On a more serious note, can you believe that it’s February? It seems like it was just a few days ago when I was griping that I would never see the type of weather that would make me think of massages in Huntington Beach, and here we are, with yet another winter half over. I can already see the difference in the evenings. I’m a mom, you know, and since mid-October I’ve been telling the kids to be in before dark – which is right around 4:55-5:00pm. Now it’s light a little longer, with “before dark” being around 5:15pm. Pretty soon the sun will still be shining at 5:15pm, and I won’t lie – I’m looking forward to those days.

Are you doing any Black Friday shopping today? I originally planned on it, and even had plans on how I would stay awake for it all (sleep in late on Thanksgiving, grab a quick nap after an early Thanksgiving dinner, then take a caffeine pill and some Midol to keep me perky and headache-free for the next 8-10 hours). But then I was scheduled for surgery on 11/23, and since I needed the surgery, I went ahead with it. I made it through a low-key Thanksgiving dinner with family, but Black Friday shopping? Not happening.

So while I’m sitting at home loaded up on painkillers and browsing online ads, have fun and shop ’til you drop (or your wallet gives out, heh) without me!

What stores would you love to shop at, if given the opportunity?

Just as importantly, you should seek out free products to review and/or give away that have relevance to you. If you live in an unsafe area and are concerned about home safety or vandalism, then a set of wireless security cameras might be a great choice. Likewise, if you live in the country, solar-powered porch lights would be a great choice. If you’re artistic, then drawing art supplies are definitely worth reviewing.

When requesting a product for review, be sure to present to the advertiser arguments for why you’re a good choice. Make sure you provide information on your site’s traffic and demographics, and be sure to provide a timeline for when you think you can have a post completed for them. Good luck!

Speaking of Christmas cards, I need to work on getting mine out! I typically drop mine in the mail the week of Thanksgiving. In past years I was a little more tardy, one year going so far as to not get the cards mailed until the 18th of December. Oops. :/ But I’ve gotten much better since then. My goal this year is to mail them on November 23rd, so they’ll start arriving as early as Black Friday! When do you mail yours?

Purchasing gifts for my side of the family is easy enough: there’s only my mother and two brothers. But my husband’s side of the family is a different story. He has four siblings, several aunts, a few uncles, two cousins, and a set of grandparents. Throw his brothers’ fiance and girlfriend in the mix, a few of our friends, and some acquaintances, and that equals a lot of people to buy for. Ahh! Hopefully my wallet can take the hit.

You can download the app on your Android phone or tablet. Check out the Android Market description for more information.

Needless to say, it wasn’t long before I switched to a browser I had been hearing more and more about, Google Chrome. And now here I am, two years later, just as in love with Google Chrome as before. It’s a very nice browser, and one I highly recommend you say hello to! Boo to Firefox.

One thing I’ve noticed is that I’m often drawn to the color palettes used for bridal shower invitations, which is odd because while I can admire those pastel, pretty, delicate color schemes from afar, they just don’t work for me in my own layouts. I’m more about bold, bright, and in your face!

So, how do you pick a color scheme? My advice is: you don’t. Well, you don’t pick a color scheme until after the layout is in place. Then you can check out a site like Colour Lovers and find a few color schemes that suit you.