1. Sending random cards to friends out of the blue
I’ve always liked getting a note or a card in the mail from a friend “just because,” so I’ve started sending cards to friends randomly just to say hello. If I’m at Target I’ll pick one up, since I’m there anyway. (Side note: They have a HUGE greeting card section, although to be honest I kind of miss Hallmark stores. There was something so soothing about going to one. Anywho!)
It only takes a minute to write a quick hello, and it makes me feel good knowing that the person on the other end will get a surprise.
2. Honey and Lemon in Trader Joe’s Fall Harvest Tea
At least one person in our family has had a cold at any given moment every single day since Connor stepped foot in preschool last August, and I’m totally over it… Everyone tells me it gets better after a few months? Is that true? I hope so… POWERS THAT BE, GIVE ME STRENGTH!
I’ve been guzzling hot tea lately (specifically TJ’s Fall Harvest) with honey and lemon because the combo is pure magic. It soothes my sore throats, calms my cough and tastes really good!
3. The special edition Allure Best of Beauty
I devoured this the other night in one sitting! Cracked it open when I got into bed and read it from cover to cover.
It’s been a long time since I’ve said that about this magazine. I almost cancelled Allure last year because it seemed to have gotten to be less about beauty and more about celebrity worship (there was a spell there when every other month had a Kardashian or a Jenner on the cover, and I was immediately tossing them into the recycling). This particular Best of Beauty issue is filled with product recommendations (which I totally appreciate), but it also has more in-depth stories than usual. I really enjoyed it!
4. Cringe-y movies on Netflix
GIRL. There are so many of them! It’s not like I sit down and attentively watch them, though… I’ll fire one up to play as background noise while Connor’s at school so the house feels less lonely. And really, most of them are so bad that it doesn’t take much attention to follow along.
I (airquotes) “watched” one the other day called ‘Til Death Do Us Part, with Taye Diggs (whom I expected was going to ask me to marry him back in the early 2000s, LOL!), and I pieced the plot together by walking past the TV on my way to the kitchen a few times.
5. Early morning fog
I looked out my window this morning and saw fog for the first time in months. Ah! What a relief.
The days are much cooler when the mornings are foggy here, and I can’t believe I’m saying this because I’ve always been more of summer weather person, but I’m really looking forward to fall.
Viva la sweaters and boots!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. TGIF. 🍂
1. That harvest tea is all up in my house too, we’re all loving it even though it’s still 100 degrees here in AZ
2. The cheap section at the front of LeTarjay! OMG I got some cute fall stuff for $3.
3. Gluten free Chinese food, thank god I found a place finally! AZ sure ain’t the west coast in terms of dietary restrictions.
4. DSW! I was able to get all my sisters shoe needs met in one stop for her new job. Wallet hurts but it’s worth it to get her working again. It’s been 1.5 years living with me supporting her.
5. Moroccan Oil! I pulled out a sample and I forgot how much my hair loves it. I love the smell too but it’s expensive and so chock full of silicones 🙁
Awesome that you were able to find gluten-free Chinese food! We’re still seeking out restaurants!
Do you not have any Hallmark’s left in CA? We have one here where I live in North Dakota. It’s fun to read all the cards and pick a small gift if you can’t think of anything else!
Hi Rachel,
No, it’s been years since I’ve seen a store. They used to be all over the Bay Area but it’s so rare to come across one here nowadays. They were one of my fave places to get cards and gifts all throughout the 90s and 2000s. Lucky that you still have one to shop at!
Don’t you just love snail mail? And paper products- really anything that can be monogrammed. (Or is that just a Southern thing? We’re heavily into monogramming all the things down here.)
Girl, get y’all some immune support. It’s your only hope. Emergen-C makes immune support gummies that are delicious.
OK, so a few years ago I got monogrammed stationery as a gift and only then did I realize that monogramming is one of life’s joys, LOL! Have you heard of minted.com? Check this out! I could spend all day dreaming up personalized stationery.
I’ve been downing huge glasses packages of Emergen-C like it’s going out of style. 🙁 Will have to look into the gummies!
I love foggy mornings in the bay area, too! Makes is so much easiet to go out and get some exercise without over heating.
I hope Taye Diggs gets some really good roles instead of cheesy ones. He’s a good actor and so easy on the eyes!
Me too. I always wondered why he wasn’t a bigger star. You guys have Netflix, right? He’s in a decent rom com with Lucy Liu called Set It Up. It’s predictable but fun.
My friend Amy is the best at sending snail mail cards with little notes. So thoughtful and sweet. She once got my earrings that looked like little Quincy bunnies.
My throat is sore and I have a headache, but I think it’s seasonal changes.
I’ve been watching a lot of the Great British Baking Show, it’s so good.
Isn’t that show so good? What season are you on right now?
Next time your throat is sore try honey with lemon in hot tea (or even just hot water). It’s so soothing, and tasty too.
I have some honey from my grandpa’s yard, I’ll have to do that! I’m on season 2 of British Baking Show!
Oh wow, fresh honey! I’ve actually never had that, can you believe it? Does he ever give you the honeycombs?
Season 2 is good. It gets ever better, so you have a lot to look forward to. Love me some Mary Berry.
Keep sending those cards Karen. My best friend passed away last year. We used to send each other cards all the time, mostly funny cat cards. I miss that soooo much. It’s always uplifting to receive a card from a good friend. We were the crazy card ladies.
I’m sorry for your loss, Lily. I can’t imagine my world without my BFFs. Sending you a hug!
Thank you Karen.
Oh, I love personal mail! I should start sending people things as well because it totally brightens my day to receive something. That tea looks great & its getting cold here, I’m gonna have to try it! Have a great week, Karen! Thank you for your posts and all of the hard work that goes into them!
Thanks for the nice message, Renee! This was super sweet. You have a great week, too.
Zicam Rapid Melts at the first SUGGESTION of a cold!
Glad to hear that the October Allure is worth reading, because that mag’s been on a downward spiral for a while. All the design tricks they use to distract from the fact that there’s hardly any content. Back in the day (I was a charter subscriber!), there was stuff to READ in Allure (not celeb hagiographies) and the issues were worth keeping. Damn, I’m old.
Hi Alix,
Thanks for the Zicam suggestion! Will pick some up when I’m at Target.
I used to read Allure religiously years ago and in the last four years it’s changed so much! This new issue is like the stuff from back in the day.
P.S. I had to look up “hagiographies.” Thanks for giving me my word of the day. 🙂
I always look forward to checking out the Allure beauty award winners, but I heard this year that companies basically just pay to be included, so they’re not actually the “best of the best.” If that’s true then it bums me out!
I agree wholeheartedly on the tea. And I only drink mine with honey. 🙂 I do prefer the apple cinnamon to the lemon, but only slightly.
People are saying months? That’s certainly possible! The boys were sick, off and on, for years. But we noticed that we didn’t catch as much after a year or so (it was mostly colds, etc). Sorry, I know that seems long but, look how time flies. Can you believe it’s already October?!
OMG I CANNOT! Someone also said two years but I think I pretended not to hear. 🙁
You just made me spit on my screen with that comment. Sometimes pretending not to hear is definitely the best decision. But, you know how it goes, everyone is different. There will probably be waves of things like Hand, Foot & Mouth, etc. The boys had several common childhood illnesses. We never caught anything like that – we did have a lot of sniffles, though. I vividly remember when they hit Kindergarten, they were almost never sick. People we knew whose kids didn’t go to daycare or preschool, were getting sick all the time in the first couple of years of school. You’re getting it all out of the way now! 🙂
Honestly even though it’s awful I’d rather get it over with now while El Hub and I are still relatively young, LOL! We’ll probably be even more tired when she starts kinder so might as well do it while we have some energy left!
P.S. I know it’s rough with the boys right now, and I’m sorry. I’m already mentally preparing myself for those years. All I can say is what I know from my experience as a teenager; after a while, I realized that my parents were NOT trying to ruin my life and were actually on my side. It took a few years but I got there.