When we go skiing, we rent equipment. I bought ski bibs for everyone several years ago, but we didn’t want to invest in skis, boots, etc at that time due to the cost. That said, I’d like to look into buying our own ski gear now, because I know the rental stuff isn’t as nice. Also, for a family of 5, we wasted a LOT of time in line for rentals and adjustments last time – time we could have been skiing.

That said, I don’t really know much about the types of skis available. Living in Florida, there’s not a local ski shop I can run into and ask questions. I found an online ski outlet called Al’s Ski Barn that has a bargain catergory (right up this bargain shopper’s alley) as well as ski conditions and and skiing e-cards. Two things they’re featuring right now are the 2007 Salomon 1080 Gun Skis And the 2007 Salomon Foil Park Ski Boots. One perk of the ski boots is that they’re 20% lighter than other boots. I’m a lightweight, so I hate it when my ski boots make me feel heavy and weighed down. The skis look great, but they’re for a more experienced skier, so I’ll stick to the deals in the ski equipment blowout barn. Al’s does a nice write up on every product, letting you know the type of skier that would be best served by the style and the design, and for a novice like me, it’s very useful info.

Isn’t amazing how music can affect your mood? If I want to get a little crazy or pumped up, I have to listen to fast music with a great beat. If I want to relax and calm down, I love something quiet, perhaps classical…or a nice ballad. I have a 6 disk changer in my car, and satellite radio, and depending on my driving mood, I change CD’s or stations every few minutes. I look for new music at home too, either asking friends for recommendations or looking for songs and artists on Pandora. If you don’t already know, Pandora is a neat way to find music that is similar to what you already like. You put in John Mayer, and you’ll be able to listen to songs by artists similar to John Mayer. Now there’s a station on Pandora called Belisi Radio, featuring a selection of songs and artists put together by Peter Belisi. He’s the founder of the Belisi lin of high end silk ties for men, scarves for women, and handbags, and he’s created Belisi Radio to give his products a soundtrack. The station features jazz, music legends, lounge tracks, and much more.

I’ve had three children, and I escaped with a single stretch mark. I know, I know, I’m one of the lucky few! I didn’t do anything special to my skin during pregnancy, and I was swollen like a balloon (I looked like I had a basketball under my shirt), so I honestly don’t know how I lucked out. Maybe Mother Nature was making up for all of the stetch marks I got BEFORE I was pregnant? I had a few growth spurts as a teenager and shot up to 5 foot 8. As a result, I’ve got tons of teeny white stretch marks on my hips and the sides of my thighs. If I had known that I could prevent stretch marks, I would have rubbed whatever it took all over my 12 year old hips. Tummy Honey is the hot new “IT” product being used by celebrities, and it’s not just for use during pregnancy. If it had been around years ago, I could have used it to prevent those marks from my growing pains! In addition to preventing and causing marks to face, it’s got a nice anti itch additive. As a former “belly itcher”…that’s AWESOME! I can’t tell you how much looks I got when I stuck a hand under my maternity top and madly scratched myself. Tummy Butter contains cocoa butter, shea butter, and plenty of vitamins to soothe your scratchy, stretchy skin and give you the pampering every mommy to be deserves! (Cause lord knows, you’re not going to be pampered after that baby comes! LOL)

Instead of waiting til the last minute this year, I’m going to buy the things I need for the 3-Day in advance, and throughout the year. No more procrastination! I plan to buy at least 2 pairs of sneakers soon, to begin training in. That way, I can alternate them, and have 2 wonderfully broken in pairs in time for the walk. I’m going to be prepared on everything else too. We were so lucky to have our team husband Jeff, last year, to go fetch us needed items, but I have a better idea of what I may need this year, so I plan to bring more with me. And I know what to leave home!

One more reason to buy in advance – you’ve got time to shop for a deal, and save some money with a coupon, like these Drugstore.com coupons. from Mr. Cheap StuffSince Cheryl won’t be with me to provide me Ben Gay and moleskin, I know I’ll have to bring my own, and Drugstore.com is just the place to stock up on those items, as well as any other needed first aid supplies!

Have you been to Freebie Fanatic yet for your free samples? They’ve got everything from free stuff for babies to free wedding stuff, from free food to free coupons. Even free stuff for pets! (I could use that after dropping $400+ at the vet’s office yesterday!) They also have a HUGE selection of free health items, including free instructions for how to perform your monthly breast self exam. Oh, and the beauty freebie section has a great sample of Olay Body Reviver and Olay Total Effects Night Firming Cream, as well as free Dove Nourishing Lotion, free Garnier Fructis XXL Hair Volume Gel, and free Noxzema® Continuous Citrus Clean! Who doesn’t like free stuff?

I saw this piece of exercise equipment on late night tv, and it’s called the Fluidity Bar. I think it’s an overpriced piece of nothing if you ask me – $200, and you could get the same workout by building yourself a bar out of PVC, or holding onto your kitchen counter. The video shows a woman doing a ballet style workout – exactly the kind of thing I dislike, having taken 10+ years of ballet as a child and teen.

Ever since we signed up for the 3-Day, I’ve become much more aware of all of the 3-Day or breast cancer collectibles and things like that.  Sort of like how when you get a new car, suddenly it seems that everyone on the road has the same exact car?  Anyway, since I used to have a small music box collection (and my husband recently confessed to me that he LIKES music boxes) I decided to see what kind of 3-Day or breast cancer music boxes I could find.  I think it would be a nice little keepsake to remind me of the 3-Day long after my blisters are healed. 

I found a great selection of music boxes & gifts and even some with the pink theme I’m looking for.  I really like the pink ribbon on the top of this one.  And this one has the Serenity Prayer on it.  Overall the store has a fantastic collection (including Thomas Kinkade and the prices are decent…I’m keeping this in mind

I was checking things out over at TvTopTen.com – they’ve got a ton of infomercial products, including a whole section of health, nutrition, sports, & fitness items.  Each product has a section of reviews on it too – very helpful.  After walking 60 miles, I’ll probably need some of these shoe inserts!

One of the restricted items for the 3Day – cell phones.  Wah!  (There are many restricted items – no cell phones, IPods, WalkMans, hairdryers…there was a whole table full of “what not to bring” at Expo.)

So I just plan to leave my cell phone at home.  Which leaves me not being able to call my husband before/after the walk from my hotel without paying ridiculous hotel long distance.

Enter:

and their International prepaid calling cards!

The name made sound like a game from “The Price Is Right”, but they mean business.  I’ll get 4 hours of “talking” for free just for signing up, which means I talk for free from my 3Day hotel.  They offer international prepaid calling cards and regular prepaid calling cards.  You don’t need a pin number, and they provide both local and toll free access.  Refer a friend, and get $5 in free calls!  Calls anywhere in the continental US are only 2.2 cents per MINUTE!

A steal of a deal for this trip, and all future trips!

If you’re in need of any last minute items for the big walk (only 8 weeks away!), I found a great website with coupon codes for almost any online retailer you could imagine.  I know Cheryl was having issues finding the Champion panties in the store, so maybe your luck would be better online using this Target coupon code for 10% off your purchase.

I imagine with shipping you’re not really saving that much – it would be nice if Target could come up with a better deal!