Beach Cruiser Bicycles

For those outdoor enthusiasts who are more interested in comfort than speed, there’s good news. Beach cruisers are making a comeback! Beach cruisers were very popular in the 1950s with the Baby Boomers but were soon pushed aside to make way for the ten-speeds and mountain bikes. In recent years, the cruisers have become popular once again, and not just for folks living in LA and other beach-laden areas! They’re moving inland!

Designed more for smooth, flat terrains, these bicycles are great for casual street, beach, and boardwalk riding. While there are multi-speed versions of the beach cruiser, these bicycles are not built for speed but for comfort and ease. Everything about this style of bicycle coos, “Relax and enjoy the ride,” to me.

The new versions of the beach cruisers are more lightweight and durable than their ancestors. There are multiple colors and styles for women, men, and children. There are even big & tall beach cruisers, lowriders, and choppers!

I used to love biking but have not done it in years! Maybe this is a way to break back into it without breaking any bones or the bank! Now I’m pondering whether to get back into biking soon and find a bike trailer for Tree Faerie or wait until she’s old enough to ride a bike of her own…

Handfastings and Weddings

As a Wiccan Priestess, I am often asked about handfasting. The first thing everyone wants to know is – What is a handfasting and how is it different from a wedding? Essentially, a handfasting is a type of wedding during which the betrothed couple’s hands are tied together with cord, ribbon, cloth, or some other material that can be knotted and stay knotted. Historically, the couple had to stay physically bound until they could consummate the marriage. Nowadays, many couples forgo that tradition for several different reasons. DTTF and I did not keep our hands bound because we had the wedding and reception in a Unitarian Universalist church, then had to go to our apartment with my parents, and then had to drive all the way to his mom’s house for the “after-party.” We had neither the time nor privacy to stay bound until we could consummate the marriage! (I know – more information than you wanted to know, right?)

A handfasting can either be a spiritual wedding for a set amount of time, after which the couple may decide whether or not to stay handfasted and make it legal, or it can be both spiritual and legal at the same time, like mine was. One of the reasons for having a handfasting performed for a set amount of time is to help alleviate fears surrounding marriage and divorce, which is completely understandable when one sees how high divorce rates are in this country. A handparting is much cheaper than a legal divorce.

A couple can write their own ceremony or have the priest and/or priestess write it for them. I’m currently working with two different couples regarding their handfastings. One of the couples wants to just do the spiritual handfasting for a year and a day to make sure they really want to be married to each other since both have been married and divorced before and are afraid of that happening again. The other couple is planning to have a legal handfasting because they’re sure this is what they want.

One inquiry both couples asked was whether or not they should send out traditional invitations. My response to both of them was that it is up to them, just like it would be with a traditional wedding. Personally, I really like the photo invitations over at Wedding Needs. One of the brides-to-be takes very artistic photos, so I sent her here to take a look. They certainly are not cheap invitations, but if she is willing to spend the money, I’m sure she can come up with a photo that will make a very classy invitation.

Zenni Optical

A couple of weeks ago, the screw on the right side of my glasses came out. I got this pair for next to nothing in July. Since then, I’ve worn my glasses as often (if not more often) than I’ve worn my contacts, something I haven’t done since I started wearing contacts 13 years ago! Apparently I abused them, because the screw decided to bail on me. I picked up one of those little repair kits for glasses to replace the screw, but it turns out that the pair I have needs a special kind of screw. Because I’m cheap and didn’t pay but about $20 for my glasses, I found an alternative method to hold the glasses together. I took heavy duty black quilting thread and whip-stitched my glasses together.

(You may laugh, but you can’t tell they’re actually held together with thread without actually inspecting my glasses. I may be a nerd, but at least I'm a creative one!)

Since then I’ve kept my eyes open for an inexpensive way to replace my glasses. Enter Zenni Optical: Sells Rx Glasses for only $8 with case! They have a flat shipping rate of $4.95 no matter how many pairs you order, so I could get a brand new pair of glasses shipped to my house for about $13! Plus, the anti-scratch coating and the UV protection is free. The anti-reflective coating is only $4.95, which the place I got my current glasses wanted to charge me $40 to add the coating (I declined THAT offer). They can also add sunglass tint for $4.95.

The only thing I’m apprehensive about is not being able to try them on first, but they have a partial-refund return policy. If I don’t like them I can return them for 50% of the cost of the glasses. Seriously, for this price, I think I can afford to take the chance. I may even go a little funky!

Then again, maybe not. This whole glasses thing is still a little new to me, especially since I hated them so much when I was a kid.

Female Pattern Baldness

A long-time friend of mine suffers from Female Pattern Baldness. Her natural hair color is a very dark brown, but she highlights her hair because she thinks this helps keep her hair from looking so thin. Her hair just keeps thinning, however, and as she’s gotten older, it’s more and more obvious that she’s losing her hair. She’s tried a couple of products with varying results, but she quit using them either because her sensitive skin had a reaction to the products or she couldn’t justify the cost based on the results.

She considers me an internet guru (I hear some of you laughing), so she asked me to do a bit of research. I found a review of several hair loss products on TrustedSource.org that I found particularly helpful, especially the Provillus review. After researching this product more extensively, I found quite a bit of positive feedback, but very little negative.

I passed along the information to my friend, and she decided to give Provillus a try. Right now they offer a 2 month free supply, so she figured it was worth a shot. If she sees results, she’ll keep using it. If she doesn’t, we’ll move on to something else.

(When I told her this, she laughed and said, “Or buy a wig!” I’m glad she’s still got a sense of humor about it.)

Ashop Commerce

In my former life, by which I mean life before I became a mom, I dabbled in graphic design and web design. I helped a friend set up her internet shop to display her home-based business. I’m not going to link to the site right now because it’s currently going through changes.

One of these changes we’re currently looking at is the shopping cart program she’s currently using. She’s currently using the cart program that came free from the web host. The program gave me a headache when I first tried to set it up, but once I got it going, it wasn’t too bad. Changing the layout is a nightmare, though. A NIGHTMARE.

Recently, I discovered Ashop Commerce. While it is not a free shopping cart software program, the price really isn’t bad, especially considering how user friendly it seems to be. I’ve only tried the demo, but changing the layout was a breeze, creating new products was simple, and setting up the categories and sub-categories was a no-brainer.

Does anyone have experience with this program? Is it as divine as it seems?

Stretch Marks Study

When I got pregnant, I was not surprised when the stretch marks started to appear since I had gotten stretch marks at every growth spurt throughout my life, whether in height or width. I did a bit of research but lost hope when I kept reading that stretch marks were not preventable or treatable. I found a lot of ads for stretch mark creams. All of the “testimonials” raved about how wonderful these creams were, but I couldn’t find a third-party comparison or consumer review site for the creams.

I tried Palmers Cocoa Butter, but I was so sensitive to smells that I couldn’t even have the lotion out on the counter, much less use it. Thus, the only treatment I lathered upon my rapidly spreading stretch marks was an unscented off-brand Vitamin E lotion. I can’t tell if the lotion helped with the stretch marks, but it did relieve the itching. I now have stretch marks curving over my hips, around the front of my abdomen and down my thighs.

Diva over at Diva’s Skin Care Blog decided to put the stretch mark cream leaders to the test. She put four stretch mark creams to the test on 10 different people, some who were trying to prevent stretch marks and some who were trying to erase old stretch marks. Revitol Stretch Mark Cream came out on top, and she even posts photos of the participants who had the best results.

I wish this post came out a couple of years earlier when I could have used this information to help me decide which cream to use. I’m considering trying one of the products mentioned in her post to help diminish or erase my battle scars stretch marks. While they look better than they did a year ago, they’re still not pretty.

Smorty.com

Since I have a hard time keeping information that may help others to myself, I had to share my new finding. As you know, I'm open to opportunities to make a bit of income from my blog as long as it doesn't damage the integrity of this blog or conflict with my values. I refuse to lie or blog about things I don’t have any interest in just to make a few bucks. However, as I’ve said before, if I can get paid to blog, why not, especially since I’m going to be blogging anyway? Enter Smorty.com a program that pays $6 - $60 per opportunity, and they pay weekly to PayPal.

Dear readers, if any of you have a problem with me accepting money for some of these posts, please let me know. Maybe you have a perspective I haven’t heard yet. If, however, you’re interested in trying it out yourself, either click on the link in this post or, even better, click on the link in the sidebar under the stat counter. (And to answer a common question, yes, this service has certain restrictions regarding crude or adult content. Sorry folks.)

While I have your attention, are you interested in me keeping you updated on the research I’m doing regarding making money with blogging?

Coupons for Cupids

My mind is stuck on Valentine’s Day today, even though it’s almost a month away. Since we’re also trying to recover from Christmas, pinching pennies is also at the forefront of my thoughts. Since I’m going to buy Valentine’s gifts anyway.
coupons help me feel just a little better about spending money in the wake of the holidays.

I found Illuminations coupons and Barnes & Noble coupons that will be put to good use. I also found Target, Wal-Mart, and even Zales coupons that are hard to resist!

I must stop shopping on the internet before I go broke!

Valentine's Day Approaches

Everywhere I turn lately I see another reminder that Valentine’s Day is approaching quickly. I am even wearing Valentine’s socks with lipstick kisses all over them for my Funky Sock Friday. When I saw the socks for only $1, I just couldn’t pass them up.

While DTTF usually has no problem finding a gift for me regardless of the holiday, I have a hard time finding a valentines gift for him . Since he really doesn’t care much for candy and doesn’t wear boxers, which seem to be the most common V-Day gifts out there, I’ve had to be rather creative in the past, from t-shirts or coffee mugs to coupons for “special” treats.

Since everyone needs a bit of pampering every now and then, I think this year I’m going to go with a spa set like this. I love the chest, and amber spice-type scents smell really good on DTTF.

Do you celebrate Valentine’s Day? If so, what are you getting for your special someone?

The Business of Being Born - Movie

Folks, 3 hours of sleep is simply not enough for me to function as a normal human being! Since I don't have the energy to complain, let's talk movies and birth. Disclaimer: The following post is my perspective and my opinion. It is not meant as an attack on the experiences or choices of others.


I received an email a few weeks back a documentary called The Business of Being Born. Here's the synopsis from the email:

Birth is a miracle, a rite of passage, a natural part of life. But birth is also big business. In the new documentary THE BUSINESS OF BEING BORN Executive Producer Ricki Lake and Director Abby Epstein question the way American women have babies, and explore this fundamental question: should most births be viewed as a natural life process, or should every delivery be treated as a potential medical
emergency?

THE BUSINESS OF BEING BORN makes a compelling argument for more humanistic approaches to birth, challenging the ideals of our technocratic society which places absolute faith in machines and technology. It is a must-see for anyone thinking of having a baby.

More information: http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/

I checked out the website and am highly intrigued because of my own views of labor and birth. Yes, I believe that medical intervention has saved the lives of many babies and mothers who might have died in childbirth a century ago, however I also believe that the Western culture has gotten a bit too far away from the natural process. People schedule their inductions like they schedule play-dates. Women choose to have cesareans so they don't have to go through the whole labor and pushing ordeal.


Inductions and cesareans were meant to step in where the natural process of labor and birth failed, but only if the natural process fails in some way. They do make life more convenient, and in the world we live in today, convenience is something we expect and take for granted. It really irks me, though, when I hear a mother say, "Oh, we scheduled the c-section at 38 weeks so that Little John would be here before we take our cruise."

To me, pregnancy and birth is a rite of passage, and I treated mine as such. Due to our finances (or lack thereof) when we were pregnant with Tree Faerie, we could not afford to go to a midwife instead of a traditional OB. So, I chose an OB, prepared a birth plan, and proceeded to have as natural of a birth as possible in a hospital setting. Memphis has one of the highest c-section rates in the nation, so I was just a bit nervous.

(Everything turned out fine, of course, and we had a natural birth. Tree Faerie is healthy and beautiful. I also know that if things had not turned out "fine," I was already in a place where they could provide the best care in Memphis.)

I know there will always be those who prefer convenience over letting nature take its course, but I wonder if more women are educated about the natural process of birth, would more women be willing to follow that natural process?

Pay Per Post

I’ve decided to try my hand at a new endeavor to help alleviate my stress regarding my finances. We’ve all heard about someone supporting their family by blogging, but most of us figure it is way beyond hope. A few months back, I heard about a site called Pay Per Post while bouncing around Bloggerland. I can’t remember where I found it, but I was immediately intrigued. I checked it out and discovered that my blog wasn’t quite old enough. I didn’t really think much more about it until I recently received an email from the parent company, Izea. Izea hosts several things, including the Blogger Choice Awards and Pay Per Post.

I blog to help streamline my thoughts, to touch base with other parents, and to practice my writing. If I can make money while doing so, why not give it a shot? I mean, if you were given the opportunity to make money while breathing, would you say yes? My answer will always vary based on the circumstances involved and the fine print. If none of my values are compromised and I’m sure I’m not being scammed, then my answer would be, “Yes! Bring on the money!”

I read all the fine print. Payment is based on opportunities you select to write about, and you know how much you will be paid for that post up front. Pay Per Post holds the money until all terms have been met, which usually includes a time period that the post has to be active, then pays via PayPal. So the turn-around time may not necessarily be lightening fast, but all the research I’ve done points to this being a good opportunity.

I’m going for it. I’m willing to be paid to blog. For those of you who don’t really care about my Pay Per Post posts, I’ll make it easy on you – all my Pay Per Post posts will be blue, like this post, so you have the choice. Don’t worry – I’ll still keep posting my regular brain-dumps and exciting news here on a very regular basis. So, keep the comments coming! I’ll still be making regular visits to your sites, too!