Three things I'm loving this week:

1. The Nutcracker. I have been waiting and waiting and waiting... until my daughters (5 & 7) were old enough to appreciate this classic holiday ballet presented locally by the Lake Erie Ballet each year at the Warner Theatre. This is the year. They're familiar with the music (in fact, they love it) and the story (thanks to Barbie and her Nutcracker DVD) and I think they're old enough to sit and enjoy the show (though...the 5-year-old is questionable...as is the 38-year-old husband). Want to go? It's this weekend at the Warner -- Shows on Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. Tickets are not cheap, but...they are worth it...and if you go to the box office at the Civic Center you won't have to pay the extra $7 in fees that Ticketmaster slaps on each ticket.

2. PostSecret.com. It may be going a little far to say I'm loving this site, but...I've been amused by it this week. It's a Web site where people can go and confess secrets on postcards. I'm not sure how it all works...do they design their own cards? Choose from ones on the site? Do they pay to post? Not sure. Haven't surfed it enough to know, but...it's a fun (if voyeuristic) way to take a short afternoon mental break. Beware: Content can be offensive.

3. FlipNotes. I happened upon this really cool little notebook at the Harborcreek Hallmark store. I'm a list-maker, note-taker and writer, so...I keep paper and writing utensils in my car, by my bed, next to the treadmill, in the kitchen drawer, etc., etc. The only place I didn't carry a notebook was my purse because it would get all wrinkled and torn and gross. But these FlipNotes are great -- they are hard metal cases with little notepads and a pen built right in. You can see the whole line here. The Hallmark store had a small selection, but they cheaper ($7 for the FlipNotes, $3 for refills).