Terre Pruitt's Blog

In the realm of health, wellness, fitness, and the like, or whatever inspires me.

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Posts Tagged ‘Christmas gift’

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A Perfect Gift

Posted by terrepruitt on January 10, 2015

You might have read my post Homemade Soapy Goodness back in August. I wrote about this yummy soap that I had been buying for a couple of years.  It was really nice soap.  It had essential oils in it and smell great.  It wasn’t cheap, but I considered it one of the splurges I like to as for as a Christmas gift from my hubby.  Well, this year I was counting on him being able to get it for me for Christmas, but when I went to there was nothing there.   I thought she went out of business since there was no product on her website, her Etsy shop was gone, and the e-mail I sent her was returned to me.  There was no notification of discontinuing business or anything.  I’m always a little disappointed when people don’t leave any “out of business” information or a notice as to what is going on.  I know things happen, but when you have a business, I just expect a little information to be dispensed for customers.  Oh well.  It so happened though, I received soap as a Christmas gift.  I actually received two different soaps.  One I have not yet tried, but it smells really good (you’ll probably read about that in a later post).  The other one I received smelled even better so I jumped on the internet to see if I could buy it on Amazon.  And I can.  And I did and it is awesome.  It is my new soap.  It is Verbena Flower scent.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia in the City of San Jose, Nia at the San Jose Community Centers, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Gentle Yoga, Group Ex City of San Jose, San Jose Group Ex classes, YMCA, Zumba, PiYoIt is very nice feeling soap and even better smelling.  I showed it to my niece when she was here and she couldn’t stop smelling it.  It smells terrific.  It lathers up nice and it leaves me feeling clean.  I don’t like it when I feel like I have a layer of something left on me.

Since I couldn’t get soap from my favorite place — I was lucky to get this soap for Christmas.  I purchased addition bars from French Presents through Amazon.com.

I am just noticing that I purchased Verbena Flower and the one I had received is Verbena.  They smell the same, but I guess they are different.  When I was ordering I hadn’t noticed that there was a Verbena, I thought they had just changed the name from Verbena to Verbena Flower, but now I am seeing they are two different things.  Either way, they smell great and I am happy to have been handed a new soap to love.

I’ve spent a good portion of the last few days “undecorating”.  I’ve only been able to spend a few hours each day on it so it seems to be taking a very long time.  My husband and I spent at least four hours today and it is pretty much packed up.  He is helping me do the part I don’t like and that is putting all the boxes back in the big boxes.  It just baffles me how the small ornament boxes can come out of one box, but when I go to put them back in they don’t fit.  I get frustrated so my husband comes to my rescue.  Not all the ornaments have a box so it makes the process a bit annoying.  I need to work on getting things more organized so it is not as frustrating and therefore less stressful upon putting things away.  I am so grateful my husbands help.

I have been wanting to post about my “soap lady” since I went on and on about her.**  And I wanted to share about my new yummy soap, today seems like the perfect time since I am just able to get up to my computer now.

Seems like more people than I am used to are taking their time this year with taking their decorations down.  I have more friends say they are just starting or just getting done.  How is your “undecorating” going?  Are you done?  And just out of curiosity, what is your favorite soap?

**I just check on my “soap lady” and she might be back in business, but I don’t see my regular package that I used buy and I like this other soap I am buying.  Maybe she took the Holidays off.  Perhaps is she is in business at Christmastime I will ask for soap from her for Christmas.

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Two Minutes For Pleasure All Night Long

Posted by terrepruitt on January 30, 2014

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia at the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Zumba, PiYo, Gentle YogaSometimes it takes someone giving me something in order for me to see the different ways it can be used.  Have you ever seen those pillows or sacks full of herbs and/or grains and/or seeds?  They are often advertised as a way to ease aches and pains?  Well, I received one for Christmas.  I have been a catalog shopper for as long as I can remember so I have always seen these types of things in the catalogs.  Pictured here is one from Solutions Catalog.  I have always wondered about them, but never really thought I could benefit from one because I don’t usually have aches and pains.  If I do, you know I like to use my Zheng Gu Shui or Trauma, I don’t think of heat.  If I need to ice something I think of ice.  Well, anyway, I received a rice filled slip of material for Christmas.  It was kind of chaotic at the time the gifts were being passed out so I am not sure the giver (my brilliant cousin) even notice I opened it.  It had no instructions or anything.  I figured it was to be used as a heating “pad” or an ice “pack”.  So I looked up what to do with one filled with rice.  I saw a couple of different instructions ranging from heating it for one minute to two.   And why, yes, I did go for the racy title to get you to read this post.  You see, for a few weeks over the Holidays it was really cold in my area so this turned out to be a fought over gift in our house.

While I know that “cold” is relative, it was cold for us, in our area.  My side of the electric blanket stopped working after I washed it.  They always seem to do that.  With the cold temps we had for a few weeks I was unable to get my feet warm . . . in come the rice “bag”.  It was perfect.  I would take it to bed with me and it would last all night long.  Ok, first of all two minutes makes it unbearable to hold, so I can’t actually have it on my feet.  It also heats up the sheets REALLY hot so, I kind of just had it down at the bottom.  Sometimes I would drag it up to my shoulders to warm that spot.  Then I would push it back down to my feet.  In the morning it would not be HOT, but it would still have some residual heat . . . a very small bit.  It is a great substitute — to me — for an electric blanket.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia at the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, Zumba, PiYo, Gentle YogaAlso, it was something that my husband and I fought over a couple of times.  As I said there was a couple of weeks where I could not get my feet warm, so I would pop the rice in the microwave then put it on top of the blanket on my feet.  So nice.  He would be jealous and pout about it.  When my feet are warm the rest of me does not seem as cold.  Sometimes I just rest it on my lap.  That helps warm me up too.

Our weather has warmed up a bit so it is getting less use, but I still use it.  I have not used it as a cold pack.  My mother who received a couple told me that the giver/maker said that you have to keep them separate.  You shouldn’t heat it then use the same one as an ice “pack”.  Do any of you know if that is the case?  Do you know why?

Anyway . . . yup, I will be making these to give as Christmas gifts this year.  I am putting straps on them though because I really can’t handle it after it has been in the microwave.  I love that I received a gift I love to use, but didn’t even think I would have ever used one!  Now that is a great gift!

So what about you?  Any experience with a herbs/grains/seeds pad/pack?  Do you know if you shouldn’t use the same one as a heating pad and ice pack?  Do you know why?  Have you ever made one yourself?

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Little Tweakers

Posted by terrepruitt on January 1, 2013

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia at the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, ZumbaI have already posted about one of the awesome gifts I received for Christmas.  I received another one that makes me so happy when I use them I just wanted to share. You might remember I bought a speaker for my iPhone awhile back.  I was so impressed with it I wanted to share about it because it is great to have a portable audio source, just in case.  It is really helpful when you are teaching a dance exercise class like Nia.  Well, more like it came up on Woot.  My hubby looks at Woot and he knows how much I love my other speaker so he asked me if I wanted what they were selling on Woot.  I glanced at it and said yes because it was LESS than I paid for my other speaker AND it was TWO speakers!

They are REALLY cool.  When my hubby showed me I hadn’t even read all the cool features!  First of all as I said, they cost less than my ONE speaker I originally bought.  They are black but when they are in use and they are open they glow blue!  These little guys are so cool.

They have their own bag, I love things that have their own storage.  They fit together and stick with magnets.  They have a volume control.  They have an audio in cord and a connection cord.  One speaker has the audio in cord.  The other speaker has the cord that connects them.  So you can just use one if you want.  BOTH cords retract back into their respective speakers.  How cool is that?  I had just been telling someone over Christmas that I think every electronic device that has a cord (whether optional or not) should have a place that the cord can be stored ON/IN the device.  But that is just me because I have what seems like a million cords and I don’t know all the devices they belong to.  So every time I put these speakers away I am so impressed because I just pull gently and the cord goes right in.  They are great sound for such little devices.

Dance Exercise, Nia, Nia at the City of San Jose, Nia classes in the South Bay, Nia Teacher, Nia Class, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, Nia workout, Nia, ZumbaThis particular pair came with a “BONUS! USB wall adapter” which the package claims is usually an extra $19.95.  The speakers on Woot didn’t even cost that much AND it came with the additional adapter.  I loved them so much I looked online to see if we could get more.  We can, but at more than twice the cost and without the “BONUS”.  I don’t NEED them so I’m not going to spend it.  I just really like them and since the places I teach Nia at for the city of San Jose do not always have sound systems I was thinking I could keep a pair in my car.

The iHome/first speaker I bought does not have an electrical adapter.  It only charges off a USB.  So when I use it at a venue I am teaching at I have to make certain it is charged.  But these speakers I just got, I could leave in the car and not have to worry about them being charged because in a pinch I could plug them in and use them.  Also the iHome speaker does not have a volume control.  Which is fine, because the device it is used with does.  But I found out that it is really cool to have two options of volume control!

Of course these speakers would work with iPhones, iPads, iPods, MP3 players, MP4 players, and laptops!

Yeah, no post about goals and resolutions, just an excited post about something that makes me happy.  I hope you enjoyed your New Year’s Eve.  I wish for you to enjoy 2013.

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Things That Make Me Go “Hmmm, WHAT A WASTE!”

Posted by terrepruitt on January 26, 2012

Sometimes there are things I just don’t understand.  I find that when I ask I get answers.  So my questions today revolve around packaging and waste.  I am not meaning to pick on any on particular company but I am so confused as to why, in a world where we are trying to reduce waste and we have to pay for bags in which to put the stuff we just purchased, is it ok to package things like this.  To me both of these packages are a waste.

Dance Exercise, Zumba like, Nia class, Nia teacher, Nia cardio workoutI have a Nia student who always smells great and she told me the name of the perfume.  I asked her if she would mind if I bought some and she said, no.  It was before Christmas and I thought it would be a great gift idea for my husband to get for me.  I love it when people tell me what they want and I try to help him out that way too.  Since he was really busy AND there was other things that was on his mind he decided we could just order it online.  I was excited.  New perfume.  But when I opened the box the only thing I was thinking is, “You have got to be kidding me!!!!  Is it REALLY necessary to have ALL of this packaging for one bottle of perfume?”  As I said, since I am not trying to necessarily bad mouth the company, I tried to take a picture that didn’t directly show the name, but you can see there is a piece of folded cardboard that goes first around the bottle, then that goes in the box, then there is a sheath that goes around that.  Why?  Just the ONE box would do just fine, I don’t think there is really any reason for the inner piece of cardboard and the sheath.  To me the whole thing reeked of wastefulness.  I was actually somewhat disappointed in the company because of that.

dance exercise, Nia class, Nia student, Nia teacher, Nia San Jose, San Jose NiaThen I was at the grocery store and I was faced with this.  REALLY?!?!?!  First of all prepackaging fruits and veggies sticks me with more than I want and second it seems like a HUGE waste of material.  I could have easily used one bag to put my two zucchinis in, but no, I was forced to by five and they are packaged with a papery-plastic sheet, inside a plastic tray, wrapped with more plastic, and then labeled with even more papery-plastic.  WHAT IS THAT ABOUT?  How is that being responsible and cutting down on waste?  FOUR things, instead of one bag?  I just don’t get it.

I don’t understand when we are forced to be “green” in some areas, but in other areas waste like this is allowed to continue.  This type of stuff confuses me.  I am not sure the shiny material that the sheath was made out of can be recycled, but I put it in the recycling along with the rest of the wasteful packaging.

Whew.  Ok, thanks, I am done with my rant.  🙂  Do you ever come across packaging of a product that you feel is excessive?

Posted in Misc | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments »

Practical Gifts – Christmas or Otherwise

Posted by terrepruitt on December 20, 2011

Last Monday on the way home from my Nia Class I stopped at the store to buy a huge bunch of veggies.  I was wondering what I was going to cook them in.  I needed a new pan.  I think that it is perfect acceptable to give pots and pans as a gift — when one asks for it/them.  Last Christmas I asked for a pan.  A 14 inch fry type pan.  I had a really difficult time finding one.  I really wonder why it is so hard to find such a large pan.  It is not as difficult to find a 12 inch pan and everyone; every store, every brand, EVERYONE has a 10 inch pan.  But a 14 inch pan is really difficult to find.  Once they go over 12 inches they start measuring by quart it seems.  Last year I had to search and search and search but I finally found one.  It was great.

Nia class, Nia teacher, Nia in San Jose, San Jose Nia, Nia San Jose, A lot of my pans spin on the glass top.  The other ones wobble.  When pans don’t lie flat on the glass surface they don’t heat very evenly.  My 12 inch pan is a wobbler AND a spinner.  And it is not as large as I would like.  I wanted a 14 inch pan, and as I said I had finally found one.  I was so happy when I found it that I asked for it for Christmas.  It was 14 inch, it was non-stick, it was affordable.  So that was one of my Christmas presents last year.  I used it all the time.  It was heavy enough that it didn’t spin on the glass top.  It was also flat so it didn’t wobble.  I used it all the time.  A lot of the pictures on my blog of food are in that pan.

But it was affordable and maybe on this side of cheap because after a year it is rusting.  This pan did NOT go in the dishwasher.  Things that say they are dishwasher safe don’t always last as long when they go through a washing with the tough detergent that goes into dishwashers.  Plus I am not even sure this pan would have fit in the dishwasher.  So it never went in the dishwasher.  Well, it started rusting anyway, so now I can’t use it.

I was on a quest for a new 14 inch pan.  I could get another one same as the one I got last year, but then would I be having to buy a new pan every year?  Probably.  I could get one to match my really nice set, but they are not cheap.  So I debated.  Buy it not, buy it.  I have always wanted it, but it is difficult for me to spend that much on a pan, but once you do, they really last forever.  I decided that I would ask for it as a Christmas present.  Not a traditional gift.  A lot of money for just one thing, but I figured if you added up all the other stuff it would equal about the same.

So, I am happy to report that I will be getting a 14 inch all-clad for Christmas.  Just the thought makes me happy.  The other day I wanted to cook a huge pan of veggies.  As I was adding more and more vegetables, I kept hoping they would all fit.  I kept wishing I had a bigger pan.  I kept thinking . . . . why is it so hard to find a 14 inch pan?  Doesn’t everyone want to cook AT LEAST 14 inches of veggies?  I mean a pan full of veggies with a little bit of rice is a great meal.  The larger the pan the more veggies.  Oooooo!  That is exciting!  More veggies.

Can’t wait!  Can’t wait!  Can’t wait.  I am so like a kid at Christmas.  I love getting surprise gifts.  I love getting gifts I know are coming.  I love getting gifts I will use all the time.  And you know I will use that pan all the time.  You know it will become a regular feather on my blog.

What about you?  Are you one to ask for something practical for a gift?  Are you ok with getting a small appliance or cookware for Christmas?

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FIREWORK (Katy Perry)

Posted by terrepruitt on December 28, 2010

When I got home from Nia one day last week, my husband  was “singing” this song.  I could not tell what he was singing so he found it on the internet and played if for me.  I really love it.  I think it is great.  This song is from Katy Perry’s album Teenage Dream.  Every time I hear it I get teary-eyed.  I hoping to get over that soon as I received the album as a Christmas gift and I keep playing it over and over.

FIREWORK

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting through the wind wanting to start again
Do you ever feel feel so paper-thin
like a house of cards one blow from caving in
Do you ever feel already buried deep
Six feet under screams but not one seems to hear a thing
Do you know that there’s still a chance for you ‘cause there’s a spark in you
You just gotta

Ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the Fourth of July

‘Cause baby, you’re a firework
Come on and show ‘em what you’re worth
Make ‘em go, “Aah, aah, aah”
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

‘Cause baby, you’re a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make ‘em go, “Aah, aah, aah”
You’re gonna leave them all in awe, awe, awe

You don’t have to feel like a wasted space
You’re original cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds after a hurricane comes a rainbow
Maybe a reason why all the doors were closed
So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road
Like a lightning bolt your heart will glow
And when it’s time you’ll know
You just gotta

Ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the Fourth of July

‘Cause baby, you’re a firework
Come on and show ‘em what you’re worth
Make ‘em go, “Aah, aah, aah”
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

‘Cause baby, you’re a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make ‘em go, “Aah, aah, aah”
You’re gonna leave them all in awe, awe, awe

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
It’s always been inside of you, you, you
And now its time to let it through-ooo-ooo
‘Cause baby, you’re a firework
Come on and show ‘em what you’re worth
Make ‘em go, “Aah, aah, aah”
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

‘Cause baby, you’re a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make ‘em go, “Aah, aah, aah”
You’re gonna leave them all in awe, awe, awwwwwwwwe

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon

Can this be the song that the crowd stops their conversation for, raises their glasses, and sings along.  Can this be the new anthem?  Can we cheer each other on?  Can this be the new girls’ night out song?  Can we throw out “I’ve Got Friends In Low Places” and “Before He Cheats” and embrace what everyone has inside?  What do you think?

This song was written by:  Katy Perry, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilheim, and Ester Dean

Posted in Entertainment, Misc | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments »

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