Friday Favorites: Polar Vortex Edition

Welcome to Friday Favorites, the Polar Vortex edition! I never imagined I’d be writing about the damn Polar Vortex in mid-November, but alas, here we are. So here, dear reader, are a few items to help you get through the fall-turned-dead-of-winter this year:

sweatshirtThug Life Shirts ‘I Am Freaking Cold’ sweatshirt
This sweatshirt is high on my Christmas wish list. I figure it will save me tons of time since I won’t have to spend every day of the next few months whining about how freaking cold I am!

hot_cinn_spice_tea

Harney & Sons Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea
There are many winter days when the promise of a cup of Harney & Sons’ Hot Cinnamon Spice tea is the only thing that will pry me out of my warm bed in the morning. Hot Cinnamon Spice is a blend of black tea, cinnamon bark and other spices, and orange peel. It’s so naturally sweet, it’s hard to believe there’s no sugar in it. Harney & Sons supplies tea to Caribou Coffee, so you can also find it packaged under the Caribou label.

navy_leather_Uggs

Ugg Australia – Women’s Classic Short Leather in Peacoat
Maybe it’s the former Californian in me talking, but I will give up my Uggs when someone pries them off my cold, dead feet! I don’t care if they’re uncool and I don’t care if they’re ugly. They’re just so damn cozy! My only qualm about Uggs has always been that the suede ones aren’t waterproof…not so much a problem in LA, but definitely an issue just about anywhere else in the winter. That’s why I’m giddy with excitement over this waterproof leather version. The “Peacoat” and “Oxblood” colors are particularly lovely. And, just in case anyone out there is looking for the perfect holiday gift for me, I wear a size 8.

enviro-logEnviro-Log Fire Logs
I love Enviro-Logs. They’re made from 100% waxed cardboard and burn cleaner than firewood. (They emit 30% less greenhouse gases, 80% less carbon monoxide and 86% less creosote.) Enviro-Logs light easily and the 5 lb. firelogs burn for about 3 hours. I usually buy cases of Enviro-Logs at Whole Foods, but they’re now available on Amazon and ship for free using Amazon Prime.

turquoise_hootyHooty Microwaveable Plush Owl
Hooty is one of Biggie’s and Smalls’s favorite things. This little guy is stuffed with millet grains and dried lavender and can be warmed up in the microwave or chilled in the freezer. We’ve never tried chilling it, but we warm up the girls’ owls every night before bed in the winter. Hooty is super soft, smells wonderful and stays warm for about 20 – 25 minutes. We warm our Hooties for about a minute and a half because they tend to get a little “sweaty” if warmed much more than that. (OK, that just sounded all kinds of wrong!)

WTF Wednesday

Well, my feelings of health and well-being were short-lived. I now have a miserable cold. I also have a husband who’s worked late every day this week and two daughters who have been, shall we say, challenging. So, this WTF Wednesday, I’m going to let the photos do the most of the talking.

I’ve been saving these inexplicable celebrity photos in MommyEnnui’s “Random Awesomeness” Pinterest file for an occasion such as this. Celebrities…they’re just like us, only infinitely more strange!

keanu_on_the_rocks

“Bartender, I’ll have an ‘Introspective Keanu’ on the rocks.”

arnold_and_friend

Arnold’s manager clearly misunderstood when he was instructed to bring “a beautiful doll who won’t talk back” to the bodybuilder’s dressing room.

leo_and_daniel

Not sure what’s going on here, but I think it’s clear that Leo, Daniel and the animal actors nailed the choreography!

ziggy_terrorizing_children

Iggy terrorizing a couple young glam rockers

glenn_and_sweaterboy

Glenn and Woody looked in their closets and thought, “Hmmm…what outfit will best express that I’m creative and stylish, yet likeable?”

nimoy_xmas_sweater

And, this is photo of Leonard Nimoy in a Bigfoot Christmas sweater is why I have mad, phat love for the internet.

Friday Favorites

Because I really should have skipped law school and become a personal shopper instead, MommyEnnui will have a new weekly feature starting today. In Friday Favorites, I will feature a random selection of my favorite things…five favorite things to be exact because, well, it’s fun to say. Feel free to comment with a few of your favorite things. I may just include them in a future list.

Working_Hands1. O’Keefe’s Working Hands Hand Cream
I have to give a shout-out to my dad and step-mom for introducing me to this amazing hand cream. I’ve tried so many different creams, cuticle oils and even moisturizing gloves looking for something that would heal my dry, ragged cuticles, to no avail. That was until I tried O’Keefe’s hand cream. This stuff truly is magic! Also check out O’Keefe’s Healthy Feet Moisturizing Foot Cream. Ad Man swears by it.
leather_baggu_bag2. Leather Baggu bag
I’m a huge fan of Baggu’s ripstop nylon reusable bags. They come in lots of fun colors and patterns, are practically indestructible, fit tons of stuff, are machine washable and fold up tiny so you can carry a bunch of them in your purse or stuff them in your car’s glove compartment. But you know what I love even more than Baggu’s reusable bags? This luscious version they’re now making in leather! Isn’t it gorgeous? I soooo need one. Ad Man, are you listening?

Fiona Bra by Moving Comfort? - Blush/Crimson3. Moving Comfort sports bras
I’m a 34D which makes it difficult to find supportive sports bras that aren’t absolutely hideous. When I started a running program a while ago, I made do by either layering two tank-style compression sports bras or even ran with my hands across my chest at times trying to keep those babies from bouncing me right off the treadmill. Then, I discovered Moving Comfort bras. I’ve since worn a couple different styles from Moving Comfort and they’ve all been wonderful. They’re cute, supportive enough for high impact sports and don’t squash your boobs beyond all recognition.

A_for_Abigail4. A is for Abigail: An Almanac of Amazing American Women by Lynne Cheney
After you’ve gotten over the shock of me recommending something written by a member of the Cheney family, hear me out. This is a fantastic book that celebrates a diverse group of history-making American women. Every girl will be able to find a hero here. Honorees include founding mothers, artists, scientists, inventors and entrepreneurs, journalists, educators, feminists and sportswomen. Biggie and Smalls love this book and I so wish I’d had one like it growing up.

duralex_picardie5. Duralex Picardie glass tumblers
Duralex’s Picardie tumblers are a French design classic for a reason. They come in a wide range of sizes from a tiny juice glass to a tumbler that’s perfect for a decadently large, ice cold beer. When Biggie was transitioning from a sippy cup to a “big-girl” glass, I bought the small size tumblers for her. Duralex uses tempered-glass, so they’re perfect for kids, they hold both hot and cold drinks, and can be thrown in the dishwasher or microwave. I brew hot tea directly in a large size glass and then dump in a bunch of ice to make iced tea. I also love that the bottoms are completely flat, so you don’t get an annoying puddle of water in each one that you have to dry when unloading the dishwasher. It’s the little things that make me happy.

Stuff I Found…

jaws_kids'_book_illustration_crop…When I should have been putting away the laundry I folded two weeks ago.

Every Week, Two Anonymous Students Sneak Into a Classroom and Blow Everyone’s Minds

Eight Million Flower Petals Over Costa Rica

In Photography, Perspective is Everything

Reasons for Admission to an Insane Asylum from the Late 1800s

Pixar Artist Turns R Rated Movies Into Awesome Kids’ Book Illustrations (photo above)

Famous Album Covers Rendered in Legos

Industrial designer Scott Summit Makes Beautiful Prosthetics

Flower Explosions by Martin Klimas