Project Runway - The Ocho!

Season 8 of Project Runway begins on July 29. They are back in NYC... and each show will be 1 1/2 hours long!

First fig picking!

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Vote for Sandra Betzina to get her own show on Oprah's new network!

Sandra is auditioning to have her OWN show on Oprah’s new Network!
Please click on the link below to be taken directly to Oprah’s site where you will be able to cast your vote!

Here's the link --
http://myown.oprah.com/audition/index.html?request=video_details&response_id=20990&promo_id=1

Yogi Cherry Almond Crunch

I thought Yogi just made tea, so I was surprised to find this Yogi Cherry Almond Crunch cereal at Whole Foods. I was also surprised not to find any cherries in it either, other than cherry powder. Dried cherries would be a delicious and natural addition to a cereal with CHERRY in all caps on the box. But other than that, the cereal is very good and very filling. And there is a nice cherry flavor. A bowlful in the morning can easily power my treadmill workout.

Interesting combination of ingredients -- Oats, Barley, Spelt, Amaranth, Quinoa, Evaporated Cane Juice, Brown Rice, Flour, Whole Wheat Flour and Almonds -- provides 5g protein, 3g fiber, 2% calcium, 6% iron. It also has 6g fat, 0.5g saturated fat, 70mg sodium, 42g carbohydrate. 12g sugar. A serving is 2/3 cup for 240 calories.

Reebok rocks!

I want to get back into swimming again. Unfortunately, once you reach "a certain age," the Speedos of yesteryear's body and weight distribution aren't the most flattering anymore. I mean, you want to look good while you are doing good. These two Reebok suits have better support and a silver lining -- which is antimicrobial, no more swimsuit stink! Who knew Reebok made suits cut long enough for us tallies, right off the rack? (Here's fair warning if you're petite - sorry, you'll 'swim' in these styles) And at Macy's?! And on sale?! These retail for $88 and $86. Combined with a sale and even good timing with a Macy's discount coupon thrown in for good measure, you should be able to swim away for less than $50. Actually I was able to get these for $39!

The black and white suit is Style #51706 ($86) and the blue is #51741 ($88)

Netflix Stars - Watchables!

Finally! We found and were able to watch all the way through --

Valentine's Day - 4.5/5 You knew it was a Garry Marshall film from the first few seconds with the voice over! (Also be sure to watch the credit roll for another GM wink). Somehow all these people all make it work. Very enjoyable. Kind of cool to see the reunitings of Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Garner, Topher Grace and Ashton Cooper, Hector Elizando and Julia Roberts...

Outsourced - 3.5/5 After so many losers and sort of a slow new release schedule, I checked Netflix's recommendations for us. Not bad! Obvious cultural differences make up the brunt and comedy of the movie, but it is also somewhat educational and touching at the same time.

The Ramen Girl - 4/5 Another Netflix-suggested indie for us. Definitely not Cup O'Soup! If you watch the deleted scenes afterwards, you'll definitely get more background and even an added storyline. (Though I prefer the finished movie, the deletions were a little dark.) I think this was Brittany Murphy's last movie, albeit it went directly to DVD. A head's up - most of the movie is in Japanese, with subtitles.

Upcoming Jo-Ann's Pattern Sales

Independence Day Sale - July 2/5

McCall's 99 cents

Vogue $3.99

50% off thread

50% off cutting tools

July 8/10 --

Butterick $1.99

July 15/17 --

Simplicity $1.99

Kate Spade Spectacle

Seeing is believing when shopping at Nordstrom Rack -- I found these three pair of glasses at an unbelievable price.

Especially very cool are the sunglass readers (1.50 - they also had the 2.00 strength). They will come in very handy when I steal the Barnes & Noble wifi with my Nook in the parking lot, waiting for them to open. Older eyes can be fashionable, and still spot the savings, too! Original prices were $165 and $69 for the reader versions, marked down to $19.97. You also get the Kate Spade cases, too.

Netflix Stars - Double Feature

I Love You, Beth Cooper - High school stereotyping abounding. Even my teenager didn't like this one. "It's just...stupid!"

When In Rome - I actually thought we were going to enjoy this one. But even the all-star wattage from Kristen Bell, Josh Duhamel, Will Arnett, Danny DeVito, Anjelica Huston, (Don Johnson even!) couldn't light up this dim movie.

Happy Father's Day

Me and Dad!

Kyle, TX. Still the only Sonic I've found who has green iced tea.
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Thursday Tea Time

This week - Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Tropical Passion

Cost: $8.20
Number of teabags: 20
Caffeine: Yes
Type of tea: Black
Steeping time: 5 minutes
Mix ins: No sugar needed! Just a tablespoonful of CBTL's French Deluxe Vanilla Powder to duplicate the store's tea latte
Teabag fragrance: Mango-peachy passionfruit
Ingredients: Black tea, malva flower, marigold flower, natural and artificial flavorings.

Taste: Fruity, a nice alternative to the ubiquitous pina colada
Opinion: I've tried this iced and hot at the store -- The barrista misheard my order and I thought she was joking when she said, "careful, it's hot!" (It was close to 100 degrees in Austin that day.) She then made me the iced latte version gratis. Funny though, since I've brought it home, I've been drinking it hot. Too lazy to pour over ice? Perhaps, but I think it's because I want it now and don't want to wait to let it cool. Definitely fruity, but not overpoweringly. It also tastes sweet enough without adding any sweetener, another bonus. It's popular, too - I bought the last canister that day. I'm sure they will be restocked, it's a perfect summertime flavor. And another pretty container to display. I'll be grabbing another next time - summer in Texas goes through the fall!

Rating: 4.75 teabags

Word.

Two of my favorite sources of words are --

"Seed Thoughts For Loving Yourself - Cultivating the garden of your mind day by day" by Suzanne E. Harrill, M.Ed.

I found and bought the Seed Thoughts at my yoga studio. I had no idea that Suzanne was Suzanne in one of my yoga classes until I went to the website to sign up for her newsletter. It's a cute little book, barely larger than an index card, yet packed with daily positive affirmations. I bought it on June 13--three days prior, I had done a major overhaul/clearing out of my sewing room - filling three trashcans of clutter and five trunkloads of goodies for Goodwill - getting ready for the next stage of my life as my daughter heads to college in two months. What was the theme of June 12? "Clearing" - the quote was "I clear out the old in order to bring in the new" Whoa, pony!

My sister told me about Mike Dooley and his TUT's Adventurers Club. I love his Monday-Friday personalized "Notes from the Universe" daily early morning emails. Some of those have uncannily hit home, too. His theme of "Thoughts Become Things - choose good ones" is a great way to start your day. Mike was also featured in the book, "The Secret"

Words.

Spring Quilt Festival Dates

It's never too early to plan ahead! The 2011 Spring edition of the International Quilt Festival will be held in its new location - Cincinnati, Ohio - April 8-10, 2011 (Preview Night - April 7) in the Duke Energy Convention Center. For more information, visit http://www.quilts.com/

Chi Chi Chi CHIA!

I'm getting ready to go back to Whole Foods and buy my THIRD bag of this stuff! Dylan's Chia Granola - French Vanilla Pecan. Whole Foods carries two flavors - this one and Apple Pie Walnut. I've tried them both, but really like the French Vanilla Pecan. I top my Fage Non-Fat Greek Yogurt with it and even mix it into my oatmeal for extra oomph in the morning. It's just sweet enough so I don't have to add any sugar or honey to either. And yes, those are the same Chia seeds you glopped on your terracotta figurines from Walgreens. Who knew they were tasty and good for you, too?! Omega 3's are the current darling of the health food industry promoting heart health.

Ingredients - Rolled oats, wildflower honey, Chia seed, canola oil, pecans, vanilla extract. 1/4 cup has 160 calories, 7 g total fat (0.5 sat fat, NO trans fat!), 0 mg cholesterol and 0 mg sodium (yay! that sodium sneaks into so many things), 21 g total carbohydrate, 5g fiber, 7g sugar, 3g protein. 2% calcium, 6% iron. Chia also has trace minerals of calcium, magnesium and phosphorus. No artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. They have a pretty short shelf life - my current, almost empty bag has a use-by date of July 23, 2010.

It sells for about $5-$6 a bag and sometimes goes on sale. Well worth it for for the taste and health benefits. You'll find it in the granola/cereal section. Smart move for Whole Foods when they had a promotional sale on greek yogurts and stuck packages of this in the cooler section next to them. . .

Addicted!

Driving home from San Marcos, we stopped at the Sonic in Buda, TX on I-35 for a drink...and they had - GREEN ICED TEA, sweet, unsweet or diet. Whoa! I've tried their other fruit flavored iced teas with mixed results -- cranberry's the best. But I really liked the green and looked forward to having more in Houston. So far I haven't found any which sell it. Maybe it's just a Central Texas regional roll-out? I called Sonic, but the representative didn't have any information. He requested my contact information and hopefully will help me locate a closer Sonic. It's good, but not 275 miles one way good!

Netflix Stars

An Education - 1/5 stars

Creepy, in an "ick" sort of way. While the movie captured the setting of 1961 England, we felt uncomfortable watching the interaction between the lead characters.

My Life In Ruins - 1/5 stars

Overly schmaltzy and predictable, gave it 25 minutes and finally chucked it out of the DVD player. So loved "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and had hopes we would like this, too - even at the risk of stereotyping. Nia Vardalos actually looked better with a few more pounds on her. She appeared scrawny and unengaging in this movie.

From Paris With Love - 5/5

Looking for a fast-paced, shoot-em-up thriller? Good match-up with John Travolta and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Could be potential for sequels? Be sure to listen and watch for the subtle previous John Travolta movie references.

Upcoming Jo-Ann's Pattern Sales

Firefly Frenzy Sale - June 13/19

Simplicity patterns - $1.99
50% off interfacing by the yard
50% off buttons

Netflix Stars - Up in the Air

3.25 - not bad, but not as good as I thought it would be. So many different plot tangents, it made the movie seem much longer. I was surprised to see it was only 109 minutes. Clooney is dandy eye-candy. And talk about product placement - Hilton, Hertz, American Airlines... But I loved the movie's music and opening sequence - be sure to watch Shadowplay in the special features.