Works for Me Wednesday: Don't Cry!

This tip will be a quick & simple one, dear readers, because it's #3's FIRST BIRTHDAY today and I'm busy, busy, busy with work and birthday celebration preparations. A post with pictures (and maybe even a video, if I can figure out how to get it here) coming tomorrow or Friday about #3's big day. But for now:

HOW TO AVOID STINGING, TEARY EYES WHILE SLICING ONIONS:

No, I'm not going to tell you to wear swim goggles. That totally works, but when the goggles are outside by the pool or in the bottom of summer camp bags, that really doesn't make your life easier.

I'm no Martha Stewart, but this is what she told me (and the million other viewers of her show), and I've done it ever since - it really works:

Burn a candle (any candle, doesn't have to be a fancy one) near the cutting board while slicing onions, and the candle vapors will neutralize the stuff that makes your eyes water while slicing onions.

Do this, and you won't have smudgy mascara streaks running down your face at the dinner table. And if you use your favorite smelly candle, a fringe benefit might be that you just may relax a little while cooking dinner. Works for me!

Told ya it would be a quick & simple one today. See more Works For Me Wednesday tips here.

Excellent weekend

Whew. Back at work after a whirlwind but fun weekend.

Friday: picked up Diva from her first weeklong sleepover camp. We missed her terribly, but she had a GREAT time.

The theme of the camp was outdoor skills, and they've turned my drama queen into a nature girl. She can now cook over a fire, pitch a tent, use a compass, and flick wolf spiders off her mosquito net without blinking an eye.

We are so proud of her for bravely going off to a sleepover camp where she wasn't going to know a soul. She made a bunch of new friends and can't wait to go back next year. We are enjoying hearing all the camp stories (although the ones involving wolf spiders freak me out. Wolf spiders, apparently, are as big as your shoe).

Saturday: To celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary, we went to see ELTON JOHN and BILLY JOEL at the sold-out Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. It was a beautiful night and the concert was incredible. I had seen Billy before, but never Elton. They sang for about three and a half hours, and we didn't want it to end. We didn't have seats on the floor, but they were still pretty good - we used binoculars a lot. Here's the view from where we were:

There was also celebrity sighting there - Reese Witherspoon (and kids) with Jake Gyllenhaal! I didn't actually see them with my own eyes, as they were in the 4th row and I was not. They showed them on the jumbotron a couple of times.

Elton even dedicated "Tiny Dancer" to Reese, and they showed them rocking out to Crocodile Rock. How cute! Reese is in our area this summer filming a movie. She used to be a frequent visitor to our area when she was married to Ryan Phillippe - he is from here and his mother still lives in my little town, so typically there'd be sightings here in the summer. Not so much since they divorced, though.

Here's the set list. Lots of singing along:

Together, they opened the show and sang:
Your Song
Just The Way You Are
Don't Let The Sun Go DOwn On Me
My Life

Then Elton sang:
Funeral for a Friend
Love Lies Bleeding
Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting
Levon
Madman Across the Water
Tiny Dancer
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Daniel
Rocket Man
Philadelphia Freedom
I'm Still Standing
Crocodile Rock

Billy sang:
Angry Young Man
Moving Out
Allentown
Zanzibar
She's Always a Woman to Me (prior to which, he said, referring to his impending divorce "You'd think by now I'd learn" . . lol)
Scenes from an Italian Restaurant
River of Dreams
Highway to Hell (yes, AC/DC, sang by roadie "Chainsaw" with Billy on guitar)
We Didn't Start the Fire
Still Rock 'n Roll to Me
Only the Good Die Young

Then finally, together:
I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
Uptown Girl
The Bitch is Back
You May Be Right
Bennie & the Jets
Candle In The Wind
Piano Man

It was a fantastic show. Elton never sounded better, and Billy sounded pretty good for having the flu, the reason he had to cancel a couple of shows earlier in the week. Billy did slur a bit sometimes and messed up the words a couple of times, but I'd chalk that up to some strong cough syrup. He also kept waving around an oversized red flyswatter, I don't know if it was buggy up there on stage or if it was some kind of joke.

I hope they continue touring forever, so I can go back again and again.

Sunday: Picked up the kids from the three separate places they spent the night (Diva with a neighbor, Daredevil with his best friend, and #3 from my parents). Then a thunderstorm hit and the power went out, and was out for about 3 hours. I think this should happen more often on the weekends. No TV, no laundry, no appliances. It was very quiet. With #3 down for a nap, I acutally sat and read a book, then took a little nap. Wow! Not to fear, the power came back on and the laundry fest started. And hasn't stopped yet.

By the way, after a few months off the wagon, I've started back up on another weight loss kick, and I've gone back to updating my other blog, Mr. & Mrs. Wannabe Skinny. Check it out!