Three things I'm loving this week:

1. The parties are over. Our schedule is blissfully clear this week -- we don't even have to get the kids to swim/dance/tumbling classes because they don't start until next week (and you bet your butt I signed them up for every class I could to get the most out of my Y membership money).

2. My Christmas Club account. I shudder to think of how I would pay for Christmas if I weren't socking away money all year long. It's ridiculous if you really think about it -- to spend so much on one holiday -- but at least when that fat Visa bill arrived on Dec. 24, I didn't have to worry about how I was going to pay for our happy holiday.

3. Mediterranean Pizza at Pie in the Sky. I've also had a version of this at the Pufferbelly that I think was called Greek Pizza. Basically, it's a pizza crust with a bit of olive oil, lots of spinach and black olives and feta cheese -- all my favorites.

I was working on my laptop on the couch last night and the husband had the TV on. He apparently couldn't find Law & Order or CSI and ended up landing on "Wife Swap."

On this show, two wives (usually mothers, I think) swap households to see how the other lives. Fine. Sounds good in theory and would probably be a pretty cool experiment in reality. But, of course, the producers search the country over to find the most over-the-top mothers around and then deliberately swap complete opposites (so the ultra-strict mom goes to the home of the free-spirited mom).

For a girl who claims not to watch TV, I sure see a lot, don't I? The thing is that I don't deliberately watch it most of the time, but in the winter -- it's cold, it's dark and I find myself on the couch intending to catch up on reading and paperwork and instead...end up slack-jawed, watching some TV show my husband turned on.

But, last night was bowling night...which means I could watch PBS. My husband rolls his eyes every time I try to sneak the TV onto PBS, but I like a lot of the evening programming. It's like the poor man's History and Discovery Channel.

Last night, I caught "Dr. Wayne Dyer: Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life" and it was exceptional. WQLN's description of the program probably sums it up best:
"Self-help expert Wayne Dyer with advice, adapted from the classic Chinese book "Tao Te Ching," by Lao Tzu, on how to lead a balanced life."

It should be required viewing for today's busy moms (and dads).

It's official, I'm old. These words came out of my mouth when I was telling a friend about my niece's boyfriend, "He's got this hair that hangs in his face and I just want to say -- 'get a haircut, I can't even see your face' I don't know what it is with kids and their hair today -- they just let it hang there."

I actually said those words which is quite hypocritical of me considering I was a product of the '80s when every teenager had big, scary hair that was curled, sprayed, gelled and moussed into all kinds of unnatural formations.

Three things I'm loving this week:

1. New Hampshire.

2. Carpoolers. This is a sitcom on ABC that I had happened to catch a few times whenever it was last on (earlier this year...late last season, I don't know) and it was hysterical. I love Fred Goss who plays the lead character, Gracen Brooker. ABC describes his character this way: Gracen is the Everyman who seeks fairness in an unfair world and fights the uphill battle of trying to please both his wife and his buddies" -- therein lie the laughs, dear TV viewers.

3. 60 degree days in January. The three mild days we've just enjoyed were nothing short of a gift and a preview of what we'll be rewarded with come April...or May....OK, OK, June.

Or, do you love one?

Then...you need to check out ebags.com.

I have a thing for bags -- not purses, but bags -- and this site is like heaven to me. I could spend a whole lot of money there (and some of the prices are right).

I love bags so much I created a whole issue of Her Times dedicated to baggage -- publishing on Sunday, Feb. 10. I'm working feverishly to finish that issue now which is why I haven't blogged much this week and is how I stumbled upon ebags.com as I was looking for bags to give away (yes...legitimately shopping on company time and, yes, I love my job).

Today is my daughter Lauren's 1/2 birthday at preschool so we created a special snack.

Perfect for a blustery, snowy day.

Check it out:

These were easy and fun to make. Wanna craft some of your own?

A running friend of mine who happens to be a doctor and a fitness fanatic talked me into switching to brown rice. On a morning run a few months ago, we were chatting when dinner came up -- I proudly told him that I have successfully changed my family over to brown rice and that we actually liked it better.

"The kind that takes like an hour to make, right?" He said.

"Uh...no, I buy the 5-minute brown rice," I said.

"No, no, no...it's not the same. It's still refined...nutrients are lost -- you want the stuff that comes in a plastic bag that takes an hour to cook," he said.

An hour? Really?

So, I bought it and, honestly, we all like it better. It has a lot more flavor (though it is a lot chewier than white rice).

But the one-hour cook time makes it really inconvenient for meal preparation. The last thing we have when we get home at 6 p.m. with two starving children is an hour to wait for rice.

This morning I read a great tip in Good Housekeeping magazine from Marie Simmons, author of "Rice, the Amazing Grain:"

"Combine the rice and measured-out cooking liquid in a saucepan; cover and refrigerate overnight. The next day, heat the rice and remaining liquid (some of it will have been absorbed) on high to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook 20 minutes, until rice is tender."

From an hour of cook time to 20 minutes -- I'll take that. I plan to give it a try later this week.

Something for women to think about:

An excerpt from Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen's column in Sunday's Erie Times-News that spoke to me:

"For their own part, the Obama camp forgot that Clinton is a woman -- a wife and a mother. This, in a way, encapsulates her struggle -- a life both darkly unknowable and so brilliantly public that we don't know what to make of it. But whatever it is, her life is a woman's life, and no man dare dismiss it. If she cries for children, if she is somehow not likeable, she takes her proud place among countless women."

I was never really into science and didn't understand why there were all kinds of space missions to launch satellites, repair satellites, blah, blah, blah. To be honest, I thought satellites were purely spy devices (no doubt ideas planted in my head by Hollywood) that had no impact on my life.

I didn't know they'd revolutionize the way I lived my life -- from how I get to Point A to Point B to how I rock out on the drive home.

surely you owned one of these -- one of the very first hand-held games.

I know I spent many an hour in the back of the family wood-paneled, light blue station wagon playing this thing while I slid around the vinyl seats (because no one wore seatbelts back then), inhaling my dad's cigar smoke (which was preferable to smelling his farts -- what is it with Dads and farting in closed spaces anyway?).

BUT, I digress...

I loved my Merlin. I have no idea what ever happened to it. I probably left it out in the rain and forgot all about it when my parents finally relented and bought us an Atari.

Three things I'm loving this week:

1. Air-popped popcorn with a little butter spray and lots of garlic salt. I could eat a giant bowl of this for dinner every night -- and often do. It's good and good for you. And, far as I know, sucking up hot air popped popcorn doesn't give you cancer.

2. Scrapbooking. Yes...I'm a member of the cut-and-paste cult. I have no patience for elaborate designs and page layouts -- you won't mistake my pages for works of art, but that's what I love about scrapbooking -- your books are as individual as you and are, ultimately, a reflection of self.

I knew it was just a matter of time before my husband started dropping hints about getting another dog. Cassie, our yellow lab, died a year and a half ago and I knew Dan was missing his girl (if for no other reason than to keep all the neighborhood cats out of our yard).

He says he has his heart set on another Labrador Retreiver, but I would like to try another breed -- preferably something smaller and more athletic that I can run with.

To be honest, I'm not a dog person. They're pushy, noisy, smelly, hairy, they poop all over the yard and they like to roll roadkill.

But, the reality is that my husband loves dogs and there will surely be another canine taking up residence in Casa Cass in the near future.

I used to think my mother was freakishly psychic. She always knew when we were sick, before we even knew we were sick.

When my rambunctious four-year-old who loves water (I swear the girl has gills) wanted to leave the Y pool on Saturday afternoon, I knew something was wrong.

Three things I'm loving this week:

1. Rhodes frozen bread dough. Who knew it was this simple to make "homemade" bread? Who knew I'd ever have to actually make bread? See...I signed my husband up as someone who could provide homemade bread for communion at church and when January's bread-baker fell ill, they asked us to fill in. No problem. Except Dan had to work Saturday and I needed to come up with a homemade loaf of bread. I borrowed my mom's bread machine. I couldn't even figure out how to get the basket thing out and abandoned that plan. I thought I could buy a loaf at Giant Eagle and pass it off as my own. No luck. Then, I remembered the woman who asked me to make bread had mentioned something about frozen bread dough. Sure enough, there it was...in the frozen foods and, get this, the only thing you had to do was spray the loaf pan, dump the frozen loaf in...let it rise and then bake the sucker. That's it (bread even the culinary-challenged can't screw up). Amen.

2. Applebee's. Met a friend for dinner at Harborcreek Applebee's last night and was pleasantly surprised at the number of healthy choices -- under 500 calories -- on the menu. Of course, I made up for the shortfall in calories with a few hundred from the bar, but... BTW -- I had the Cajun Lime Tilapia and it was delish!

3. Gracious businesses who know the magic words. I received this e-mail from Feld Entertainment. Honestly, I expected it to be your standard e-mail spam/newsletter, but it was an actual "thank you" note. I love the line, "We know you have several choices when selecting family entertainment, and we appreciate your patronage." Oh...you got me...you really got me. What mommy doesn't relish any opportunity to feel appreciated -- even if it's for opening her wallet.

There was an interesting editorial by Suzanne Fields on the op-ed page today -- "Women just don't need Mr. Fix-It."

I don't necessarily agree or disagree with Field's points, I just think she raises some interesting observations -- particularly that "Men and women are finding ways not to depend on each other."

... that I'm sick of celebrities who squander tremendous talent, opportunity and money on drugs and other controlled substances in an effort to escape their horrible, horrible lives.

Now, I know the jury is still out on why Heath Ledger died and perhaps he had some serious mental health issues and all the pills found in his room were prescribed, but...wow....what a waste, man. What a waste.

There are a million other ways celebrities can make themselves feel better. Helping those less fortunate is always a good one -- like...blowing $4,000 on shoes for inner-city kids instead of cocaine ...

What a shame.

What a waste.

It's been almost four years since we bought my husband's full-size Chevy truck. It came with an extended cab, 4-wheel drive, an 8-foot bed, some sort of big deal horsepower and a big, fat auto loan from Fifth Third Bank.

That loan was a bitter pill for me to swallow -- things you drive just should not cost that much money -- but there was no talking the tough guy out of buying a truck. He works on construction sites and if you show up in anything but a truck, you are asking for daily ridicule. Drive a Volvo or a Honda to work and they'll laugh you right off the site (and likely pick it up and move it to another parking lot while you're in the Job Johnny...just to mess with you).

Today I paid the loan off and I feel like a 3/4 ton weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

We are a car-payment-free household right now. Woohoo.

This, of course, pretty much guarantees that the transmission will fall out of my GMC Jimmy on 12th Street on my way home, right?

Kim Fabrizio, a friend and former co-worker of mine, has an interesting blog topic today over at Sunshine and Moonlight.

She's talking about gratitude and inviting readers to tell her what they're grateful for.

I added my 2 cents (er, more like $2...you know I love to ramble on) -- surf on over & add yours.

I'm the first to admit I am fashion challenged. I've never been into labels or felt a need to have the latest, most stylish clothes. It just seems like such a hassle. Give me a basic black suit and six colored blouses and I'm good to go.

That said, I am a woman and I care what I look like. I dress as fashionably as I can with a minimum of fuss, a sense of professionalism and an eye toward value.

I've come a long way in my shopping habits and selection in the last few years, and that is due in no small part to our Her Times magazine fashion consultant Valerie Weaver and the fact that I can no longer shop for clothes without hearing Valerie's voice in my head.

If your kids are as hard on their school backpacks as mine, they're probably in need of another one right now.

You're in luck -- www.ebags.com is having a great backpack sale.

Three things I'm loving this week:

1. Country Fair's new coffee cups. Finally, a Country Fair coffee cup with a sleek design that I'm not embarrassed to carry around. The new cups look more sophisticated and modern. I just hated those big, cheesy foam cups they used to have. Call me vain, but...truly, with women...little things do matter -- like stylish cups. As for the new Bold and Dark coffee blends -- eh. I still prefer the House blend. Now...if someone could just do something about their ugly Web site ...

2. SuperBowl Sunday. This game used to mean nothing more to me than a party and good commercials. Now, I know football. I love football. I can talk football. I understand the rules (most of them) and can decipher a good call & a bad call. It's fun to root for someone, it's even more fun to root against someone (like those snotty Pats and their smarmy coach). Oh...and I am LOVING that the game is on a reasonable hour this year -- 6:17 p.m.

3. Zen Habits blog. I'm all about finding more peace in my life. I've been finding ways to do that here.