographers out there! Or for anyone who just wants to take better pictures. One of our favorite photographers — and the stylish mind behind A Yummy Life — will be offering one more beginning photography class on July 13th.

We attended her May class and LOVED IT. Don't Mom and I look all serious about photography and stuff??

At the beginning of this year we made a goal to take more beautiful pictures. Jodi's class showed us tricks to make our pictures stand out and she also taught us to work those fancy cameras of ours.

Baby G, BC (Before Class)

Baby G, AC (After Class)

All on the manual setting! No more automatic for us. I've even got a little bokeh in there. What? you don't know what bokeh is? This class will tell you!
I know I'm no Annie Leibowitz, but I'm trying.

If you're interested in learning tricks of the trade and having a very fun evening, take the class. More info here.

Burning a hole...

2010-06-24T15:59:00.001-06:00

I have a $50 visa gift card burning a hole in my pocket.

I really want to use it to buy something I normally wouldn't.

Here are a few things I'm thinking about:

Fujifilm Instax Mini

Fun Retro Bikini

Yummy Kerastase Products

French Girl Shoes

(Estelle, are these shoes a fabulous French girl would wear?)

Pasta Maker

What do you think I should get?

Time for Curls?

2010-06-21T22:46:00.007-06:00

My hair is getting well past my shoulders. You might think that I think "Yay! My hair is finally long!" But really, I'm getting bored. B.O.R.E.D. Here's the problem when I get bored with my hair - my next step is usually to chop some or all of it off. Last time I chopped some thick straight bangs like Anne Hathaway in the Devil Wears Prada, thinking, of course, that I would look like Anne Hathaway. (I did not look like Anne Hathaway. I looked like me, with really awful bangs. )

My most drastic hair-boredom-cut was about 10 years ago when the lovely, lovely, lovely Gwyneth Paltrow was sporting that super short do in the movie Sliding Doors. Do you remember that era? Everyone had 2 inch hair and wore it all crazy with little bobby pins. The problem with that 'do was that my head is about 47 sizes bigger than Gwyneth Paltrow's so basically I looked like a Martian with short blond hair and too many bobby pins.

So, needless to say, I'm trying to resist some kind of drastic haircut. Then I came across this email from the Lovely Miss-T about the Her Styler curling iron. Miss-T has some amazing hair (Check out the picture of Miss-T from South by Southwest this year below. Yes, that's really her.) and she swears by this curling iron. The website says it's $250 but she said she got it from some crazy cart in the mall for $150.

I think that maybe this curling iron would be a wise investment for me right now. Wise indeed.

Oh So Yummy Lotion

2010-06-14T15:21:00.009-06:00

We were given this "recipe" for home made lotion by our fab sis-in-law/Auntie Babs and we have now made it 3 times. We're ready to say - it's great and oh so moisturizing. As you know we are dry gals and live in a desert. This combo is not too greasy and really keeps your skin feeling supple all day. Slather it on your feet, hands and body.

Here's the deal:
- 2 - 15oz Johnson & Johnson Baby Lotion (any flavor!) or we used 1 - 27oz bottle
- 8oz Vitamin E Cream (not lotion) by Fruit of the Earth comes in 2pk of 4oz jars at the Walmarts
- 1 - 7.5oz Vaseline - we have used up to 13oz of Vaseline (this is not rocket science and it turns out no matter what.)

Mix lotion and Vitamin E cream in a glass or stainless steel bowl with electric beaters. Add Vaseline about 1/4 of the jar at a time until fluffy and creamy.
Pour into a gallon zip lock bag.
Cut a small hole in the corner and squeeze into clean jars.
You can use the empty Vitamin E jars and anything you have around. I suppose you could even use wide mouth pint canning jars. We found our large jars at World Market for $2.99 and the small jars for $0.99. This would be a fun project for youth groups or girl scouts.

Enjoy your now smooth skin!

Glass Food Storage

2010-06-08T18:30:00.000-06:00

The big theme around our house lately is all about making healthier choices - especially when it comes to food. I could go on and on about our new philosophies on hormone free, humanely treated, grass fed meat and foods that don't have preservatives, but I'll save that for another time.

One way I am trying to keep my food safer is by using glass food storage containers. It's funny, I had been worried about using BPA free bottles for my baby, but I didn't think about doing that for my food.

Recently actress Mariel Hemingway was on Good Morning America, and she echoed what I had been hearing about using glass. She said to "store your food in glass containers instead of plastic ones. If plastic is exposed to high temperatures (such as from warming in a microwave oven) there’s a possibility that harmful chemicals such as BPA leach into your food, studies show. You can wash out and re-use glass baby food jars, glass peanut butter jars, or glass pasta sauce jars."

I found this set of Denmark Lock and Seal glass storage at my local Sam's Club.
I love how they look and that I see all the contents clearly.

Happy 1st Birthday Baby G!

2010-05-28T11:37:00.005-06:00

I must be getting old because MAN, this year went by fast! Enjoy these yummy pics from Jodi at A Yummy Life Photography.

IKEA Find: Dry Flat Blerg

2010-05-13T00:00:00.000-06:00

It seems almost everything I buy these days is "dry flat" or "hang to dry". Even if the tag doesn't say so, I tend to hang things out to dry if I want to keep them around for a while. It really helps clothing look better, longer. Because I hang so much stuff out, I am always maxed out on space in my laundry room.

I found this little blerg gem at IKEA. (It's called a Frost, but I call everything I buy there "Blerg".) It holds quite a bunch of stuff if you carefully orchestrate and use every square inch. The best part is that it folds flat in a snap and can be hidden away so you don't always look like you are running a laundry, even though you really always are. Sigh.

Frost Indoor/outdoor drying rack from IKEA - 19.99

Woolite: Always Fantastic and Now Eco Friendly!

2010-05-12T00:00:00.001-06:00

I'm on a laundry kick lately. Well, I guess I'm basically ALWAYS doing laundry, but I've found some new products that make laundry a little more exciting, therefore, I'll officially consider it a kick!

I found this new Woolite in environmentally friendly packaging up ta' tha' Walmarts and just had to try it out. I'm trying to be more "green" without being crazy about it. My "yippie" (that's yuppie+hippie) daughters must be rubbing off on me.

Anyway, I've used Woolite for years on my fragile clothes and it really helps with "pilling" and the longivity of sweaters. Now I also use the new Woolite for dark colors and it keeps everything from fading.

Flowers and Bows and Stripes, Oh My!!

2010-05-11T08:00:00.000-06:00

I llluuurrrvvveee the new spring styles at Payless. All of the details are so feminine and so sweet and the prices are so low...I want them in every color!

Let your style bloom with this darling American Eagle flat. It features a soft jersey upper, comfortable round toe, whimsical fabric flower detail, padded insole and lightweight, super flexible outsole. Fabric and manmade materials.

Bloom Flat - 12.99

Cute, casual and comfortable... you can't go wrong! This delightful American Eagle flat features a soft jersey upper, whimsical flower detail, stretchy topline for a good fit, padded cotton insole for comfort and lightweight, super flexible outsole. Fabric and manmade materials.

Eliza Flower Flat - $17.99

Complete your look with this chic American Eagle slingback. It features a sturdy canvas upper, sweetly rounded toe, whimsical bow detail, stretchy backstrap for a good fit and padded fabric insole for comfort. Fabric and manmade materials.

Cailey Slingback Flat - $12.99

Show off your flirty feminine side with this breezy sandal. It features a faux leather t-strap upper with playful flower details, a lightly padded footbed for comfort and a flexible outsole. 1/2" sliver wedge. Manmade materials.

Peyton Flower Sandal - $12.99

Treat yourself to this sweet, breezy sandal. It features a quality canvas upper, whimsical flower detail in soft faux suede, adjustable strap that wraps elegantly around the ankle, padded jersey footbed for comfort and 3.25" woven platform wedge. Fabric and manmade materials.

Petals Natural Wedge Sandal - $19.99

This chic designer slingback by alice + olivia features a bold striped upper in luxurious satin, a pretty peep toe, a stretchy slingback for a good fit, a padded insole for comfort and a 4.25" sculptural wedge. Fabric upper. Leather outsole.

Olivia Striped Slingback - $39.99

Spring Chicks

2010-05-05T23:31:00.004-06:00

I am not the mother of these girls, I am just their crazy Auntie. And I will shower them with lots of gifts and take them for pedicures and tea parties and have them over for sleepovers with waffles at midnight.

I may or may not put these yummy pictures from A Yummy Life on my desk and claim them as my own when strangers ask... how can I resist???

Jodi, you are fantastic and we adore you.

Baby Oil

2010-04-27T11:51:00.000-06:00

I have very sensitive skin and especially sensitive eyes. I have tried every eye makeup remover that promises it will not irritate and is specially formulated for sensitive skin.

Everything burns.

I always go back to my trusty baby oil. The only thing that gently removes my eye makeup. And the best part? I can get a giant bottle for a couple bucks that lasts for months. So, it's economical too.

It's Baaaaaccccckkkk!!!

2010-04-21T13:32:00.003-06:00

This morning, I squirted out the last few drops of my Lacoste Pour Femme perfume. This is one of the most divine fragrances ever. Lacoste (or rather P&G, owner of the Lacoste fragrance line) started selling Pour Femme in 2003. I distinctly remember the day that I took my first whiffs of this heavenly scent. We were waiting for a table at a restaurant and a rather stylish lady walked by us. All of us snapped our heads and instantaneously communicated with quick glances at each other that we wanted to know what scent this woman was wearing. Mom quickly blurted out the question and she told us it was Lacoste Pour Femme.

We have been wearing it ever since. A couple of years ago it got harder and harder to find. It was impossible to obtain it in a Lacoste store and it slowly started disappearing from such prestigious outlets as Purfumania and random flea markets. I once made the mistake of buying the hideous Lacoste "For Her" thinking that maybe they just came out with an English translation. (Sorry all you Lacoste "For Her" lovers out there, it just couldn't hold a candle to my dear "Pour Femme".) So, I shed a few tears, moved into a serious Jo Malone phase and saved my precious last bottle of Pour Femme for rainy days. Yes, it's raining here today.

I was planning to do a "Farewell to Lacoste Pour Femme" post, and then I thought I'd Google it to see what the hell happened. And what do you know?? You can buy it everywhere again!! And you can buy the lotion too!!!

What happened? Did I give up too soon? Were all of those teens working behind the Lacoste counters ill informed? Did someone find a giant box of product in a warehouse somewhere? Did P&G infuse this line with some needed capital? Did someone realize that the world was a better place with Pour Femme in it?? In any case, I've placed my order for body cream!! (I just accidentally typed booty cream, but I suppose you can put it on your booty too!)

MWAH!! MWAH!! MWAH!! Kisses to you Lacoste!!

P.S. Don't worry J and Mom, I got some for you too!!

I was going to name her "Bunny"

2010-04-17T22:38:00.007-06:00

Once upon a time a baby girl was born two weeks late on Easter Sunday. Her mom vowed to name the baby Bunny if she was THAT late. But, alas the moment she saw the babe she was smitten with the little girl and her big beautiful eyes. So she named her Natalie (a much wiser choice for such a special child). She has filled her parents lives with joy and happiness each day since. You inspire us with your zest for life and your grateful heart. We love you and honor you this day. Happy Birthday Nat-Bug!

Whoop Whoop! Photobooth!!

2010-04-08T23:25:00.007-06:00

Thanks to a great tip from my friend Kara (who totally rocks a faux-hawk and looks so cute it makes me want to chop off my hair...but I digress...) we have located a REAL photo booth!! Yes, REAL. Not digital. Whoop! It's at the Museum of Natural History at the University of Utah. And it only costs a buck! We stopped by there after Mom's Birthday lunch at Cafe Niche, which was lovely, by the way!!

Don't you just love the grainy texture of the pictures?? Let's all support this museum so that we can keep this photo booth alive, shall we?? More info at http://www.umnh.utah.edu/.

Yo Shawty, It's Your Birthday!

2010-04-08T09:36:00.002-06:00

Happy Birthday Mom!! This is one of my favorite pictures of us. I think it's because it reminds me that no matter where we are, and what we're doing, we always have a fabulous time together. You are my style icon -- with grace, beauty, and charisma to spare. I wish you a fantastic day and a fantastic start to your (Ahem! I'm not going to put your age in here!)-th Year! XOXO - Natalie

The Magic of Memory Foam

2010-04-07T09:46:00.000-06:00

For about two months straight I was having incredible headaches.

Seriously, I would wake up with a headache and it would last almost all day long or until I took some Excedrin. Since I don't want to spend my life having to ingest chemicals to function, I tried to find another remedy. First I had to figure out the root of the problem - was it my pillow, my husband or something more?

Since my neck was also hurting everyday, I made an educated guess that it might be the root of my problems. I then started to notice how I would toss and turn at night, constantly re-adjusting my pillow.

I decided I would get a memory foam pillow and see if it helped. While at my trusty Ross I picked one up for a mere $14.99 and brought it home.

Every day since (almost 2 months now) I have been headache free. Bliss.

Thanks Memory Foam!

Vinto Pizzeria

2010-04-05T11:06:00.002-06:00

Recently we had an EPIC shopping trip at the Ross in Bountiful. We are talking the best deals ever and three carts overflowing...but I digress. This post is really about the post-shopping dining. After such an experience we needed to re-energize with a good meal.

This is when Natalie told us we should try Vinto Pizzeria in downtown Salt Lake City.

If you are looking for a great place to eat for a casual date, a night out with the girls, lunch with business associates or after a shopping extravaganza, look no further than Vinto.

The atmosphere is lively and the food is delicious. David Harries, proprietor of local favorites Trio and Fresco, has focused Vinto on hip, casual, affordable dining focusing on fresh seasonal ingredients: everything on the menu is less than $12.00.

We highly recommend the housemade meatballs, one of three antipasti dishes we ordered.

The Italian chopped salad was so good we forgot to take a picture until after it was almost gone.

And of course the pizza's were delicious. Fresh ingredients and super hot right out of the oven.

Even the bathroom had style.

Vinto Pizzeria
418 East 200 South
Salt Lake City, Utah
801.539.9999
www.vinto.com

BABIES

2010-03-29T07:00:00.005-06:00

I really love babies.

Obviously this comes from recently having my very first. But I don't think I was prepared for the head over heels, can't-get-enough-of-everything-she-does, thinks-she-is-a-genius type of love. And I don't just love her. I really really like her.

Enough gushing. The point is, last night I saw this preview for the first time and I cried. I laughed and I cried. There is something about babies. They are innocent. And I cannot wait to see this movie.

I told my husband he has to take me for Mother's Day.

Food Rules

2010-03-28T22:38:00.004-06:00

Tonight I was at The Wal-Marts picking up a few things when I came across some string cheese. I thought it would make a good snack to have on hand for the upcoming week. The problem was, I looked at the ingredients and they broke multiple food rules:

Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry.
Avoid food products that contain more than five ingredients.
Avoid food products containing ingredients that a third-grader cannot pronounce.

So alas, I had to put back that particular brand of string cheese.

I am obsessed with food since I watched Food Inc. and I have now purchased all of Michael Pollan's books. I highly recommend picking up Food Rules, which is a simple guidebook of 64 rules for better eating based on Pollan's core principles:

1. Eat Food
2. Mostly Plants
3. Not Too Much

Here are some of my favorite Food Rules:

2. Don't eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food.
3. Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry.
7. Avoid food products containing ingredients that a third-grader cannot pronounce.
9. Avoid food products with the wordoid "lite" or the terms "low-fat" or "non-fat" in their names.
13. Eat only foods that will eventually rot.
27. Eat animals that have themselves eaten well.
36. Don't eat breakfast cereals that change the color of the milk.
39. Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.
44. Pay more, eat less.
51. Spend as much time enjoying the meal as it took to prepare it.
64. Break the rules once in a while.

"Eating doesn't have to be so complicated. In this age of ever-more elaborate diets and conflicting health advice, Food Rules brings a welcome simplicity to our daily decisions about food. Written with the clarity, concision and wit that has become bestselling author Michael Pollan's trademark, this indispensable handbook lays out a set of straightforward, memorable rules for eating wisely, one per page, accompanied by a concise explanation. It's an easy-to-use guide that draws from a variety of traditions, suggesting how different cultures through the ages have arrived at the same enduring wisdom about food. Whether at the supermarket or an all-you-can-eat buffet, this is the perfect guide for anyone who ever wondered, "What should I eat?"

TRESemme' Curl Activator

2010-03-25T11:44:00.004-06:00

I'm always looking for ways to hold curl in my hair. I recently picked up TRESemme' Curl Activator at my local Walmarts a few weeks ago and have used it almost everyday since. I like how it works with my hot curlers and curling iron. I'm a hot curler gal on most days and it does help in a gentle way when you use it according to directions (spraying through your hair and blow dry for one minute).

But if you want really sculpted curls you can use it by spraying on the ends before curling each piece and it really sticks. There are times when I want that type of curl and it's major sticky so don't try to brush through it - just wash it after you use that look.

DownEast Clothing Sale!

2010-03-18T12:11:00.000-06:00

Online or in stores, DownEast is having a fantastic sale!

This beautiful sweater, only $10. We may or may not have picked up one in every color available.

(JCrew style without the high price.)

I bought this dress for full price and am sad to see it is now only $10 . I could have saved myself almost $30.

Love the detailing on this basic top. Only $5.

And there is much more in the stores including darling ruffle edge trench coats, silk dresses with rosette details, and skirts in fun prints perfect for spring.

Old Tom Foolery Cards

2010-03-15T15:08:00.007-06:00

We really love a card that makes us laugh.
We recently discovered Old Tom Foolery cards and they did just that. Made us laugh.Their headline says it all -
Unsappy, uncrappy greetings.

Love the old timey newspaper look and witty headlines.

I think a few of these are going to make it into my collection of cards to have on hand. Around here someone is always getting married, having a baby, having a birthday or doing something that requires a thank you card.

Pay Attention to Price Tags!

2010-03-12T07:00:00.001-07:00

Whilst rummaging through the skirt rack at Ross recently I saw a cute gray pleated skirt and thought I might want to buy it, if the price was right.
I always check prices and was stunned to see it was only $0.49 - now I'm used to getting good deals, but this was ridiculous. I threw it in my cart and proceeded to the cashier. You notice I did not try it on. If it didn't fit, I wasn't out too much. And maybe it would work for someone else.
I asked the cashier if this could possibly be the correct price (since I wasn't trying to scam anyone) so she scanned it and said "yes."
Wowsa! Getting a deal like that was fun with a capital F and Natalie looks great in the skirt!

Best.Kitchen.Gadget.Ever.

2010-03-11T10:10:00.001-07:00

OXO Mango Slicer. Best $12.99 I've ever spent on something for the kitchen.

Oscar Hit

2010-03-08T13:35:00.000-07:00

MTV dubbed her worst dressed and called her gown "ridiculous" but the purple Givenchy Couture gown worn by Zoe Saldana was my favorite of the night.

What was your favorite dress?

140 Words or Less

2010-03-08T12:02:00.004-07:00

I have a Twitter account but I am very bad at doing updates. I really only use it now to follow other people.

While I enjoy reading about the everyday things other people do, I always think that no one wants to read about the mundane details of my life. For instance, when I'm up at 2am painting my walls and watching old episodes of Modern Family.

I also love the idea of journaling but I am very bad at sitting down each night and writing out my thoughts and feelings. It's too hard for me to write every single night. I'd rather be doing anything else, really.

Then it hit me. I should do a "Twitter Journal." Each night I will write a brief tidbit about my day in 140 words or less. That way I capture each day without a lot of pressure that an entire blank journal page brings.

Turns out this wasn't a totally original idea. I found this journal on Amazon.

It has just enough space to record a single thought, special event or quote for everyday for the next five years.

Perfect! I am ordering one now.

Toscano Pizzeria & Gelato

2010-03-05T11:37:00.000-07:00

I'm not really a food snob, but I know what I like and I'm a harsh judge.
I make quick judgments about some restaurants before I even sit down. If the place has a bad vibe - I'm out. Next judgment comes with the bread basket. It needs to be fresh and warm (I prefer artisan or other nice bread varieties but if it's fresh it will pass.) Next it's the salad and I am the most opinionated about that. If it's a pile of iceberg lettuce and carrot shreds with ranch, that's a deal killer.

I was pleasantly surprised to walk into this new restaurant Toscano Pizzeria & Gelato in Sandy (in a strip mall no less!) last week. The vibe was good. It felt like I was in a restaurant in a bigger city. Finding a good non-chain restaurant in our fair city is hard to do, so when it happens I am thrilled. I was there on a Saturday night and they had live music too. The smells from the fire oven really sealed the deal.

When the menu had my favorite arugula salad and my husbands favorite caprese salad I was giddy.

We ordered the Fresh Sliced Prosciutto pizza with crushed San Marzano Tomatoes, Ricotta Cheese, Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella, finished with fresh Arugula (yup more Arugula!) It was heavenly. Really fresh, delicious tasting food.

Top off the meal with Italian Gelato. They have too may flavors to mention. I'm crazy about the Cherry Yogurt.

Run don't walk to Pizzeria Toscano

17 E 11400S
Sandy UT 84070
801.572.5507

All images found here

Join The Dating Revolution

2010-03-01T20:41:00.004-07:00

When I moved back to Utah I was in desperate need of two things: my family and a therapist. Lucky for me, my Dad had been talking to a client of his about my impending divorce and she referred me to the phenomenal Karen Kindred. I saw Karen for about 18 months and I can honestly say that she changed my life through her pragmatic approach to relationships and her sassy, memorable catchphrases. Her motto: change your thinking, change your life.

I was intrigued and excited when Karen asked me (now that I was no longer a client) if I would be interested in helping her teach a series of Dating 101 workshops that she was starting in 2010. I jumped at the chance to participate.

Karen has noticed a trend in her practice: people have stopped dating. They hang out, hook up, sleep over and break up. They get into a relationship and move things way too fast, the result being that the relationship either burns out in 2 or 3 months or the couple gets married way too quickly and things end badly.

Karen wants to start a new dating revolution where people understand themselves and what they want, what the right pace is for the different stages of a relationship, how to communicate better and how to make progress in the relationship - whether that means moving forward to different levels of intimacy or breaking up. Even more than that, she hopes to teach people how to HAVE FUN dating. To teach people how to fall into LIKE in order to fall in love.

Karen is offering a FREE introductory Dating 101 workshop next Tuesday, March 9th at 7:00 PM at the Cottonwood Club. It's a great opportunity to get a sense for what the Dating 101 workshops are like, eat some yummy food and meet some like minded local singles. There's no pressure to sign up for the series - in fact, we'd love to have you attend the free session just to get your feedback! MORE INFO

Here is the scoop on the Dating 101 workshops:

What is it?
Six week workshop series. Workshops meet once a week for 90 minutes. Each group is co-ed.

Week 1
Slow and Steady Wins The Race: Understanding the different phases of a relationship and how NOT to move things too fast. How do you show someone you're interested in them? What should a healthy relationship look like?

Week 2
Don’t Sell a Bill of Goods: How to be authentic from the beginning of a relationship, set your boundaries and start speaking your truth.

Week 3
Conquering Fears: Understanding relationship fears and how to conquer them.

Week 4
Out With The Old, In With The New: IF, WHEN and HOW to break-up.

Week 5
Life is a Conversation: Communication. Communication. Communication. Understanding productive communication in a relationship. Did we mention this week is about communication?

Week 6
Know Thyself: Understanding your unique personality type and what you are looking for in a relationship. How to keep your relationship FUN and spicy.

Find out more at www.kindreddating101.com

Free Dating 101 Workshop
Tuesday, March 9th at 7:00 PM
The Cottonwood Club
1780 East Lakewood Drive (approximately 5400 South)
Holladay, Utah
DIRECTIONS

From Sea to Sea

2010-02-24T09:39:00.000-07:00

Loving these nautical inspired pieces.

Olive Oyl Headband by Lou and Lee
My Pet Octopus Cuff from Mod Cloth
Clear The Sea Top from Forever 21
Striped Trench Coat from Target
Anchor Border Hoodie by Sailor Jerry
Red Velvet Headband by madamepumphre

Where Have All the Photobooths Gone?

2010-02-23T07:00:00.001-07:00

We love taking pictures in photo booths - the old-school black and white kind. Not the new digital ones that will print in black and white.
A couple years ago we decided that whenever we see one, we have to get our picture taken, no matter what we are wearing or what we look like. Hence this set of pictures we took post hike July 2008. It was after our 4th of July hike to Lake Blanche. We got pedicures and went over to Kmart to have our picture taken. That's right, we were walking around Kmart, dirty as hell in baseball caps, tank tops, cargo shorts and paper flip-flops from the nail salon. I told you we said we'd take our photo no matter what we looked like! It's amazing we got any kind of poses out because we were laughing so hard. Plus, it's really difficult to fit 3 people.

These are kind of dying out and it's making us sad. All of the KMart's in Utah have pulled them. I know, I called every single one. Anyone know who still has one in Utah?

Strawberry POMegranate Smoothie

2010-02-22T09:44:00.003-07:00

We are trying to eat healthier. But getting the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables in a day can be difficult. So lately we have been making berry smoothies.

This morning I made our favorite smoothie found via Lick The Bowl Good (a very dangerous blog filled with lots of recipes for yummy treats.)

Try it. You won't be disappointed.

image via Lick The Bowl Good

Strawberry POMegranate Smoothie

2 ripe bananas
8 oz. yogurt
4 oz. POM Wonderful Juice
2 Tbsp. honey
12 frozen strawberries

Place all ingredients in blender in order as they appear above. Blend well til the frozen strawberries are smooth. Scrape the honey down off the pitcher sides if necessary. Pour into tall glasses and garnish with a fresh strawberry and a straw.
Makes 2 tall servings- about 4 1/2 cups.

Modern Family

2010-02-16T08:00:00.000-07:00

We talk about this show so much I can't believe that we haven't written a post about it. I am just going to say it: Modern Family is the funniest show on TV right now. It is possibly the funniest show I've ever seen on TV, possibly funnier than (gulp!) Arrested Development. Oh, how I adore Arrested Development...It pains me to say that I love Modern Family as much or maybe just a little more...

If you are not watching Modern Family (it airs Wednesdays on ABC or watch episodes on Hulu or ABC.com or buy it on iTunes), please start watching it now. You won't be sorry.

Today's Modern Family comes in all shapes and sizes. Just ask these three families.

Jay recently married Gloria. Now Jay is trying hard to keep up with his much younger and hotter Colombian wife, along with her passionate pre-teen son, Manny. Claire is having a hard time raising her own family. Her husband Phil is great, except that he thinks he's "down" with their three kids, much to all their embarrassment. And, Mitchell and his enthusiastic partner Cameron have just made a major life change by adopting a Vietnamese baby named Lily.

Feeling Like Organizing

2010-02-15T08:00:00.001-07:00

Something about the new year gets me in the mood to organize.

My closet is tiny, so with every season change I rotate my wardrobe into the house from the bins in the garage. (I won't lie, it was a bit hard to give up my spare closet for Baby G, but it has been a lot of fun to fill it up with cute baby clothes.) ANYWAY, the big seasonal rotation of my clothes is a good opportunity to organize and clean out the closet a couple of times a year. The problem is, the closet stays organized for, oh, about a month before I start to get lazy and shove things everywhere.

The other day I realized my closet was too far gone to ignore. So I plopped the baby on the bed with some toys and folded all the sweaters, pants and tops.

(Wow, the sweaters look messy in this photo, but I promise you it's night and day from before. I guess I should have taken a 'before' photo. Oh well, lesson learned.)

Then I took all my hanging tops and put them on these new hangers found at Ross to maximize my space.

Then I finally got out the plastic bottles Mom and I bought almost a year ago, and unified the products in my shower. Everything is now in these matching bottles with their names written on the bottom with a permanent sharpie.

I got this idea from the fabulous Martha Stewart who inspires and makes me feel guilty all at the same time.

Martha says, "Uniform plastic bottles not only look better than the usual shampoo and soap containers, but they also fit more neatly in storage devices."

By then I was REALLY goosed up so I finally started a painting project in my basement. I know, it's not really organizing related, but it's home improvement.

I cannot wait to show you the final product!

For lots of organizing inspiration go here or here.

P.S. I didn't forget about Baby G on the bed in all of this. I don't care about organizing. THAT much. :-)

SHAZAM!! Nike Does It AGAIN!!!

2010-02-12T20:02:00.003-07:00

I just saw this Nike Ad and it gave me the CHILLS. The song is Ali in the Jungle by The Hours (Thanks Shazam! My most favorite iPhone app EVER!). How cool is it that this ad features BMX, Cowboys and MMA fighters too? And people falling down? And Lance Armstrong? Damn Nike, you're GOOD.

Happy 2010 Winter Olympic Games!

Black Flats for Spring

2010-02-11T07:00:00.000-07:00

For me, black flats are an essential item in my wardrobe.

I recently found these at Payless and think they would be perfect for Spring.
I am crazy about the satin detail on the toe.
I just need to wait for them to go on sale.

Aaahh, Love!

2010-02-10T10:36:00.005-07:00

I get really excited when the holiday Starbucks cups are out. I don't know why. To me, it signals that the holiday season has begun. I also love Valentine's Day. Sorry to all the haters out there, but I do love it. I love the cheesiness, the candy hearts, the excuse to tell everyone in the world that you love them. I think it's because Mom has always made our Valentine's day really special. I love you Mom!

Anyway, I noticed that Starbucks has a new line of "Love" cups out just in time for Valentines Day. My cup is making me smile as I sit stuck in a hotel ballroom all day. The cups are part of the Starbucks Love Project, in conjunction with (red). For every drawing that is added to their Love Gallery, $0.05 is donated help fight AIDS in Africa. And who knows, your drawing might end up on a cup someday and make someone smile as they sit stuck in a hotel ballroom all day.

Check out the gallery at http://www.starbucksloveproject.com/#/love/

Tote Bag Madness

2010-02-09T07:00:00.000-07:00

I probably have some form of "tote madness" if there is such a thing.
I really love to have a tote with me at all times either serving as my purse (yup I carry around way too much stuff) or my brief case.

We love the Crate and Barrel patent look totes they seem to feature every season.
We've blogged about these before here and here.

Available on Crate and Barrel for $26.95

I seem to be on an Post-Christmas-Special-Treat-Myself-Kick.
So I decided to find a new tote to help me make it until spring. You know, just to lift my mood and make me feel organized. You know the feeling, it's the "With this new bag I'm going to be wonderful" type of feeling.
I found these at Dillard's and I debated for about 2 or 3 minutes and bought one. I'm tempted to go back for more.

Kate Landry PVC Item Tote

New Lower Price!

This roomy crackled PVC tote features:

magnetic closure
double straps
zippered and slip inside pockets
pen holder and key hook

15x6.5x15". Only Dillard's.

03198335

Orig. $69.00
Now $34.50

Great deal on Dillards.com

Run Fat Girl, Run!

2010-02-08T20:37:00.010-07:00

I signed up for the Huntington Beach Surf City Half Marathon last November, thinking that having it on the calendar would help me keep my holiday binge eating in control and help me actually LOSE weight before the race. Well, that was not to be. But I still went last weekend, and along with my fabulous friend Lisa, finished in a respectable time. Check out the sweet surf board medals! WHOOP!

BOTH Janaan and Lisa's husband Scott have noted that if I can do this well with zero training and while consuming large amounts of alcohol and food, what could happen if I actually TRIED?? HMMM??? Well, you're on Scott and Janaan!! It's 10 weeks to the Salt Lake Half Marathon and I am...drumroll please...actually going to train for it!! This means following my training plan (or rather, following the training plan that Lisa has so kindly mapped out for me), eating healthy, and NO ALOCOHOL for the next 10 weeks. Sigh. I'll miss you most of all Sunday evening glass or two of wine.

Lisa wants to finish the Salt Lake half in less than 2 hours and I want to be right by her side to support her! This will mean shaving 2 minutes off of my current mile time. Have I mentioned that Lisa is fabulous? She has always been someone that inspired me - as a fellow marketer, as a friend, as a kick-ass cancer survivor, as a sister, as a mother, and definitely as someone who is constantly pushing to stay in shape. If not for Lisa, I would not be running. I probably wouldn't even have a gym membership. I actually have TWO gym memberships right now. Seriously. So, let the training begin!! Here are some of my recent favorite running discoveries:

Book

Lisa introduced me to this book: Slow Fat Triathlete. If you're interested in running, swimming, biking, or all three in one event, you really should check out this book. It's not only full of useful, practical tips for those of us that don't ever expect (or even really want) to be crossing the Ironman finish line at Kona, it is absolutely HILARIOUS. I love you Jayne Williams.

Music
I am constantly changing out my running music. These are my favorite tracks right now:

David Guetta featuring Kid Cudi: Memories
Pitbull featuring Akon: Shut it Down
Ke$ha: Tik Tok
One Republic: All the Right Moves
Kid Cudi featuring Billy Craven: My World
Timbaland featuring Justin Timberlake: Carry Out
Passion Pit: Moth's Wings
Nikelback: Burn It to the Ground
Phoenix: 1901
David Guetta featuring Akon: Sexy Bitch
Jay-Z featuring Mr. Hudson: Young Forever

And yes, it's probably becoming cliche, but I am a SUCKER for I've Gotta Feeling by Black Eyed Peas.

Sharkies!
What?? Gluten Free, Wheat Free, Nut Free, Vegetarian, USDA Certified Organic, a Natural Source of Energy AND shaped like Sharks?? Count me in!!

RunningSkirts.com
These totally cute twin sisters were working their booth at the Surf City Expo and wearing matching cheetah print running skirts. I was instantly smitten! I love running skirts and they definitely have the cutest skirts I've seen (and their skirts have no interior seams so your lady bits don't get chafed, I know, I know, TMI, but you have to think about these things). I was tempted to buy the plaid print in every color but ended up with the camo print. Camo and hot pink, is there anything better?? And 15% of all sales of Skirt Camp camouflage apparel benefits wounded soldiers and military families funds. Nice! This is what I'll be wearing for the Salt Lake City Half!!

LOVE!
You can't do stuff like this without a lot of love. Thanks to Lisa for being my inspiration and motivation, to Mom and Dad for watching Lucy, to Tiff for being so supportive and a great cheerleader (we missed you!!), to Charley and the Crazy Cousins for pulling our rental car out of the mud (that's another story), to Scott for being so damn funny, and especially to Alek for being my sunshine every single day and for being there when I crossed the finish line.

Come on, run the Salt Lake Half Marathon with us! April 17th, 2010, 7:00 AM. More info at: http://www.saltlakecitymarathon.com/

Same Shoes: Oh Sweet Sadie Show

2010-02-08T20:00:00.001-07:00

One of the things that makes us sad is that we all have different sized feet, which means we can't share shoes, which means that if we find a pair of shoes we like we all buy them, which means we run the risk of wearing them on the same day to the same places. Like last week when Janaan and I wore these little numbers to the Oh Sweet Sadie show. We even had matching funky socks. This same shoe/sock thing happens more often than we care to admit.

A Little Bit of Sparkle

2010-02-08T07:00:00.001-07:00

Whenever I get a 50% off coupon at Michael's, I start thinking about which Martha Stewart item I'm going to pick up with it, because, let's face it, her stuff is the best.

Recently, I picked up the Martha Stewart Essential Colors 24 Piece Glitter Set.

It is so so lovely, that I almost didn't want to use any of it. I wouldn't even let Eliza (my 5-year old niece) see it, lest she want to go to town. Is that bad???

I have a feeling that all my future invitations and what-not will all have a touch of that special Martha Stewart sparkle.

Oh Sweet Sadie This Weekend

2010-02-05T09:41:00.011-07:00

The Oh Sweet Sadie Art & Gift Show is this weekend in Daybreak. We hit up the pre sale last night to check it out.

This show featured a great collection of local artisans. It was so fun to peruse the aisles and pick out little gems.

These are a few of our favorite things...

* Cute, funky and just a little offbeat skull bib by Vinylicious.

*Chunky copper jewelry from The Pink Chandelier.

* Hand sewn fabric holiday banners by AddieBugs. I picked up a similar LOVE banner for Valentine's Day.

* Classic tricot nightgowns. We used to wear these growing up. Now we're buying them for our girls.

* My Growing Season for cute, well made quiet books for church and travel.

We also loved the wrapped hula hoops, handmade cake plates, felt flower clips for girls, bolts of grosgrain ribbon, Squeaker Sneakers, enamel jewelry and much more.

Oh Sweet Sadie Art & Gift Show

SoDa Row at Daybreak in South Jordan, Utah

Friday February 5-6, 9:30AM - 8:00PM

Countdown to the 2010 Farmer's Market

2010-02-02T21:28:00.013-07:00

I've been meaning to do this post since, oh, July. So, sorry, everyone. I have really had the winter blues lately. I don't remember feeling this way last winter. I like it when the snow dumps and dumps and it's a winter wonderland, or at least wonderland-ish. But when it is cold and gray and the inversion blocks out the mountains and the moonlight for weeks at a time, I totally get a touch of the S.A.D.

I've also been thinking about the farmer's market a lot lately. Mostly because I've become obsessed with fresh, locally grown food after watching Food, Inc. But the Farmer's market isn't just about waking up on Saturday and moseying on down in the sunshine for fresh roasted Jack Mormon Coffee lattes, gorgeous seasonal produce that I have no idea what to do with, homemade tacos that are incredibly delicious at 10:00 in the morning, and 25 kinds of hummus, it's also about fabulous arts and crafts and housewares.

Here are some of our favorite vendors from the 2009 Salt Lake City Farmer's Market, Park City Farmer's Market, and the Art's Festival. I hope that they will be back this year. You can find many of them on Etsy so you can create a little bit of summer while you bide your time until June 10th when the Farmer's Market officially starts.

XOXO,
Natalie

Its The Little Things

Seen at: Park City Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: Most.Beautiful.Headbands.EVER! I DIE!!
www.itsthelittlethingsut.etsy.com

Red Truck Gallery

Seen at: Art's Festival
Natalie Says: I wish I had enough money to buy a Chris Roberts-Antieau original. Beautiful AND cheeky all at the same time.
www.redtruckgallery.com

white elephant
Seen at: Park City Silly Sunday Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: Future Natalie's babies would wear these T-shirts and onsies.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/wecollective

Easy Keeper
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: Charming letterpress items from a graphic designer working on a 1901 Golding Pearl Press.
http://www.easykeeper.ecrater.com/

Vintage Fern
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: We fell in love with the vintage slips and skirts. Future Natalie's babies would be seen in these onsies too.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/vintagefern

Ruthie Pearl
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: DARLING reusable fabric bags.
http://ruthiepearl.com/

Fiber and Fire
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: Lovely quilts and vintage furniture.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/fiberandfire

Pink Bench

Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market
Natalie Says: They claimed to have a headband that didn't hurt and they didn't lie.
www.pinkbench.com

These vendors don't have websites but keep an eye out for them:

re.Collection Clothing
Seen at: Rotating every other week at the Downtown Farmer's Market and Park City Silly Sunday Famer's Market

Punkenstein Jewelry
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market

amy&emily's home decor
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market

Darwin's Attic
Seen at: Salt Lake City Farmer's Market

My Fav Wallet

2010-02-01T12:00:00.002-07:00

Last year I bought a wallet that for a "Cheaping Girl" was too expensive.

But after dozens of wallets strewn along the path of my shopping life, finally this is the best one I have ever had.

It's patent leather (ya know patent leather just does something for an outfit) with a super hero strong magnetic closure that holds all the myriad of identification/credit cards/receipts/cash/coin.
You can load this baby up and it will still hold it.

Sometimes I go rogue and just carry it in the store like this (despite my good intentions my purse is still quite overloaded and my shoulder is always sore.)
It is available on Zappos.com for $94.00

Change The World With Every Bite You Eat

2010-01-28T23:47:00.003-07:00

Do you know where your food is coming from? I sure didn't. WE HAVE THE POWER to change what is happening. Please watch Food, Inc. At least watch the preview. I've put it right here so it's really easy. Just click. THANK YOU.

Five Things You Can Do Now
1. Buy organic or sustainable food.
2. Go without meat once a week.
3. Read labels—know where your food comes from.
4. Drink more water, fewer sugary beverages.
5. Support companies that treat workers, animals, and the environment with respect.

Find out more at: http://www.takepart.com/foodinc

Heaven

2010-01-27T18:57:00.006-07:00

Have we ever told you about the first time we went to Kiehl's? This was back in the day when there was only one Kiehl's store on the planet, in New York City. Aaahhh, New York.

I think it may have been my first trip to New York, and I of course assumed that New York would follow the same logical grid system on which Salt Lake City is based, I mean, why wouldn't it? So I, with the UTMOST confidence, looked at the address and directed Mom and Janaan onto the subway and off we went. Well, when we got to our stop we were in the wrong neighborhood. And I mean, we were in the WRONG neighborhood. It was definitely not the East Village. It reminded me of the scene in Grand Canyon when Kevin Kline gets lost around The Forum in Los Angeles and then gets a flat tire. He tells his son "you've never been where I am."

Anyhoo, we found Kiehl's eventually and have been huge fans ever since. I personally was excited when Kiehl's was acquired by L'Oreal and there was broader distribution of their incredible products.

Last weekend we were at our lovely new Nordstrom (OMG they have Jo Malone there, I nearly fell over with excitement) and discovered Kiehl's Imperial Body Balm. Besides the wicked black packaging, this product features:

* Old-world Russian herbal remedies (it's used on the space station!)
* Honey and Fruit Glycolic Acids to immediately reveal a new skin softness and radiance
* High levels of antioxidant-rich butters help protect skin from environmental damage

Blah blah blah, here's the important stuff:
* It smells like heaven.
* A dollop the size of the quarter WILL cover your whole body, neck to toes (take it from me, someone who has experience with about every moisturizer out there and requires A LOT of moisture to make it remotely bearable to be in my skin)
* It hydrates your skin for hours and hours and hours. When you wake up your skin will feel like it did right after you put it on. My skin even felt better, longer, right after I got out of the shower (I usually have about a 90 second window before I need to get some kind of moisturizer on).

I am absolutely in love with this product. Oh, and if you're ever in New York, be sure to go to the original Kiehl's store. It's SO charming and it's totally worth seeking out, even if you get a little lost along the way.

Favorite New Cardigan

2010-01-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday I went out shopping to have some fun with gift cards from my Christmas booty.
As a lover of cardigans, I was delighted when I found this darling cardigan at Ann Taylor Loft.
I especially love the polka dot flower on the front. I also like that it's navy polka dot - I hardly have any navy clothes.

Dot Rosette Crew Cardigan - $59.50 at anntaylorloft.com

Vegas Off the Strip

2010-01-24T23:05:00.004-07:00

I've spent entirely too much time in Las Vegas lately. Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE Las Vegas. It has the best shopping, spas, restaurants and entertainment in a single six mile strip, with blue skies and sunshine (something that has been rare around here lately) to boot.

I really can't complain about the amount of time I've spent in Vegas, because there is a whole team of really fantastic people that I work with that have spent 10X that amount of time there in the last three months (but that's a topic for another post). One of the great things about knowing people that have spent 6-12 weeks of their lives in Vegas is that they know about some fabulous places to eat that are off of the beaten path.

Sushi on Trop
Location: 2625 E. Tropicana Avenue (Tropicana and Topaz)
You basically pay $30-ish for an hour of all you can eat Sushi. The Sushi is REALLY tasty (Who's Your Daddy Roll is a must) and the restaurant is REALLY fun. The Sushi Chef's will drink Sake Bombs with you (they make the Sake Bombs by balancing the shot glass of sake on chopsticks above the beer glass and then use their foreheads to tip the sake into the beer, all the while the whole place is yelling "Sake Bomb! Sake Bomb!"). One item of note, should you be at Sushi on Trop near closing time and should the Sushi Chef's have had a half dozen or so sake bombs don't be surprised if they grab your bum if you go to take a picture with them...ah, Vegas.

Lindo Michoacan
Remember that scene in Jerry Maguire when they go on their first date to a totally Hollywood-created Mexican restaurant complete with a mariachi band that comes around at just the wrong moment? Well, that basically describes Lindo Michoacan. It is everything you would expect from the ideal Mexican restaurant, mariachi band included. And the food is ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. There are several locations around Vegas: http://www.lindomichoacan.com/

Lotus of Siam
This seemed to be the cool place to be taken to lunch at CES. There was a rumor going around that someone sat next to someone who sat next to Carlos Santana at lunch one day. The point is, this is the best.Thai.Food.EVER. 953 E. Sahara Ave. Suite A5 http://www.saipinchutima.com/

Tamba Lounge
OK, technically this Indian restaurant is on the strip, but it's in a location that I've never thought twice about. You know that Hawaiian village shopping area that is between the MGM Grand and Planet Hollywood? Yeah, it's in there. I know, right!!?? I guess I need to open my eyes to see past the hideous novelty T-Shirts and those guys shuffling business cards with naked girls on the front every once in a while. Everyone I work with is crazy about this place. http://www.tambalounge.com/main.html

Method Madness

2010-01-22T08:00:00.003-07:00

A little while ago I posted about my favorite fabric softener. I am now going to add to that with my newest, most favoriteist (is that a word, I think not but I'll roll with it) baby detergent.

Method Laundry Detergent for Baby

I picked up a bottle of this at my local Ross for only $4.99 (suggested price $15.99) on a whim. The pink bottle was so cute and I needed some detergent anyway.

So what makes this stuff so special? It contains no harsh chemicals or dyes that can irritate baby's tender skin; specially formulated to work on both standard and high efficiency (H.E.) washers; the concentrated formula contains 2/3 less water and requires less water to rinse clean; bottle is made of 25% or more post-consumer recycled plastic; AND it smells SO GOOD!

I wish I would have snagged the other bottle in stock. I won't make that mistake again. Next time I see the discounted bottles at Ross, I'm scooping 'em up.

I may just start using this stuff on my clothes too...

Yummy Smells

2010-01-21T09:41:00.001-07:00

I don't have a lot of perfumes I like, so when I find one I do like, I'm very excited about it. For many years my favorite scent has been Clean. It just smells just like the name - clean and fresh.

Clean Eau de Parfum, the signature scent, is reminiscent of pure soap. It combines the fragrance notes of litsea cubeba, orange, sweet lime, pink grapefruit, passion lily, rose geranium, and white musk.

Clean is available on Sephora.com - $38.00

My new favorite is Fresh Sugar Lemon. I'm crazy for all things citrus and this one fits the bill.

A bright effervescent fragrance that combines zesty citrus notes of Italian lemon and mandarin with fruity florals such as orange blossom and ginger flower and sensual undertones of oak moss, caramel and white sandal.

Available on Saks.com - $24.50

99cent Patterns

2010-01-20T13:42:00.002-07:00

We have come to the realization that you have to consume a little in order to create.

This is what we have been doing, at a bargain.

From January 17 - 23, JoAnn's is offering all Simplicity Patterns for only 99 cents! These are normally priced at an average of $13.95.

We stocked up on a few to help us on our way.

Candy Scoops

2010-01-18T12:00:00.001-07:00

I have my little obsessions from time to time (glass cake plates and domes, dishes, ribbons, nude tights, headbands, lipstick, must I go on?).

About a year ago I saw a mini candy scoop at a wonderful boutique. I tried to buy it but they said it was the last one the had and they could not sell it. So I just tucked it away in my brain and from that day forward I looked for tiny scoops wherever I shopped.

During the holidays I was at a great store here in Salt Lake City called Orson Gygi and what to my wondering eyes should appear TEENY TINY silver SCOOPS.

I was so excited I emptied the entire container into my cart lest someone else grab them. Mind you I was the only one even looking at them, but in my crazy obsession for them I thought others might be on the same insane quest. I think they are so sweet and unique to have in your candy dish at home.

I love this size, but some people think there is just not enough candy for a mouthful. Too bad.

I use these medium scoops in my big candy jars. Some people still use their hands at my house. Shame!

LionsDeal.com has a large selection of scoops for your enjoyment. Unfortunately Orson Gygi does not feature the mini-scoop on their website - but I bet you could call them to order.

Dollartree Finds

2010-01-15T09:00:00.001-07:00

I like to pop into Dollartree on occasion to just see what they might have that's fun.

One time I was at a bank drive through in the parking lot of my local Dollartree and I thought to myself "Self, I'm already here, might as well pop in."

I made a right turn from the drive-through and went over a three foot embankment not realizing it was there.

I was so shocked and embarrassed that I just gunned it and made it over with some crunching and crashing. I immediately parked at the store and checked under my car for the damage and realized this was going to be an expensive trip to the dollar store. However, miracle of miracles I had a dent in my muffler, but no other obvious damage. I never told my husband and the car is still sounding and running fine. Whew.

I have since tried to safely and slowly pop into Dollartree. Yesterday I found these cute glycerin soaps that look like they have fruit inside. I thought they were very cute and would be fun for my grand daughter to play with in the bath tub.

Fun Pumps

2010-01-13T08:46:00.004-07:00

I really think this smoggy depressing weather wouldn't be so bad if I were wearing these.

Such a Tease

2010-01-12T09:30:00.005-07:00

I have been on the lookout for a teasing comb. I need a little lift in my otherwise very fine and straight hair. I don't mean the "bump-it" size of lift, let's not go that far.

I had read about a teasing brush in InStyle magazine, so I waltzed into my local beauty supply and asked for it. Both workers told me the brush was terrible and immediately took me to the checkout counter where front and center they were displaying the WaaLaa teasing comb.

The brand name alone had me sold. However, I had to think twice before buying since this little gem is $24.00. The price did hurt my cheaping girl instincts, but it's worth it. So far it's added a nice oomph without tangling or causing static.

I only found one website - http://www.uneeditbeauty.com/ that carried the teasing comb but no price was listed. Check your local beauty supply.

"This will be your new best friend. With four rows of stainless steel pins one stroke is really four strokes. You and all your clients can backcomb in one fourth the time and have a smooth finish to comb back through. Made from a hard rubber and stainless steel pins this comb will perform."

Maybe this comb will make me look as fabulous as Betty Draper.

Necklaces at the Walmarts

2010-01-09T08:00:00.001-07:00

On rare occasion it is possible to find cute accessories at Walmart. Usually their costume jewelry is not available online, so you will have to just check out your local store. I found these two styles a couple of weeks ago to give as gifts. They have a lot of style for only $10. Go get 'em in all colors. I did.

New Year Fitness Idea

2010-01-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

While talking with a friend a couple of weeks ago I learned about Kettlebells. He had recently started working out with them and said they "kicked his butt" or something to that effect.

I'm sure for most fitness junkies they are nothing new, but for me they were. I liked that the weights start at 5lbs. Being the lazy middle aged outta shape type, I love starting light. Although I have a little trouble with the "starting" come to think of it... But I digress, I ran right out and bought a 10lb since the 5 was sold out.

The "gofit" brand of Kettlebell available at Target or on gofit.com. It comes with a free DVD workout and after 25 minutes you feel like that baby weighs 50lbs. Needless to say moving around was difficult the next day - and the next.

Shape and tone your arms, shoulders, back and legs while improving your balance and body control. The free range of motion will creates a safe, comfortable and effective workout

I have found that Kettle Bells are readily available at most discount and fitness stores and websites. I just need to find that 5lb size to really get started. I'll report back later on my all new meaningful life.

Oh here is a nice little 5lb number for only $18.00 on walmart.com .

Pamela Anderson Just Might Be a Genius (a.k.a. A Personal Retraction)

2010-01-07T21:38:00.005-07:00

I've never been a fan of Uggs. I always thought they were ugly. F-ing ugly. I called them FUggs. Har har har. Hee hee hee. Ha ha ha. I'm SO clever. Plus, when you consider how expensive they are, the ugliness factor goes up by 10X.

ANYWAY, Mom gave me a pair of black Uggs for Christmas. First, considering how expensive they are...WOW, thanks for a great gift Mom! Second, I was secretly excited, because I've been looking for something cozy and comfortable to wear around the house and maybe to take Lucy outside to poop in the wintertime. But I mean, I wouldn't be caught dead wearing them out and about. You know.

This brings me to a cold and snowy winter's night last week. Lucy had to go outside. I slipped on my Uggs for the first time. OH.MY.GOD. They were COMFORTABLE. They were WARM. They were SOFT. They were like having my feet massaged while I warmed them by a fire while walking on marshmallows while taking a nap while drinking hot chocolate while listening to a handsome man whisper in my ear how beautiful I am.

Then I found myself wearing my Uggs on a walk with Lucy. Just around the block. Just so I could have them on a bit longer. You know.

Then I found myself wearing my Uggs around all day on New Year's Day. I thought my Uggs might cure my wicked hangover. They didn't.

Then I saw Janaan in her gray Christmas Uggs. She was wearing them with gray skinny jeans and a gray cardigan and a wicked cool gray checkered hat. She looked awesome from head to toe.

And that's when it hit me. What could be the most wonderful wonderful thing that I could do for myself? JUST LET GO and admit it. I LOVE MY UGGS. I want a pair in EVERY COLOR. I want to wear them all the time. If I had a rockin' enough body, I would wear them with a white track-suit. Just the thought of my Uggs makes my feet tingle with excitement.

Pam Anderson: You are a genius.

XOXO

First Ornament

2010-01-07T11:30:00.000-07:00

Last year I started collecting vintage-inspired ornaments for my tree. I wish these would have been available for Baby G. A "Baby's First Christmas" set of three handblown glass heirloom ornaments from RSH Catalog.

Since they aren't available till May 2010, I may just order them and pretend she had one for her first Christmas. AND...since there are three, technically I can count them as her ornaments for three years, right?

My FAVORITE Baby Bottle - EVER

2010-01-05T11:33:00.006-07:00

Before I had my baby, we went out to search for different bottles. I knew I was going to breastfeed but I wanted to incorporate a bottle everyday so that if I needed to run out I could leave the baby for a couple hours.

Enter the lovely Estelle from Britain. She told us about Tommee Tippee - hands down the best bottles ever. Not only are they coolest design and BPA free - her baby (as well as baby G) never had any issues taking a bottle with these. The shape of the "teat" makes the transition a lot easier.

Since they weren't available in the US, she generously shipped me some from the UK. But for all of you who don't have friends in the UK, I have GREAT NEWS!

On January 18th, Babys R Us will now carry Tommee Tippee!! I can't stress enough how much I have love love loved these bottles. And I'm excited because now I can get the sippy cups without having to call in a favor. If you order online now, you'll get an extra 10% off. Do it.

Here's To A New Year!

2010-01-04T11:27:00.000-07:00

This year besides setting our own personal resolutions, we've set one as a family.

It came about as a personal goal for one but then we all liked it so much, everyone has adopted it.

Our family goal for 2010 is:

Find joy & fulfillment through creating rather than consuming.

We really do have a love for shopping and finding great deals, so that won't change, but hopefully we can add in a bit more creation in our lives.

The blogging world has been such a great inspiration for projects and DIY. Using this great resource, here is a small sampling of things we are inspired to do this year:

- Sew More

- Throw More Fabulous Parties

Image via One Charming Party

- Be Better Photographers - capture everyday moments beautifully

Image via A Yummy Life

- Prepare Fabulous Meals

Image via Martha Stewart

This is Why We Love to Shop

2009-12-22T11:54:00.005-07:00

The Crusty Bastards are probably going to mock us endlessly for this one, like they did when Janaan bought some rather expensive balloons that weren't exactly a necessity. (In her defense, they are really cool balloons and we WILL use them someday!)

When I look back at my life some of my happiest memories are from shopping with Mom and Janaan. Certain trips stand out for either the EPIC hauls (we have pictures from our most amazing days on Canal Street in New York and at the Orange County marketplace) or our EPIC laughs (one time we were at the Container Store in Dallas and Janaan cracked a joke about Mom's arthritis in her hands and we were all laughing so hard that the cashier told us to shut up and calm down...come to think of it, maybe she had arthritis and didn't think we were funny).

ANYHOO, last Thursday night at Big Lots is in my top 5 most EPIC hauls ever. It was a fantastical, fabulous, fun night that for me was amplified by the fact that I had spent the night before gambling in the lovely lovely ARIA Casino at CityCenter in Las Vegas and was living on about two hours of sleep. I never thought the words "lovely" and "casino" would work well together, but the ARIA is special. Alas, that is the topic of another post.

So, we hadn't seen each other in a few days and we met up for dinner. After dinner mom suggested that we pop-in to Big Lots. "What the hell? Let's do a pop-in." That's pretty much our motto for life.

So we cruised up and down the aisles of Big Lots for a while, gathering up sock monkeys and gigantic silver Christmas bows and musing about whether or not the pink tinsel Christmas tree would be there when the holiday stuff hit 50% off. We were rounding the corner of our last aisle when I heard Janaan squeal.

Sidebar: If we haven't mentioned it before, Janaan is the absolute QUEEN of spotting things. You never want to go shopping without her. You'll miss everything good. She has a gift, I tell you.

Anyway, Janaan had spied a whole rack of special edition Christian Lacroix Evian bottles. She had just read about them on a blog and there they were for $1 a bottle.

OOHHHH!! They are SSSSOOOO pretty. We each immediately snatched up about 10 bottles and then started toward the check stand. As we walked away I got this little ping of sadness in my heart. How could I leave something so so beautiful at Big Lots?? No offense, but Big Lots is not exactly a beautiful place and these bottles seemed to be tragically caught there by mistake. They were calling to me. Calling to me like a wide-eyed-laborador-retriever-puppy at a Pets Mart Adoption day.

I told Mom and Janaan I wanted all of them. They quickly agreed. We all felt it. We stood there for a minute trying to justify how we would TOTALLY use all of them for all of the fabulous parties we were planning for 2010. We were having balloon flashbacks.

I estimated that there were 100 bottles (Janaan thought there were more like 40) and for a moment I felt ridiculous, then I came to the sudden realization that I had lost $100 at a craps table at the ARIA in about 60 seconds just hours earlier and these bottles of water would bring me oh so much more joy and happiness than gambling ever could. I just wanted to hold them and look at them and line them up and then look at them lined up and maybe have a party just to drink my designer Evian or perhaps open one up whenever I had a bad day and needed to see something beautiful. This water was going to make me even happier than I already am. This water was going to make my life WONDERFUL.

So, Mom and I RAN out the door to move our cars closer (we'd walked across the parking lot from the restaurant because we're totally on a new fitness regime... HA!!). We scrounged around for empty boxes (an exercise in futility) and grabbed 3 more carts.

Long story short, there were 98 bottles (YES! I was so right on my estimate). That's $98 on bottled water. It was still less than I lost at the craps table and I'm still giddy about my water and we have a fun story to tell and laugh about forever. It should be noted that the other shoppers at Big Lots thought we were total freaks and there was one particularly bitchy woman behind me in line at the check stand that was all huffy and moved to another line to avoid my 3 carts of Evian. (For the record I had counted everything before I got to the cashier and I BEAT her out the door.)

All of that was fun enough. But are you ready for the best part??? They retail for $13.95 a bottle!!! So I saved $1,270 bucks. Take that, Vegas!!!

Year of the Monkey

2009-12-20T22:45:00.005-07:00

I'm not sure when our obsession with Sock Monkey's started. I think it was at a recent baby shower. In any case, there are a lot of sock monkeys floating around.

We found these "Little Maxx" sock monkeys at Big Lots for $7.

Janaan and I both bought this sock monkey cap. $32 from the Sundance Catalog.

Mom and Janaan found these cuties at Sam's club. $9.86 for both of them!

I'm a little annoyed at the Target website right now...but I digress. Target sells the classic Schylling Sock Monkey pictured above in their specialty classic toys section. It comes in the classic brown and sweet purple, pink and blue too. I just can't find a link to it on their website. I bought one for Louis in brown and Janaan bought one for Baby G in pink.

I literally squealed when I saw this one. We're calling him "Big Maxx". $20 at The Wal-Marts. It's not pictured on their website either. WHAT-EVER WAL-MART and TARGET WEBSITES I JUST WANT TO TELL ALL OF MY FRIENDS ABOUT SOCK MONKEYS!! Geez.

Free Printables

2009-12-17T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things about the blogging world is all of the creative people who are willing to share their talents. Like when they design something pretty and let all the world print it out for their personal use.

Here are a few that I currently enjoy -

Orange Pillow Box - perfect for jewelry, little gifts or gift cards

Cute pink tags for your sweets found at Creature Comforts

2010 Pocket Calendar. This would be so great hanging on my bulletin board

Have you noticed...

2009-12-16T16:52:00.001-07:00

...our lack of stocking stuffer posts?

...our lack of tweets?

....our lack of posts in general?

...our new blog layout?

Well we have been a bit crazy as of late but promise to come back with renewed energy soon. A new blog look has given us the little boost we've needed.

A Little Birdie Told Me...

2009-12-07T08:00:00.003-07:00

While perusing Little Birdie Secrets (a fabulously crafty blog that provides lots and lots of inspiration for us not so creative types) we saw this post on an easy bread wrapper.

While the wrapper was adorable, we fell in love with the mini bread loaf pans from Michaels for only $1! We love anything that only costs and buck and rushed to our local Michaels to scoop some up.

Filled with a delicious bread, the white ones will be great to have on hand for hostess gifts, pick-me-up gifts and the like. While the red ones we'll use for Christmas.

Today Only $1 Shipping

2009-12-02T12:02:00.003-07:00

At Bath and Body Works when you enter the code SHIP1 at checkout.

So, go ahead and stock up on more Wallflowers. The Coconut Lime Verbena smells oh so good.

Kid's Stocking Stuffer Idea #3

2009-12-02T10:35:00.000-07:00

I found this cute little soft toy CPG GNON for my baby grand daughter at a local specialty store and just had to have it right then and there. It's made by the great French company Vulli and is like their famous must have "Sophie the Giraffe" only it's a mushroom. It comes in three colors and is available on Amazon.com for your stocking stuffing pleasure.

"Baby grows up with Vulli ! Unique and special moments, the first months of a baby's life are a time of mutual discovery and happiness shared with its parents. Real specialists in items for babies, Vulli offers you products which will help your child to develop : nursery items and babies' toys suited to each stage of his/her development like Sophie the Giraffe."

Vulli available at Amazon.com for $14.24

More Yummy Holiday Pictures

2009-12-01T12:46:00.002-07:00

Seriously, if you haven't called Jodi yet. Do it now.

Yummy Holiday Pictures

2009-11-23T21:34:00.003-07:00

Last year I didn't send a picture with my Christmas card. In the end, this was even more pathetic than sending a Christmas card with a picture of just me. Plus, when you don't send a picture there is all this pressure to write a big note in every single card and suddenly you find yourself on a plane ride back from San Francisco on December 21st spilling diet coke all over your holiday wishes.

This year I am the fattest I've ever been in my life, so why not send a picture out to every person I know to celebrate?? Enter in the wonderful Jodi from A Yummy Life Photography. We all love Jodi and we were very excited when she told us about her studio space in Downtown Salt Lake. I was even MORE excited when she said that there was this PhotoShop filter called "liquify" that could help shave off a few pounds. Bye bye Christmas Card Picture Diet!

If I look back at my life, there are just a handful of pictures of myself that I really truly like. And this year, at my fattest self, Jodi delivered one to me. Thank you Jodi.

Jodi is having mini sessions on December 4th, just in time for Christmas! www.ayummylife.com

SHAZAM!!

2009-11-23T11:52:00.002-07:00

I've noticed lately that a lot of people have been asking me what my favorite app is for my iPhone. While Flashlight is cool, my favorite App always has been and always will be Shazam! Here are some of my latest new music discoveries:

Song: Whatever You Like (yes, this is a cover of T.I.'s Whatever You Like)
Artist: Anya Marina
Shazamed At: My living room. This song was played in an episode of Gossip Girl. Although Gossip Girl sucks in general this season, the earrings and music are still worth watching for.
Love This Song For: Chilling Out.

Song: I See You
Artist: Mika
Shazamed At: See above.
Love This Song For: Daydreaming.

Song: Moth's Wings
Artist: Passion Pit
Shazamed At: See above.
Love This Song For: Remembering the love of your life, and how your heart skips a beat whenever they walk into the room.

Song: I'm In Love With Your Rock and Roll
Artist: Kish Mauve
Shazamed At: See above. This was played as Serena walked in to play in a ridiculous high-stakes poker game. Has she worn a skirt longer than 18 inches this season??
Love This Song For: Perfect background music for a party.

Song: Keep the Streets Empty for Me
Artist: Fever Ray
Shazamed At: CSI Miami. Yes, I got tricked into watching CSI Miami (the WORST of the CSI's by far) when they had their CSI Miami/CSI New York/CSI Vegas 3-part series a couple of weeks ago. Hey, at least I got this song out of it.
Love This Song For: Background music at work.

Song: Dice
Artist: Finley Quaye
Shazamed At: Ross. Yes. Ross.
Love This Song For: Unwinding as you drive home from work.

Song: 1901
Artist: Phoenix
Shazamed At: This was in a Cadillac commercial. Yeah. I watch a lot of TV.
Love This Song For: Gearing up as you drive into work. And if you drive a Cadillac, all the better.

Women's/Girls Stocking Stuffer Idea #2

2009-11-18T15:05:00.000-07:00

We simply love headbands. It might have started with "Blair Waldorf's"character on Gossip Girl. Even though Gossip Girl has become a lame show this year. But more about that later.

This beautiful headband was featured on The Pioneer Woman recently and it reminded me about all the headbands I've been buying up for either stocking stuffers or gifts. You can pay a pretty penny for headbands and I think they are worth it, but it's very nice to find them at our favorite Cheaping Girls spot - you guessed it - Ross. They usually run about $2.99. Now at that price you can buy one or two for everyone on your list!

We have this one in black, grey and white.

Kid's Stocking Stuffer Idea #2

2009-11-16T20:17:00.000-07:00

I picked up these cute Melissa & Doug wood toys for my baby grand daughter's Christmas stocking this week at Tuesday Morning for $3.99 and $4.99 each! I know she won't remember Christmas this year - but I don't care! So check our your local Tuesday Morning to see if they are available or go to Amazon.com.
$6.99 - Peek-a-boo Bear at Amazon.com
$7.00 - Friendly Fish Rattle at Amazon.com

Women's Stocking Stuffer Idea #1

2009-11-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

After Nie Nie's appearance on Oprah she blogged about how Oprah drank from her silver straw while she had only a plastic one. Well, we were inspired by Oprah and wanted a silver straw of our own.

We searched and found a stainless steel straw on cheftools.com. They are a little pricey at $9.49 plus shipping for a set of four, but we will split them up and have one for each Cheaping Girl. We can clean them in the dishwasher - now that's being "green".

Words to Live By

2009-11-09T14:25:00.003-07:00

Has everyone read these "Time Tested Beauty Tips" by Sam Levenson? He wrote them for his grandchild, and it became one of Audrey Hepburn's favorite poems. She read it to her children often. I think it has such a lovely message I look forward to reading it my little girl.

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.

For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone.

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; Never throw out anybody.

Remember, If you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows, and the beauty of a woman with passing years only grows!

Kid's Stocking Stuffer Idea #1

2009-11-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

I love the clever line of books "Fancy Nancy" written by Jane O'Connor and illustrated by Robin Preiss Glasser. The first book was published in 2005 and was a little bit hard to find. Now the ever growing line of Fancy Nancy products seem to be everywhere.

I found these playing cards at The Walmarts yesterday and decided they would be a perfect stocking stuffer for my granddaughter. She definitely likes Fancy Nancy, but I think I'm the bigger fan. I only wish I would have thought of the idea and wrote the book! (P.S. These are also available on Target.com for only $5.74! Whoop!)

Confessions from Fans of The Pioneer Woman

2009-11-04T22:38:00.007-07:00

The Cheaping Girls and The Pioneer Woman. I don't like to smile with my teeth anymore. Maybe it's just a phase, I don't know. Also, could I be sticking my butt out any further in this picture???

Have we ever talked about Mom's recipe addiction? She spends lots of time each week perusing the web and magazines and talking to people about new yummy recipes to try. Every Sunday Mom whips up an insanely good meal and most Sunday's you'll find a ream of paper sitting on her countertop with stacks and stacks of recipes that she's printed out that week. Most Sunday's you'll also find us sitting around, groaning, bellies aching because we've had altogether too much to eat. Mom has officially moved into multiple 5" 3-ring binders for her recipes. Oh, and we have little patience for people that won't share their recipes (unless you are making money off of those recipes, of course). But really, why are some people so stingy about that? Food is love and we love love love to share our favorite recipes with our friends.

All of us (MWM included) love The Pioneer Woman. The Pioneer Woman was a city girl that ended up married to a Cattle rancher in Oklahoma (Exciting News! She is writing a book about their love story. But I digress...). We love her hilarious slice-of-life-on-the-ranch stories, her beautiful photographs and most of all her RECIPES.

The MWM secretly wishes Mom would wake up one day and run off with him to a big cattle ranch and leave all of her Ross's behind. Mom isn't going to do that, but she does keep all of our bellies happy with The Pioneer Woman's amazing and delicious food. We were all excited that The Pioneer Woman wrote a cookbook and even MORE excited when she announced a book tour with a stop at our very own King's English book store.

We arrived EARLY (this is a feat, especially for me), queued up and got tickets to have our cookbooks signed by the one and only Pioneer Woman. Here are some highlights from our evening:

- The King's English is next door to Mazza (Go eat there. Go right now.) So we had Mazza's incredible French Fries and tart and tangy lime-ades while we waited in line. Yum!

- The Pioneer woman is LOVELY. Great hair. Great skin. Very tall. Very funny. She has a nice warm happy glow all around her. She is friendly. She is funny, did I mention that? She does a mean Ethel Merman impression.

- The Pioneer woman had her sister in law and mother in law with her. They were both lovely too. All three of them had on great boots. The MWM would be proud. Her sister in law was wearing a very cool bracelet, which she had picked up at the Banana Republic at the Gateway. Note to self: Get to a Banana Republic ASAFP.

- We waited in line for a couple of hours to have our book signed, so I of course picked up a few impulse buys. I fell in love with this book called Wag! by Patrick McDonnell:

It made me smile and I wanted to give my dog Lucy a big belly rub and a treat and a long walk.

It was a really fun evening and I'm excited to read my cookbook. Yes, READ it. The Pioneer Woman has added in some great color commentary and stories along with her recipes and each recipe features her step by step photographs and mouth watering descriptions, which is great for "aspirational" cooks like me.

If you haven't tried any of her recipes, here are some that CANNOT be missed:

Spicy Shrimp - I can't even tell you how many times we've had this as a kick-off to dinner. SO UNBELIEVABLY GOOD.

Apple Dumplings - Yes, have that 2nd one. You know you want it. But the 3rd one is over the top. Trust me, I've made this mistake again and again.

Marlboro Man's Second Favorite Sandwich - Not the most simple sandwich, but definitely the most delicious. Eat this one slowly. SAVOR.

Olive Cheese Bread - Garlic. Cheese. Olives. Bread. What more is there to say?

Cheese Muffins - I could seriously eat 10 or 20 of these in a single sitting.

Bon Appetit!!!

Why are all the REALLY Old People Women?

2009-11-04T09:30:00.000-07:00

I've always known that there are more "little old ladies" than "little old men". But I was not sure of the reason. I have been known to say I think women are the superior species and that's why we live longer. But recently I read in the September 28, 2009 issue of Newsweek the top five reasons women live longer - even to 110 years of age. I hope to live a long healthy life but I'm not so sure about that long!

Sixty-eight of the 72 known "supercentenarians" (people 110 and older) are female, even though there are more boys than girls born each year. Here's why.

The danger years
The difference between male and female death rates peaks between ages 20 and 24—during which men are six times as likely to be murdered and five times as likely to die of a non-automobile accident.

Toxic testosterone
The hormone increases levels of bad cholesterol (known as LDL) and decreases levels of good cholesterol (HDL), while estrogen does just the opposite.

Gunplay
Whether it's homicide, suicide, or by accident, men are five times more likely to die by firearms than women.

Drop-dead diseases
Fatal conditions like cancer and heart disease are common among men, while women are more likely to suffer from chronic nonfatal conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis, and autoimmune disorders.

Overwhelming emotions
The tendency to ignore signs of depression and emotional distress may account for the fact that, between the ages of 75 and 79, men are nine times more likely to commit suicide.

Image from here

Fantastic Halloween Party

2009-11-02T12:36:00.006-07:00

I really wish I was invited to this party.

A Brooklyn Limestone - threw the most fantastic Halloween party I've ever seen. Her house decorations were pretty amazing too. I am bookmarking this for the future when I have a bigger house and can throw a great Halloween party.

Pickin' and a Grinnin' - Hee Haw circa 1969

2009-10-30T11:00:00.000-06:00

This is not about the kind of "pickin' and grinnin' " Roy Clark and Buck Owens were talking 'bout for 23 years on Hee Haw, but's it's my kind.

I'm a little intense about things on my face that are bugging me - pimples, stray hairs, wrinkles, etc, etc, etc. So I thought I would share with you my favorite make-up mirror. Now once you behold yourself in the 10x glory you will either run away or have to buy one and take it everywhere you go. That's hard in this day and age of luggage restrictions. I got this little gem at Bed Bath and Beyond (remember to always use your 20% off coupon!).

"Daylight 10x Cosmetic Mirror. With 360 fluorescent lighting, you can see yourself in a more natural light. Tweeze eyebrow, see facial hair, apply make-up evenly, monitor skin and insert contacts easily with powerful 10x magnification and distortion -free DFP glass. Mirror adjusts to all angles and measures 9" in diameter."

I'm also in love with the Tweezerman Point Tweezer. I for one can NOT wait for a waxing appointment. I can see those hairs in my 10x magnification mirror and they have to go! These are available anywhere Tweezerman is sold. They are worth every penny and guaranteed for life."Get your eyebrows just right with this tweezer that grabs the smallest and finest hairs. Due to sharp and perfectly aligned hand filed tips, tweezers can even grap a hold of stubble and ingrown hairs. Tweezers are stainless steel with a color finish." Also available at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Sophie the Giraffe

2009-10-27T11:00:00.003-06:00

Sophie is a classic French teething toy that is cute, rubbery and doesn't smell like the chemicals you find in most rubber toys made in China. She actually smells good. And little Baby G loves to chew on Sophie's legs. And ears. And nose. And neck. You get the idea.

Our lovely friend Estelle who hails from France still has her Sophie from when she was baby. You can't get more classic than that.

Fishnet Tights

2009-10-23T08:30:00.000-06:00

I'm a big fishnet tights fan. I threw out my most of my pantyhose long ago and made fishnets the mainstay of my hosiery. Oh, I'll occasionally wear other tights if I have to, but as a rule I avoid them. I was in Paris a few years ago and even the older and I mean really mature women were wearing patterned or fishnet tights! I was so impressed. It was a sassy look for an eighty year old.

Fishnets seem to readily available as at most stores in any color but nude. I have one pair of nude fishnets and they are really old - I'm talking 5 years old. And while that pair is still fine, I need a few more because my bare legs don't look as good as they used to (thanks to age and sun spots.) I have found many places for them online and recently ordered a supply for my "older legs" that want to still be sassy.

These professional fishnets for dancers would last a long time and have a reinforced foot, but you pay for it - at 26.00 a pair they are a little pricey - Danskin.com.

Hue nude fishnet tights are available at Bloomingdales.com for $12.50 a pair.

SpookyBoutique.com has nude fishnets (not pictured in nude color) that are a great price - 6:00 per pair if you buy 3! I think I'll order these and let you know how they work out.

Kid Steals

2009-10-20T15:12:00.003-06:00

We've blogged before about Baby Steals, an online site that sells a different baby or maternity product everyday. Yesterday they launched Kid Steals - same premise, just for toddlers and kids. Sign up now if you haven't already. The deals are amazing.

Image via A Yummy Life Photography

Comfy Heels

2009-10-19T15:00:00.000-06:00

I've been on a hunt for some low heels to wear with straight leg jeans and pants. I like the look, but hate the pain they cause for my feet. I might be growing a tiny bunion on my left foot(insert scream here) and it's kinda hurting me. This is a fate worse than death for a shoe lover like me. So I found a solution in these shoes from Born. I'm not a huge Born fan but these are like heaven on your feet. I wore them for 10 hours yesterday and had no pain at all!

Born Geller -$99.00 at Dillards - they looked like "witch" shoes to me and that made them all the more attractive.

Born Velma - $128.90 at Zappos.com. Now that I have put the Geller style to the test I think I might need these. Hummmmmm.

Inspirational Baby Shower Favors

2009-10-15T12:40:00.005-06:00

The Cheaping Girls were invited to the loveliest baby shower last Friday. It was thrown by The Richards Girls for their sister/daughter Courtney who is due with her first baby on New Year's Day 2010. Can I just say that the food was DELICIOUS. I mean DELICIOUS. You know how food at these things can be. From the homemade limeade to the pasta salads to the homemade sugar cookies everything we ate was fabulous. I am still thinking about those sugar cookies. SO GOOD.

ANYWAY, the lovely Nicky, in addition to hand making a box full of gifts (Like a perfectly made hand sewn sock monkey! Oh and did I mention she also made the box that the lovely gifts came in too??), made the shower favors, which I have pictured below. All of the rivets, paper details, ties, and even the polka dots on the tulle inside were done by hand. And there were at least 30 of these:

I mean, how cute are these favors??? Well come to find out, Nicky works full time as teacher at a charter high school that is ranked #8 in the state, is in a master's program and runs on a regular basis. And she also looks very pretty all of the time (even after running a 15K, I have seen that with my own two eyes).

When I was working full time and getting my graduate degree all I did was pull my hair into a pony tail, work, do homework, do more work, study, eat, get fatter by the day and, when I had a moment to spare, zone out and watch TV.

Actually, minus the school part that pretty much sums up my life right now. So I'm just going to say that I've found these little party favors very inspiring. If Nicky can find the time to hone these skills and put such loveliness into the world, then I can too. At the very least, I can blow out my hair once in a while.

Thindulge!

2009-10-13T14:03:00.004-06:00

I love discovering new foods that are good for me and won't expand my ever expanding bottom. Recently my local Costco started carrying Oroweat Sandwich Thins, although I see them at the regular grocery store now. They are kinda like a pita that's cut in half, but soft and have a good flavor. Only 100 calories, 5 grams fiber, and 1 gram of fat. That's 1 point for you Weight Watchers gals. My latest obsession is to spread fat free cream cheese, top with cucumbers and dash of salt and pepper. It's a no guilt sandwich or snack! They come in 100% whole wheat and Multi-grain.
Visit Oroweat to learn more!

Yummy Sugar Baby Caramel Apple

2009-10-13T13:53:00.003-06:00

This candy came out a couple of years ago and is showing up again this fall. I'm a sucker for these types of candy and I really love them and so does my husband. A friend gave us a dozen boxes last weekend, but we are on the hunt for more. Try them!

The Candy Addict says:

I love Sugar Babies. I love their cute, conveniently “poppable” small size. I love their rich, sweet caramel taste and the long chew they provide your mouth. I love how they won’t melt in the summer heat. So to say I was excited, when I saw the new Caramel Apple Sugar Babies in their bright cheery green box at my local store, is quite an understatement.

Once I was home I immediately opened the box to see what these new Sugar Babies looked like. I was surprised when I rolled the first few into my hand. Whoa, these were so strange! The coating is a matte bright green and they seriously looked like plastic peas! The felt a little greasy to the touch, yet they didn’t leave any residue on my fingers. Again, strange.

The coating comes off immediately once it’s in your mouth. It’s the standard sour green apple Jolly Rancher flavor. It really hits your taste buds, as the flavor comes rushing in like a tsunami and then disappears just as quickly. Then the Sugar Baby comes in with its familiar sweet caramel flavor and stick-to-your-teeth texture. It’s like encountering your best friend in a Halloween costume: at first you’re confused, and then the familiar face appears from beneath the mask.

These are good, but they really feel like two separate candies to me. The two flavors interact so separately in your mouth that it’s hard to try and “taste” a caramel apple in there. They’re worth a try if you’re a big Sugar Baby fan, just to say you did!

For The Love of Tomatoes

2009-10-12T09:58:00.003-06:00

Our family loves tomatoes and salsa. Dad definitely loves them the most. He is a downright tomato and salsa connoisseur. He will eat pretty much any tomato or any salsa at anytime. Remember the whole tainted tomatoes scare of 2008? That didn't stop Dad one bit.

I'd put Janaan at 2nd place in terms of tomato love. She's been known to drink the juice leftover on her plate from a fresh raw summer tomato. She manages to do this in a ladylike manner, don't ask me how.

The rest of us, well we obsess about summer tomatoes. We start to talk about them and ask about them in early July, even though we know full well they won't be ready for another month. When we start to see them on the roadside stands we faithfully buy a box every week and eat every last one.

It's always sad when the first frost comes and the summer tomatoes are gone and we spend October mourning and reminiscing about all of the yummy tomatoes we had in September.

Well, this year, Mom went all out and decided to can some summer tomatoes and salsa so we could enjoy them a little bit longer.

Mom spent a good week buying tomatoes and pots and pans and all kinds of contraptions that I didn't even know existed and boiling and boiling and boiling and boiling on two stoves on two different levels of the house and canned dozens and dozens of jars of those beautiful summer tomatoes and summer tomato salsa.

Wow. That's all I can say. Wow. Wow. Wow. I helped one measly Saturday and I had NO IDEA the kind of work it takes to get these things from the farmers market into a little Kerr jar. NO IDEA. For the record, I will never again look at a delicious jar of tomatoes, or dilly beans, or, well anything in a jar in the same way again. I will savor every bite knowing the work that went into making such delicious organic food.

We've decided to call these "sipping tomatoes". They are to be savored between now and next August, when our lovely summer tomatoes come back and we start all over again. However, given this our family we're talking about, I don't think these are going to make it much past Christmas. We just can't help it.

I Heart Books

2009-10-09T08:00:00.000-06:00

I love to read. I buy so many books I began to run out of space for them. So I decided that I would keep only the best and share the rest with anyone who happened to stop by or I would donate them. My husband does not share my "sharing" point of view and still crowds our shelves, drawers, bedside tables, coffee tables, etc with his books. I can't complain, I love to read. I love to look at stacks of books and just think about how much I'm going to enjoy reading them. I came across these quotes and agree with the "famous" who wrote them.

The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who cannot read them. Mark Twain

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I cannot live without books! Thomas Jefferson

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Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers. Charles W. Eliot

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You know you've read a good book when you turn the last page and feel a little as if you have lost a friend. Paul Sweeney

Go to Barnes and Noble to print your own coupon and get a book now!

This will be my next book purchase - it's by the author of "The Glass Castle," one of my favorite books last year. Go to BarnesandNoble.com to read more about Jeanette Walls.

Anthropologie Shower Curtain for Less

2009-10-08T08:00:00.002-06:00

I would really, really, really like a new shower curtain. For months I have been pining away for the Snow Field Shower Curtain at Anthropologie, but could never stomach the $98 price tag. Yesterday as I was browsing the Target website I found its twin, the Ruffles Shower Curtain for only $29.99 plus free shipping. SOLD! It'll be interesting to see the quality difference.

Anthropologie

Target