July Confessions

Let's say I start a new series where at the end of each month, I make some confessions.

I think Brian Austin Green is hot! I never gave David Silver a second look on Beverly Hills, 90210 because he was too geeky for my liking.

I can no longer eat red meat. It makes me gag. Hold on, let me explain. I went on a overnight stay in Niagara Falls with my mom and we ate Brasa, the Brazilian steakhouse in the Hilton Niagara hotel. I wasn't able to digest all the meat I ate. I then got violently ill.

Ke$ha's song, Tik Tok makes me want to jump up and down and dance.

I hate black licorice but I am starting to love Sambuca, but only as a shot.

Although I really want to do something with my life, I am too nervous to make a change, too lazy to do something about it and too scared to make choices. What is wrong with me?

I feel like I have lost some of my self-confidence because of an eye issue I have. I want to get it fixed so that I don't have to worry so much about how I look to other people when I am in a conversation. It can be fixed, I just have to book the surgery. (See the above confession). I'm going to do it...I need my confidence back!

bye bye mom

Although my mom is not leaving for good until Wednesday afternoon, tonight is her retirement/farewell party at a bar in Brampton. It's going to be a crazy night. There are over 175 people. Yes, my mom is that popular.

This morning I attended her work retirement ceremony where she was given a certificate and watch for her service with the government for over 28 years and vouchers with Air Canada as her goodbye gift. She got really emotional and could not give a little speech to say thank you. She's going to have an even harder time tonight giving her speech at the party.

Everyone is asking me how I feel about her moving to California. Truly, it's bittersweet. I won't be able to see her as often for our little shopping trips or for our morning matinees but at the same time, I now have a place to stay in California. My mom has done a lot for me. She raised me as a single mom through my teenage and college years. For over 10 years, it was always just me and her until I got married. She deserves to be happy, start a new life with her husband and also enjoy early retirement. Without giving away her age, she is somewhere between 55 and 60. I know that she is going to be taken care of by my stepdad. She'll be playing tennis and golf whenever she wants since she won't be working.

She may not be physically here in the same city as me but she is only a phone call or email away. She told me that if I really need her, she will hop on a plane to help me out. I am not going to be sad about her leaving because all I want for her is to be happy. She will be missed by me, my hubby, co-workers, golf, tennis and squash buddies, friends and the many people she met along the way. If you ever had the pleasure of meeting my mom, you know that she is the most outgoing, energy ball you'll ever meet. No one can keep up with her.

So, I am not going to say goodbye to her. I am going to pretend she is on an extended vacation. Tonight's party is going to be awesome. I am really looking forward to it. There will be lots of hugs but also lots of tears. This night will be one memorable send off...

Zac Efron and movies

With Charlie St. Cloud opening this weekend, I am quite excited to see my new found crush (here's another photo) in a movie that is more on the serious tip, no more High School Musical (although I would have loved to see him in the remake of Footloose, but Kenny Wormald will do).

What's also exciting is the thought of merging two of my favorites into a movie. Zac Efron + Nicholas Sparks = The Lucky One (the movie). This would be awesome! I am keeping my fingers crossed.

UPDATE: This movie sucks! Big time! I saw it with my hubby and halfway through, he whispers in my ear, "Is it me or does this movie suck?" I ignored him, hoping that the movie would get better...it never did. The trailer made it seem like a tear-jerker but I did not shed one tear. PLEASE wait for it to come out on DVD, better yet, wait until it's shown on TV. I feel bad for Zac Efron because he wanted to get out of the stereotype of a dance/song character, in the end, maybe he should have signed on to do the remake of Footloose.

Hello! My name is...

photo credit

I have been invited to a tweetup dinner organized by the lovely, Lisa from The Hip & Urban Girl's Guide. I had the pleasure of meeting Lisa last week at the Thompson Hotel lobby bar. It was by fluke we both happened to be there. She tweeted about going for dinner at Scarpetta and I was having a drink with Mr. Dee so I tweeted her back that I was sitting at the bar. Just yesterday, she invited me to dinner at Origin with several other ladies on Twitter. I debated about accepting the invitation for about an hour because I was nervous...what am I going to talk about over dinner with these ladies whom I have never met before, or even tweeted with?

I spoke to my hubby about it. I told him all the details and he encouraged me to go. He said that I should get out there and meet people because lately, I don't really talk when at social gatherings, I just fade into the background.

He actually confirmed what I had been feeling about myself for the last two years. I wasn't always a wallflower. I loved to be in deep conversations with people, I loved to tell my stories and have a good chuckle over good food. And then, it happened. I went through devastating experience in my life that made me not want to be social, I wanted to just hide and let others do the talking while I listened. I no longer wanted to go out in group settings because I had no energy to make conversation. I dreaded having to sit and mingle with people. I thought I was crazy to be feeling this way because it's not me. I use to love socializing and talking up a storm. I noticed this change about me but I figured that no one else would notice.  Now that my hubby has noticed and confirmed it, I want to be the person I was before. I am happy that he is pushing me to get out there, be social and meet new people. I can't hide behind my blog or twitter or even my husband, I should be out there, living life, meeting interesting people because if there is one lesson I learned over the last two years is that LIFE IS TOO SHORT.

So, I accepted the invitation from Lisa and decided it's time break out of my comfort zone, break out of my shell and be the person I use to be. Maybe I will get my confidence back and maybe, just maybe, good things will happen for me.  Thank you Lisa for the oppportunity to meet these lovely twitter ladies and thanks to my husband for pointing out my anti-socialness (is this a word?) and forcing me back into the social networking world.

My summer makeup routine

After coming back from my Samana trip with a glowing tan, I needed to change up my makeup application. I needed to get rid of the black eyeliner rimmed all around my eyes. I opted for a more bronzey look. This is what I have been using this summer...

MOISTURIZE. After I have moisturized my face with Olay Complete Ageless Skin Renewing UV Lotion, I wait a couple of minutes for it to soak in.  I also put some Vaseline on my lips.

FACE. I then add bareMinerals Warmth All-Over Face Color with an large angled brush to the apple of my cheeks, temples, hairline and jaw. Just imagine drawing the number "3" starting from temples to cheek to jaw (and then an inverted "3" on the other side). I dust a bit on my forehead and nose. Basically, I add warmth to where the sun would hit. To smooth everything out and remove any excess powder, I give a quick sweep all over my face with a large powder brush.

EYEBROWS. I am still trying to grow out my eyebrows and even though they are full and somewhat shaped, I have a bald spot on my left brow I always need to fill in. I was using this eyebrow pencil in dark brown from Daiso (a type of dollar store where mostly everything is $2.00 - it's in Vancouver) but I just used the last bit. A kind friend has offered to pick some up for me but she can't find the exact same one. Hopefully the one she gets for me will do the same job. For the time being, I am using Benefit Brow zings to fill in the sparse areas. Make sure to use an eyebrow brush or an old but clean mascara wand to brush out the brows and distribute what you just filled in.

CHEEKS. If I want a more shimmery look, I add some NARS Laguna Bronzer from the Highlighting/Bronzing Blush Duo but usually I use Stila Convertible Colour in Poppy (red) or for a more subtle look, Lillium (soft pink). I apply the color with my finger or sponge onto the apple of my cheeks. Click here to see what each shade looks like. This product is an essential to your makeup kit because you can use it for your cheeks or lips. It's so easy to apply and because it comes in a compact, you have the mirror for touch ups.

EYES.  I'm trying to cut down on the amount of makeup I put on and since I have bangs (or a fringe), I am eliminating the application of eyeshadow. I first curl my lashes with a shu uemura eyelash curler and then add some liner. I really love Stila Smudge pots. They are a waterproof gel eyeliner that has the staying power to last all day long. My preferred color for the summer is bronze. Not too heavy but dark enough to actually look like you are wearing eyeliner. I use a small angled brush to line my top lid and underneath my eye in the lower lash line. Lastly, I add two coats of mascara - Covergirl LashBlast Length of a natural look or Max Factor 2000 Calorie Extreme Waterproof Lash Plumper for a dramatic look.

LIPS. I remove some of the Vaseline from my lips, not all of it because I want to retain some moisture. I will either use Stila Convertible Color in Poppy for a bright pop of color or MAC Lipgelée (which they don't really sell anymore) in shades that are no longer available.

That's it. My summer makeup routine. It's a very fresh look that takes no effort.

What beauty products are you using this summer and are loving?

Snack time!!!!

I was telling my BFF that I wanted some type of container that I stack up and keep all my snacks in. I also told her the only one I know of is a toddler one. The other day when we were in Pistachio, we saw the above container. It was perfect and just what I needed. I know it's really meant for formula but I think it will be great to take on vacation. With four compartments, I will have one for almonds, one for jelly bellies, one for cereal and one for Malteasers! Just this morning I found a new use for it. I only used the top two and put granola on the top and yogurt in the bottom. I can't wait to eat my morning snack!

Summer tunes

This Usher song is my song of the moment. I can't get enough of it. It's bringing back an early 90's R&B love song vibe. It gives me that feeling I use to get whenever Can't Wait Another Minute by Hi-Five would come on...



Usher Making Love Into The Night

Here's my summer play list:

Making Love (Into the Night) - Usher
Find Your Love - Drake
Somebody to Love (Remix) - Justin Bieber featuring Usher
Billionaire - Travie McCoy featuring Bruno Mars
All I Do is Win - DJ Khaled featuring T-Pain, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg & Rick Ross
Hello Good Morning - Diddy & Dirty Money Featuring T.I.
Drummer Boy - Debi Nova
Beautiful Monster - Ne-Yo
Fireworks - Drake featuring Alicia Keys
Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart - Alicia Keys
Like a G6 - Far East Movement
Just the Way You Are - Bruno Mars

What's on your summer play list?

Versatile Blogger Award

I don't really understand these blogger awards, where they come from, who starts it but I am honoured that another blogger would award me with a little surprise because they stumbled upon my blog. Thank you so much Nikolett from Better than Coffee. She is a very sweet girl who loves her coffee and her boy. I can't wait to ask her if she wants to participate my Blog Friend Fridays when I start it up again in the fall. So, today I received the Versatile Blogger Award...here are the rules:

There are some rules to this award:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award

2. Share seven things about you

3. Nominate 6 newly discovered blogs

4. Let your nominees know about the award

 

1) I still love my bangs. I was ready to consider growing them out but I have decided to keep them. I feel like it makes me look different from other girls or even my friends.

 

2)  I'm addicted to So You Think You Can Dance. I don't understand why I never watched it but now I look forward to Wednesday and Thursday nights. I am also really looking forward to when the tour comes to Toronto. I just have to find someone to go with me.

3) Speaking of concerts, for Britney Spears' Dream within a Dream tour, I ended up going to the concert on my own. I didn't want to bother to find/ask someone to go with me. I met three fun girls from London, ON, we went for some beers before the concert and had a great time.

 

4) I love ironing. It relaxes me. I love to pop in Laguna Beach and iron while watching all afternoon. People think I am crazy that I iron my jeans, and even our bedsheets, duvet cover and pillows but I love crisp, pressed beddings.

5) In the summer, you will never catch me with my toenails not painted. I truly believe that if you are going to expose your toes, it must be well-manicured and polished.

 

6) My favorite scent is anything with lemon or lime. If I could use Pledge as a perfume, I would but I will settle for the Lemon & Lime fragrance mist from Bath & Body Works.

7) Wal-Mart is my best friend. Target would be my best friend if we had them in Canada. I don't know what I would do without the low prices at Wal-Mart. Lucky for me, there is one walking distance from my home.

 

There are many blogs I follow but the six newly discovered ones who I would like to give this award to are: Angie, Kathy, Katie, Triston, Marianne and Lauren.

Product Review: Bioderma Sensibio H2O

I first read about this product, Sensibio H2O on the BlushPretty website. I am a big fan of a no-fuss cleansing routine and products that make my life easier. Even though I totally trust any recommendations from Stephanie, I had a hard time justifying paying $30 for a bottle that I wasn't sure would even work with my skin. I decided to hold off on buying it...

...until I came across at Rexall a special offer from Bioderma. They are selling a travel kit for $6.95 with product to cleanse, treat and maintain your face. What sold me on this kit was the 100 ml bottle of Sensibio H2O (bonus - airport security friendly) that I could test out and also use when I travel. The other two products, I could care less about: Sensibio AR to diminish redness and Sensibio Light to protects and soothes your skin. Another bonus is the coupon at the bottom of the box for $5 off the purchase of any Bioderma product of $22 or more. You know I am going to be buying the full size bottle of Sensibio H2O. I highly suggest you head over to your nearest Rexall and pick up one of the kits for either sensitive skin or oily/combination skin.

On Friday night, I was in a rush to get ready to go out. I wanted to remove my makeup from earlier in the day and thought the timing was right for me to test out this product. I put some of the H2O on a cotton pad and began to remove the remnants of my makeup from the morning. To my surprise it took off everything and didn't leave my face dry and tight. You only have to use very little and it takes you a long way. I wasn't wearing my usual mascara that day so the true test will be if it can take off my stubborn waterproof mascara. I truly believe this will be a great product to bring on my next vacation.

| blarkness rating: 5 out of 5 |

Macaron Heaven

While waiting for Ms Trixie to meet me for dinner earlier this week, I popped into Pusateri's in Yorkville to see what goodies they have. There were so many tarts, cakes, cupcakes, squares, brownies, etc. I just could not decide what to get until I came across some pretty colourful pieces of macaron heaven!!!! At $1.75 each, I thought it would be safe to allow myself four. With an array of colours, it was difficult to choose the flavours I actually wanted to try.

 From top to bottom: Double Chocolate, Chocolate Hazelnut, Raspberry and Lychee

My favorite was Double Chocolate. It melted in my mouth and had the right amount of chocolate and sweetness. There are so many other flavours to try, too many to name but I will definitely pick up more the next time I am in the area. Although I love the macarons from MoRoCo Chocolat, it's $2.50 each (really, 6 for $15.00), the ones at Pusateri's are just as good and cheaper!

TGIF

One more hour of work. I have to send out five confirmation letters for our fall conference and then I can call it a day. I don't know about you, but this week dragged. I had stuff to do every day after work this week and have been going to bed late. This makes for a very irritable me. As usual, the weekend is going to fly by, I just know it.  I hope to savour each moment and hopefully squeeze in some nap time whenever I get a chance. Here's what I am planning to do this weekend...

Mr's Dee's birthday at Brassaii tonight. I really hope most of our friends come out because it's been too long since I last saw them.

***

Watch Ramona and Beezus with my mom. Yes, we may be too old to be watching it but Josh Duhamel and John Corbett are in it. Nuff said!!!

***

Sleepover at my mom's place. Yes, I am 33 but my mom is moving to California in 12 days. I will try and spend as much time with her as I can.

***

Baking Skor Bars. 10 batches of them for my mom's retirement party next week. I agreed to put together her giveaways. I don't think I fully understood what I was getting myself into.

***

Mommy Solon's birthday lunch with the Solon Massive. There will be longboarding. There will be vacation talk. There will be lots of eating and hopefully suntanning because lord knows someone needs it. Just kidding Dianne. Actually maybe not... It will be exciting to spend some time with this little guy since he is finally okay with me holding him.

***

Lastly, I hope to sneak in some ironing and reading. I am reading the latest Gossip Girl book, I Will Always Love You and I am quite enjoying it.

Mr. Dee's birthday and the rest of my summer plans

Today is Mr. Dee's birthday. I like to now refer to my friends on my blog and Twitter as Mr. or Ms _____ [insert friend's nickname here]. It's silly but I like it. When I called Dee "Mr. Dee" at the Thompson Hotel lobby bar, he said it makes him sound old.  My reply, "You are old cuz you will always be older than me!". Anyway, Mr. Dee's birthday always signals the middle of summer. A reminder to myself that summer is almost over and better make the most of it. His birthday is a night where most of our friends come out and party. It's difficult to get all the friends together because of kids, prior commitments, etc but Mr. Dee's birthday is the one night that everyone tries to make the effort. Let's see who shows up on Friday night at Brassaii for his celebration.  Here a photo from his Dutty Thirty Party four years ago (oops, I just gave away his age)...

In his suite at the Park Hyatt. We partied at Proof that night.

Now that it's official the middle of summer has arrived, it got me thinking (along with this blog post), what do I have planned for the rest of the summer and what else do I want to do before the summer ends:

PLANS FOR THE REST OF THE SUMMER:

• My mom's retirement/going away party - the day has finally arrived for my mom to start her new life. I feel like I am a mother and my daughter is moving out of the family home and in with her new hubby. My mom has been married for two years now but has been living separately from her husband who lives in San Jose, CA. My mom hasn't had a big bash in a while. I do recall her 50th birthday where she was dancing on a table. Yes, my mother is that crazy and I can never keep up with her.
• Mike & Sandra's wedding - this is the first wedding in my brother`s circle of friends. I am quite honoured that they invited me. This is my solo wedding of the year since Mike won`t be going. At least I know that Miss Ro and her friends are also going solo. Should be one heck of a party. Makes me wish that Gino was still here to join in all the fun.
• Chris & Janet's wedding - It`s always nice to see friends tie the knot.
• Jamaica - I haven`t blogged about it yet but Mike and I booked to go to Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton in Lucea. I was always against going to Jamaica but I really want to go away on vacation with JP and Lyn so one night, I caved and agreed. We booked the next day so no one would change their mind. I think I agreed because I was drunk on sangria.

WHAT ELSE I WOULD LIKE TO DO:

• Have our friends at DD Cottage throw a rooftop terrace party before September
• Go to the drive-in since we missed our tradition of one drive-in session per summer last year
• More patio and beer drinking
• Trying running outside instead of inside on the treadmill
• Go to a park, throw a blanket on the grass and read all day
• Watch the hubby longboard and hopefully learn to longboard too. It's so cool to board but I just suck at it
• Visit the Ponce family since I haven't seen R3 in ages
• Grab some ice cream from Stone Cold Creamery

How has your summer been and what else are you planning to do for the rest of the summer?

So You Think You Can Dance

Season 7 contestants

I have a new love and yes I know, I am behind in the times. Most of my friends, especially Maureen are huge fans of SYTYCD. I have no idea why I never watched the show from the first season seeing that I am an addict to dance movies. So, I finally jumped on the bandwagon when I found out D-Trix from Quest Crew (my other love) was going to be on the show as an all-star. There are though, a few other all-stars I am familiar with and also like - tWitch, Mark and Lauren.

Dominic "D-Trix" Sandoval

As sad as this sounds, I have "tweet" dates with random twitters when the show is on. We tweet about how awesome the routines are and who are favorite contestants are. One tweeter asked me how I am liking the new format and I told her that I love it but I have nothing to compare it to since I haven't seen any of the other seasons. Another tweeter said to me that it was a good season to start watching because the new format is very different and exciting.  I honestly can't get enough of the show and all the amazing talent there is to watch. Now to answer the question that everyone asks, " Who are your favorites?" - well, I decided that I am going to pick one female and one male.

Lauren is an all-around verstile dancer. Each week she brings it and does better than the week before.

Kent  has a smile that makes you smile and just has so much personality. He is so fun to watch and so very talented.

Movie Reviews: Eclipse and Despicable Me 3D

For the first time, I didn't watch the third installment of The Twilight Saga on opening day. I had plans with my mom on the 30th and I am sure she wasn't interested in watching it with me. Instead, I watched Eclipse  a couple of days later with Maureen. This movie was good but I wasn't in love with it as I was with Twilight. I mean, for Twilight, I saw it four times in the theatre. Here's what I liked about the movie:

1. RILEY - Vampire HOTness. If you were able to catch the Jimmy Kimmel special, Total Eclipse of the Heart, you would have noticed that Xavier Samuel is quite the charmer.
2. ROSALIE - She's still not as pretty as she should be according to the book but she looks much better. I just don't get why have her have such dark eyebrows and blond hair. I would really be okay with it if she was a brunette.
3. The back stories of Jasper and Rosalie, but when do they do Alice's back story (maybe they did it already and I missed it)
4. Jacob's line - I'm hotter than you!
5. As much as I don't want to admit it - Jacob's body.

I know there's more about the movie that I liked but it's been almost three weeks since I have seen it and I can't remember but here's what I didn't like about the movie:

1. Taylor Lautner's cheesy acting or maybe it's his lines, I don't know but I cringe whenever words come out of his mouth. Maybe Jacob's cheesy in the book and I just don't remember but could it be TL may just be a really bad actor or he is playing a really cheeseball character.
2. Very little action. I was expecting a bigger battle.
3. Edward's sideburns. Is it really necessary to have such THICK sideburns. Are those even real?

Since I can't remember a lot about the movie, I think I need to watch it again. Maybe this time, I will watch it with Mike.

My first 3D movie, Despicable Me. What a cute movie and funny too! I love the little minions and Gru's accent kept me laughing in my seat throughout the entire movie. Agnes, the little girl is adorable and sweet. I know it's a kids movie but I think that adults will love it too. It's got a real heartwarming ending that could even bring a tear to some of the male audience.

Marben - Part 2

This time last year I had my first dining experience at Marben for Dee's birthday on a Friday night. We had such an awesome meal with their selection for Summerlicious. It was so good, we went again the following night.

I was quite disappointed to find out they were closing. The restaurant was beautifully decorated and I was in love with the art deco wall. I wish I had taken pictures from the times we were there.

I found out that Marben recently re-opened, fully renovated. So this past Friday, Dee and I decided to check it out. I arrived first and got to check the place out. It has really changed and looks very rustic. I am not a fan of it. The menu has changed drastically. Instead of having a good portion entrees, it's now a tapas menu. Don't get me wrong, the food we ate was delicious but not enough to make me want to come back. Plus, with the rustic style setting, it makes me feel like I am at a cottage and that's not my cup of tea.

 Newly renovated Marben

Marcus' Mushroom Fricassee

Dennis' Roasted Beef

(We also had Jesse's Halibut but Dee was hungry 

and started to eat it before I could take a picture)

I'm not planning to go back but I may consider it because we didn't get the chance to order Ervinna’s Ice Cream Sandwich - chocolate cookie, chocolate ice cream and crème anglaise.

David's Tea

David's Tea @ Yonge &; Eglinton

After I participated in a tea exchange and received tea from David's Tea, I have been wanting to go to one of their locations to pick up and try more tea. I finally made it to the Yonge & Eglinton location. Even though, on a very hot and sticky day with the store having no A/C, I left the store quite content with the service I received and the purchases I made.

I never got the name of the lovely lady who helped me select three different kinds of teas that I can enjoy at home. She gave me recommendations after I told her I can't have anything with payaya or passionfruit, I prefer green tea over black, I don't like vanilla but I do like citrus. After smelling several kinds of tea leaves and sipping on a sample of White Malibu, from their Summer Collection, I made my decision and went with Xanadu, Kyoto Cosmo and Crème Caramel Rooibos.

I had such a wonderful shopping experience and I can't wait to go back to try out more. For next time, I will only get 26 g instead of the usual 50 g so I can return more often to explore new flavours. I did tweet while I was in the store and I got a response from one of my friends telling me to try Coffee pu'erh and Forever Nuts.

If you are a fan of David's Tea, what are some of your favorite teas?

Everyone jump into the pool!!!!

Anyone interested in attending this event with me?

hugTO Urban Pool Party + Networking Event

It looks like a fun event, the only thing I am worried about - are bathing suits are must? The lovely Lisa from the Hip & Urban Girl's Guide was kind enough to send me a tweet about her event in August. She says that I should just come on my own but I much rather go with some company.

Overstuffed bag

 Adaiah, Lyn, Janet and me

On Sunday, I attended Janet's bridal shower with the two lovely ladies from the East side. I swear, I have been to so many bridal/wedding showers that I usually end up winning at least one prize. And at this shower, I did win...I won the What's in your purse game. The way the game works is that you are awarded a certain number of points for certain items in your bag. I got 181 points. This has to be an indication that I have way too much junk in my bag or I carry everything possible. I am quite embarrassed. Take a look at how I scored:

• 3 points for lip gloss (one point for tube of lip gloss or lipstick)
• 3 points for gum
• 5 points for keys (one point for each)
• 36 points for a picture of yourself (12 points for each - expired driver's license, health card and passport)
• 7 points for kleenex
• 5 points for nail file
• 5 points for Advil
• 5 points for sunglasses
• 3 points for cell phone
• 15 points for USB drive
• 7 points for lotion
• 5 points for mirror
• 1 point for brush
• 6 points (one point for each nickel)
• 5 points for feminine products
• 7 points for bandaids
• 3 points for snacks
• 20 points for passport
• 6 points for pens (one point for each pen)
• 3 points for mints
• 7 points for hair clip
• 1 point for credit card (one point for each card)
• 15 points for energy bar
• 3 points for receipts
• 5 points for someone else's business card

Take a look inside my bag...

Lyn, who has as much junk in her bag as I do, has a purse organizer in her bag. We couldn't stop laughing at the fact she has one but her bag is still a disaster inside. Oh Lyn...I am glad that this game forced you to clean out your bag.

Giveaway on Dreamy Babies

 
If you missed my giveaway with BlushPretty's Beauty Balms, you have another chance. My friend, Kathy, who created Dreamy Babies (a great site for mom) is featuring BlushPretty (another friend of mine) and is doing a giveaway for the beauty balms.  Check it out:

http://www.dreamybabies.ca/dreamy-babies/2010/07/feature-friday-blushpretty.html

These balms are great for moisturizing your lips, cuticles and dry patches.

Archer Farms (only at Target)

On my recent trip to Target, I bought a couple of grocery items from the Archer Farms brand. My understanding is that it's Target's house brand.  I picked up Maui Onion pretzels, Pecan Sticky Bun Granola and Chcocolate Chunk Hazelnut Biscotti Granola. The Pecan Sticky Bun Granola tastes so good on top of strawberry yogurt.

I love buying grocery items that you can't get here in Toronto. The next time I go to Target, I am going to make sure I stock up on the foods that I already like and also look for new interesting ones. I like looking for different cereals, chips, drinks and chocolate. One item that I really wanted to buy but couldn't find was Izzie sparkling juice.

What do you like buying in the States that you can't get here in Canada?

Fill in the Blank Friday (very late and done on a Monday)

1.  My favorite thing about this week has been my shopping trip to Forever XXI. I was finally able to buy a romper/jumper. It's cotton and royal blue. I'm excited that I will be able to wear it during my August vacation.

2.  The weather this week has been hot, hot hot! Except for Friday when it was cold and poured like crazy. Luckily, it cleared up in the afternoon.  

3.  The last (interesting) item I received in the mail was a wedding invitation from my hubby's cousin who will be getting married in Punta Cana in January. We would love to attend and join them in our favorite place in the world but timing is bad.   

4.  The last movie I saw was Despicable Me in 3D. I actually watched it on Saturday morning but since I should have done this on Friday, then it was Eclipse which I watched the Friday before. Despicable Me is an adorable and funny movie, a must see. Eclipse was good (Riley is hot).

5.  If I could be doing anything I felt like today I would want to just sleep. I'm not getting enough and it would be nice to catch up by just skipping work and just lie in bed.

6.  As a teenager I was having fun, living my life. I wasn't a goody-two-shoes but I wasn't a bad teen getting in trouble with the police (oh wait, there was that one time...). Sure, I did stuff I shouldn't have done but I like to consider those things life lessons and just stuff teens go through.      

7.  I wish I could trade lives for the day with The Hills cast. I want to see what it's like to go to the hottest clubs, fly to Cabo, Miami or Vegas on a private jet and just do nothing but party.

Volunteer Work

I had a friend take a look at my resume last week. It's always good to keep it up to date even if you are not job hunting. I haven't looked at my resume in two years so I thought it would be a good idea to get a second look at it.

My friend asked me if I did any volunteer work and I told her no. She was shocked and so was I. I should volunteer my time somewhere. I have the time and it will definitely look go on my resume. I just have to get off my butt and look for a company or charity I can do some volunteer work for. Two places in mind were Bereaved Families of Ontario (Halton-Peel) and Survivor Support Program since they helped me get through a difficult time in my life.

Do you do any volunteer work and where do you do it?

Do you have any suggestions for me?

Remembering Baby Callie

A year ago today, my sister-in-law and her hubby lost their little girl just hours after she was born. I can't even begin to imagine what S&J went through and how they had to deal with the lost of their first born. Both of them are strong people and I am sure that they managed to cope but today must bring back a slew of emotions. I will be thinking of S&J today and also Baby Callie. She is truly missed by all her family.

List of movies I want to watch (July edition)

Since my last post in February, I have watched The Last Song, Sex and the City 2 and Eclipse. The A-Team, Prince of Persia and Iron Man 2 will just have to be watched on DVD. I am glad that my hubby has tried watching on a 3D TV and now wants to watch 3D movies. See, he never wants to go to the movies with me but that might be changing...

July 9, 2010 - Despicable Me 3D - the little girl is adorable in this movie. I have no idea what the movie is all about but I have to see the part where the little girl asks something is annoying. I love that part. See the 1:00 mark in the clip.



July 23, 2010 - Ramona and Beezus - the fact that Josh Duhamel and John Corbett are in this movie is my number one reason to go.



July 23, 2010 - Salt - a little action movie over the summer is always good.



July 30, 2010 - Charlie St. Cloud - I have seen this trailer twice and both times, my eyes filled up with tears. I am not sure if it's because of Snow Patrol's song, Run, playing in the background or if the story is really sad, but I feel so much emotion. Zac Efron is my new crush (ever since Brody Jenner started dating Avril Lavigne). I am loving his hair these days.  I hope he makes it big and this will be the movie where he can prove to everyone that he is not all about song and dance. He made a good move by turning down Footloose.



August 6, 2010 - Step Up 3D - I want this movie to be my first 3D movie. I heart dance movies and I am still in love with Step Up 2. I have just discovered So You Think You Can Dance and I think it will be cool to see tWitch in this movie (along with Madd Chad and all the other LXD dancers)



August 13, 2010 - Eat, Pray, Love - quick, let me finish the book before watching the movie...I have heard so much about this book but it's only now that I want to read it before the movie comes out. Isn't this always the case? Plus, Julia Roberts is in the movie and we all love her.



August 13, 2010 - Scott Pilgrim vs. the World - Mike read all five volumes while we were on vacation. I also started to read them but I didn't laugh as much as Mike did while he was reading. It's going to be interesting on how they make this graphic novel into a movie. Michael Cera is perfect for the role of Scott Pilgrim.



August 27, 2010 - Takers - I have blogged about this before. There are so many hot guys and I love how it's like Ocean's Eleven meets The Italian Job.



October 8, 2010 - Life As We Know It - is there anyone out there who isn't in love with Josh Duhamel? I hope this movie is better than When in Rome. Katherine Heigl is hilarious and most of her rom-com's are pretty good so this movie has potential.



Next time I do this list, I will make sure that I use IMDb to link up the movies for more information. I used Tribute this time but I think IMDb will be more useful.

Product Review: Fiber One Toaster Pastries

On a recent trip to Target (I live in Canada so trip to Buffalo, NY must include a visit to Target to load up on products that are not available in here), I discovered Fiber One Toaster Pastry. It's the grown up version of Pop Tarts but they include 20 % of the Daily Value of fiber.  The flavours offered are Blueberry, Strawberry, Chocolate Fudge and Brown Sugar Cinnamon. The last two flavours are the ones that I purchased at Target but my favorite is Brown Sugar Cinnamon. It's great for breakfast or even a snack. It's so good that I won't share them with anyone.

Now, all I have to do is see if they are available here.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they are at Wal-Mart.

| blarkness rating: 4.5 out of 5 |

Where are you???

I know that I haven't been blogging much. I want to but my mind is just not up for it.

Although, I think I may be getting my blogging legs back...