My kids and I had a blast earlier today. I got some Insta Snow to try out, along with a couple other things, and let’s just say my kids really, really enjoyed it. How could I not take pictures?

Not dandruff… snow!

This stuff came from the Vat19.com website, and they have a lot more really, really fun stuff. Things like the Coiled Beeswax Candle that has the ability to extinguish itself, or the Color Flames Colored Candles that I also received. We tried one of those (sorry, no pictures), and the kids both want them for their birthdays.

Not everything they have is just for fun. A lot of it is practical too. But many items have a sense of fun while being practical. Or if you don’t want to call it fun, call it geek appeal. That works too.

Their site is a lot of fun to wander. Possibly too much fun, in fact. I spent rather too long wandering the site while thinking on this post. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Who am I kidding? It was fun!

I don’t care that winter’s coming and that things are cooling off. That’s the beauty of spas - you stay warm. But the thought of climbing into one and just relaxing sounds great to me.

It’s been a busy day. Just one of those run, run run mornings. It’s only now quiet enough for me to dedicate myself to working and posting.

But who am I fooling? If I had a spa, I’d probably be plunging in, instead.

They’ve long been on my husband’s wish list too. He’d even take one of the little portable ones, just to have one. But, as I keep insisting, they aren’t practical for our life right now. We’d have to have a very good cover, such as the spa covers of superior quality at HotTubWorks.com, and even then have to watch to be certain that it was in place.

I’ve seen how important a good spa cover is, and the ones offered at HotTubWorks.com look really good. A good cover means the hot tub stays warmer with less energy used and it is much harder for someone to fall in accidentally. As a mother that second part really matters to me. Their cover has locking tie-down straps, a feature I can really appreciate.

It’s getting disturbingly close to the time that people start putting up Christmas trees. Not me - with small children in the house generally aim for about a week before Christmas. We have to move furniture around, so having a more crowded living room for more time than that is just too hard.

Many times we find that one string of Christmas tree lights has burned out. We have excess due to buying them on a clearance sale some time back, but eventually we’re going to need more. And that’s when I figure on making the switch to LED Xmas lights.

They’re significantly more efficient, coolor and look really good too. Only reason I’m not making a switch is due to my feeling that I shouldn’t be replacing something that still works just fine. We don’t leave our tree on all night or anything, so the power savings will be a bit less than it might be if we had them on more.

I love technology. I don’t buy nearly as much as I admire, since I don’t need it and can’t afford it. But practical electronics interest me too.

Humidifiers, for example. With the school year in full swing, a good humidifier is a must. How else to keep the kids as comfortable as possible during the inevitable colds?

There are a lot of great places to buy electronics, such as Abt Electronics. They offer some of the things I look for when I shop online, such as free shipping on some products. Their selection looks to be pretty good too. They have both practical and fun electronics.

Looking over their site does remind me that it’s time to check over my humidifier and maybe get a second… two kids, two roooms, after all. You probably know how often kids will get sick at the same time, and that little bit of added comfort can really help them and me sleep at night.

The entire family can suffer when a loved one has Alzheimer’s disease. It’s a terrible disease, one that takes away much of who a person is.

The upcoming holiday season is a good time to think of those who help care for people with Alzheimer’s disease. The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America has an online store where you can shop for a holiday gift, with the proceeds going to help the services they offer. The store has jewelry and a DVD training program to help families who are just learning to cope with Alzheimer’s.

I’ve been very fortunate, since Alzeheimer’s disease does not run in my family so far. My husband, on the other hand, watched his grandmother suffer from it for years, to the point where she only recognized him if he told her whose son he was. It was not an easy thing for him or the rest of his family.

When it comes to treating Alzheimer’s disease, there are two important things. The most personal part for the families is caring for their loved one who is coping with the disease. It can take a lot of assistance, and that is something the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America focuses on.

Once current sufferers from Alzheimer’s are well cared for it becomes easier to focus on a cure. There’s been some interesting research I’ve heard of in that area in recent years, so there may be reason to hope that it will be something that can be stopped in future years.

The holiday season is a great time to think of those who are less fortunate, and if someone you love is suffering from Alzheimer’s, it’s a great time to help an organization dedicated to helping them while taking care of a bit of holiday shopping or to just make a donation. You shop or contribute online.

Well, probably not. Most people really aren’t going to put in Lab Furniture in their homes, whether you look at the basement or garage.

Really the furniture brings me back to high school and college lab courses. Much better looking, though. And the Design Your Workbench feature is a lot of fun. But frankly a lot of them look like they could be very functional as heavy use computer desks. They have setups for multiple monitors.

The workbenches are for all kinds of work. They have drafting tables as well as the other kinds of workbenches.