# 5

I'm getting excited about Christmas. I should say a little obsessive really. It's gotten a bit cooler here and that always puts me in the mood. Seeing as money is real tight this year; I've been trying to think of some homemade goodness to give this year.

So far I've decided that the lovely ladies in my life will be getting little spa baskets. They will include homemade bath salts, handmade soap from Dee and lotion or a small candle.

I have found small tubes of lavender hand lotion in the travel section at target, for about a dollar. If I can find some small candles on sale or clearance somewhere I'll add those too. Next I'll be looking for small baskets or containers to put everything in. I'm also on the hunt for small jars or bottles to put the salts in.

Peppermint Bath Salts:

• 1 cup of Epsom Salt
• 1 cup of Sea Salt
• 1/4 cup of baking soda
• Peppermint and/or Eucalyptus Essential Oils (6 - 12 drops total)
• Fresh mint or Peppermint Tea

1. Combine Salts and Soda in bowl or Ziploc bag.
2. Add Oils, a few drops at a time, mix.
3. Once you get desired scent, add fresh mint leaves or tea.
4. Pour into jars, label and enjoy.

Lavender Bath Salts:

Same as above but use Lavender Oil and Dried Lavender or Chamomile Tea.

I think these will make nice little gifts and I might just spring for a Massage Envy Gift Card for my Mom, Aunt and Sisters.

# 4

Disorganized. That's the story of my life summed up in one word. Sure, there's plenty others, but for now at this time in my life, this is what I am.

I got a new phone last week and somehow my not-so tech savvy self figured out how to send all my contacts to the new phone via bluetooth. Yay me. *pats back* I think I was too busy congratulating myself; I seemed to miss all my calendar events. Who knew I actually relied on a little calendar thingy to remind me what to do. Therefore missing a very important meeting on Sunday... Oh well.

I'm also moving come December. I need to go through my entire place and sell, donate or trash all the crap that moves from place to place with me. Why is it I find it so terribly difficult to get rid of things I don't need. I am seriously that girl with 18 bottles of shampoo, lotions, body wash, etc. that can't even be classified as half full by an optimist.

On top of that, I am also that girl who saves clothes that are 3 times too small. Get that straight, I save them, I don't wear them. I will most likely never wear them. But I do however regret the last time I got rid of those too small clothes. I find myself standing in my closet reminiscing of those one pair of jeans that were so worn in the ass you had to wear a shirt 4 times too big so no one gets a free show. Sure they were falling apart at the seams, but didn't they fit like a glove? (at some point, I'm sure)

I'm just rambling now, so stayed tuned for more meaningless sporadic posts.

# 3

Gotta love Mercury in Retrograde. I'm holding on tight and focusing on the positives. Yea my cell phone my be acting wonky; dropped calls, randomly shutting off, etc. , but I'm going to hold on tight for the ride. I just kind of laugh when I hear about phones, computers and other electronics going hay wire during this time. I mean really, if that's the worst then I think I can endure it.

However, this retrograde falls under a Venus-Libra something-or-another. Don't get me wrong I only half know what I'm talking about. But Venus is the planet of love and beauty and Libra is the sign of relationships and balance. I read an article the other day that suggest I make a list of all the positive things I love about relationships; any relationships! So I made my list yesterday and I will read it everyday and add to it. By focusing on all the good, it's kind of hard to worry about the bad.

I don't believe that Mercury in Retrograde has to be a bad thing. Mercury is our universe’s lovely little winged messenger. It influences communication, travel and education. I remind myself to laugh with Mercury as conversations go awry, as traffic backs up and when I can't seem to wrap my head around anything. I've learned that getting frustrated only makes it seems less tolerable. So I smile and roll with the punches.

Mercury is my little friend in the sky who enjoys mischief and shenanigans just as much as I do. For those of you who want to know more than my jacked up interpretation, Google it! But maybe you should wait until Oct. 18th, when the affects of wear off; or you may not learn much.

# 2

My new obsession. Maybe that's what I should have titled this blog. Anytime I have a new obsession, I start a new blog. I make a few random or in most cases, obsessive posts, and move right along to the next.

Anyhow, I got a blender the other day, therefore I am obsessed with it.

My first stab at smoothies was a complete failure. Too thick and chunky and it wouldn't blend properly. Feeling like a complete failure I turned to the Internets. I looked up a couple recipes yesterday and proceeded.

Have you noticed on those recipe websites how there's a recipe, then 18 comments of how they altered it. Wow that's a new recipe; write your own. So instead of telling you how I altered it, I'll just tell you what I did, then you can comment about your substitutes. Either way, I can't wait until my lunch break to obsessively buy frozen fruit.

I have no witty name - smoothie:

3/4 cups of 2% milk
1/4 cup non fat vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup rolled oats (yes you read that right.)
1 banana (I prefer frozen and peeled)
6 - 10 frozen whole strawberries
1/3 cup of frozen blueberries
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 sweet n low (or 1-1/2 teaspoons of sugar, or omit completely)

First, I used my nifty little chopper thingy to pulverize the oats. Next, I dumped everything in the blender and pushed the button. Nothing happened. I forgot to plug it in. If you are going to use a blender, you should plug it in, and I recommend using the nifty little lid that goes with it. If you are having trouble with the blender, tossing it across the kitchen will not solve anything. Try adding more milk if the mixture is too thick and refuses to blend perfectly. Also cussing and screaming on top of blending, only pisses off the neighbors.

The thing I love most about this smoothie, is that the banana didn't over power it. It was also pretty sweet, and I've never even entertained the idea of adding oatmeal, much less vanilla to a smoothie.

Until next time,
Happy Blending.