At a recent fundraiser for our Avon Walk, we had more than one person ask us how she could walk, or how she could get involved with Avon as a volunteer for the walk. All we were able to do was to tell people the website address for the walk, so I’ve been brainstorming on ways to easily share that information if we’re asked at our next fundraiser. I think I’ve got it…

I’m contemplating ordering business cards from VistaPrint that will provide people with the URL for this blog. I think the end result would be more traffic (duh) and it’s always a way to engage people who are interested in learning more about our cause. Why VistaPrint? They did my business cards for my other blog last fall, and I was super pleased with my order and the price. They do business cards, checks, baby announcements, invitations, and even car magnets. Ooh, that’s another idea! A big pink car magnet for the side of my SUV with 3DayMom.com printed across it – that would definitely get us some attention! There are definitely a lot of well priced options at VistaPrint for shameless self promotion. Hey, it’s all for a good cause, right?

Before the 3-Day walk this year, I went off to the drugstore for supplies to carry with me. I needed to get blister band-aids, plenty of Advil, and my very own tube of Freeze It. I knew from doing the walk in 2006 that my calves would be killing me by the end of the first day, and I also knew I didn’t enjoy using greasy pain relief creams. Sure enough, my calves were screaming at me with every step I took on that first day of walking – step after step after step will bring on that kind of pain quickly! When we were done walking for the day, and all showered, I grabbed my tube of Freeze It and rubbed it all over my calves. Freeze It Gel is amazing – I already mentioned that it’s not greasy at all, and it doesn’t have that old lady smell like the other pain relief gels have. I’m too young to smell like a nursing home!

By the end of the 3rd day, you can see I was a mess. My ligament was hyper extending, and my shin splits were marching to the beat of their own (very slow) drummer. I was rocking an awesome farmers tan, and had dunked my hat in cold water so many times it permanently shrunk. And I’m planning to walk AGAIN next year? Let me tell you, I see a lot more Freeze It in my future! You can use it for a muscle strain, or sore, over exerted muscles, arthritis pain, or for an aching back or neck. So…I can use it during the walk, when my calves revolt against me, and after the walk, when my back aches from camping for 2 days Just rubbing it on feels good – it tingles and it’s warm, and then cool…it’s instant relief!

What do I have to do to get Freeze It to sign up as a walk sponsor??

I recently received sample packets of a product called Freeze It in the mail. Freeze It is a pain relief gel, and with the 3-Day walk just a few months away, I’m always looking for new products that will help me walk those 60 miles relatively free from aches and pains. I have limited space for my supplies, so I tested Freeze It tonight to see if it would make the cut and be included in my waist pack.

Now, last year during the walk (and for about a week afterwards) I used a combination of Icy Hot and a product called Bio-Freeze. I hadn’t ever heard of Bio-Freeze before, but the 3-Day people were passing it out for free on the walk, so I tried it. Honestly, it didn’t make a favorable impression on me. It felt like rubbing colored jelly on my calves. I used Icy Hot in our hotel room at night, but I can’t STAND the way it smells, and the opaque lotion tends to go on my skin feeling a little thick and greasy.

I rubbed Freeze It onto my right calf and waited. The first thing I noticed is that it resembled Bio-Freeze in that it was a colored gel, but it wasn’t as clear as Bio-Freeze. I’m not sure if that means anything, I just thought I’d point it out. Freeze It also has a very strong menthol smell to it, which reminds me of the Vick’s Vapo Rub my mom used to rub on my chest when I was little. I had to wash my hands twice to get the smell of, but as long as it doesn’t get near my nose, I’m fine with it.

I felt my leg warming up about 10 minutes after I rubbed on the Freeze It. Unlike Icy Hot, which feels, well, hot, this was a nice warming sensation, almost like a little heating pad for my sore calf muscles. And considering I never felt any type of sensation with Bio-Freeze, warm or cold, I was happy to see that Freeze It actually did something for me! 30 minutes after applying it, and my leg still feels warm. I like it!

Here’s another reason why Freeze It is better than Icy Hot or Bio-Freeze. Once I rubbed the Freeze It into my leg, it dried completely and left my skin feeling soft and smooth. I was surprised, because I had to wash my hands after applying – I just assumed it would feel greasy or sticky. I’m quite pleased that it didn’t!

This product is available in a tube, or as a roll on stick, which is a great option for the 3-Day walk. I’m going to be telling my team about Freeze It and purchasing my own package to carry with me on the walk. I’d love to see Freeze It approach the Komen people about sponsoring the walk and knocking Bio-Freeze out of that spot, since I think Freeze It is definitely the superior product!

Until then, Lola is guarding my extra sample packets for me. Don’t get any ideas about stealing them from me, or I’ll have her nip your ankles!

When I walked in last year’s 3-Day, we experienced a lot of rain and grey skies. I packed my sunglasses, but I didn’t really need them. (I could have used small windshield wipers on my eyeglasses though!)

I’m hoping for sunny skies in Florida this year, which means I will plan on using my sunglasses, and plenty of sunscreen. My eyes are pretty light sensitive anyway, so I never go outside in the sun without sunglasses on. I’m planning on getting prescription sunglasses to wear, because my clip on magnetic ones that go over my eye glasses don’t always stay on securely. I didn’t realize that OpticsPlanet.net had such a large selection of prescription sunglasses. Yep – in addition to binoculars and telescopes, they carry all kinds of eyeware. You just pick out your sunglasses, submit your prescription, and voila – sunglasses made for your eyes. All prescription sunglasses ship for free via UPS!

Dimpled skin. Orange peel legs. Cottage cheese thighs. Cellulite – the bane of every woman’s existance! For years, various remedies for cellulite have been touted…from creams to rub on your skin to exercises you can do to tone and retain the muscles of your body. Nothing has been proven to get rid of cellulite, until now. The deposits of fat lay on your legs, taunting you with their puckered texture. Although cellulite is normal, who wants it?

There’s a new product on the market called Rubber Glass which helps to reduce cellulite. It’s a small massager which is used for vacuum massage. This technique increases the circulation of blood, and the quality of the tissue. And now, you can get $10 off on your purchase of this item with the promo code rgeasy – that code is valid until 3/21/07. I looked at the before and after pictures on the cellulite massager website and I have to admit, I do see a difference!

I found a really neat website that sells things made from recycled goods. Great Green Goods has a vase made from recycled glass, a purse made from an old vinyl record, and an angel pin created from recycled metal. What a neat way to showcase what can be made out of old junk. By recycling, these discarded bottles, pieces of scrap metal, or old records are reborn into something usable for today’s generation.

When my sister and I were in the Philadelphia airport after the 3-Day walk in October, we had some time to kill, so we walked around the shops. They had a mini mall! We found a Brookstone and stopped to use calf and foot massager that they had on display. After walking 60 miles in 3 days, it was PURE bliss. I would have sat there for hours, had I not had a plane to catch. I’m not on my feet daily, but my husband is – he’d love coming home and using this for iSqueez® to take a load off his feet. I’d tuck it away in a corner of the family room, out of site, and when he came home, we could pull it out so that he could sit in the recliner and enjoy it. It’s unreal how good something like this feels when you’ve got tired legs and feet!

I remember when colored contact lenses first appeared on the scene. I was at the eye doctors one day, getting my eye exam, and decided to test out the new colored contact lenses to see how they looked. I didn’t even stop to think that my dark brown eyes would still show through under the tinted lenses. Now there are opaque colored contact lenses which allow those with dark eye colors, like me, to change their eye color. I wonder how I’d look with green eyes? Or violet, a la Liz Taylor?

When you’re buying contacts online, compare price and brand. You may want to go with the brand and style your eye doctor recommended. He may feel it’s a better fit for your eye or your vision problem. Your eye issues may require you wearing daily lenses, or weekly. Make sure you know what you’re ordering!

I know you all have been anxiously waiting to find out if I won the sneakers I bid on. Yes, I did – your day can go on now, safe and secure in the knowledge that I got my sneakers for only $50! What a deal! If you know the style and size of the sneakers you want, eBay is definitely a great place to look for deals on new shoes.

It’s no secret that I live in the Tampa Bay area. Actually, if you want to get technical, I’m between Tampa and Ocala. I’m not saying more than that, LOL! The nice part about my location is that we’re close to Tampa, yet not IN Tampa. Recently, when I sold something on a local classified website, I had people from a 100 mile radius inquiring about it! I just learned about a new classified site that offers free ads for priate sellers, and seeing as how I’ve still got a curio cabinet in my garage, I’m definitely using it. The USA4SALE Network serves all of central Florida, with sites for Ocala, Tampa, Gainesville, and now Jacksonville. I checked out the Ocala4sale.com Classifieds and they really are free for private sellers, and they have a huge number of listings and visitors (almost 400K last month!). That’s a lot of exposure for a free ad! I think I’ll be listing that furniture I want to sell tonight!