Chocolate Therapy?! Yes, Please!

What happens when a hungry Heather goes to Target with a shopping list full of non-food items? She comes away with maybe half the items on her list, plus an assortment of half-opened, usually sugary snacks that couldn't wait till checkout to be sampled. Oh, fudge!

I really ought to keep a healthy snack on me at all times, or ban myself from going to the store right before dinnertime. I always end up buying all kinds of junk that is soooo not part of my regular healthy eating regimen (which I've all but abandoned since Dustin's been out of town), even though I am conscious that I'm not possibly going to want all of this stuff tonight... well maybe if I skip dinner...

There seemed to be a plethora of intriguing and tempting new chocolate concoctions beckoning me from the shelves of Target this evening. Maybe it's because Dustin is out of town and I've had a stressful week, but all the chocolatey products really seemed to call out to me today. Chocolate is my favorite comfort food!

As I strolled down the aisles, I discovered a whole bunch of new products tonight - not sure if they are all that new, but they are now on my to-devour list.

First, I encountered Jet-Puffed MALLOW BITES in three chocolatey flavors! Chocolate Mint, Chocolate Royale, and German Chocolate Cake. The German Chocolate Cake ones sounded the yummiest, especially because it has coconut flakes on the outside, so I decided to take only that flavor home - for less than $2, how could I resist?

Then, a bit further down the aisle, I spotted new hot cocoa from Starbucks in fancy flavors like Toasted Marshmallow, Salted Caramel, and Double Chocolate. That Salted Caramel sounded really tempting, but at $5.99 a box I decided to pass. I'll wait till I find a coupon for this one.

I kept prancing down the aisles, completely oblivious to the rest of the items on my shopping list, adding sweet treats to my cart instead of things I needed. At one point I had all of these items pictured ready for purchase.

Hmmm... a bit excessive... I eventually ditched the Magnum bars (which I have yet to try, but they seem heavenly in those commercials with Rachel Bilson chasing down the truck) and the Cookies n Cream Goldfish. I kept the Vanilla Cupcake Goldfish, the Mallow Bites, and the new Ben & Jerry's CHOCOLATE THERAPY ice cream! 

Chocolate Therapy was just what I needed tonight! This new release from our favorite ice cream guys in Vermont contains chocolate ice cream with chocolate cookies and chocolate pudding. All three are delicious on their own, and rolled together they make one hell of a fix for a chocoholic like me. It has made the perfect accompaniment to my summer reading.... hehe....

Oh, just another night at home, sans fiance

Yes, I finally did pick up a copy of 50 Shades of Grey. I'm about 150 pages in so far, and I must say the book is entertaining, but in my opinion this Chocolate Therapy is far more satisfying. 

I'll reserve any further opinions on the book until I'm done with it... now, back to my chocolate!

Attack of the creepy critters!

We live in Florida, and with the subtropical climate and disproportionate number of beach days per year come insects - lots of insects. I don't know why I am so squeamish around them, having grown up here, but I am. It's completely irrational and annoyingly girly of me, but I have a huge phobia of bugs - particularly cockroaches. It's one thing to see them outside, but I feel violated when they make their way into my home.

When I see a roach, I am like those silly elephants in Dumbo, scurrying atop chairs and climbing poles to get away from a "terrifying" little mouse - I could totally crush that little bugger, but I have some deep-rooted fear (mixed with disgust) that this roach could very well do me bodily harm... somehow...

Got this cute image from  http://www.shopzeus.com/product.php?sku=zeusd1-KIMR-1228966 

Anyway, whenever something bigger than an ant comes crawling or flying into my territory, which is pretty seldom, I always run the other way and frantically implore Dustin to do the dirty work of squashing/flushing/etc. So how is it that we rarely see any creepy crawlies in our 4th floor condo, but since Dustin went out of town 3 days ago, I have been "greeted" by 3 different types of bugs?!

It's like they were just waiting in their dark, damp crevices, plotting to pounce as soon as I dropped Dustin off at the airport.

First, I was doing laundry on Thursday night and started to pick a towel up off the floor only to see a huge roach scurry out from under it! I immediately dropped the towel back onto the offender and began to fret about the house, wondering what to do next. I needed to get something big and heavy to squash it, a notion that thoroughly grosses me out.

After pacing the house squeamishly, I identified my weapons of choice:

A dustpan and a tap shoe. Makes sense, right?

I returned gingerly to the battleground, using both of my weapons as makeshift tongs to carefully lift the towel again, and... the bug was gone! It must have snuck under the dryer, or back behind the walls where he snuck in from in the first place (ugh... makes me shudder). I slammed the tap shoe down on the floor a bunch of times hoping it would stir the critter back out into the open, but it never returned... today I am still wary of entering the bathroom (where our washer/dryer are located) - I tiptoe through every time I enter since I saw it a few days ago.

And since then, a spider with long skinny legs has shown up, as well as a few really tiny little flying bugs that keep buzzing in my face! They look kinda like fruit flies but I have no fruit sitting out, so I have no idea why they've taken residence here. I think the BUG-opalypse has descended upon me! :(

But these are mere nuisances compared to the big one that is lurking inside the bathroom somewhere... I just hope it doesn't rear its ugly little head again until Dustin is back to take care of it for me!

And I'll eat all the chocolate... today, 'cause you're not around

Dropped Dustin off at the airport this morning, for his 10-DAY vacation without me. That lucky duck gets twice as many vacay days as I do, plus all those bank holidays that non-bank corporations rarely recognize. But does he really have to use them all?

I know, I know, he's attending a close friend's wedding and then visiting his parents, and I'm staying here to conserve not only vacation time but money since we've got our own wedding to plan. It makes sense for me to stay home, but it sucks!!

So here I am at home, wondering what to do for the next week and a half... I've gotten so used to doing just about everything with him, especially since we're new to Orlando and don't have many friends here yet.

Is anybody else frustrated with how hard it is to make new friends once you're out of school? We're starting to wonder if we're really that boring... I mean, we do spend most of our nights serial-watching borderline-pornographic dramas on HBO (really, the rampant sex on Game of Thrones has become a bit ridiculous!) or walking our dog around Lake Eola in our sweatpants after dinner as the rest of the 20-somethings are gearing up to hit the nightclubs on Church Street - but isn't that what most long-term couples do? Umm... yeah, I guess we are pretty lame.

But I'm perfectly content - and super comfortable - with our lameness, because we are happily lame together. So when Dustin just up and leaves on me for several days, I panic just a little. I love coming home to his big hugs and cheerful "Hey babe!" every evening after work. It's going to be a lonely night tonight without having him around to cuddle (perhaps a call to the Snuggery is in order... totally kidding!).

Who will be there to steal the yummiest bite of dinner from my plate that I was saving for last on purpose? And who will be there to tune the TV to Sportscenter on sleep timer right before we go to bed, and then turn it right back on as soon as we open our eyes the next morning? Hell, I really don't even know how to use the remote control anymore, since Dustin always monopolizes the TV for his sports!

Hmm... maybe this won't be so bad, after all... there's lots of stuff I can do that I never seem to get around to when Dustin's here. Like shopping the latest sales on Gilt, painting my nails, watching Clueless for the 7000th time. Putting on that mud mask that makes me sooo not sexy. Eating ALL those Birthday Cake Oreos I bought today. Indulging in a Say Yes to the Dress marathon. Maybe I'll finally catch up with the rest of you girls and read 50 Shades of Grey. 

It's a ME retreat!

What do YOU like to do when your significant other is away?

P.S. - If you recognized that my headline was from a No Doubt song called "Panic" and not just me fiending for chocolate (which wouldn't be all that unlikely), you rock!

"Today is going to be easy
Today 'cause you're not around
I'll leave off my make up
I'll sleep in my bed
To pass all the time by
Today 'cause you're not around"
-Gwen Stefani

P.P.S. - I miss you already, babe. Bring on the ESPN!

Settle Down! No Doubt is back on the airwaves

I'm so excited! No Doubt, my favorite band in the whole world, is finally releasing a new album for the first time in 11 years!

No Doubt provided the soundtrack to my adolescence - it's hard to believe it's been 16 years since I first discovered their eclectic brand of ska-pop-rock and became a lifetime devotee to Gwen's spunky fashion sense. I'm stoked that Gwen, Tony, Tom, and Adrian returned to the studio after getting married and having babies to produce some new tunes!

The band's new single, "Settle Down," debuted today on iTunes. It totally rocks! It evokes a throwback to the group's old-school punky Tragic Kingdom era style blended with the reggaeton beats of their last album, Rock Steady, infused with a fresh, international vibe I can't quite put a finger on and Gwen's signature undulating vocals. It's still pop-sugary and radio-friendly but definitely more rockin' than, say, "Hey Baby" or any of Gwen's solo songs.

The music video premieres tonight on E! at 8 p.m., on a special hosted by Ryan Seacrest. I can't wait!

You can listen to the new single on the official No Doubt website. 

What do you think of the new song and video? Leave your comments below!

Here’s to blogging - just because!

Let’s try this blog bit one more time…

I’m back, for no particular reason, and it feels great! Let me explain…  A pained perfectionist to the core, I have a debilitating tendency to NOT do anything until or unless I feel 100% confident in it. This is what has kept me from blogging (and accomplishing many other items on my bucket list, but we’ll save that self analysis for another day), despite my love for writing, for all these years…

Here I am, on the wrong side of 29 years old and still a mere infant here on the blogosphere. It’s not like blogging never crossed my mind – it has many times over the years, demonstrated by the dozens of unrealized blog ideas wasting away on a list buried somewhere in My Documents  – but I always wanted my blog to have a unique and meaningful theme. I wanted my blog to contribute something to the world, or at least make its own tiny mark on pop culture.

Me in pink among the pink flora at the Bablyon Park Rose Garden in San Diego, May 2012 :)

A true “light bulb” idea never struck me, but I was still stuck on the idea of having a theme. I decided to go with something lighthearted and fun, and very… well… ME. So last year, I finally started a blog – “Glimmer in Pink,” a playful tribute to my favorite girly things in the girliest of hues – but abandoned it after only a couple months. I was going through some stressful life events at the time, and constantly searching for pink stuff to write about became trivial to me, not to mention exhausting!

A return to blogging has been on the tip of my typing fingers for quite some time now, but to give myself a better chance of success I’ve decided to do a little rebranding and let loose on the theme. As of today, “Glimmer in Pink” is now “Practical and Pink” – which is actually a good way to describe me: down-to-earth most of the time, but a girly girl all of the time. A bargain hunter and glamazon rolled into one.

On this blog, you’ll find posts about life with my fiancé, Dustin, and random musings about becoming a real grownup – along with my opinions on fashion, beauty, health, and saving money. Probably nothing groundbreaking, but hopefully something relatable.

Most importantly, today I begin blogging again with a new attitude – So what? So what if my blog doesn’t change the world? So what if there are already tons of personal blogs out there?  I’m just here to be me. That’s all! If you find my posts amusing, that’s awesome. If not, no big deal – this blog is really for me!

So... welcome, and happy reading!