Remember that show, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous? I guess todays version is Cribs, where we see how rappers and rock stars live. Bath tubs big enough for 10 people and a tour bus full of guitars…right? When the rich and famous want to relax and unwind, do you think they head to a regular, plain Jane, family vacation resort like I do? Do they rent a little cabin at the ski slopes for a week like my family? I think not. The rich and famous, or in some cases, just the right, tend to stick with their own kind by visiting luxury resorts, the likes of which you and I only dream of. A typical luxury vacation can be completely over the top, including expensive spa treatments and gourmet meals, or it can be about seeing a part of the world most people won’t ever get to venture to.

This website also has a section on luxury gifts - you know, when a gift card simply isn’t enough! The blog is a fun read, if only just to see how the other half lives and gives!

Looks like my Nine & Company order just wasn’t meant to be.

Last week, about 3 weeks after I placed the order, it was canceled, and my cash was refunded. I’m bummed that I didn’t get the shirt I wanted, but on the other hand, I appreciate that once the store realized my shirt was on backorder, they attempted to find it. They actually went to the trouble of attempting to locate the shirt I wanted in their retail stores before canceling my order.

While I am disappointed that I didn’t get what I ordered, this won’t keep me from attempting to shop with Nine & Company again. I just need a little time to recover from my heartbreak. And, given that the shirt I ordered was for my trip to Vegas next week, I’m going to shop at brick and mortar stores for now - I don’t have much time left!

An old friend of mine recently announced she was pregnant, for the 3rd time. Her children are 7 and 10, so this baby is quite the welcome surprise, and she’s looking forward to doing all of the baby things all over again, but things have changed a LOT in 7 years. When she and I last had babies, styles were more cutesy and cuddly, and while they still are, for the most part, parents are also buying trendier styles for their infants. Baby bling from Aristabrat.com is one such up and coming brand specializing in high end baby gifts and bling. I absolutely love the onesie that says “Cereal Killer”. They’re not for every parent, but if you’ve got a friend with a sense of humor, it’s certainly a memorable gift!

With a week left until Halloween, I’m actually ahead of the curve for once. I bought the kids their costumes weeks ago, and I even have my Halloween candy already. The only thing remaining to purchase is a pumpkin. Being that we live in Florida, this isn’t something that can be purchased and carved weeks in advance. The heat would literally rot it in days. We won’t get our pumpkins until the weekend. Until then, we’ve got two fake pumpkins in our front yard that look exactly like the real thing.

I’ve got two pirates and the Bride of Frankenstein in this house for trick or treating - what are your kids dressing up as?

I’m not one for fancy collections, crystal, and china dinner plates, but I have several family members who love and and appreciate gifts like that. One in particular has a thing for unique nutcrackers, and she has several in the Seiffner style, as well as a few that resemble Disney characters. I came across this site selling Ulbricht nutcrackers and Steinbach nutcrackers - while they aren’t in the style that I’m used to seeing, I like them quite a bit. The nutcrackers that resemble Santa make it the perfect crossover gift for a Santa Claus collector as well, and we’ve also got one of those in the family.

As for me, I do have a thing for Christmas tree ornaments, and buy a special one each year. I absolutely love these Lalique crystal ornaments. With a different design each year, they make a great heirloom gift!

Leave it to the 3-Day people to bring a store along to a charity walk. If you want flip-flops with pink ribbons, or a 3-Day t-shirt, or something for the kids, you can get it at 3DayGear.com. They have a tent set up at the camp each night, and the “store” is mobbed with walkers getting extra gear. I wasn’t immune, either. I got a shirt for each of my girls that says “Someone I love walked in the 3-Day” and a shirt for myself. Knowing my son wouldn’t want to wear a shirt with a pink logo on it, I bought him a simple silver 3-Day necklace that reads, “What kind of world do you want?”

Women like me have it relatively easy when we shop for cosmetics. It seems that 90% of the products available in grocery stores, drug stores, and at department store cosmetic counters cater to those of us with fairer skin. I’m particularly pale, and when I buy foundation, I’ve got my pick of 20 different shades of ivory. Women with pigmented skin, such as Asian skin tones, those with olive skin tons, or other pigmented skin types need to pay close attention to the needs of their particular skin type. Pigmented skin reacts differently to the sun, and can also change colors due to scarring, acne, or other skin problems. ORIKI Cosmeceuticals is a line created specifically for people with AMO (Asian, Mediterranean and other Olive) skin types, and it was created by an American Board Certified Dermatologist. With the ORIKI whitening serum, women can reduce the effects of UV rays and scarring on their skin, by minimizing the pigmentation to the affected areas.

Remember - just because your skin tans easily, that doesn’t make you immune to damager from the sun. People with all skin types should use sunscreen and products with SPF in them to protect your skin from UV rays and other sun damage.

My 3-Day walk starts on Friday, and due to being tied up in meetings and dinners with coworkers for the past few days, I haven’t been able to devote any time to getting my things together for the weekend. I really need to make sure I get to it tonight so that if I discover any last minute items I need, I have the time to go to the store.

This time last year, you would have found me in Target, frantically trying on pants to wear during the walk in Philadelphia. Temps should be in the upper 80’s here in Tampa this weekend, so it looks like all of the shorts I bought last year will be put to good use this year. Unfortunately, the forecast also calls for rain, so it looks like the ponchos I have will also be put to good use.

When I get my magazine subscriptions each month, I always head to the beauty features in each first. I love those makeover articles, when they take a harried mom, or a mom stuck in a rut, and transform her. New hair, new clothes, new makeup, perhaps contacts…I need a treatment like that!

You can get almost the same thing by playing at this virtual makeover site I found online. If you’re like me, and get your hair cut the same way every 6 weeks, this is a free and painless way to find out if you’d really look good with a completely new look, or a new color. You can try celebrity looks, or basic hairstyles, and then select from 20+ variations of color for your hair, highlights, and lowlights. I went with a light brown, which is pretty far from my natural dark brown, and then threw in some blond highlights. I’m actually amazed, because it looks natural on me! I’ve had highlights before, but not in a tone like this, and I really like it. And the new hairstyle is something I like too, but I’ve been worried about cutting more layers into my hair. Looks like I don’t need to worry about it, because it looks GOOD!

I had a really weird situation occur at the Wal-Greens last week.

Whenever I need one hour photo processing, I typically upload my pictures to Wal-Mart. Even though I hate the store, I don’t have any problems with the photo center. However, it was down, so I was forced to use another store, and picked Wal-Greens. I uploaded a few pictures and paid online, and when I got to the store, selected a few other things to buy.

The cashier scanned my photos and they should have rang up at no charge, but they didn’t. I had to explain to her that I paid online, and she called the manager….long story short, he argued with me about how the whole order / pay online thing works and it was obvious he didn’t have a clue. Another customer in line even told him he was wrong!

After going through that for about 10 minutes, he finally decided to ring the item up for $0 and let me pay for the rest of the things I selected. The cashier rang them up, and before I knew it, a receipt was spitting out - without me paying! How did my other items get paid for? Turns out the system had charged them to the card I provided ONLINE, for the photo purchases.

WHAT?

Again, the manager argued with me about that being the correct process…but come ON! If I authorize my card online for $2.35 worth of photos, I shouldn’t be able to add another $20 to that in the store without sliding the card, right?

I ended up calling the 800 # for Wal-Greens, where it was confirmed that what happened was not right. The customer service agent I dealt with said that the system is designed so that I could order photos online, pay for them, and then call a friend anywhere, even across the country, and she could pick them up. That friend should NOT be able to add her purchases onto the tab, which is eactly what happened to me.

My concerns were forwarded to the store manager, and she sent me a coupon for free photo processing. I’ll use it, but I’m never paying online with Wal-Greens again!

When I think of senior citizens, my grandmother (who passed away at the age of 89) comes to mind. She was the kind of senior citizen who didn’t let age get her down. She still cleaned her house, shopped for herself (groceries, clothes, etc), played Bridge with friends, and if you stayed with her, she’d be up to cook you breakfast.

As active and sharp as she was, I know there are certain things that she couldn’t have done. I know my cell phone, which is a PDA, would have confused the heck out of her. Heck, I’m 31 and I still have trouble seeing the screen at times and tapping the right buttons when I text friends. I can’t even imagine attempting it at the age of 89. We design special phones for children - why not do the same for seniors who want to stay connected? Well, there’s a cell phone designed especially for seniors? The Senior Cell Phone features brighter screens, louder ring tones (and probably at a lower pitch too, to cater to older ears), and bigger buttons.

A cell phone is a great idea for a senior, so that they can stay in touch when they’re out playing Bridge, or call for help in the case of an emergency.

My Amazon.com order came yesterday…the UPS tracking said 10/19, but it arrived a full 10 days in advance, which is how it should be. There’s no reason a book, a movie, and a CD should take 2 1/2 weeks to be delivered, so I’m clueless as to why that was the delivery date indicated by Amazon and UPS.

The CD I ordered will be going back. I purchased the new Bruce Springsteen CD for Jim, intending to give it to him for his birthday next month, but he already bought it for himself. I hate it when that happens!

One of the newest weight loss products on the market is Lipozene, which contains Propol, a natural fiber from the Konjac root. Lipozene is manufactured in the US and contains NO ephedra. Combined with a healthy diet and moderate exercise, this product can help to get those last few stubborn pounds off your body!

If you’re looking to buy weight loss supplements like Lipozene online, you’ve got plenty of sites to choose from. Why not choose from a site that’s committed to saving your money? TVOverstocks.com has all of the hot As Seen On TV products you want, but at overstock products. Don’t order directly from the informercial or TV commercial and pay big bucks, plus wait 6 to 8 weeks for delivery!

In the last two homes that I’ve owned, I’ve had the same style of window coverings…and I love them! We have faux wood blinds hanging from every window in our home, and they look great, they keep the sun out, and they’re so easy to maintain. And buying them online gives you a huge selection, as well as the opportunity to save money. When we selected our blinds for our current home at a local retailer, we were limited to a few sizes, and two colors - white, and oak. Good thing we wanted white, and even better that all of our windows are standard sizes! If you want more than just white and oak, as well as different widths (2 inch slats, 2.5 inch slats, etc), shopping online is for you. You’ll find colors like bamboo, mahogany, maple, and other wood tones. And although the blinds look just like wood, they don’t require any major maintenance, because they’re a vinyl product. That also means they won’t fade or warp, and you can wipe them with a dry or damp cloth to clean the blinds. They also hold up great with the hot Florida sun beating down on them all day! We’ve had ours installed for over a year and they still look great.

Hmm. Perhaps I raved too soon about Nine and Company? Things aren’t looking good for the order I placed last Wednesday. On Friday I received an email letting me know the shirt I purchased was on backorder, and that they’d be reaching out to their retail stores in an attempt to locate the size and color I selected. If they can’t find it, my order will be canceled. In all my years of online shopping, I’ve never had that happen! I’m disappointed, and I’m waiting to see if they can locate the shirt. If not, it will no doubt keep me from attempting to shop online with Nine and Company again.

I know there are a lot of amazingly talented young people out there. My own daughter draws cartoons of a character she created…just for fun! She didn’t get that talent from me, since my own drawings resemble something you’d find in a cave…prehistoric style.

The Gallery Collection, which is a major publisher of Christmas cards for business use, as well as other professional cards, is running a great contest for talented young artists. To enter, you must be an artist in high school or college. You can submit your original artwork, photo, or computer graphic online, and if selected, it will be made into a greeting card available for purchase at the site. In return, the artist will win a $10,000 scholarship! Wouldn’t it be amazing to send our professional Christmas cards with artwork that your child created on it? The contest runs until January 15th, 2008, so budding artists have plenty of time to wait to be struck by inspiration.

I’ll have to check back to see when the winner is announced - I order Christmas cards like this to send to my business contacts, and I’d love to support the winner of the contest by sending that card out to my associates.

We had to go to Wal-Mart today. I hate that store! My husband needed new tires for his car though, and they were the cheapest in town, and the only place that could do the job tonight. After waiting way too long in line, we finally dropped off his vehicle at 5pm, and it was only after we got back on the road that it occurred to us to find out what time we should come back to pick the car up. It was then that they said, oh, we close at 7pm! They’d have the vehicle done, but it sure would have been nice to know that going into the deal. We had to race through dinner to get back there in time, but Jim is now the proud owner of 4 new, shiny, lots of tread left on ‘em tires.

My girls are getting older, and the older girls get, the harder it becomes to shop for them. It used to be that I could buy them clothes, or a new doll, and they’d be pleased as punch. Now that my daughters are 10 and 11, they’ve got their own taste in clothes, and they don’t want anything to do with dolls. I came across this site with Message Jewelry and it’s a unique gift idea for someone who can be tricky to buy for. You can choose any word…a name…even a motto or a short saying with special meaning. These aren’t costume pieces - they’re made out of platinum, gold, or silver! It’s the kind of thing that can be worn for a lifetime. If you can’t decide on a saying or message, their Chinese symbol jewelry line offers over 160 Chinese characters on a pendant or charm.

I ordered a book (A Thousand Splendid Suns) and a DVD (Lord of the Rings - the first one) a few days ago using an Amazon.com gift certificate I received. I got an email yesterday saying my package was on the way, so I logged in to track it tonight, so that I could figure out when UPS would be dropping it on my doorstep. The status says that it’s been received by UPS, with an estimated arrival date of 10/19. Um…almost 2 1/2 weeks from now.

Amazon.com - now shipping via Pony Express to save YOU money!

It’s not a secret that I’ve got a passion for real estate. If the market wasn’t in such a tough spot in my area, I could see working as a real estate agent. I get my fix by watching shows on HGTV, and my favorites are the ones that involve agents buying houses, fixing them up, and selling them. It’s a great way to get a peek into an area that you don’t know much about, and it’s a great way to keep on top of market and real estate trends. It’s helped me a lot when considering how to build my own home, and how to sell my former home.

One of the areas I see a lot on TV is the Dallas / Fort Worth Texas market. It seems that this area hasn’t hit the lull that my home state of Florida is currently experiencing. Like the weather, Fort Worth real estate is hot, hot, hot! The broker at VIPRealty is working to make sales even more profitable to sellers by offering reduced commissions as well. We worked with an agent who did this when we sold our last home, and it really helped us out. When you’re in a hot market, and the agent only needs to list your home in the MLS to sell it, there’s absolutely no reason to pay a 6% commission to the agents involved in the sale. The Dallas Flat Fee MLS Program allows you to pay a flat fee to the agents involved, and save a ton of cash. If you’re looking for Fort Worth homes for sale, you need to look into the program. It works out so well in a real estate market that’s still moving along, and it really benefits the seller, but it’s also fair to the buyer, since he’s not paying an inflated amount for your house to cover commissions.