♥♥♥WIN A PAIR OF SWAROVSKI EARRINGS!!♥♥♥

Here are the details for my latest contest...

WIN THESE EARRINGS!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=7705054

IT'S SIMPLE! HERE'S HOW TO GET YOUR NAME IN THE CONTEST:

1) Make a purchase from either of my shops...

http://Skincandy.etsy.com or
http://GiftsEtc.etsy.com

The total of your purchase is the number of tickets you'll get. (i.e., a $10 purchase will give you 10 chances to win) Purchase from BOTH my shops and your number of tickets will be doubled!

2) Make a purchase from any of the shops on the Rockin' BnR list and get 1 ticket per transaction.

http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5786047&page=1

CONTEST RUNS THROUGH SEPTEMBER 14th. GOOD LUCK!!

Top 16...Poop Items!!

To make a long story short, I've had a sort of a "poopy" night. Things didn't go as planned tonight and I ended up home before 11pm!! Oh well. With my poopy mood, I felt inspired to bring you my top 16 "Poop" items on Etsy. To get to each item, just click on the picture. Enjoy!!

New feature!! Top 16...Purses!!

I've decided to start a new feature in my blog. I want to promote some of my fellow Etsians, but there are sooo many items that I love!! So, I'm going to make a "Top 16..." list once, twice, or more each week!! If you have any ideas for a "Top 16..." list, feel free to comment about it here in my blog.

For my first feature, I've decided to go with my weakness...purses. These are some of my favorites that I've found on Etsy. To get to each purse, click on the link below.

1st row:
Summer striped purse
Meredith - Small Tote with Wood Handles
Padded LAPTOP TOTE BAG in Mod Dots Spa
A-Line Bling - Mint

2nd row:
Go Directly to Jail (large)
Woven Duct Tape Handbag with Pink Flower
Rose Handbag
Peacock Feather Bag

3rd row:
Kleo Slouch Bag
Amy Butlers Morning glories
Pink Cocoa Blossom Tote Bag
The ICKY Bag DUO

4th row:
Marbled green silk-lined clutch bag
the LUCY bag in ginger blossom water lilly green
Beautiful green and pink flowered clutch
GINGER BLOSSOM PURSE

My Apologies...

I have to apologize for not keeping up with my daily Olympics posts. You see, a lovely lady decided to visit my hometown by the name of Fay. Yes, I'm talking about Tropical Storm Fay. The bitch (pardon my language) decided to land right smack in between my city and the one just north of us. Between getting my house and my work (I work at a tennis club with 38 tennis courts, so we had to take down the nets, etc.) I just didn't have enough time to watch as many events and blog about them as I would have liked. I did, however, make sure I watched Michael Phelps make history with his perfect 8 for 8 gold medals!! Way to go Michael!!

Anyways, Fay came through and we really didn't have all that much damage. One tree in our front yard was knocked over (it was a smallish tree) and we were able to stand it back up and hold it up with wooden posts. We lost power for about 15 hours. My 2 year old did not like it one bit. Every morning, I let him watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, his favorite show...and the only one I let him watch. When he woke up yesterday and he couldn't watch it, oh the puppy lip that boy made. lol Our generator also decided to take the day off, so we had no power until about 8 pm, right as I was putting Evan to sleep.

Things are back to normal today, although it is blistering hot outside today. But, at least we finally got some rain!!

2008 Beijing Olympics - Day Three

Another day, a whole lot more medals. Here is my take on what I watched.

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Women's Preliminary Beach Volleyball - Walsh/May-Treanor (United States) vs Fernandez Grasset/Larrea Peraza (Cuba)

This beach volleyball game ended almost as soon as it started. The Americans crushed the Cubans in a mere 36 minutes!! Walsh/May-Treanor are always a fun team to watch. They dive for the ball with such determination and some of the plays are totally thrilling. These ladies are also unstoppable, having now one 103 games in a row! Completely unheard of in beach volleyball. I definitely see this team clenching the gold medal, thus defending their title.

Men's Team Final - Gymnastics

After both Paul and Morgan Hamm had to drop out of the Olympics due to injuries, many people didn't think the Americans stood a chance in medaling. Well, that's all these boys needed to fuel their fire. The Americans blew everyone away with such spectacular and clean performances that they managed to take home the bronze medal. This was a very deserved medal for the guys who, led by Jonathan Horton, kept the Chinese men on their toes all night. At one point, about halfway during the rotations, the Americans were actually leading. I loved watching the guys celebrate after winning the bronze medal. They didn't look upset at all about not getting the gold, but they sure did party like they did. Congrats boys!!

Men's 200m Freestyle Final - Michael Phelps, gold medal

What would a day be like where Michael Phelps didn't win a gold medal? Or set a new world record? Well, so far he has done just that every day of these Olympics. This time, he won it in the same event that he took home bronze while in Athens. This time he takes the gold and a new world record. Winning this event, Michael is now tied with some of the greats - Carl Lewis, Larysa Latynina, Mark Spitz - for the most gold medals. His biggest goal right now is to continue winning gold medals (8 in total) to take down the record set by Mark Spitz in the 1972 Munich Games (7 gold medals). Michael has 2 races tonight, the 200 butterfly and the 800 free relay, in which he is the heavy favorite to win in both. Best of luck Michael!

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Ta-Ta for now folks! Be sure to keep checking back everyday for my take on the Olympics.

Go TEAM USA!!

2008 Beijing Olympics - Day Two

Day Two of the Olympics and what a day it was!! Lots of excitement! Here's my take on the events I watched today.

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Men's Preliminary Basketball - United States vs China

I've never been a huge fan of basketball until this past season's finals, with the Lakers and the Celtics. My boyfriend, Robert, got me totally hooked on the sport, so when I saw that this game was on, I couldn't miss it! Nor could I miss the 7 ft, 6 in tall Yao Ming. Damn! That is one tall man! The game was quickly claimed by the Americans,with a final score of 101 to 70. The game was a huge loss for China, who have been buzzing about this game ever since Beijing was announced the host country.

Women's Qualification Gymnastics

Women's Gymnastics is one of my favorite events to watch. The tumbling, the flying through the air, all the hair glitter, I just love every aspect of it. This year's team is being led by 16 year old, Shawn Johnson. An unfortunate ankle injury kept one of their gymnasts on the sidelines, but the girls still did a fabulous job representing Team USA. A couple little mistakes on the floor exercise and uneven bars, but all in all, very strong performances from all the girl.

Men's 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay Final - America, Gold Medal

Oh. My. God. This was literally, the most incredible race I have ever seen. That most people have seen, I think. Before the start of the race, the French team, who were favored to win this race, talked some smack about the American team, saying, "We are going to smash the Americans. That's what we came here for". During the race, especially after the last turn, I thought America was going to take the silver medal. But in the last 30 or so meters, Jason Lezak got an extra burst of energy and "smashed" the French. Michael Phelps' and Garret Weber-Gale's reaction to the win was just priceless!! Yelling and jumping into the air like 2 wild beasts. A well deserved and amazing win for the Americans. Michael Phelps continues his quest of getting 8 Gold Medals.

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That's all from me today!! Sweet dreams everyone...until tomorrow...

Go TEAM USA!!

2008 Beijing Olympics - Day One

The 2008 Beijing Olympics started of with a bang!! I have been watching as many events as I can and everyday, I'll make a post about the events I watched that day, starting with Day One, August 9.
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Women's Preliminary Volleyball - Japan vs United States


The first event I watched was the first game for the US Women's volleyball team. It was a close game, but the US team took the win. They won 3 sets to Japan's 1 set, with an end result of 95 to 85. Very exciting game that my son enjoyed while eating french toast and eggs for breakfast. :-)


Women's Individual Sabre - JACOBSON Sada (USA) vs ZAGUNIS Mariel (USA)




Yes, that does say USA vs USA. This was the Gold Medal Match and it came down to 2 Americans. I don't really understand this sport much, but it was interesting to watch. Mariel Zagunis was able to defend her Gold Medal from Athens by winning this match.




Women's Preliminary Beach Volleyball - Walsh/May-Treanor (United States) vs Teru Saiki/Kusuhara (Japan)


During the Athens Olympics, this dynamic duo was unstoppable!! Since then, they have gone on to win 101 games in a row!! And, like those other games, these girls won this one as well!! They played on, despite the light rain and humid conditions. I look forward to these ladies winning gold again.






Men's 400m Individual Medley Final - Michael Phelps, Gold Medal




Michael Phelps is off to a good start, winning his first of (hopefully) 8 gold medals. During this race, he also set a new world record, 4:03:84. This was one of Michael's hardest races and he made it seem like a piece of cake. I can't wait for Michael's 7 other races and watching him win gold in all of them!!



Men's Qualifying Gymnastics




I didn't get to watch much of this event (unfortunately) because I was driving home from work when they started. From what I did see, the US Men's Gymnastics team is off to a great start! Always an exhilarating sport to watch, this year's US team is made up of all Olympic-newbies, but they all seemed like old pros.


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Well, that's all I watched on Saturday. A fantastic start to what will be a phenomenal Summer Olympics! Keep checking back every evening for a new blog post about that day's event.


Go TEAM USA!!

Olympic Sale!!

In honor of the Olympics, why not have a sale? I'm currently running a sale in both my Etsy shops, August 8 - August 24. Click the links below to go directly to my "Olympic Sale" sections to find some great deals on everything from jewelry to greeting cards. I have a lot of new items I am working on right now and will start to list them next week. So, I need to start clearing out some merchandise. If you make a purchase from both of my shops, I will adjust the shipping and refund you the difference. Happy shopping!!

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5590465&section_id=5572009 (GiftsEtc)

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5376487&section_id=5566322 (Skincandy)

2008 Beijing Olympics - Opening Ceremonies

The world of sports is buzzing with excitement. 08-08-08 was the beginning of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. I am not a huge fan of sports, but whenever the Olympics come around, you'd think otherwise. From the start of the opening ceremonies, to the conclusion of the 17 day event, I am glued to the TV, watching every moment of every competition that I can watch. This year is no different. My son, although just 18 months old, watched some of the opening ceremonies with me Friday night...and was late going to bed by an hour. lol It was amazing to share the excitement with him. He doesn't realize what's going on, but his eyes just lit up when the fireworks lit up the night sky in Beijing.

The opening ceremonies this time were just spectacular!! The 2008 drummers in the beginning (my son's favorite part) were mind boggling. And the 2008 (noticed how they used 2008 performers for each segment?) martial arts masters were completely in sync with each other, making for a breathtaking show. Another part I really enjoyed was watching the performers use their bodies to "paint" on a scroll!! What a sight!! The highlight, as it always is, was watching the lighting of the torch. Li Ning, a former Chinese Gymnastics star, was lifted in the air and "ran" sideways around a screen at going around the top of the North Stadium.

Another highlight for me during this opening ceremony was when the Chinese team walked in. Yao Ming, a star basketball player, lead the Chinese team into the stadium and beside him was the cutest little boy. At first, I assumed it was his son, but while listening to the commentary, I found out he was actually a survivor of the horrific earthquake that happened back in May. He is "nine-year-old Lin Hao, a pupil from the area of China's Sichuan province hit by an earthquake who helped to rescue his classmates from the rubble of their school." (http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/aug2008/2008-08-09-01.asp) This little boy was soo adorable and such an inspiration!!

The opening ceremonies have come and gone, but the compeitions are well under way. I'm currently watching the women's 4 x 4 relay and the Americans just took second place. I'll be watching evey night...with many more Olympic blog posts to come. :-)

Go TEAM USA!!!