*I don’t get paid for my opinions in any way; this is just me sharing stuff that I like and I think you will too.

You know those people who walk around with bluetooth earpieces in their ear? Like they are all pod-people and part of some alien nation? I hate that look. I understand that it is a convenient way to talk on the phone, but if you aren’t on the phone, TAKE IT OFF. Believe me, a bulbous ear attachment does nothing for your cool points.

As you can see, I am not a fan of bluetooth ear devices. But I had to admit that they seemed like a good idea when they first came out and I tried several brands to no advil; they just didn’t fit my ear properly and really I felt like a fool wearing one.  Style counts in my book.  Several years passed as I used my wired headphones to talk on my cell phone. The wires often got in my way and the quality wasn’t very good, but since I was anti-earpiece, that was my only choice.

Recently I got hipped to the Jawbone Icon Headset and although I was very skeptical that I would like it, I decided to give it a try.  First of all, the design is very appealing; gone is the pod people-like bulb.  The Icon is small, slick, shiny and blinging….I like bling.   This is my model, The Thinker:

Alright, so I figured that at least I wouldn’t look stupid wearing it.  Encouraged, I put it in my ear and I was pleasantly surprised to find that by trying different earbuds and earloops, I found a perfect fit for my ear.  The headset was comfortable, lightweight and didn’t feel like it was going to fall out of my ear (a problem with past headsets).   Already two of my biggest concerns (style and fit) were addressed.

Since I don’t talk on the phone while driving (and neither should you–take Oprah’s No Phone Zone Pledge), I wasn’t sure if I would actually get much use out of the headset, but then I took my dog for a walk.  I don’t have much free time to talk to my friends, so I frequently call them when I am walking my dog.  In the past they have complained that my wired headphones didn’t work well when I was walking, so instead I held the phone to my ear.  That’s not a good way to walk my dog; one jerk from him and my phone is on the ground.   The Jawbone Icon Headset works perfectly while walking my dog.  It was very windy the other day, but while walking Chili Dawg I could still be heard and hear with my headset on with no problem.   In fact it started to rain and I jogged the last block home–still on the phone–and my friend didn’t even know it.  I guess that’s the “NoiseAssassin” in action that Jawbone says is one of it’s best features.  Believe me; it works.

The headset is very easy to use with my iPhone; I flip the switch on the headset, set my phone to “bluetooth” in Settings and then they’re connected.  It’s that simple.  There is even a battery meter on my iPhone’s status bar that tells how much battery I have left on my headset.   If my phone rings while wearing the Icon, it talks in my ear and says the number of the person calling.  It freaked me out the first time it happened, but now that I’m used to it, it’s cool.

I really like the Jawbone Icon Headset and will use it whenever I talk on my cell phone (but I will take it off if I’m not on the phone. And if you ever see me just wearing it as ear jewelry, feel free to stop me and tell me about myself).  Whether walking my dog, folding laundry or strolling around Target, with the Jawbone Icon Headset I can talk hands-free, be heard clearly and not look like an idiot.

*Disclosure: My husband was sent several Jawbone headsets and I took one to use for myself because I’m his wife and I can do that.  The headset was not sent to me personally, nor was I asked to write this review.  My opinions are my own.

*I don’t get paid for my opinions in any way; this is just me sharing stuff that I like and I think you will too.

Every year around the Christmas holidays Paddywax Candles has an open house at their factory store here in Atlanta and every year my family attends.  We eat cookies, drink cider and stock up candles.  We give some candles as gifts, but most we keep for ourselves to burn throughout the year.   We always stay at the open house far too long because not only does Paddywax sell great candles and it’s hard to shop quickly, but the company is also run by a fantastic couple, David Duncan and Gretchen Hollingsworth.  My family knows David and Gretchen socially, so we end up chatting with them forever.  I am always amazed by how they manage to run such a successful business and a successful household.  The success of the company takes extremely hard work, but on any given day I see either David or Gretchen picking their daughters up from school with one of their three dogs in tow.  The Paddywax office and factory has a busy, yet relaxed vibe–just like David and Gretchen themselves–and because their girls are often underfoot, there is always plenty of laughter and whimsy as well.  It seems like the ideal way to run a company–and a family.

During our last visit to the open house, our daughter disappeared with David and Gretchen’s girls back into the factory; with little cloth bags in hand, they were on a mission to find bits of hardened candle wax.    David took my husband and I into the factory to retrieve our daughter and show us how Paddywax Candles are made.   As David gave us a tour, he explained that Paddywax Candles is a boutique operation; the candles are made in small batches, hand-poured and hand-dyed.  I was a fan before the factory tour, but now that I have seen first-hand the detail and quality control that goes into each candle, I am even more impressed.

These are beautiful, high-quality, great-smelling candles.  If you love candles like I do, then you will love Paddywax Candles.  You can buy them online or in retail stores across the country.  If you want to know when they have the open house or other special events and deals, you can fan them on Facebook and follow @paddywaxcandles and @thecandlemaker on Twitter.

*I don’t get paid for my opinions in any way; this is just me sharing stuff that I like and I think you will too.  And if someone ever does pay me for a review, you will be the first to know.

Shopping with my daughter at Sprong, a local children’s shoe store here in Atlanta, we came across the cutest accessory and we just had to share.   Here’s my cute daughter modeling her necklace.  She wears it everyday.

First you choose a cord in one of many colors available and then you choose a bottle cap design to “snap” on to complete your necklace.  Yes, I said a bottle cap!   The design is on a bottle cap!   There is a powerful magnet on the back that snaps onto a metal ring, but the best part is that when you want to change your design, you just snap it off.   And there are TONS of designs to choose from!   I think it’s ingenious.

(photos by M3 Girl Designs)

The necklace is $8 and each bottle cap design is $8 as well.    We just bought the cord and one bottle cap on that day, but we will buy more bottle caps every time we go to that store.   I think it will make a great birthday present for any young lady.  I’m also thinking ahead towards Christmas when Snap Caps will make perfect stocking stuffers.

Besides being the cutest accessory that I have seen, I love Snap Caps because they are made by 2 young ladies.  You can read all about them on the M3 Girl Designs website, but these sisters started this company with their own money and they are quite successful.   I admire their creativity and entrepreneur spirit.   From what I understand there are now knock-off companies selling a similar product, but my daughter will be supporting M3 Girl Designs’ Snap Caps–while looking fabulously cute at the same time.

*I don’t get paid for my opinions in any way; this is just me sharing stuff that I like and I think you will too.

Shopping at Whole Foods this week I was attracted to this stand-alone cooler in the frozen food section.  It could have been that I was hungry for cookies or the big yellow sale sign got my attention, but I was intrigued enough to stop and read some more.

What I learned is that Immaculate Baking uses no trans fat, no high fructose corn syrup and only all natural ingredients in their cookie dough.   Now, although I am not a big fan of pre-made cookie dough as they all have an “fake” taste to me, and I have yet to find a tasty healthy cookie, I decided to try these cookies at home with my own cookie monsters.  I bought 2 packages for $8: Cranberry Oatmeal White Chocolate and Triple Chocolate.  Each package makes 24 cookies.    The dough is already scored for each individual cookie and therefore easy to bake as many or little as you want at one time.   My family wanted to taste the cookies right away (naturally), so after dinner I made 8 of the Cranberry Oatmeal White Chocolate according to the directions on the package.

14 minutes later (plus cooling time) we were enjoying some really delicious cookies!  No, FOR REALS!   They were fresh and clean-tasting (no nasty “fake” taste), the perfect consistency, and very flavorful; they were as good as (if not better than) freshly made bakery cookies.   Everyone in my family gave the cookies an enthusiastic 2 thumbs up!  I normally do not like oatmeal in my cookies, but I love these; oatmeal, cranberries and white chocolate turned out to be a winning combination.  With the holidays upon us, it is always good to have a quick snack in the freezer like this cookie dough for unexpected guests.  A fresh warm plate of cookies and some hot apple cider (also easy to keep on-hand) makes for a very welcoming house.   We can’t wait to try the Triple Chocolate cookies!

*Update: We tried the Triple Chocolate and they were just as good as the Cranberry White Chocolate–delicious!  I have also found that my oven bakes them best for 13 minutes.  They will look puffy and not all the way done when you take them out, but then they will harden upon cooling.  I transferred mine to a wire rack to cool for 3-5 minutes before eating.

I am a big fan of Trader Joe’s from living in California; there was one within walking distance from my apartment and the cheap prices were right in line with a graduate student’s budget.  Back then I didn’t cook a whole lot and mostly bought wine and cheese, but since then I have learned that Trader Joe’s has other great items for sale.   It’s not on my weekly shopping route, but since the store opened in Midtown Atlanta 2 years ago (finally!), I try to go every 2 or 3 weeks to stock up on my favorites TJ goodies.  

Of course they still have a great cheese and wine selection.

The nuts and dried fruit section is chock for of interesting snacks.  Wasabi Wow is a delicious mix of almonds, wasabi peas, peanuts and cranberries.

I buy many of my staple items here (they are such a good price!) like pasta, rice, pesto, marinades and pancake mix.  Trader Joe’s Brown Jasmine Rice is the best; even my kids, who don’t care of brown rice, eat it right up!   And the pancake mix is really easy, but  yields perfect pancakes every time.

I buy many of my beverages at Trader Joe’s.  The kids like the Organic Tea & Lemonade.  I like the Pomegranate Limeade, but I don’t buy it much; I will seriously drink the whole bottle in one sitting!  Instead, I drink the unsweetened green tea; it has enough favor to forget that it isn’t sweet.  The Blueberry & Pomegranate is my favorite.

I don’t buy much meat at Trader Joe’s, but the chicken sausage is delicious–especially the mango.  Sometimes I put that in jambalaya or with Trader Joe’s Biryani Curried Rice and it’s soooo good.  The Biryani Curried Rice is found in the frozen food section and it’s great as a side dish also.  It takes about 5 minutes to make so I always keep some in the freezer.

The frozen vegetables and fruit at Trader Joe’s are interesting and a great price.   I keep these French Green Beans in my freezer for my daughter, who loves green beans, and the frozen fruit  for my smoothies.

In the summer my kids eat a popsicle every day and Trader Joe’s has some good ones.  The Fruit Floes are refreshing and pretty guilt-free at 80 calories and fat free.  The Mango & Cream Bars and Raspberry & Vanilla Cream Bars are delicious and only 60-80 calories each; they are small, but just enough to satisfy a craving for a frosty, sweet treat.

Rarely do I leave Trader Joe’s without buying a bouquet of flowers; I love having fresh flowers in my house and Trader Joe’s has a good selection at awesome prices.

Besides all these great products (and much more) for sale, the store is easy to shop, there are always great samples to taste and there is a place to tie up your dog while shopping (since owning Chili Dawg I am more appreciative of dog-friendly establishments).   Thank you Trader Joe’s for–finally–coming to Atlanta!