I love the beach! And we are finally here. I feel like I’m exactly where I should be every time I come to Destin, Florida.

We left home late Friday afternoon and drove about four hours then stopped for the night. I’m not brave enough or medicated enough to ride much longer than that with three kids. But, they were surprisingly good. The two oldest watched movies and played their DS games. The youngest watched movies, looked at books and listened to the iPod. I love you, Hannah Montana and Scooby Doo. Thanks to them, my husband and I had several uninterrupted five-minute conversations. It was great.

We made it to Destin on Saturday and headed to Buster’s for lunch. We love Buster’s! They make the best fried crab claws, chargrilled fish sandwiches and fried pickles. Not the healthiest meal, but so delicious.

We stuffed ourselves and then headed to our beach rental. My favorite part of the house is the roomy kitchen and family area with the huge tv. I’m sure my husband is going to be dreaming about that tv for a while.

My parents, sister and brother-in-law arrived later. The kids were so happy to see someone besides us. It wasn’t long before the kids had them playing hide-and-go-seek in the house.

On Memorial Day, we grilled ribs and the kids spent most of the day in the pool. My husband and I walked and jogged along the beach. Somehow it feels less like work when I can look at the water while I exercise. It’s also cool to watch all the people, except for all the icky skinny people that make me feel super fat. If you’re one of those skinny people, I’m only calling you icky because I’m deeply jealous.

My brother-in-law took my two oldest kids to the beach. They found a bucket-full of coquina shells. And of course my 8 year old wants to keep them as pets. Later, my husband and I took our 3 year old back to the beach to play. She stands at the edge of the water, holds her arms out and says, “Calm down, just calm down,” trying to keep the water from knocking her over. She’s so cute!

We have tons of relaxing to do this week. And I’m sure we’ll throw in a few more eating frenzies. I mean, that’s what vacation is all about, right?

I love it here!

A few years ago, I took a girls-only trip to New York with my mom and sister.  It was in that fantastical city that I found Sephora, now my most favoritest place to buy makeup.  I love that I can try all the products before buying them.  Plus I have access to skilled makeup pros who are ready to answer questions or perform quick makeovers.

It was on this visit to the Holy Hall of Makeup that I discovered a powerful secret that would change my life.

After I wandered around the store a while, a saleswoman offered to help me find a few products for my baby blues.  She led me and my droopy little eyes over to a chair and began to work her magic.  She applied some beautiful eye-shadow colors and the best mascara ever to my drab eyes.

Then she pulled out a nondescript little pencil called Cargo Reverse Lipliner.  She told me I could use this pencil two different ways.  First, she outlined my lips to highlight their shape and keep the lipstick from spreading all over my face.

This lip liner is a light ivory color (they make a darker one for dark skin).  She told me it would add definition and fullness to my lips, which it did.  Although the color was different from other liners that I’ve used, it still was just a lip liner.

But my favorite — the really eye-opening new thing to do with this liner — is what my personal Makeup Maven did next.  She used this pencil to line the inside of my lower eyes, just above my lower lashes.

No!  I am not kidding.  This beauty trick actually made my eyes look brighter.  I looked rested even though I’d been up late every night of our trip.

This seventh wonder of my makeup world is now on my Can’t Live Without It list.  I am totally devoted to this mini miracle stick.  I mean, who wouldn’t love to look rested and bright-eyed every day?

You know, it just occurred to me that perhaps more women know about this liner than I realize.  You know all those moms at school that do everything and look good doing it and make the rest of us feel like shlumpadinkas?  Maybe they know this little trick.   Maybe they run around in a sleep-deprived state like the rest of us.  They just line their eyelids with this stuff and fool us all.

Well, at least I’m in on their little secret now.

The other day I went to the grocery store with my children.  I don’t recommend it, but sometimes we do what we have to do.

I approached the deli counter.  A girl rushed over from the far side to take my order.  She winked at me, then asked, “What can I get for you?”  I smiled and placed my order for 1/2 pound of honey maple ham.  She returned the smile, with another wink, and proceeded with the slicing.

Meanwhile, my kids spotted the drink machine.  I gave in to their cries of looming death from dehydration and let them get a drink.  It was a fountain drink machine, so they each made a suicide (mixing all the drink flavors).  As I watched their assault on the machine, I heard Deli Girl’s voice.

“Sorry,” I said.  “Did you need something?”

Deli Girl asked, “How are these slices?” and winked at me again.  Huh?

“Great,” I replied, a little uncomfortably.

“Would you like a taste?” Deli Girl asked, never taking her eyes off me.

I told her no thanks and turned back to the kids.  Why was she staring at me?

I walked over to my kids, who were on the verge of spilling their drinks while trying to put lids on them. By some small miracle, we got the lids on without any mess.  As soon as I turned around, there she was, Deli Girl, with my bag of ham.

“Here you go.” she said, standing oddly close to me.

“Thanks.”

“I LOVE your handbag.  It looks sooo good,” Deli Girl said, still all up in my personal space.

I was feeling beyond uncomfortable.  This was more than good customer service.  She must have an agenda here.  What did she want from me?

I quickly told her where I purchased my bag and that it wasn’t expensive at all (I do love a bargain).  I thanked her for bringing the ham out to me and herded my kids towards the fruits and vegetables, relieved to put some distance between us.

While perusing the fruit, I looked up to check on my kids, who were now trying to sneak stuff into the shopping cart.  Guess who was heading my way, smiling bigger than ever?  Yes!

Deli Girl slowed a little as she approached me, then passed and disappeared into a back room.  Was she stalking me?

The next day, I pulled out the deli ham to make a sandwich.  I realized Deli Girl had given me one pound of deli ham but only charged me for the 1/2 pound I ordered.

And then it hit me.  I mean, all the clues were there.  She smiled and winked at me.  She wanted to talk and be close to me.  She complimented my good taste in accessories.  She even gave me free stuff.  Who does that?

Deli Girl, that’s who.  She wants me for her new best friend.

Well, I accept.  I mean, what more could you want in a friend than someone who lights up when she sees you and gives you free meat?

See you next week, BFF!

I’m not good with plants.  In fact, the joke around my house is how long will it take me to kill a plant.

Luckily, no one keeps records of plant killers.  If they did, I’m sure all the nurseries in town would refuse to sell to me.

This year is going to be different.  I bought several petunias, a hibiscus, four ferns and two palm trees.  I’m planning to nurture and protect these babies all summer.

I repotted several of them all by myself.  I’ve watered them and fed them and even pulled little dead parts off of them.  I’m really getting into this gardening thing.

Ok, so maybe buying fully grown plants and watering them doesn’t constitute gardening by most standards.  But with my history of plant homicide, I’m already a Master Gardener in my own eyes because all of my plants still look healthy.

So for all you haters out there, just you wait.  When summer comes to an end this year, there are still going to be some beautiful, healthy plants up in here!

Just call me the Plant Whisperer.

Look!  They’re still alive!

The other day my daughter was watching Blue’s Clues. When the show was over, she wanted me to play it again.  I told her it was on live television and not a show recorded on the TiVo.  I couldn’t make it come on again.

Blank stare.

I tried explaining it a different way.  She then handed me the TiVo remote and said, “No, Mommy, just push these buttons and Blue will come back on.”

So I tried explaining it again, but I think all she heard was,

“Mommy blah, blah really knows blah, blah how to make it work.  Blah, blah Mommy blah, blah just doesn’t blah, blah love you enough.  And blah, blah you’re having squash blah, blah for lunch.”

The ear-splitting sound that came from her little body convinced me that I was not getting through to her.

I love TiVo, but maybe they should consider a hotline for moms of irate toddlers.  Maybe they could come up with a way to explain how the whole thing works to a screaming 3 year old.  At least they could create a brochure with suggestions for dealing with this madness.

So I did what any clever mother would do.  I convinced her that we needed to watch Sleeping Beauty instead.

And I threw in a little ice cream with sprinkles to seal the deal.  Hey, maybe TiVo Customer Service could add that little technique to their troubleshooting brochure.

Big Train Blended Ice Coffee*

Several years ago, my husband and I owned a bookstore and coffee shop.  We sold Big Train products and I’m still lovin’ them today.

This week I bought more of the Blended Ice Coffee (also called Ice Rage).  It’s similar to a Frappuccino and comes in tons of delicious flavors.  Java Chip is my favoritest because it has little chocolate chips in it, but I also like the No Sugar Added Mocha and the Chocolate Peanut Butter.  There are also Lite and Low Carb versions of some of the flavors.

Blend the mix with water and ice then top with whipped cream or any of your favorite garnishes and you have the perfect drink.  You are now a professional barista and qualified to work at any coffee shop in America.  Well, almost.

There are other drinks, including hot drinks, that this mix makes and the recipes are on the package.  Does it get any easier?  Ok, I guess Big Train could make it easier if they included someone to make it for you and deliver it pool-side.  Maybe they’ll think about that.

You can purchase single-serving packets so you can try all the yummy flavors.  These packets cost about a $1 each.

I buy the 3.5 pound bag for about $32 (including shipping) and it makes 20 16oz. drinks.  That’s $1.60 per drink.  If you bought the same drink at a coffee shop it would cost at least $3.

Ok, that was way more math than a girl needs to do in one sitting.

This is great to serve at a summer party.  All your friends will marvel at your awesome barista-ness.  If you try it, let me know what you think.  Or, if you know of something better, please let me know.  I love finding new goodies to try.

ENJOY!

*I don’t get anything for linking to this vendor; it’s where I purchase my products.  You can google Big Train and find other sellers but many do not sell directly to the public.

Have you ever run across a blog post or book that seemed to be written just for you?

One person might read a post, think, “Hmm, that’s nice”, but remain unaffected.  Another person might read those same words and stop in their tracks.  Suddenly their eyes open, the birds sing and all of life makes sense, or at least a little part of it.

Recently, I was busy making dinner, helping the kids with homework and refereeing a fight.  I was tired and frustrated and on the verge of a tantrum.  I was headed to that dark place where everything is bad and everyone is against me.  You know the place: The Land of Woe is Me.  I’m a frequent visitor and even have an honorary key to the city.

When the kids were finally in bed, I did some lurking on the internet and found this post that really affected me*.  It wasn’t new advice.  I guess it was the way the writer said it, but it just hit me: I needed to stop complaining and fussing and whining.  I needed to put on my big girl pants and get over myself.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not always open to suggestions on how to be a more positive person.  I don’t enjoy criticism or realizing that I’ve been selfish or immature.  I’m not always ready to change or to think seriously about changing.  Generally, I don’t enjoy realizing that I’ve screwed up.

But fortunately I was ready to hear it right then.  My heart was searching for something and I stumbled upon the answer.

I love it when that happens.

And I know this positivity won’t last forever.  But if it helps  me be a nice person right now, well, that’s one less grumpy person that the world will have to deal with today.  I think that’s a good thing.  And besides, you do not want to see my grumpy face!

*I am so sorry, Mr. or Mrs. Writer of the Wonderfully Moving Post.  I don’t remember where you are.  But if I find you again, I promise I will link to your supertastic post. So, so, so sorry!