A LITTLE DYNAMO PRODUCT

Many of you may remember that I had a problem with my car radio coming on all on its own and draining my battery.

In the end we have had to remove the fuse for the radio to keep it off until we $$$ up for a new relay switch. You can read that tale of woe here.

So now I don’t have any music in my car and that for the most part is okay because I never have to drive far.

This weekend however I was going to have to drive for 3 1/2 hours to get to our cabin with one of my sisters. Much as we like to talk we also like to sing along loudly to old rock and roll music and believe me it ain’t pretty. We desperately needed something to help cover the sound coming from us.

I have an IPod full of great songs but the sound is sadly lacking without ear buds. Someone mentioned a little speaker that you can get for them so off I went to get one.

This little speaker is just slightly larger than a golf ball when closed and it expands to about 4 inches tall when opened. It has really amazing sound for such a tiny little product.

You plug it into your IPod or IPhone and it is an amazing speaker. You won't believe the sound coming out of this little sucker. It comes with a connector to hook up a second speaker if you want. It has a rechargeable battery in it that you can charge up when charging your IPod etc. It also works on my laptop which has a lousy speaker of its own. The only thing I would ask for is a longer wire between the speaker and IPod for better positioning. I highly recommend these. I paid about 30.00 for it including tax.

I have not received any compensation for this post.

YES I AM BOASTING

So I haven't parallel parked in ages....

Tonight I zipped up just past the tight parking spot....cranked the wheel and backed up right back into the spot...straightened wheels and leveled out....oh ya I still got the moves. Perfection.

Came out to my car later and and watched a woman with almost an identical car to mine try to do the same in front of my car and she parked and walked away leaving her car about 2 1/2 feet away from the curb. Was it mean of me to chuckle to myself?

How about you? Can you parallel park? Avoid it at all costs? Have never had to even try it?

POPPIES FOR THE FIRST DAY OF SUMMER!!

Linda over at Stitch Lines inspired me today with one of her photos to post some of my poppy pictures from the past.

I love poppies and have been on a quest to find a true blue hued red one for years with no luck.

Every time someone says they have one it turns out to be the orangey red variety.

In the mean time here are poppies all from my garden.

This one below is my favourite. I shared some with one of my sisters one year and the morning it bloomed she called me so excited about them. She couldn’t get over how beautiful they were. Did I mention it was 5:00 am on Saturday morning when she called. Just a little excited lol.

Today is the first day of summer and it is sunny here in Beautiful British Columbia. June has not been very pleasant here and we hope this is the day it all turns around.

WONDERFUL WORLD INDEED

I had to share this clip with all of you. I plan on watching it regularly because it makes me feel so good. Beautifully done by the BBC. 
I suggest you make it full screen to really enjoy it. The button is down on the bottom right of the video screen.

A WONDERFUL PLACE TO BE

I have posted photos from my sister and brother-in-law’s garden before. It is one of my favourite places to be.

They built this garden from scratch on their lot after they built their home. It has had so much tender loving care and it thrives. That is amazing because the land is full of shale rock.

This is just a small sampling of what is there. I have posted more photos of their garden previously and you can see those pictures here. Make sure you come back here and have a look at the other photos of their garden. You will love it.

The ones in this post are much earlier in the season. The ones in the link are later. Amazing.

This wisteria has had to be shored up with extra posts due to the weight of it. It provides wonderful shade in the heat of the summer. 

They have some amazing views from their patio.

There are some interesting pieces in the garden. The metal dog and the planter with faces on it are two whimsical pieces.

The yard has quite a slope down that has been filled with rocks, all brought in by my brother-in-law piece by piece. It was a huge task. The yard is much bigger than it looks in the pictures.

This poppy is one I gave to my sister years before they moved here. She brought a piece of it with her and it is the most amazing peachy/pink colour. It is very happy living amongst the rocks.

By mid summer this planter will be spilling over with colour and textures.

One of my favourite spots in their yard is this side patio. The hydrangea grows in quite a bit bigger than they are now and it is like a hidden garden. 

So you can see why this is one of my favourite places to be. Trouble is I wasn’t there for these photos. My sister sent them to me. Now that is a whole other story we won’t go in to here…lol.

Don’t forget to have a look at these photos of the garden that are from mid summer. Click here.

SERIOUS WARNING HERE: BABY TEETHING GELS

So many of my blog friends have had grandbabies lately I thought I should share this. I

Remember back in our day when those precious little mouths would start drooling like crazy and the cranky baby would cry and cry for hours.

Teething was the culprit and we were so grateful for whatever relief we could give them. Many used brandy on the gums or was that in the Moms? Before our time our ancestors could have used Cocaine drops. Most of us though used the Orajel or Anbesol (though not limited to)type medications to rub on their gums.

These gel products we have been using contain Benzocaine to numb the gums. Benzocaine can cause a rare but sometimes fatal condition called methemoglobinemia.

This is a blood disorder where the oxygen carried through the blood to the tissue drops to levels that are dangerously low.

The FDA sent out the first warning in 2006 and a second one in 2011. The symptoms include pale, gray or blue coloured skin, lips and fingernail beds. Shortness of breath, headache, light headedness and rapid heart rate.

This can also affect adults who smoke or  have heart disease or respiratory problems.

The FDA recommends you keep these products out of reach of children, duh!!!! And that you use them only when necessary and then no more than 4 times per day.

Really? Are you kidding me? You think anyone in their right mind would still use these on their babies know this could happen? Take away their baby raising cards please. Oh right…anyone can have babies.

My recommendation is to freeze wet facecloths in ziplock bags and give them to baby to chew on when teething. What tips do you have?