Rubik's Cube 360

Welcome back Mr. Rubik!!! The idea with this new twist on the original cube is to get the colored balls from the inner sphere into the matching slots on the outer sphere by twisting and shaking them through holes. Available at Amazon.com for $15.

Spa Pampering: Head & Toes

Two favorite... at home spa pampering treatments...

Enjoy!

Head: Mix 1 teaspoon sea salt into an ounce of shampoo. Gently massage the mixture into your scalp for a few minutes, then rinse and condition as usual.

Toes: Fill a basin with warm water and add a squirt of body wash or a tablespoon of bath salts. Soak feet for 10 minutes, then gently pumice, pat dry with a soft towel, and rub in a rich lotion.

source: Good Housekeeping

Cool Cones by Jokari

The fun way to eat and store ice cream without making a mess!!

Use Cool Cones to scoop up ice cream and then push up on the handle to eat. Convenient attached lid can be used to store ice cream right in the Cool Cone.

Can be purchased at Organize.com for $6.99 for a set of four. I've read that they are also available at some grocery stores.

Support Our Troops

Sending a letter, or a care package, to a member of our troops that is serving overseas is a great way to help your family participate in supporting the troops and a great way to teach gratitude!

Click here for a list of letter and care-package programs for our military!

National Best Friends Day & National Relaxation Day

Today, August 15, is

National Best Friends Day

&

National Relaxation Day!!

Celebrate at the spa... with your best friend!

Free Lunchbox Notes

I love leaving notes for my kids in their lunchboxes!!

Even my teenagers will get a note every once in awhile.

Click here for some adorable lunchbox notes. You can download them and print them... for FREE! Thanks to AlphaMom.

More Horrible License Plates

My teenage son and I were driving home from a girls softball game last season, and he saw a car that impressed him. He wanted me drive closer so he could get a better look.

I noticed a HILARIOUS license plate.

So I drive VERY fast (not as fast as the corvette, because I was in a Honda...) but fast enough that when the corvette braked to make a right turn, I almost 'owned' a piece of that pretty cool car.

But, I got the picture.

And, it was posted on the Horrible License Plates blog this morning.

Photo credit was given to Katie O. Not sure who she is... but maybe it's an inside joke. Like maybe she's the sister-in-law of the HLP writer, who gets just a little too mean every four weeks or so! Wouldn't that be funny if it was the new mother-in-law of the writer???

If you don't check the HLP blog every day... you MUST. It is always good for a laugh!!

Wedding Entrance...

Funny wedding video... 15 million views on YouTube!! Click here!

It's worth the four minutes, or so, it takes to watch!

And... it made me laugh. I needed the laugh!

Miley & Max

Miley & Max, a new clothing line found at WalMart is simply too cute. The tank shown above is $6!!! The t-shirt is $8. Unbelievable. And both come in a selection of other colors!

My back-to-school shopping budget just got a nudge that it totally needed!!

Click here to see the complete line!

Zazzle - Mugs

At Zazzle you can 'create' all sorts of things! T-shirts, bags, mugs...

You can add text, pictures, graphics...

I like the idea of using the mugs as gift holders. They would be perfect to hold treats, flowers, gift certificates, etc. It's all about presentation.

Each personalized mug is $13.

Mr. Monk

The eighth, and FINAL SEASON, of Monk premieres Friday, August 7 on USA. It is worth a watch!! Netflix the earlier seasons too. Hilarious!!!

Pete Wiggins on Ellen!!!

You have to click here to see a dang funny segment from the Ellen DeGeneres show.

Hilarious!!!

Catalina Island

Today is my 21st wedding anniversary!

It seems appropriate to blog about Catalina Island! We spent a portion of our honeymoon on Catalina Island and fell in love with this fun, relaxing place. Actually, we had both been there before... separately... as teenagers. Going together was fun... and we've had the good fortune of going back a couple of times since our honeymoon!

We take the Catalina Flyer (a large passenger catamaran) from Newport Beach. The hotel that we stayed at 21 years ago has probably been demolished... it was old and blah. But since then we've stayed at the St. Lauren and loved it!

Interesting... I just went online to get the link to the St. Lauren. I FOUND the hotel from 21 years ago. It is called the Hotel Atwater... and it is still open! It was built in 1920 and looks like it has benefited from some updating. Wouldn't that be fun to go back with my husband and stay there??? I'm so sentimental that way!!

I highly recommend a weekend, or even a day, spent on Catalina Island. It is relaxing and offers unique shops and places to eat!

National Lasagna Day

Today is National Lasagna Day. Celebrate at The Old Spaghetti Factory... locations all over the place!!

They have pretty great lasagna!

The Getty Villa - Malibu

The Getty Villa - Malibu

I absolutely love museums! Love them!!!

One word about the Getty Villa - OUTRAGEOUSLYBREATHTAKING!!!!

Click here for more info.

Life is Good

I love "Life is Good" products! I love their shirts, their cups, their balls, their magnets, their decals... I love it all! Their motto is "Do what you like. Like what you do." I love that message!!

Click here for more information about LIG products. Read their story too... pretty amazing!!

I just bought a shirt for one of my daughters with this cute cupcake design on it! I love it!

Melissa and Doug Craft Kits

Melissa and Doug toys and puzzles have long been favorites of mine. I love their durability... and the quality of the materials that they use.

I've recently discovered their craft kits. What fun!!! You can find their products at their website, Melissa and Doug. They usually have a good selection of products on sale... or are offering a discount on qualifying orders.

I've also found, on occasion, their puzzles at T.J.Maxx.

Make your own Puzzle Kit - $7

Decorate your own Whiteboard Kit - $13

Real "Paper" Plates

I LOVE these plates! And if I had my dream "closet" (you know, the one that is the size of a single car garage stall) where I could put all my entertaining wants and needs, I would buy a set of these! And I would have a back-to-school party... for all my friends... a brunch, right after we dropped off the kids to their first day of school.

Click here for more information about these plates, cups, glasses, etc.

Pocket Posh Puzzle Books

I LOVE these little books! I want one for my purse... plus, I think they would be a perfect gift for the puzzle lovers that I know! Each book is just 4"x6" and only $8! How cute are those covers??? I love them!!

Click here for more information.

The Apple Pan, Los Angeles

10801 W Pico Blvd.

Open since 1947, the Apple Pan in Los Angeles is reported to be the best hamburger in all of California! It is on my to-do list for a future trip to LA. As a matter of fact... I have a California Girls' Weekend planned in just a couple of weeks... wonder if I can talk the girls into giving it a try???

Purex 3 in 1

I just discovered this new product!! I'll be honest... the reason I tried them was that I had a great coupon!! But I quite like them.

Now, I do way too much laundry to use these with every load, but I love them for travelling. They are perfect.

I tried them in a hot wash with bath towels, a cold wash with jeans and a warm wash with delicates. All three were great! Clean, no static! (I bought the "Pure" scent and was pleased with the lack of a perfume scent!)

Each sheet comes complete with a load's worth of detergent, fabric softener and anti-static.

A package includes 20 sheets, plus a handy dispenser for the sheets. Refill packages are also available with 24 sheets. Each package costs around $6.50.

Monkey Business Bungee Jumper

My kids would go nuts for this toy! It is a Monkey Business Bungee Jumper and is billed as a safer and lighter poto stick.

$13 at amazon.com.

Happy 4th of July

God Bless America

Harry Barker - Dog Toys

My favorite website for toys to spoil my puppy is Harry Barker. Get it??? Harry Barker? Because every dog is a hairy barker. Hee hee.

These two different rope toys are very reasonably priced. Starting at $3 each it's fun to pick out an assortment of new toys!

Click here for the interesting story of how Harry Barker got started.

Sparkling Fruity Punch

1 64 oz. bottle pomegranate-cherry juice or cranberry juice cocktail
1 quart strawberries, hulled and quartered
1 pint EACH blueberries and raspberries
1 navel orange, thinly sliced
1 small cucumber
2 liters sparkling water
Ice cubes

In a large pitcher, combine juice with berries and orange slices. Chill for 1 hour.

To serve, peel cucumber and cut lengthwise in half. Remove seeds and cut into thin slices. Stir cucumber slices and sparkling water into juice mixture. Serve over ice.

Recipe from Woman's Day.