But before the pie...

I want to show you the terrific things I'm using; I promise it won't be TMI!

I've been getting Product Body's Crush on You subscription, and have to rave about it. Joanna's scents have been outstanding, and Crush is the thing to use if your hands always dry out when you wash them. Crush is the only soap product that moisturizes my hands as I wash. It's much more than just a soap; it's a yummy scrub too.  This is the current "flavor" (pardon my lousy photo) -

And continuing on the fabulous products theme, Under the Willow has re-opened shop! Carrie makes fabulous soaps, laundry soaps, creams, and lip balms with delightful scents that remind me of home: cozy, comfy, and inviting.  This is what I got in the mail yesterday - not shown is the Twilight Sky scent laundry soap, which I had already put away and used 3 times today:

My only concern is that when I have the Cupcake lotion on, I may want to keep licking my hands, like a cat...LOL!

I sure know some talented ladies!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Dr. Perricone Advanced Face Firming Activation update

I've been using the Dr. Perricone's Advanced Face Firming Activation cream I won from the lovely Joanna of Product Body (her blogs are The Soap Bar and Product Body Blog) for about a month now, so I thought it was time I wrote a review update to my previous post.

Per the directions, I applied the cream after I wash my face in the morning.  I don't always remember to apply it in small circles like I was supposed to because this old dog is more used to applying cream in broad strokes.  If I'd remembered every single time to apply in small circles, perhaps my face may have shown more improvement? I can't say that for sure, but I'll be continuing to use this product and will try harder to remember the circular stroke technique.

One of the first things I noticed about the cream is that it is not greasy, which is an important attribute for a cream that I apply during the day because who wants a shiny face that looks like one's sweated profusely?  I don't.

It's also a light cream, which is another important characteristic because after applying cream, I put on a tinted sunscreen (Jane Iredale's, in fact...I love it), plus a face powder with SPF.  If the initial cream is heavy, it'd feel like I'm wearing a mask, and it'd drive me nuts. More nuts than I already am.

Another thing I noticed right away is that the cream smells faintly like papayas; it's a delightful aroma.

I'm lucky that, for my age, 46, I have few fine lines and not very large pores on my face, two of the things that this cream is supposed to help with.  But, it seems to me that after a month's usage, my pores appear to be even smaller than they were before.  I still have large crow's feet whenever I smile, but I would say that I also have somewhat fewer fine lines under my eyes too (that's the area where my concealer tends to crack and makes my face look like the Sahara).

You really only need a tiny amount of this cream each day, so a 2 fl oz bottle like this one will last you a long, long time.

My only quibble is that the pump doesn't always behave and can shoot out a bit more than I need.  However, I've found that to be the case for all pumps.  My kingdom for a sensitive and precise pump mechanism!

I'd like to thank Joanna and Dr. Perricone again for the opportunity to test-drive this product.  It certainly has my recommendations!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

The best things in life...sometimes do come free!

If you're thinking it's taking me forever and a day to get the post about our vacation done, you're absolutely right. Maybe I'll get it done before my next vacation...

In the meantime, I want to say a very belated THANK YOU (and it does warrant all caps) to the wonderful, talented, beautiful, and clever (have I got in enough flattering adjectives yet?) Joanna (The Soap Bar blog, and Product Body Blog).

Jo had a giveaway post for to-die-for bottle of Dr. Perricone Advanced Face Firming Activator back in May. And guess who won?? Yes, you may all envy me now!I've not used it yet because it's only been 3 weeks (only, hah!) since we returned home...and...uh...geez, I don't know what my excuse is. But I will start using it tonight and I will let you know if I start to look like I'm reverse-aging. Please, no Dorian Gray or Benjamin Button jokes. LOL!

Thanks, Joanna and Dr. Perricone, for this terrific opportunity to try a product that people rave about!!!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens

...these are a few of my favorite things!

This past week, I encountered lots of my favorite things. One of my favorite things is knitting, so starting off, I finished another hat. This one dh, the fuss-budget, actually liked and decided to take it even though I was knitting it for myself.
Then, a lovely package arrived in the mail (not brown-papered and tied up with string, but the contents were equally wonderful) from Michelle (Blog of the Soap Pixie). Michelle made a bevy of lovely things for me! Clockwise from top left: a pretty card, a folder of bookmarks and tea bags (details below), a bar of her very pretty soap with a cool and cute packaging (she'll be selling these soon, so keep an eye on her blog for it!), a box of mini-cards, a lavender eye-pillow, and a dazzling holiday bracelet (that I've been wearing ever since I received it).
Here are the mini-cards close-up. Is that ever sweet, or what?
And here's the nifty folder with all the bookmarks and tea bags! Ds#1 already has dibs on the frog bookmark. :)
A day or two after Michelle's package arrives, Joanna's Product Body box of goodies got here. I was running out of Whipped Shea, and bought a couple of jars of that plus their new holiday scent gift box.
Tadaaaa...the holiday scent gift box opened up...obviously the gift was for myself. ;)
Sweet Jo gave me some extra goodies for free: see the cuuuuute pink bag with the following yummies? She also gave me (see first photo) a Hyacinth Bath Bomb that smells intoxicating and that I intend to use as soon as I can spend some quality time in the bathtub.
Another wonderful thing that came in the mail is Carrie's Home for the Holidays laundry soap. I wanted to get more before she sells out because it's my absolute favorite detergent right now! Carrie, always the dear, sent along a couple of little gifts for the boys - I can't show you exactly what they are because they don't get to open them until a couple of days later. ;)
A close-up of the pretty, embroidered towels that Carrie includes:
And last, but definitely not least, I spent a lovely Friday morning with my IRL and blog friend Cake (Whistling Leaf Blower). She checked out our garden, such as it is in the winter, and also brought me my Pay-It-Forward/swap gifts: a psychedelic bookmark for the boys, a pack of cosmos seeds (one of my favorite flowers), a mistletoe sprig, a jar of pear chutney, a pebble hair clip, 2 felted soaps (woohoo!!!), and a coin purse made with the top of an orange juice container (very cute, very creative).
Here's the coin purse, opened up:
I just loooove this hair clip!
So there you have it, some of my favorite things indeed! It was a good week, and with the weekend gone, I look forward to another good week.

What has been some of your favorite things recently?

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

My talented blogging buddies

I love to sing the praises of my very talented blogging friends, in addition to supporting hand-made and indie bizzes. So, here's the song I'm singing today!

With winter approaching and me running low on both Whipped Shea and Crush on You, it was time to knock on Joanna's door (The Soap Bar, Product Body Blog). And that lady doesn't disappoint. I am totally in love with Crush and Whipped Shea, and have been for a while now, although, fussy me, I have to have them scented, but you can get yours "naked".Jo also threw in some extra goodies: the Cocoa Java (top left) and the travel-size Creme Fresh (in Beach House! Oooh, summer, you are so far away, but this will remind me of you until then). And the Whipped Champagne soap is really to die for! Just leave a few bars for me when you go get some yourself!

After swapping with Amber (Amber's Ambry) - my hat for her soaps - I just had to have more! I cannot wait to sink my teeth...uh, my body?...into the Thai Cocunutty Deliciousness...and all her other soapy goodness, which you should check out too! Right now, we're enjoying the heady scent of her Spicy Lime Soap in the shower.And if you're a really lucky, Amber just might have her fabulous new lip balms for sale. I was one of her lucky testers and I give it two enthusiastic thumbs up! The scent I got was blueberry...check out the cute little blueberry that she drew by hand on the container:You know that a product that has received so much love in its creation has to be good. It doesn't become a goopy mess under your fingers and then glides on beautifully on your lips, in a just-perfect layer, not too thin, not too thick. The scent is unmistakably, and delightfully, fresh blueberry. Mmmm! So, what are you waiting for? Head on over to her Etsy store!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

We were not alone...

...traveling with us to Vancouver were a bunch of my bloggy buddies! Ok, well, not in person, but their products went with us.

There was Carrie's Spiced Apple soap, Trisha's Winter Wonderland soap and lipbalm (as well as her Crantini soap that she kindly gifted to my sister), Joanna's Champagne Road Wash, Elizabeth G's Dreamsicle lipbalm, and also her cute-as-pie purse, seen here exhausted after daily use in Vancouver:I hope you ladies had fun with me, vicariously!

After our return home, one of our first meals was this lovely plateful - clockwise from top: chanterelle mushrooms from our yard, sauteed in butter; the last of our previous year's green beans cooked with our homemade sun-dried tomato paste; a slice of terrific pizza from Pizza X; our own tomatoes topped with dh's homemade tzatziki made with our own cucumbers.
After we got home, we had to go pick up the materials for ds#1's biology lab course from Meg, so she and I exchanged our pay-it-forward swap gifts. You will not believe the works of art she made! Meg does the most gorgeous leather crafts, and she made me a set of stunning coasters:Each coaster has a different flower, and she even wrote what each flower is on the back of the coaster:Take a look at the wonderful detailing:Many, many thanks, Meg!

I've enjoyed the swap/gifting thing so much I'm thinking I'll have to do it again. Maybe I can organize something like the Christmas gift exchange that kids often do in their classes. Those who are interested can sign up, and I can pair names up by pulling 2 out of a hat at a time...that way, we'd only each have one swap partner and don't have to scramble to make 12 gifts or something. Any thoughts on that, anyone?

I'm looking forward to a moderately quiet week this week. What about you? Any fun plans?

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Another nifty giveaway - Product Body stuff!

Joanna, Product Body Blog, is also having a giveaway! I'm addicted to her products, from Crush on You to Creme Fresh. Once you try her skin & bath offerings, you'll fall in love too.

I'm not telling you this so you can win; I'm telling you this so I can have another entry in her giveaway. LOL!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Random Tuesday Facts + thanks!

Some little snippets of Tuesday facts for you today:

1) As my ds#1 likes to tell people: infinity is not a number; it's a mathematical concept.

2) If you've had a dry spell writing in your blog (oh yeah, that's me), here's some advice on how to prime that pump: How to Generate Great Content Week After Week by Write to Done

And my thanks? It goes to Joanna, Ms. Product Body herself! My order of Whipped Shea Butter (order now before the summer heat prevents their shipment!) arrived with extra goodies from Jo: a sample of Crush on You in Baked Bread scent (I have to keep reminding myself not to eat my bath and body products) and her ta-da!! totally perfected Creme Fresh! To say it's a delightful and emollient cream doesn't do it justice; you need to order one yourself and try it!

Ok, have to run again. Hope you are all having a nice start to the week! I was feeling a bit harried and grumpy this morning, but then I won a book from Algonquin Books - through Twitter, no less!, so that perked me right up. :)

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

Thankful Thursday

I think posting all week last week took the oomph out of me, so I've been quiet on the blogging front. However, it's Thursday yet again.

Before I tell you what I'm thankful for, I want to share a couple of pics:Did we get snow or did we get snow?? This was taken right after I let the dog out so she could accompany dh to take care of the chickens. Notice how she wasn't going to venture into the deep parts? Everybody and their dogs (really) were talking about peanut butter on Twitter for a while - the tainting and other topics. Inspired by Joanna's post, I made my own peanut butter "cups" (they were more like peanut butter balls). They were kind of ugly (like Turtles candy), but very tasty and quite easy to make. (ds#2 made the heart plate...which is for sale, in case anyone was wondering *smile*)

Anyway, this week, I'm thankful for:

1) ds#1 - who is my spell checker/editor and bird ID expert. He'll turn 13 on Sunday - may he always find Scientific American and LEGOs more interesting than violent video games and other unwholesome teen activities. *sniffle*

2) ds#2 - who is my human GPS. I'd be lost a thousand times while driving if he didn't know the exact direction to places. I know it's probably a skill which is a by-product of his ASD (autism spectrum disorder...I get annoyed when people use acronyms they don't explain), but I still appreciate it since I'm directionally challenge.

I believe I'm suppose to pick 2 winners for my giveaway tomorrow. Come back for more fun!

"He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home." ~ Johann von Goethe

Oh, that Jo - she loves me so!

I've been putting on an excess of Product Body's Whipped Shea Butter on my heels at night before bed (as well as on my back and heels after my shower), and you know what? It is working! My heels are not yet cracked...a miracle indeed if you knew the heels I inherited from my mother!

So when Joanna had a sale on this miraculous Whipped Shea Butter last week, you betcha I went for it! Sweetheart that she is, she sent along a gift with my Butters, see?Guess what was the gift?! Her brand spankin' new line, Creme Fresh. Ooooh aaaaaah! It's in Sweet Lemon Pie scent, and I will have to remind myself not to eat it.If you want to be notified of Joanna's sales, go sign up for the Product Body newsletters!

Thank you, Joanna!!

"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet." ~ James Oppenheim