Sally Hansen Miracle Gel

I’ve written before how hard I am on my nails. Most ‘regular’ polishes make in one, maybe two days if I’m lucky. That lead me to get my first salon gel manicure a couple of years ago (that one lasted around two weeks without chipping) and as a result, I invested in my own curing light and quite a few polishes. Unfortunately, I’m one of those people who gets bored easily so two weeks is a long time to keep me satisfied with just one nail color. Anyway, early last year I discovered Sally Hansen’s Miracle Gel polish and it has proved to be an affordable way to get an inexpensive, non-boring manicure that lasts a week on my abused mails. Woohoo!!!

These babies are great! They are available at most drugstores for right around 8 bucks (or $15 for a bottle of color and the top coat, which is a must have to make the whole thing work). I’ve got five or six colors in my collection and have worn them on fingers and toes. My favorite for my professional life is Bare Dare, a warmish nude that seems to match my skin tone pretty well. The nice thing about Miracle Gel is that there’s no light requirement or fancy nail prep or bottom coat. All you do is brush two thin coats on clean, bare nails and then add a coat of the Miracle Gel top coat. According to Sally Hansen, natural light works with the polish to continuously cure the gel thereby hardening the finish so that the wearer gets up to fourteen days of wear. Now, I generally do not get fourteen days of wear with any polish but anything over two days is a win for me! Miracle Gel definitely fits the bill and I consider it an affordable staple in my nail polish collection.

One thing I noticed about Miracle Gel is that the applicator brush seems to be quite a bit wider than all of my other polishes, including other gel polishes. At first, I thought this would be annoying but it really seems to work well. Unlike my experience with some thinner brushes, I do not get any drag or brush marks in my polish with Miracle Gel. Not sure if that’s why the brush is so wide, but it’s OK by me!

Last week I wore Bare Dare and these pictures were taken on Day 3. Since I traveled all week, the fact that my manicure shows no wear after three days is quite a big deal. Do you know how beaten up you get traveling by air? It’s killer!

Miracle Gel is available in over 45 shades at a drugstore near you. If you’re looking for a good, economical long wearing polish, this is definitely worth checking out!

Ages of Beauty rating: ****

Accomplishing the “Impossible”

This morning I received a message from one of my personal heroes that included a quote from one of his. The quote is “It always seems impossible until it’s done,” said by Nelson Mandela. Sitting at my desk this morning, I started thinking about how that really is true. Every one of us has obstacles to overcome, goals to achieve and dreams that may come true one day, if and only if the stars align in such a way to make them possible.

As women, we are faced with obstacles every day of our lives. Depending on where you grew up, it may have been “women are supposed to…” or “you can’t do that because only BOYS do that” or even “nice girls don’t…” Maybe your messages were less about your gender and more about the color of your skin, your race, you wealth (or lack of) or sexuality. Think about all of the times that you didn’t listen to or heed those words. I know that the times I didn’t do “what I was supposed to do” resulted in success, some failure but overall, incredible learnings. And every single time I took my own path, I gained just a little bit more confidence that I was on the right path and that I could handle just about anything that came my way. Now I definitely benefit from a kind of privilege that not everyone enjoys so I KNOW that my path has been easier than that of many others. But what we all have in common is the doubt that we’ll be successful in the trails we’re blazing. It is only after we have tried that we can turn the “impossible” into the “possible.”  And if that attempt results in failure, we take what we learned and try again and again and again, making adjustments along the way.

So the next time you find yourself at a crossroad, feeling like you should give up or knowing what needs to be done but you are afraid to do it, jump forward--step out and take a leap of faith. Make that emotional investment in yourself and find the courage (even if it’s just a tiny bit) to move forward. One day you’ll look back with confidence and see all the impossible things that YOU have done.

Have a great day!!

Butterflies in Winter

It’s not Spring yet but wouldn’t it be great if we could import some signs of Spring into these cold days of Winter? Well, I stumbled upon a way of doing this as I was multitasking the other day---relaxing, doing a hobby that I love, learning a new technique and trying to enter a contest! I’ve written before about how I learned how to make soap last Spring and that I “soaped” as a way of dealing with my grief over losing Dad. Now, I’m taking it to a higher level and learning some advanced techniques.

Along the way, I discovered the Soap Challenge Club, hosted by Great Cakes Soapworks. For the third time, I entered the contest, which is designed to teach new soaping techniques but THIS TIME I actually finished my project in time to blog about it and upload the link for my entry! This month’s challenge is the Butterfly Swirl, an advanced technique that is very tricky and can be quite frustrating. The idea behind it is that the soaper (that would be me) creates a design in a loaf of soap using various colorants, a “hangar tool” which allows the swirling to happen and a technique that is just right. What’s supposed to happen is that once the soap is unmolded and cut into bars, two of the bars will fit together in such a way that the resulting image will be that of a butterfly. Sounds SO EASY right? WRONG!!! I tried this a couple of times before finding a couple of soaps that would give me the design. Here are a some pictures from my final effort.

This is what a (fancy) loaf of soap looks like once it has hardened in the mold and is ready to cut. I started out with all the raw ingredients to make the soap (in this case, coconut oil, shea butter, water, aloe, silk and sodium hydroxide) and then mixed in a gorgeous cherry fragrance oil called Black Cherry Bomb from Nature’s Garden. The swirl on the top is not the Butterfly Swirl but is a nice little decoration for the finished bar. Here are a couple of close ups of the top design:

I know it looks really fancy, but the top design was really easy. The inside design is the problem. Once I got the soap put together with all of the ingredients (not including the fragrance oil and the colors), I blended the soap until it got slightly thick. So far, so good. This is where a lot of things can go awry (and we haven’t even gotten to the design yet!). Normally, I wouldn’t use a fragrance oil that I had not yet tested in soap but I wanted to try something that wouldn’t discolor this particular soap (some fragrances change the soap color) AND that smelled like Spring to me. Since I have a LOT (and I mean A LOT!!!) of fragrance oils on hand, I researched each oil that interested me to see how it performed for others. I finally settled on the Black Cherry Bomb fragrance, which is strong and heavenly! The biggest risk, besides discoloration, is that a fragrance oil will harden the soap before I could get the swirling done. Fortunately, Black Cherry Bomb behaved beautifully!

Next is the color. I decided to do a white base color with four swirling colors. I used three colors from Nurture Soap Supplies (Pink Vibrance, Blue Vibrance and Yellow Vibrance) and then a smidgen of black (Brambleberry’s Black Mica). Once I got the colors mixed and incorporated into the various parts of the soap. I used my hangar tool to swirl away! For this particular recipe, I was able to unmold the soap after about 24 hours and then I cut it into bars. Now the trick of the Butterfly Swirl was to find two bars that I could put together to form a butterfly. Fortunately, I was able to find several combinations. I also took it a step further and put four bars together to form really huge butterflies!  Here are the results!

Two Bar butterfly

Four Bar Butterfly

Four Bar Butterfly

It may have taken me several tries, but I finally did it! Learning this technique was a lot of fun and I will definitely be doing more Butterfly Swirls in an attempt to perfect it. The great thing, though, is that not only do I have tons of soap (as in I have a whole separate batch of attempts that I didn’t even show) to give away within 4-6 weeks but my office smells just like cherries. That’s the way to get into Spring!

For the Love of Linen

This week has been crazy! Even though we had the day off on Monday, I spent plenty of time on a couple of work projects in preparation for the rest of the week. Fortunately, I was able to get some relaxation in as well.

As I've written about before, I am in love with bubble baths. A good bubble bath relaxes me and puts me in a great mood for the rest of the evening. I do have to say, though, I have definitely been re-thinking my stance on bath towels. It used to be that I'd reach for any one of the thick towels in my linen closet but I've become less enamored with them (too heavy, sometimes don't air dry well, etc). Well, at Christmas, my husband purchased two sets of linen towels for me and now I am hooked!

Photo via

"Why linen?" you ask? Here's the deal: linen is absorbent, dries quickly, feels luxurious and doesn't take up a ton of space on the closet shelf. It's also not heavy, which I really like. Hubby giifted me with the goodlinens Diamond Weave towels that he found on the website The Grommet (you MUST check it out!). I absolutely LOVE these towels and now they are all I use. I'm never caught with a damp towel because these dry so fast. And you know how those thick towels can sometimes smell not so good (like musty smells never leave them no matter how much you wash and dry them)? Yeah...that doesn't happen with my goodlinen towels. So check them out!

Photo via

Besides the natural color of the Diamond Weave, they also have a couple of other patterns which I will be sure to try out (and you should too). One of the other things I love about this towel is that it's made by a small business and I love supporting artisans. 

Love these towels! goodlinens, you have a new fan for life!!!

Ages of Beauty rating:: *****

Urban Decay Ink for Eyes in Perversion

Have I told you lately how much I love Urban Decay’s Ink for Eyes? No? Then let me tell you now! I first bought this liquid liner when it first came out earlier in 2014. But then things went to hell in a hand basket and I stopped blogging for awhile (and I had planned on telling you then about my new favorite black eyeliner). Suffice it to say that Ink for Eyes was a staple for me all thru 2014 until I mistakenly left the top off of it after months of use and it dried out during a business trip (sad face). BUT I LOVE IT! Let me show you why…

See that tip? Yeah, I know…you really have to look hard because it’s so tiny and fine. That’s one of the many things I love about this liner. Precision is key when drawing a fine line whether it’s on paper or on your eyelids and this liner is as good as it gets. I can achieve the finest, blackest line ever on my eye lids or go thick, rich and dark for a more dramatic look. And flicks and cat eyes are NO problem! If you’ve never been able to get a good flick or cat eye, then this one is for you!

See how perfect? The color is also a to-die-for rich, deep black. Perversion is glossy and the blackest black. What’s not to love?

Yes, that is the thinnest black line you have probably ever seen (OK, maybe not). This stuff also holds tight, doesn’t smudge and lasts all day and into the evening. Awesome stuff!!

You can purchase UD’s Ink for Eyes at Sephora for $20 (click here). I know you’ll love it as much as I do!

Ages of Beauty rating: *****

Outfit of the Day: Business Casual at a Conference

2014 was the year for business travel and if the beginning of 2015 is any indication, there will be a lot more business travel to come. I spent all of last week at my company’s global sales kickoff. It was just me and 3,000 other people, from all over the world, in Orlando for the week. Trips like these are really nice because not only do you learn a lot about the plans for the coming year but it’s a great opportunity for exposure to other cultures and languages. Fortunately, I love my job and the people I work with (even though we all work out of our homes, I see them A LOT!) because I end up spending plenty of time away from home. Believe me…coming home is really sweet!

Packing for business travel can be difficult due to climate, unpredictable weather and airlines (ugh!). I usually try to plan and cram everything into a carry on but since this trip was six days long, I decided to pack a larger bag and take many of my favorites. Most of the time, conference dressing means business casual (no suits) and since this one was an employees only affair, that meant I could take advantage of my very serious collection of clothing by Dobbin! In case this is your first time reading this blog, I must tell you that I absolute love this brand! Dobbin’s fashions are made in the USA, using amazing European fabrics (you will be amazed at the quality!) and priced just right! Just the fact that I, literally, purchase multiple items from every collection is a testimony in itself—I have NEVER fallen in love with a brand before! Not only is the fit just right but they have great sales (and they’re having one right now)!! Here’s a peek at one of the outfits from last week.

My outfit began with the gorgeous Luisa Silk Blouse from Dobbin. The beautiful black and ivory print ensures that this top works with a majority of the items in my closet. It’s comfortable and a great layering piece.

My pants were also from Dobbin: the New Stanton Slim Pant in Black Stretch Corduroy. Honestly, I thought these pants were like my velvet feel pants from Talbots---the corduroy is that soft! And just like the other New Stanton pants in my wardrobe, this fit is amazing! On my feet I wore a pair of LK Bennet burgundy colored suede booties from last year. Even though the heel was quite high, the platform inside ensured that these babies were really comfortable! (Here’s a pair that looks just like them but in black)

Because I am always cold (and temps in large ballrooms tend to be on the chilly side), I topped my outfit off with a Talbots Charming cardigan in black. I have these in many colors and they are great!

Outfits like this take me thru most conferences and even when it’s more of a prospect or customer facing event, these same pieces can be easily dressed up.

I’m getting back into the “regular blogging” groove so stay tuned for more this week!

Looking Forward to 2015 (or Thank Goodness 2014 is Over)!

It's no secret that 2014 was a tough year. A year ago, I was enjoying sunny skies and warm weather as I visited my parents at their winter home in Naples, FL. Little did I know that within 4 months, the worlds of all of my family members would be turned inside out as each of us navigated the new territory that only the death of a parent can reveal. Life as we knew it had changed forever.

Dad's death had far reaching consequences. For me, it meant deep sadness and mourning, of course, but also impacted just about all of my close relationships in some way. Along the way, two of my girlfriends lost their mothers as did my sister in law. During that time, I "failed" as a friend as I was unable to provide them with support due to my own grief. I lost touch with quite a few friends and am just now reaching out again. The stress and strain has been overwhelming at times and something had to "give." That something was this blog. 

But now it's a New Year and it's time to get things back on track! From a career perspective, 2014 was awesome---full of some pretty intense challenges and stress for sure but also promotions, success and record setting sales for me and my team. Over the last couple of days, I've been reflecting on what I'd like to accomplish this year at a high level. Here are a couple of highlights.

Getting More of What I Need

This sounds slightly loaded but it's really about getting back on track with what I need to feel my best. For me, that means regular exercise and taking time for myself, doing activites that relieve stress---music, crafts, writing, and learning new things in addition to doing the job I love. Despite being very extroverted, I definitely do need "alone time" and I've gotten so little of it this past year. That is going to change in 2015!

Spend More Time at the Beach 

I don't need to go to a tropical island (although I plan to visit at least one this year) but there's something about being near the water. It's so relaxing and calming. Heck, I even love heading to the Outer Banks in the middle of winter! It's cold and often windy, but the impact on my mood is exactly the same. Love it!

Help Someone Help Themself

For years, I've looked for opportunities to help people. Sometimes that means giving money anonymously, other times it's volunteering my time or helping a friend to look at a situation from a different perspective. I'm not sure what that the plan is for 2015 but I'm open to the possibilities.

So here's to 2015! More to come---I'm back!!

Skincare Ingredient Myths

 It seems like every time we turn around, there is some new untruth or urban legend about the ingredients used in the products we put in or use on our bodies. Off the top of my head: titanium dioxide (a common ingredient in sunscreen) is a carcinogen, parabens (and other preservatives) cause cancer, “all” essential oils are non toxic and edible, silicones are bad, hydroquonone is bad, “hypoallergenic” products will not cause skin reactions, certain skin creams can prevent wrinkles or “cure” them after they show up on the face, natural or organic ingredients are better than “chemicals,” your skin gets used to certain products and then they stop working…the list goes on and on. That these assertions are not based in scientific fact often does not matter and that’s where the problem is. Unfortunately, many of these myths are generated by cosmetics manufacturers themselves, in an attempt to make their products (which, of course, do not contain the offending ingredients) seem better, more “natural” (gahhh! I hate that word!!!) and overall worth more of your money. Marketers are not stupid. They know that by instilling fear, uncertainty and doubt in our collective minds, as well as playing on the fears that aging brings on, they can perpetuate whatever idea they want that helps them sell their products.

For those of you interested in actually reading what science really shows about a few of the more recent (and blatant) fear mongering stories, read on!

1. “Hypoallergenic” products: This one isn’t based on science, just fact as it applies to cosmetics labeling “rules.” Did you know that the definition of the  word “hypoallergenic” is not regulated in any way (unlike “organic” and even then, there are all kinds of classifications)? I can make any product I want, slap a label on it that says “hypoallergenic” and I don’t have to prove anything. There are no guidelines anywhere, in any country, that define what that word means. What that means to you, the consumer, is that you very well can have a reaction to a product labeled “hypoallergenic” and many people do. So, instead of being impressed with a word on a label, do yourself a favor and look at the actual ingredients list as you work to find out what specific ingredient causes a reaction for you.

2. Products that prevent (or cure) wrinkles: We have to face it. There are three things that cause wrinkles: genetics, sun exposure and smoking. Take a look at what your parents look like at any age and that will give you an idea of what you will look like. Then consider their exposure to the sun and any smoking habits, compare that to what you are doing in those areas and you’ll get an even better picture. As I always say to my friends and family, “Sunscreen is your friend!” Unfortunately, once we have wrinkles, there’s not much we can do to get rid of them, short of cosmetic surgery. There are creams (like Retin A) that can help improve the texture of skin over time but once you have wrinkles, they are a bitch to deal with. If you don’t believe me, click here to read the abstract of a Swedish study published in Skin Research & Technology (Lodén, M., Buraczewska, I. and Halvarsson, K. (2007), Facial anti-wrinkle cream: influence of product presentation on effectiveness: a randomized and controlled study. Skin Research and Technology, 13: 189–194. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0846.2007.00220.x). This controlled study shows that there was no difference between subjects using several facial creams marketed to improve the look of wrinkles and the surface of the skin. In other words, not only do facial creams not have a measurable impact on the look and feel of wrinkles, luxury creams do no better than low cost creams. Interesting stuff! (But you already knew that, right??)

3. “Natural” and organic skincare products and better than those that aren’t: Why do I hate the word “natural?” Because things like arsenic, ammonia and cyanide are “natural.” And you wouldn’t want any of those things in your face cream or in your vitamins. The word, “natural,” like “hypoallergenic,” can mean anything a cosmetics manufacturer wants it to mean. In fact, one of the ingredients that many people are so upset about (wrongly, based on the science)is the class of preservatives known as parabens---which are mostly plan-based (so, therefore “natural?”)---are found in the foods we eat (methylparaben’s natural source is blueberries). So…yeah…not buying that. And regarding parabens--if you want actual citations regarding research on parabens, click here for a Wikipedia page that has lots of info on studies, citations, uses of parabens, links to more info, etc. This page even discusses where the hysteria originated.

4. Silicones: <sigh> Silicones are everywhere, from our food to our medicine to our electronics and cosmetics, these useful compounds are much maligned and misunderstood. For those of us who love and wear cosmetics, we owe the silkiness of the product and the finish that our skin takes on to silicone. In the August 2014 issue of Skin, Inc magazine, Rebecca Gadberry’s article, “12 Silicone Myths Exploded,” exposes the myths and the facts around this building block of many cosmetic products. Full of sciency stuff, Ms. Gadberry is able to explain, in layman’s terms, where each “urban legend” began and why it’s not true. Check it out if you have any doubt about silicone. It’s an interesting read.

So that’s my rant for the day on beauty and cosmetic myths. Hope you find this info interesting and helpful. And remember---don’t blindly believe what you are told by a marketer---check out the science behind the claims. You’ll be much happier with your results and spend much less money in the long run!

Sometimes All You Need Is A Little Skin Conceal!

After a very intense work week last week, which included a flight out to the West coast, all day meetings (with a lot of people) in a too small conference room and then the pollution, traffic and stress that go along with all of that, my body and skin needed a break! Well, fortunately for me, I just had an hour and a half massage with my favorite massage therapist, Mike. That took care of the knots all over my body. Last week, though, my skin reacted differently to all the stress---in the form of a large blemish! It had been literally YEARS since my face had seen such an eruption! Having just re-packed my traveling makeup bag, I (fortunately) discovered that I had packed Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics’ Skin Conceal. Honestly, most of my love had been given to my up-to-the-moment favorite, IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye, so I was anxious to give Skin Conceal a real workout!

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Skin Conceal in R1 (light, red-based skintone)

Available for $20 in twelve colors at Sephora and at OCC’s Website, Skin Conceal will take your complexion to places it has never been! I found that not only did it cover the minor discolorations that come from normal aging, but it also concealed the major spot that my newly-teenaged self seemed to grow over night. And it did so ALL DAY!!!

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Skin Conceal in R1 (light, red-based skintone)

See below for before and after pics:

Before: No makeup, no concealer (wet hair!)

Midstream: After a light layer of Smashbox Camera Ready CC Cream in Light

After: CC Cream plus OCC’s Skin Conceal in R1. Wooohooo!!!

Before, Midstream and After OCC Skin Conceal

Before and After: OCC Skin Conceal

OCC’s Skin Conceal has now found a permanent place in my makeup bag---it’s that good!!! Check it out at Sephora or OCC and find a shade that’s right for you.

Ages of Beauty rating: *****

The Love of a Dog

“Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day.
It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them.”
― John Grogan, Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog

The other day, as I was perusing Face Book, I noticed that a co-worker of mine had just adopted a golden retriever puppy. This was a big step for her as she had had to put down her beloved thirteen year old golden, who finally lost his battle with cancer. She told me that she was finally “ready” and I knew exactly what she meant. Losing a dog is like losing a friend or family member. The grief cuts deep and, at times, one feels like it will be impossible to get over. But, with time, the jagged edges are filed down and with those edges go the sorrow we feel for losing our best friends.

Josh

This year, in addition to losing my father, we also lost my parents’ dog, Josh. It was sudden and unexpected but at 13 years old, Josh had developed a fast moving cancer. He had his breakfast one morning as normal and within hours he was gone. We loved Josh and he loved us and our lives are better for knowing him.

Bentley

Bailey

These days, I count my dogs, Bentley and Bailey, among my best friends. They cheerfully greet me when I return from my trips, from journeys to the grocery store and even from the next room after leaving them for ten minutes---their excitement never wanes! And today, another friend of mine sent me a link to the You Tube video, below, “So God Made A Dog.” You owe it to yourself to view it. This video says all we need to know about Man’s Best Friend.”

Too Faced Natural Eyes Palette

I’ve been traveling a lot this summer and today, my husband and I are actually on the way to the Bay Area for work (me) and relaxation (him).  My habit has been to not really fully unpack (except for dirty clothes) so I’ve kept my makeup bag pretty steady all summer. One new staple has been the Too Faced Natural Eyes Palette. It’s size and the flexibility of the shades has made this one a winner for me. Read on to find out more!

The palette consists of nine neutral shades, ranging from very light to very dark and matte to satin. Each shade is VERY pigmented and goes on as smooth as a dream! I’ve also found that the color last more than twelve hours on my oily lids (I almost always wear a primer but even without a primer, these shades last and last!). The color selections are split into three categories: Day, Classic and Fashion. Day shades tend to be matte while the Classic and Fashion shades have a little bit of shimmer (not too much, which I really like). Lately, I’ve been mixing the Day and Classic shades to create my own look. In the pictures below, I’m wearing Silk Teddy on the inner half of my lid, Push Up on the outer half, Erotica on the outer crease and Heaven under the brow. From a texture perspective, each shade is silky and easily blendable.

Natural Eyes is an excellent palette and a great choice for someone looking for a compact palette full of long lasting, neutral shadows. You can find it for $36 at Sephora and where Too Faced Cosmetics are sold. This one is definitely worth the cost!

Ages of Beauty rating: *****

Tales of a Bad Blogger

I haven't been a very good blogger lately and it's been driving me crazy! Those of you who read this blog regularly know I've had a very challenging year with the death of my father and my mother's health issues. And those of you who know me in real life (IRL) also have the additional insight of other distractions that have required that my attentions are focused elsewhere. Throughout this whole journey, I will say that I am constantly amazed at the power of love, communication and understanding.

I am re-focusing my energies to this blog and hope to, once again, provide excellent content to women like me---hard working, deeply caring women who try to take care of themselves and others, while trying to maintain a sense of beauty in our everyday lives. So with that, I thought I would give you a glimpse of my life in the past week (via pictures!). Hope you enjoy!!!

I've been traveling a LOT this summer on business!

The gorgeous Carson Stretch Ponte Faux Wrap Dress by Dobbin. Every time I wear it, I get a ton of compliments. So lovely!!!

My latest travel makeup stash.

A look from the Too Faced "Natural Eyes" palette.

Facial Masks from Korea (a gift from my friend Stacey)!

Pretty in Peach!!!

Candy Crush is my mood stabilizer under stress...

If you haven't seen "A Conference Call in Real Life," you need to! It's the funniest thing I've seen in a long time and it will definitely resonate with you if you spend 90% of your time in corporate life! Click here to see it.

The first thing I saw when arriving home from a long business trip---newly blooming Black Eyed Susans!!

And the love of my life, Bentley-Boo!

Followed by our "Bad Dog," Aqua Kitty!

Time for the kids to go back to college. This was the result of Saturday's shopping at Target---outfitting both for two separate apartments at JMU!

Last but not least, my new favorite past time! Barry and I are taking dancing lessons at the West End Ballroom  and absolutely love it. What a great way to spend couple time and prepare for date night!

More to come as I get my blogging muscles back!!