Skip the Checkout Line & Save Trees

This store's opening was one of the biggest blockbusters in my part of town.  No more driving through major traffic to Costa Mesa, this retailer opened at The Outlets in Orange earlier this month.

One of the services they offered piqued my curiosity.  You don't have to stand in line to pay for your purchases, find anyone in a green shirt and they can ring you up.

I was celebrating paying off a big purchase last night and allowed myself one treat.  I picked a top I really loved and then found someone in a green shirt.  The very helpful lady scanned the bar code on my top's tag and checked me out using a mobile phone!  The best part - I didn't have to wait in line and we didn't miss the first part of our movie.

I was researching this technology for my husband's massage practice and I enjoyed seeing it in action.  And in honor of Earth Hour, the feature I most appreciated was the option to just get your receipt emailed to you.  It's a little slip of paper, but it adds up and you'll probably just throw it out anyway or lose it when you need it for tax time.  This way you can save your receipt and save trees in the process.

Thank you, Nordstrom Rack - for your innovative checkout process that's environmentally friendly too!

Sunscreen for Your Eyes

I work on a computer all day and I use the internet as a means to communicate with family and friends in social networks as well as find the recipes I bake.  My eyes are very important to the life I live and taking better care of them is a resolution I have recently adopted.

I've worn glasses since seventh grade when I first discovered how bad my vision really was.  I am near-sighted and I have astigmatism.  I have never adjusted to wearing contact lenses, they are too high maintenance for me.  The only drawback to not wearing contacts is that I find it difficult to wear sunglasses to protect my eyes from the sun.

When I had my glasses replaced early this month I decided to get Transitions lenses.  My work makes me very prone to eye strain.  I sit by a massive glass window at the office and at around 4 PM, the sun shines directly into my eyes.  I love going outdoors on sunny days, sightseeing is one of my favorite pastimes.  My eyes are always working extra hard for me and I decided it was time to protect it.

I've been wearing my Transition lenses for over two weeks now and I love them!  I barely notice when I go from a well-lit place to an overly bright place like outdoors because my lenses adapt to the changing light.  I just see the world in the same way, in the same light.  I haven't had eye strain since I got the lenses and have not been blinded by the sun either.  They are light weight and fit perfectly into my favorite eye glass frame.  They are slightly more expensive than regular lenses, but they are definitely worth it.

My eyes are very important to me and Transitions lenses help me take better care of them.  I would recommend these lenses to all my friends who need to wear glasses and love spending time outdoors!  This is definitely a great product, I give Transitions lenses two thumbs up.

The Little Donut Shop in Anaheim

It was a cold Saturday night in March, we were at a kid's birthday after-party (where the adults ate "grown-up" food like freshly grilled tuna, goat adobo and chopsuey) when they mentioned this famous donut place near where we live (that we had never heard of).

It's off of Katella and Euclid, the man said.  The place opens at 9 PM and closes at 11 AM daily.  He said that even with the odd hours there is always a line for their blueberry donuts.  A line so long that one person who queues up can only buy two dozen blueberry donuts.  We were at the party until around 1 AM, both my husband and I were intrigued by this little donut shop that we had never heard about.

We decided to drive to it before going home and find out if what the man was saying is true.  We almost missed it, it was a small take-out only donut shop in front of Food 4 Less.  It was the only stall that had a lot of cars parked around it at 2 AM.  There was a line of more than a dozen people out front, a drive thru line of maybe ten cars and this delicious smell of blueberries that wafted out the window.

One lesson my husband and I learned while living in LA, if people line up to buy it at odd hours of the night/morning then it must be good so we happily investigated if our theory still holds true.  Two other groups of people behind us shared that it was their first time to try the donuts and that friends had told them about it as well (word-of-mouth advertising is alive and well in Southern California).  We stood in the cold for about 15-30 minutes, but oh man the blueberry donuts were definitely worth the wait!

It has no icing or glaze and it doesn't have a bread-like consistency.  It has a crunch that's not cookie-like, it's like a muffin but it's not.  You can taste and smell the blueberries in the delectable donut.  You have to take a bite of it to understand... Delicious!

There are people who come all the way from San Diego and Los Angeles to get these blueberry donuts.  I would recommend this to anyone who ever visits Southern California!  The line is an experience in itself.  I'm definitely taking my nieces to this place when they come visit from New Zealand. M&M Donuts in front of Food 4 Less near the corner of Euclid and Katella in Anaheim, definitely the place to be when you're craving sugar at 2 in the morning!

Happy eating, my friends!

The User-Friendly Espresso Machine

It all started with a cup of great espresso at a friend's home and another and another...  My husband talked about the coffee for days on end.  Nespresso had that creamy goodness that just felt like home.

I watched my friend make coffees at parties she would have and loved the ease of using the machine.  It did not have the scary pressurized steam like the espresso machines we had at home that I could never use.  And it had the lovely milk frother whose resulting cream I can actually use on my baked treats and desserts.  I was sold - if only it didn't cost over $300!

My husband and I almost never pay full price on anything, but we manage to get the quality equipment we want.  I got this machine at a great deal on Amazon Warehouse Deals.  It came in the original box, had the serial number on the machine and the sampler set of coffee flavors in tact.

It's a splurge, yes, but when I think about it - the fact that I can get a cup of espresso for around 50 cents instead of around $2 at our local coffee shop means I can save money in the long run.  It's the perfect beverage for my baked goods!  Now if only we had this machine at the office, I would join the line at the coffee machines for sure.

A great product from a brand I grew up with.  Good job, Nestle!

Navigating Frequent Flyer Programs

Virgin America's Elevate!
Loyalty Program

We flew to New Zealand on Virgin Australia last January.  I was advised to sign up for their frequent flyer program by friends and family so I went to Virgin Australia's site and found out that unless you were a resident of Australia, New Zealand or nearby countries you do not qualify to join.  I thought that was very unfair, after all if I choose to fly back to Australia in the future there was a big possibility that I would fly on Virgin Australia again, but I didn't really know how to proceed at that point.

Until our family friend who used to be a travel agent encouraged me to try and sign up again.  This time I tried researching Virgin America's frequent flyer program.  And of course, I should have signed up with them and then claimed my points for their partner airline there.  This is what happens when your mom handles all your travel arrangements growing up and you never ask her how she does it!

Since they honored previous flights from up to 6 months ago, I signed up and was instructed to send an email with either my scanned boarding pass or the confirmation email sent to me.  Their representative told me that they would add my mileage from California to Australia as per their agreement with their partner airline.  All is not lost!

So for all you newbie long haul travelers, if you're flying on an airline that doesn't accept members from the country you are from - try their partner airline's frequent flyer program.  Don't lose those precious points that you can use for future travel!

Happy journeys, my friends!