See the second part at the bottom.

I am currently listening to Little Women by by Louisa May Alcott. I am currently on the second part of the book and am struggling to keep up. There are some sections that I honestly just tuned out. I usually listen to my audiobooks during my long drive home and for the most part I pay the utmost attention to all of the audiobooks that I listen to. However, this one, is rough. There was a section of the story where there was a play the girls put on. The author added the dialog of said play to the book to which this part I completely tuned out. I wasn’t sure what it had to do with the story so I stared to daydream about the kind of day I had at work. And of course, the traffic. My favorite part of the book is the relationship between Jo and Laurie. They are always in good spirits and messing with each other in a loving way. 

I have never read this book before, have barely read any reviews on it, nor have I watched any movies, as there are some, in relation to this book. I just know it is a classic and I am looking forward to reading/listening to as many classic pieces of literature as my phone can handle as these stories are long and the memory on my phone is short. Fun fact, I had to delete some of my stuff from my phone in order to be able to download this bohemoth of a book. No big deal, just some duplicate pictures and some useless videos.

I will continue to listen to this story and will return with my thoughts on the full story including the ending. I truly hope the ending is a good one.

The second part of this book was just the same as the first…at one point or another I tuned out. There were some sad parts and some plot twists that I became very mad at. Teddy and Jo continue to be my favorites. Their interactions are always lively and make me smile. All of the other characters were just living their lives nicely and day by day.

This book was tough for me to get through. I guess it was a great one back in the 1800s when it was first written. As for me, I like more suspenseful books the who-done-it types. This book is more of a romance. Beautifully written and a tribute to families and day by day living.

 

 

Today I tied Shea Moisture African Black Soap Clarifying Mud Mask.

The products’ description is a “deep cleansing mud mask helps remove impurities from blemish-prone skin. African Black Soap blends with Tamarind Extract and Tea Tree Oil to clarify and soothe skin. Skin feels clean, softened and refreshed.” I did feel clean after my shower.

I started with a clean face.

I then added the mask.

Usually Tea Tree oil leaves me with a tingling feeling on my skin. This product did not do that. It was smooth to put on and easy to remove in the shower.

This was a great self care treat after a long day at work. Yes, I dry my hair with a t-shirt. Hey, its better than a towel and it leaves my hair smoother and eliminates the frizz.

I love a good mystery, but this particular mystery seemed very familiar. Like I’ve read this book before. But, as I kept reading, I did not remember any of the details. Do I read too many mystery novels or am I just having a sense of what the author went through as she wrote this book?! It was a very odd feeling.
This book is about a mother who had completely lost all of her memories before her children were born. I can relate. See, after my daughter was born I became very sick an was in the hospital for months. It was so bad that they needed to put me into an induced coma. I must have gone through a period where I did not receive enough oxygen and it messed up my brain. After leaving the hospital I was home and had no memories of being in the hospital and very little memory after my daughters birth. This book spoke to me. For all of those who have had problems with memory, this book is for you.
The main character Googles herself and finds out there were so many things that happened to her in her passed that she had completely forgotten and is now trying to figure out what they were and why they happened. She misses her sister dearly as she had passed away by what she thought was suicide, but was it?

Last week I decided it was about time for me to donate my blood. There was a blood drive at the office and I let go of my fears of falling over and embarrassing myself to the side and went for it.

I got to the main conference room and signed in then answered a lot of questions like have you had a tattoo in the last whatever amount of time, did you take any aspirin this morning, do you like to go on long walks at the beach? Kidding but I would have said yes.

Then they took a quick blood sample to make sure I was good to give blood and they kept me moving along to the area where everyone was laying down, so I guess I was good to go.

I lay down on the cots they have for the donors and am ready and excited to give back and do something good. I then see others laying there squeezing something wrapped in a paper towel and I am now nervous because I’m thinking of the needle and how much it might hurt. So the nurse sticks me with the needle and I feel ok. And they tell me to keep on squeezing the little thing they’ve put on my hand. All is going well until…

My face starts to feel hot and now I am feeling anxiety. I’m sweating and feeling even more anxious. I ask the nurse if its normal to feel this way. She tells me its almost over. Now I tell her that I’m feeling a little nauseous. She tells me to lift and fold my legs, but I don’t want to do that, I’m wearing a dress. No way I’m going to do that. Meanwhile they get me a paper blanket so I may lift and fold plus an ice pack for the back of my neck. As soon as the nurse placed the ice on my neck the sooner it fell to the through the cot to the floor. Round two of the ice pack…she placed it in the front of my neck. That felt strangely good and took my sweats away. Lifting and folding my legs worked like a charm on my nausea. These people really know what they are doing That’s why they are the experts. Am I right?=)
After all of that, they got my pint and took the needle out of my vein and I got to have some juice, cookies and a sticker. So I took a couple of extra cookies for later. You know, just in case I started to get the sweats again or feeling faint. OK so the cookies were good and that is why I took them. They were the sugar cookies kind that grandmas always have.

After that experience, I feel good giving what I can, even if that includes being uncomfortable for a while. It wasn’t a hard thing to do at all and now I will be receiving a donate card that has my blood type on it. I know, I know, I should know my blood type by now and I have probably been told my type, but who can remember these things?

I’ve just finished listening to the audiobook for Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. This book was like watching behind the scenes of your favorite band. The band mates are all looking back at what was probably the best time of their lives. In the audiobook version, all of the characters have their own actor and you can hear the different distinct voices. Daisy’s voice is perfect for this audiobook as her voice sounds raspy, like a rock singer should, at least in my mind.

The story takes place in the present while all of the characters are talking about their past. The narrator has a big part of the book. It doesn’t seem like it in the beginning bet eventually….well, I don’t want to give anything away. Just know that it is a good plot twist.

I loved the way the author described all of the details. For a lot of the book, I felt like I was watching them on stage or was with them in their hotel room or recording studio while they were making their music. This story was very vivid to me. I pictured all of the characters, what they looked like back in the 70’s and their attitudes.

This book goes over the good times, the bad, the falling in and out of love. This is a love story of fame, drugs and rock and roll. A love story to the 70s. The ups and downs of a love story of families. A roller-coaster ride of a story.

One afternoon I was online looking for a video of one of their songs on the internet. As I thought this was about a real band. Sadly it is about a fictitious group from the 70s.

I thought I knew the ending of this story but the twist…it was a complete and utter surprise to me. This surprise ending brought a tear to my eye.

I understand they are making a movie out of this book and I can not wait to hear the music and feel all of the thrilling feels all over again.

I thoroughly enjoyed Thrive: The Third Metric of Redefining Success and creating a live of Well-Being, Wisdom and Wonder by Arianna Huffington. The author mentioned that you should take the time to take care of yourself. Meditation and self-care is one of the big highlights that she talks about in the beginning chapters. Sleep! Sleeping is a lifesaver, you should always get plenty of it. Huffington had a big problem when she fell and hit her face from exhaustion.

She writes a lot about her mother and how, even living poor, her mother would always give everything away. They gave her a new watch, someone on told her they liked it and shortly after she received the watch, her mother was giving it away. She also talks about the time of her mothers death and how you always remember family time; what we do with and how we act towards family. In the end, we don’t think about how well we did in our careers but how we got along with family.

Today, I’ve heard the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard in my life.

Like me my daughter, I’m not a big huger. A quick three second hug is all you’re going to get from her. More than that we stiffen up thinking, that’s enough!

Today, as I was walking in from my driveway, my daughter was sitting on the back porch playing with some of her toys and keeping grandma company. When she finally noticed me she said the sweetest thing….”mooommmmmy, you’re home” and she ran to me and gave me a big hug and a kiss.My heart blew up. This moment is truly the best part of my week.

Last month I posted a blog about what to do with my hard earned money; fix the air-conditioner in my car or go on vacation. I’ve made my decision! I’ve decided to go on a family vacation. During the 4th of July weekend, my family and I went to Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey. I’ve decided that making memories is a better trade off. Besides, keeping the windows open as you drive on the Long Island Expressway never hurt anybody. What’s a few months of discomfort when you can see you kid’s eyes light up when they see Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck walking around at the Amusement Park.

During our visit the weather was a balmy 90 degrees. Nice and hot, sticky and slightly uncomfortable. We went on the Ferris Wheel, Enchanted Tea Cups, Carousel, took the Skyway and walked, and walked and walked. She got her face painted, ate ice cream every day and when she got tired, she got rolled around on her big girl stroller. What a life!

The best part of our visit however, was the Safari Off Road Adventure. We saw lions and tigers and bears. Yes, I’m sorry but I had to do it. We did see all three. We also saw elephants, rhinos and even got to feed the giraffes. If you didn’t know, giraffes enjoy eating sweet potatoes and ice cream cones as a snack. These guys have long, rough to the texture, tongues. The tour guides said these animals eat all day long. I thought- tall and skinny while eating all day long…must be nice! 🙂 We also saw a kangaroo that had just had her baby. As we drove by in the open air truck, we saw she was holding her “joey” in her pouch. The truck stopped so we could all stare in amazement.

Don’t get me wrong kind readers. I went on some of the fun rides too. I started off with Batman and moved on to Nitro and for the finale El Toro. All of these rides; I did by myself. By the way, I felt my stomach flip flopping on El Toro, it was so fun! Of course the little one can not ride on these and my family members are either not interested in this type of thrill or their back can’t take being thrown about. Never the less, I went ahead and took some thrills on my own. Surprisingly, the lines were not long at all for the holiday weekend. While my family took a much needed walking break and did some shopping, I got my thrill on.

We are already thinking of going again, but during the cooler months were we’re not so uncomfortable and dripping from the heat. Maybe October for Frightfest. Much like mommy, my kid loves Halloween. We’ll seek our thrills then.

Today, was the first time I got myself a relaxing facial. It was an age defying type. I went to the Seva salon in Farmingdale, NY where I usually get my eyebrows done. They do such a good job with my face and when I noticed they had a special for a facial I went for it. So I got my face taken care of and then requested to have that age defying facial.

Let me tell you, it was fantastic. The technician started out with an aloe type of cream and massaged my face for a good 10 minutes. After that, there was a steam facial to open up my pores. Then a type of sandy scrub to remove all of the bad stuff from my skin. And then, and best of all, a delicious lavender scented concoction to finish it off. My face was all shiny and felt so relaxed that I tipped the girls more than my usual 20%. It was a great experience. I surely recommend everyone get a facial done at least once a year if not once a month. I will absolutely be getting it done again.

My air conditioner in my car has gone. It is hot and it needs fixing…or does it? It will cost me about $1-thousand. So, should I spend it on a.c. or should I spend that money on a family vacation? We are thinking of going to an amusement park for a few days. And, stay at a hotel with a pool so we may relax and take a dip in the pool at the end of the day.

What do you think I should do? What would you spend your hard earned money on?