Shortly after the Cat was born, we moved from NYC to CA. I think I was wearing worn-out loafers or something. I doubt I had a pair of athletic shoes to my name. But, I was eager to get back in shape and had visions of walking to the store, baby in stroller. And so, I went to TJ Maxx and was thrilled to see a bright-white pair of Tommy Hilfiger sneakers that fit me.

I still had images of junior high in my head in which everyone wore bright-white sleek Reebok shoes, but my wide hobbit-feet could only accommodate these puffy ivory ones that looked like knock-offs, even though they were “real.”

So back to the Hilfiger: I thought I was cool. But that was nearly seven years ago. Since then, I’ve worn them to death. Several times I considered replacing them, but figured they still looked okay and felt fine. (In reality, even if old shoes feel comfortable, they aren’t providing the appropriate support.)

My old shoes took me through the Cat’s post-partum period, plus Spliggle’s pregnancy and aftermath. Last year I wore them while losing 20 pounds by walking around my local reservoir. I have since gained 10 back, but was ready to hit the pavement again when I heard that the Parent Bloggers Network and RYKÄ were teaming up to enable active bloggers to try out some spiffy shoes.

The Little Black Book of Style by Nina Garcia (of Project Runway and Elle fame) in a nutshell: Confidence is key, but a tailor is a must. Exude confidence, but not while wearing a sweatsuit!

I find this book more inspirational than “practical.” It is a pep-talk. And WOW, what a talk it was. I read the book in full twice, and skipped around to favorite sections a number of other times. The quotes are fabulous, and give me motivation to dress carefully and confidently. The little pieces of history educate me, and encourage me to believe that I know more about fashion than I do.

Unfortunately, my enthusiasm meant that I purchased more “trendy” items than the good-quality basics that Nina would have insisted I buy first. Yes, I was tempted by a sale, a big no-no (I got a designer skirt for less than $30!) but I am thrilled with what I received. One pair of pants is currently out being altered, because I wanted to do it “right” this time instead of slogging around in too-long jeans. The other pieces are more “special occasion” than everyday staples, but I am excited for those events to arrive, and have plans to put them in a more casual rotation after their big debuts.

Or perhaps I have mistaken “fashionable statements” for “trendy” and Nina wouldn’t chew me out after all: I’ve usually been of the “better just get it in a neutral color” mentality, so getting a bright red and white bold print skirt and a crazy-wild geometrical dress seem outrageous. I am excited to enable myself that “freedom.”

The familiar orange-pink swirled envelope came in the mail last week. This time, enclosed within was a DVD offering a free trial of NoodleNet, a safe way for kids to browse the internet. Sometimes it will be a fabric softener sample, or a DVD of a new television show, such as when "Meerkat Manor" came out.

I still have fond memories of the show "Cover Shot," for which I voted on a "final shot" as one of the original VocalPoint members. I was in "the Club" so early in the game that I actually voted on the design of the envelopes in which VocalPoint sends their product samples, coupons, and announcements!

Why did I become a member?

I really loved reviewing RYKÄ. I participated in a ParentBloggers Blog Blast and won MORE RYKÄ!

Since I already had my wonderful white MC2-Walk shoes, I selected something different: Black Ramble Mary Janes. So cute. So comfortable! Really.

I won the shoes - there was no obligation to post about it afterwards.

But I've got to admit that these are the most comfortable Mary Janes I've ever worn. I walked around the reservoir today and my feet are sooooo happy! Admittedly, the MC2-Walk shoes have more "bounce," so they are probably a better choice for long-term walking; however, the Ramble Mary Janes are definitely a stylish second. They are billed on the RYKÄ site as "cross-trainers" and I can indeed see them in a variety of different functions. Good to put 'em on and see where they take you...

They are still giving away shoes - until October 25th - so visit RYKÄ and test your luck

Oh... and just because I won these, don't think that I am letting you out of your obligation to sign up for VocalPoint to win me a Roomba!

Seriously, I am not usually this greedy.

XO,
Kari

Last night - after browsing for hours - I purchased a pair of Black Leather Shoreham Uggs from Zappos.com. By "last night," I really mean night. As in after traditional business hours. After I'd expect anyone other than a computer to respond to my order. Indeed, within seconds I received the traditional "Thanks for your Order!" computer-generated email.

This morning, I saw a second email from Zappos.com, this one saying "Your Order will Ship Today!" It appeared computer generated, and while it was sent only a couple hours after my order, it was super late at night, so I figured their "today" meant the next business day, like today - Thursday, August 28th - not the "today" of the email date.

But when I went outside, my shoes were on the porch.

Apparently, my beautiful clogs hopped the plane last night, exactly as the email had said. "Today" was really "yesterday," and somehow they reached me this morning.

The shipping insert says "your order was packed and shipped by Benjamin K. and Leia S." So to Benjamin and Leia - thank you for working so darn late last night.

As for the shoes themselves, OH MY GOSH. Don't tell Husband, but I think I'm going to order another pair of Uggs. They are THAT comfortable. The ones I bought have the sheepskin around the entire foot, but then it is an open back. I think I'll purchase some of the boot-type ones for winter. Both boys have already commented on how soft my new shoes are, and they are thus lobbying to have their own. Believe the hype. Uggs are amazing.

Sigh.

It seems that something entitled the "Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act" will go into effect in two months.

I learned of this unfortunate piece of news via Cool Mom Picks' announcement of the issue. I look towards Cool Mom Picks for fun and unique toys and gift ideas. As they note in their post about the CPSIA, most of these cool finds are from smaller shops or parent-run businesses which simply won't be able to afford the licensing required under the new guidelines.

The gist of it is that in an effort to prevent unsafe chemicals (ie, lead, psychotropic drugs, and other things) that have been in the news as being unwanted components of [mass-marketed, cheap-o, usually imported] toys, the CPSIA will require thorough testing of products before they are allowed on the shelf. While the idea behind it is "good," the result is that only the large manufacturers will be able to comply with the law.

Ironic, since it is large manufacturers cutting corners that have created the unsafe environment in the first place. It is the independent and smaller businesses that take the time to use natural methods and high-quality components -- check out CMP's Safer Toy Guide to see some of those excellent companies that we may find missing in a couple months.

Will this cause a domino effect: small local businesses must shut doors, so communities lose sales tax revenue, so money that could have gone towards road safety, schools, and other community-bettering facilities will be less? My town doesn't have a Walmart. And I sure don't want us to have one!

Husband and I typically end up with multiples of the same gift, like the year we both got each other America. Typically the duplicates end up because Husband will talk about how much he wants something, so I'll buy it for him. But days before Christmas, he'll go out and purchase whatever is already wrapped under the tree.

So I stopped listening to his first choice, figuring he'd get it for himself. I focused more on the "lower down" priority items.

Last year he kept talking about a slingbox. But I thought I knew better. I wasn't going to purchase something he'd no doubt buy on his own during Thanksgiving sales or Pre-Christmas sales or Friday Fry's sales.

The day before Christmas, Husband mentioned how excited he was that he'd be getting a slingbox for Christmas. He assumed that is what I had already bought. He was ecstatic.

Except I hadn't bought one, of course.

Not wanting to disappoint him, I quickly went online to Best Buy and did an in-store pickup order. While the store itself had long lines and packed aisles, the in-store pickup line was small. We were out of the store - coveted present in hand - in less time that it took us to find parking.

And so, my first tip to those of you who have waited too long to shop for Christmas (or the latter half of Hanukkah) is to see which big stores have in-store pickup. It is easy to browse online for that perfect gift, and typically is pretty easy to pick it up since most stores have separate lines for their online sales.

(The one exception I found to this was when I bought a camera at Circuit City - the closest store was sold out, so I purchased it at a store a half hour away. Guess what happened? That store didn't have it when I arrived, but discovered that my local store did! In the end I got my camera, but that particular excursion took a lot of driving and involved confusion.)

Another idea is the dreaded overnight shipping - yet for stores like zappos.com that already ship overnight, you're golden. Still, most overnight shipping options are pretty pricey, so you might want to brave the malls.

Or, you could buy something that is electronically fulfilled, such as an iTunes gift certificate or an Amazon.com gift certificate delivered via email.

Plenty of websites offer extended content for a fee. No, I am not suggesting purchasing "adult materials" for your preteen cousin. Rather, for kids there are sites like Club Penguin, a favorite of my boys. While the basic experience is plenty of fun, being a member allows the little penguins to accumulate coins to purchase pet puffles, buy snazzy new outfits, and deck out their igloo like budding interior designers would. In the Cat's case, that means purchasing as many toy trains as possible to create a "rug."

For older folks, there is Happy Neuron. I learned about this brain fitness website shortly after I had realized that I wasn't very good at the Brain Age DS game. (And don't even talk to me about Big Brain Academy.) "Mommy brain" is no myth: my brain is so filled with details of appointments, tasks, and managing other folks' lives that I don't have time to read or do puzzles to expand the other parts of my brain.

As we age, our brain "sags" just like our bodies do. Those who keep mentally fit by exercising their brain end up faring much better than those who don't. Plus, it is fun (until the computer tells you that you are mentally weak, that is!)

Happy Neuron is offering a 20%-off holiday special on a year's membership to the website. Members have access to 35 games (plus 5 beta Wii games.) The games fit in five categories: visual-spacial, attention, executive function, memory, and language. Each game has several difficulty levels, plus the program itself will recommend games based on the user's weaknesses.

I tried using the "coach" function whereby the computer is supposed to take me through an optimum combination of games based on my preferences, time available to "work out," and my past performance. Unfortunately, this feature didn't work for me (I was given a login free for the purposes of review, but perhaps this is a feature only available to full members, not reviewers.) And so, I tried out the five free games.

Does it surprise you that on the "split words" game that I was able to do the one about football but did horrifically on the "agriculture" one? (I can still hear my grandmother's tsk-tsk from many years ago when she learned I couldn't tell the difference between different types of cows. Sorry, I don't know anything about farming.) I thought I would do fantastically on "Catch the Ladybug" because after college I was a research assistant in a visual psychophysics lab. We did lots of "search" experiments, and since I had to program and test such things, I became very good at visual search. But my downfall in this Happy Neuron game was my trackball skills. I saw the ladybug immediately, but had a hard time rolling my way over. Perhaps a traditional mouse would be better in this instance.

There are other games that rely on time where an individual's ability to move the mouse becomes a limiting factor. This concerns me for the grandparent-set who might otherwise benefit from these mind-enhancing games. For these folks, those games without a time limit (but which will still record time) would be more accurate: as their time decreases with practice, the improvement can be attributed more to mental performance and less to mousing-ability. But for games that stop if the user fails to provide the answer, the individual wouldn't be able to practice the actual task unless the time required could be increased.

I love that there are a variety of games to "train" the user so the "workouts" are not boring. The site has a section on brain fitness science, plus has recommendations for other (sometimes offline) products. In addition to the aforementioned Wii games in beta, there is also a "Happy Neuron Junior" program in development. The Cat loves various games, particularly online. Although some of the games I've played through Happy Neuron are perfectly appropriate for him, I imagine the "junior" version will have aspects (such as in the "language" category) that will better fit his grade level.

Consider Happy Neuron for that otherwise difficult-to-buy-for adult. Grandmothers have enough perfume, bath oil, and lotion. And does Granddad really need another tie? Young(er) adults would like these games, too, so don't think your recipient needs to have grey hair. (I think my parents are sharper than I am at this point, anyway.)

Or maybe spend some time on the site yourself; it certainly wouldn't hurt! After all, the present I am getting for Husband is one that I hope to get myself at some point. This is one year where I'm actually hoping for a duplicate (but not expecting it.)

I was really excited to meet Tim Gunn. Although I didn't win the "Style Consultation with Tim Gunn" contest with my BlogHer Fashion Haiku + Collage, meeting the man even for a few minutes was a thrill. As I stood in line with the hundreds of other fans, I thought about how I was the first to meet Carson Kressley, and yet how I essentially ran away after he signed my little How to Look Good in Photos postcard because I didn't know we were allowed to pose with him. The Tim Gunn extravaganza was much more organized: although we weren't allowed to snap photos with our own camera, a professional was on hand to make it work. (Photo shown at left courtesy of Tide Bounce Laundry Lounge)

What struck me about Tim Gunn was his calm demeanor. He spent time with each fan, chatting and signing autographs, posing for the photo, and really making each person feel special. I appreciated the way he treated us fans, and came away with quite a lot more respect for him (and I already had oodles.) It is so wonderful to experience celebrities who don't have a huge head.

I went off to BowlHer still high off the Tim Gunn experience. I put on my special outfit and prepared to walk the red carpet.

I didn't trip, though I probably made some funny faces. I was surprised that Mom TV was on hand, so flubbed a bit during my interview, particularly as I had been used to the "talk it all out and we'll edit it later" style of the Ford event, whereas it turns out this was LIVE TV. Ooops!

The venue itself was a blast. I loved the ambiance and loved just sinking into the sofas while the bartender brought me Bud Light in the shape of bowling pins.

I loved my outfit because I could flounce around. The boas the hostesses gave out was an extra-special touch. (Photo shown at right courtesy of goportraits)

The shoes, while high, were surprisingly comfortable. I wasn't going to bowl in them, but my aim for the party was to enjoy myself by socializing and checking out folks like American Idol's Brooke White.

When the Design Challenge winners were announced, it was no surprise that Casey from Moosh in Indy won - her outfit was fabulous. But I ended up being the second winner!

Casey had the glamour down pat - but I had the quirky creativity.

Much to my shock and absolute excitement, I am off to New York City in a little over a month for a "private" party for Lifetime's Project Runway, put on by Marie Claire.

Thank you, thank you to all the folks involved in creating the BowlHer experience. The hostesses' shirts were amazing, the venue was perfect, the decor beautiful. The people were fun and the entertainment was fantastic. I am beyond excited that I have the opportunity to go to New York - and actually meet Tim Gunn a second time.

Of course, what the HECK am I going to wear?

(perhaps I should ask my son?)

--
Tim Gunn, Tide, BowlHer, the associated sponsors/producers of BowlHer, Lifetime, Project Runway, Marie Claire or any other individual or group relating to these events or design contest did not require me to write this post, nor was I compensated for writing this post. I chose to write this particular entry on my reviews blog because I mentioned specific brands and events, which conflicts with the advertising requirements on my main blog. As yet I am uncertain as to the requirements or restrictions regarding blogging about the actual New York City trip as it occurs. Of course I would love to share the details with my readers, but there may be limits to what we can reveal should we get an inkling of the finishing order of the Project Runway contestants or other related information. These words are my own. Future posts about this event will be my own, not edited by Project Runway, Marie Claire, or Lifetime, unless specifically noted.

I am only an "expert" on what I've been using, but wanted to give a "shout out" to the things that have been helping me on my runs during the past six months.

Six months. Wow. I can't believe it. Yes, on June 9th, I ran for, like, thirty seconds, and my lungs burned. Today, on December 8th, my lungs burned a little bit with cold, but I ran for far longer than I did that day. I did the BlogHer 5K, then an "official" 5K at Disney, another 5K local race, a 10K local race, a 5K trail race, and I'll be doing a 10K this Saturday. I'm signed up for a New Year's 5K and then two half-marathons in February and March, respectively.

So no, I am not an expert, but I've come a long way in six months.

The first few races I did in shoes made for walking. I had received them for a Ryka review back in September 2007 when my exercise was walking. Sure, they were fabulous shoes at the time, especially since they were specifically designed for walking -- but two years later any shoe is going to be inadequate for a newly-minted runner. I went to a real running store to get fitted for running-specific shoes. I ended up with New Balance 1011s. It really is a personal choice - I know people who are thrilled with many other brands.

My kids wear out their jeans constantly, so I'm always buying new pants. And then somehow - their shirts end up with holes in them, or irreversibly stained by random unknown reagents. So, I'm not going to turn down a chance to get some free clothes - unless they are poor quality, have some sort of horrendous slogan on them, or are otherwise dangerous. (Exploding clothes, ahoy!)

Seriously, when Mom Select asked me if I'd be willing to review a Parigi outfit - as well as to provide an outfit for giveaway - I snapped up the chance.

I hadn't heard of the Parigi Group, but I'm glad I have now. They represent recognizable brands such as PUMA, Baby Phat, Apple Bottoms, DKNY, Akademiks, and LRG.

Well, we were introduced to Akademics, and I have an outfit from Apple Bottoms to give away. It is your lucky day!

For the last several weeks, I've lived in Delicate Soles. And right now as I watch the Emmys, I'm willing to bet several of those celebrities have a pair in their purse (or their assistant's purse, or in their limo...) for when they slip off those high-heels and want to baby their feet while still remaining chic.

I learned about Delicate Soles through a giveaway. I was doing one of my giveaways on Prizey, and clicked around to see what my fellow bloggers were touting. Well, Delicate Soles caught my eye. I entered, but didn't win the giveaway. Nonetheless, I was interested enough to purchase a pair. I selected "onyx" since my go-to black flats are looking pretty shabby these days.

When they arrived, I fell in love. And then I purchased two more pairs: "starlight silver" and "lipstick red." The other color they sell is "pixie dust," a beautiful soft pink that I expect I'll purchase shortly.

I love the look of leather. I really do. Jackets, bracelets, shoes, bags... I love it all. But, I'm not really a fan of the whole "you are wearing someone else's skin" angle. And so, I was pretty happy to find out about Compassion Couture, whose tagline is "a 100% Cruelty-Free & Eco-Friendly Boutique."

My "Jordan Pumps" arrived today, and are comfy as well as cute. [They are pictured at right.] I had my eye on several other pairs of shoes at this shop, but the studs sealed the deal for me. And also, they happened to be on sale.

The shoes were in a 100% recycled box. The Novacas brand is 100% vegan, manufactured in worker-friendly factories. Compassion Couture included a thank-you note made out of recycled paper, printed with soy-based inks.

Here are some other items I found that I'd snap up in a second if I had a bottomless wallet:

Matt & Nat papaya satchel, $145

Cri de Coeur wedges, $380

Matt & Nat envelope wallet, $65

Matt & Nat tote, $125

Olsen Haus leopard pumps, $203

I'll definitely be back to Compassion Couture next time I need a new pair of shoes or a handbag (where "need" has a myriad of meanings, naturally.)

Right now there are items marked-down as they get rid of winter inventory to make way for spring/summer. Especially check out their boots; oh, how I love me some [faux] leather boots!

--
Disclaimer: I learned of Compassion Couture through Blissmo, where I received a discount.