Bounce Catalogue from Title 9

I love the catalogue Title 9 so when I received their Bounce catalogue, I had to laugh at the cover - "for your girls from the gals at Title 9."It's sometimes hard to find a good bra; a sexy bra that fits gals with bigger girls.

Two brands that I love are Wacoal and Felina.Now if I can only find a really good sports bra. I'm tired of my chin getting black and blue when I work out :)

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A Walk Through the Garden

For as long as I can remember, my dad has been a master gardener! He finds it therapeutic. Especially this past year since my brother's passing. You can read one of my most popular posts on Garden Grief Relief here.

I am always amazed at how everything is brown and then within days, it is all green. Here are some photos from my walk through my dad's garden.BASILGARLICMINTPEARSAGESUNFLOWERThere's much much more I left out - tomatoes, pumpkins, zucchini, cucumber.

The scent of basil and mint will always bring me back to my dad's garden.

What about you? Are you growing anything this summer?


"Gardening requires lots of water.
Most of it in the form of perspiration."
- Lou Erickson

Efficient Blogging on Blogger

Time is precious.

Simple statement but one that I have learned to live by.

When reading my favorite blogs, which are quite numerous, I like to do it in such a way where my time is not wasted.

Mind you, this has nothing to do with a blog's content but rather, how the blog is structured.

Now, all of us would like to have lots of blog traffic but there are some things I have found that make reading blogs very inefficient and time wasters.

If you fall into any of these categories, just an fyi on how you can improve your blog.

#1 - Comment Location - I have my blog set up so that when someone wants to leave a comment, a separate window pops up. The great thing about this Blogger feature is that the reader is not taken away from my blog.

I cannot tell you how many bloggers have the comment field embedded below the post. When done commenting, the reader has to go back to the blog, find the last post they read and then continue on. Why do you want people clicked away from your blog? What if I have lots of comments I want to leave because your blog is so fantastic? All that toggling back and forth is a waste of time.

This is a simple fix on Blogger: Settings . . . Comments . . . Comment Form Placement . . . Chose Pop-Up Window

#2 - Click Here to Read More - Another time waster once again taking your reader away from your blog. I click on Read More and once done reading, I have to click home or the back arrow key to go back to your blog. I see the sands in the hourglass slipping away.

#3 - Link Party Backlink - I love link parties. I have a whole page on my blog dedicated to all of the link parties I visit each day. Some blogs now require a link back to their blog listed in your specific post or the link will not populate. I understand the link party owner's viewpoint that they want to get credit for hosting the blog. But, if I were to list every link party I link to, each post would be pages long. So, if you require a backlink, I won't be partying with you.

#4 - Know your date - It is very easy on Blogger to create blog posts and publish them when you want them to appear on your blog. So, if you say "Happy Wednesday" but you have Tuesday's date listed, it leads the reader to assume that they have read the post and will move on to the next blog.

A simple fix on Blogger: At the end of each blog post, you will see Post Options. Just type in the date and time of when you want the post to appear on your blog.

#5 - Links taking readers away from your blog - Not sure how I can fix this one but rather then set up a link in a post to open in a separate window, some bloggers have it set up (maybe I do too) so that the reader is taken away from your blog and directed to the link's webpage. If someone knows how to fix this, let me know.

I am not a blogger who utilizes all the tech info out there to make my blog fantastic. There may even be some of you who dislike my blog. I get that.

But as someone who reads lots of great blogs, I just wanted to share with you ways to make yours more user-friendly.

Let me know if my suggestions have helped any of you.

"A blog is merely a tool that let's you do anything
from change the world
to share your shopping list."
- Unknown

Happy Summer 2011 from the Single Nester

Seashell Wreath for Summer

It was time to change my wreath from the forsythias of spring to the seashells of summer.

To create my summer wreath, I used a wreath that I have reused quite a bit, some scrap burlap, a glue gun and gorgeous seashells found on my local beach.Here she is.Needing a bit of color, I attached three buoy ornaments found at The Christmas Tree Shop last season for real cheap.I feel it is missing something but I like it.

"Why do we love the sea?
It's because it has some potent power
to make us think things we like to think."
- Robert Henri

The Most Comfortable Shoes You Will Ever Wear - Softspots

What can I say except that Softspots, I love you!

These shoes are the most comfortable shoes I have ever worn!!Purchased at DSW for around $40, these shoes are like walking on clouds. I recently wore them all day while walking through the Hamptons - lunch, shopping, beach.

I can't wait to try some more shoes by Softspots.

I hope you have enjoyed accompanying me through a week of summer shoes from my collection.

I leave you with one of my all-time favorite videos from YouTube. It is a bit racy so viewer beware.

Colorful Patent Leather Sandals for Summer by Impo

Purchased at DSW, one for less than $30 and one for less than $20, these patent leather sandals from Impo are comfortable and I love the pop of color that just completes an outfit.I say this Single Nester needs a date or two to wear all of these hot shoes!

If You Have Wide Feet, Anne Klein Shoes are for You

Once I find shoes that fit, I tend to get them in a few colors.

That was no exception when at Lord and Taylor, I spotted the most comfortable pair of flats from Anne Klein and Anne Klein Sport. Each purchased at various times in the last few months and each for less than $40.

Black sparkly.Pewter.
Gold bling.I walked through many city blocks with these flats and I felt stylish while still be comfortable.


"Adornment is never anything
except a reflection of the heart."
- Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel

How About a Little Gold Bling for Shoes - Enzo Angiolini and Nina

Forget Dorothy and her ruby red shoes.

Let's hear it for a nice gold glittery pair!

These shoes by Nina are so hot and sexy. I purchased them at Lord and Taylor for less than $40.Enzo Angiolini are up next. Purchased at Lord and Taylor also for less than $40. I love the platform.Another Lord and Taylor purchase this time for less than $30 from Enzo Angiolini.Who doesn't love a little bling on your feet?

How about you? Do you have sparkly pairs sitting in your closet?


"Fashion can be bought.
Style one must possess."
- Edna Woolman Chase

My Love Hate Relationship with Shoes

I love shoes. I hear Celine Dion has tons. I wish I had the money to have said shoe collection. image

But in reality, I wish I had different feet.

Since I was little, I squished my feet into shoes that did not fit. There were not a lot of fashionable choices out there in wide widths. Even today, there are not a heck of a lot.

I dream of heading to Italy to have a mold made of my feet so I can order shoes on a whim.

I once wished to never lose a pound just to have "regular size" feet.

But, as time goes by and I have become more of myself, I have grown to love my feet. I've even received compliments from men and women about my feet.

Life is too short to wear shoes that do not fit. So these past few years, I have really thought long and hard about the shoes I purchase.

All week, I will share with you some of my favorite and most recent purchases. I have about 80 pairs but who's counting. Here is a recent purchase from Nine West. They were under $40 and are so sexy. They are my FM pumps. If you can guess what FM stands for, shoot me an email ;)Next up are a recent purchase from DSW. They are so comfortable and are my first purchase by Sofft but will not be my last. They were wide width too!Next up is a comfortable espadrille from White Mountain followed by a sweet pair from Nine West.Share with me your favorite shoes and if you have trouble like me, in finding a sexy shoe that fits.

"It's not what you wear,
it's how you take it off."
- Author Unknown

Weekend Thoughts

AFSP Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk NYC 2011

This past weekend, I did the hardest physical thing I have ever done - I walked 18 miles through the night in memory of my brother and in support of suicide prevention.

Starting at 7:30pm on Saturday and ending at 3:30am, I and over 2000 walkers, walked through Brooklyn and Manhattan. It was an amazing experience, one that was difficult but one I will never forget.

When I arrived, there were a sea of people and all you saw were the faces of their loved ones printed on their shirts. My niece and I wore gold (my brother's favorite color) t-shirts with blue lettering. It said very simply, I walk in memory of my brother Joey.

After registering, dropping off our luminaria bags decorated with personal messages for our loved ones and after picking up our different colored beads depending on whom you lost, we got ready for the walk to begin.

We stretched, listened to some fellow walkers including actress Mariel Hemingway and off we went at 7:30pm.Along the Brooklyn Promenade for a spectacular view of downtown Manhattan and over the Brooklyn Bridge. It was just beautiful. Down past City Hall, Ground Zero, along the East River and Staten Island Ferry and Battery Park.Somewhere near mile 7, a girl in her 20s stopped me and said, "I've been looking at your shirt and I just want to say that I'm walking for my brother Joey too." We cried and hugged. This was what the whole walk was about. Sharing your feelings and showing support for fellow survivors. It was truly an awe-inspiring and comforting experience.

We passed many NYPD, volunteers and just general New Yorkers cheering us along the route.

At midnight, we stopped at mile 10 for our midnight meal and off we went. Through 57th Street and down to SoHo, China Town, Little Italy and back over the Brooklyn Bridge.

The incline heading back to Brooklyn on the bridge was very hard and funny enough, it was my niece who had to stop for a minute.

The last several miles were hard but we made it. At the finish line we were cheered on by our family and the last hundred or so yards were illuminated with all of the candle bags each walker had made for our loved ones, symbolizing how the light of our loved ones will never be extinguished. It was hard to see so many bags representing so many loved ones lost to suicide. I found the bag I made for my brother - front and center on the stage just how he would've liked.There were several times I thought I would not make it. In fact, many did not. They wound up taking transportation back to the closing ceremonies.

My body was aching so bad. With the exception of a few bathroom breaks and a 10-minute meal, we walked non-stop ending at 3:30am - 18 miles in 8 hours.

Over $2.5 million dollars was raised, the highest ever in the 10-year history of the Out of the Darkness Overnight Walks.

Hopefully, we can help lift the stigma associated with suicide and depression and help others to not suffer the same fate my brother and so many others have.

Here and here are two links to some articles and photos about the walk.

Weekend Thoughts

After a rather stressful few weeks, I thought sharing this thought with you was oh so appropriate.

Proud to be an American

Memorial Day got me thinking about something my cousin Monica said.

She was visiting from Bologna, Italy and she said that she was surprised that so many people had American flags hanging outside their homes.

In Italy, this is not done (except when Italy wins the World Cup :)

Made me proud to be an American and to see Betsy Ross's creation flying high.image