Wishing and Planning

I always plan to post something every Monday that will help to motivate me (and maybe others) all week. Lately I haven't been as good about keeping to that schedule. (Hello, Tuesday!)

I usually find a quote that I like and put it with a picture I like. Sometimes that's all I share. I almost always want to say something more about the quote, to elaborate and explain why I chose it. I always wish that I had posted something more than just the photo. But some weeks it just doesn't happen.

Eleanor Roosevelt said, "It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan," and maybe that's true. But I find that it takes more energy than wishing and planning to actually execute that plan.

Are you turning wishes into plans this week? What plans are you working on?

Wednesday in the Garden

Striving To Do Better

Ice Cream Tacos for Cinco de Mayo

We have been celebrating Cinco de Mayo for the past 13 years—not to commemorate the Battle of Puebla, but because it's my son's birthday! We've always considered it a great excuse to eat guacamole or tacos (other people might say margaritas!). This year we decided to try a new birthday dessert that seems to fit the day: ice cream tacos.

You can find many recipes for ice cream tacos, with most of the taco "shells" made from flour tortillas or wonton wrappers. I wondered if my pizzelle iron would make a decent shell, so I made up a batch of chocolate pizzelli (recipe from King Arthur Flour). If you don't have a pizzelle maker, a waffle iron also works, but makes a much thicker cookie. (My waffle iron makes thin, heart-shaped waffles that didn't want to bend into a taco shell; you may have greater success if your waffle iron makes a different shape.)

I won't go into any great detail about how to make the pizzelli; the recipe at the link above gives great instructions, and you'll need to follow the pizzelle iron manufacturer's directions to choose the correct cook time for the cookies.

We found that about 45 seconds was perfect to cook these chocolate pizzelli. Remove them quickly and while they're still warm, bend them over a folded paper plate, as shown above. Allow them to cool while you cook the next batch. Once cooled, store them in an airtight container until you're ready to serve them.

Before you can put together your tacos, you need to prepare your toppings. My son had very specific requests for candies (gummy worms and Twizzlers) but just about any sundae topping would be yummy. Chopped cherries, bananas, blueberries, coconut, nuts, sprinkles, m&m's, chocolate chips, crushed oreos, hot fudge sauce. Once they're ready, now comes the fun part....  

Since the taco shells can be brittle, here's an easy way to get the ice cream in without breaking them. Scoop some ice cream into a ziploc bag and seal it tight, then squish it in your hands for a few seconds to warm it a little. Cut off one of the bottom corners of the bag and squeeze out the ice cream into the bottom of the taco shell. Cover the ice cream with your choice of toppings, working quickly before the ice cream melts! Then enjoy.

Do you celebrate Cinco de Mayo? What are your favorite recipes to prepare today?

¡Viva el Cinco de Mayo!

Mother's Day Gifts Sale

Just a few days left to order for Mother's Day (please order by May 3 so I can get your items shipped in time!). If you aren't on our mailing list, you may not know that we have a new fragrance, and that we have two special gift sets on sale through May 3. 

Paradise is a blend of frangipani and muguet blossoms with ozone top notes and a base of musk and amber. Joanne in Maine tried the fragrance and says, "It is very light and tropical...reminds me of the beach. Not in a typical coconut tanning lotion smell. This actually reminds me of the sun, sand, ocean, and surrounding tropical flowers along the shore! Great "getaway" scent that will remind you of memories from vacation!"

Paradise Moisturizers Gift Set

Moisturizers Gift Sets contain hand cream, lotion, and lip balm. This is by far our most popular gift set! Take $2 off the Paradise Moisturizers set through May 3.

Paradise Bath and Body Gift Set

This special Bath and Body gift set includes sugar scrub, mineral soak (with "diamonds and pearls" salts), and body lotion, gift wrapped in white tub with wooden scoop. Save $2 on this set through May 3.

Did you know that we'll include a handwritten gift tag with any gift set? You can specify your message at checkout.

If Mom prefers fruity or floral scents, we have lots more to choose from. Apricot Freesia and Lavender are two popular choices! Please let me know if you have any questions at all.

Flavor of the Month May 2013

Once again it's time to announce the Flavor of the Month. This year's flavors have included Margarita and Spring Fever (just a few left if you haven't tried one).

This month I was planning to offer Bubblegum as the month's flavor. I was taking the pictures, preparing the post, had everything ready and then I paused. "I wonder if Circus Peanut lip balm would be good?"

I know, maybe crazy. So I asked on our Facebook page: Which do you like better? And about 85% of the responses said Circus Peanut! So here we go.

If you love sweet banana marshmallow with loads of Vitamin Orange (okay, maybe less than the real circus peanuts), make sure you pick up a Circus Peanut balm this month. Or place an order for anything else in May and we'll include a Flavor of the Month for you to try.

If you want to help choose new flavors, Facebook is the place to be. I'd love to see you! I post sneak peeks and sales there occasionally, but most of the posts are cakes and cookies, flowers, party planning stuff, sites I like...it's like a party. Hope to see you there!

Finding the Path

I'm a sucker for advice blogs, business gurus' posts, recipe and DIY sites. Sometimes I just want someone to tell me what to do, in 5 easy steps, in little bite-sized pieces, so I don't have to spend any time figuring things out for myself. The popularity of these sites and blogs suggests that I'm not alone. 

We're all so busy, it's a big help to let someone else do some of the work, to let them "stray" to find the direct path for us. I appreciate this and try to share things here to save time for other people, too. 

For the occasional recipe, DIY, or business tip, that's great. But the path to this particular moment hasn't really been simple or direct. For me, the pieces often seemed too big to handle, the steps numerous and winding. Figuring things out, finding my path, required a lot of straying. There wasn't a handy guide. If there had been, I would have been first in line to buy it. And I would have taken someone else's path to some other place. 

Today I'm feeling grateful for all the help that saves me time every day. But I'm also glad for the straying that got me here.