Do nighttime routines work? Sleep is more than just a time for your body to rest. This is the time when your bodily functions are actually pressing their own reset button. All of your systems slow down and your muscles and organs work to repair and restore themselves. So it’s important that you have a bedtime routine to prepare your body for all this work it has to do while you’re sleeping. Just make yourself …
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I’m a bit of an expert on this topic. St. Augustine is where I live. My backyard. My home base. My playground. And I hang out with my friends here all the time. The city is full of history, amazing food, great craft cocktails, quaint hotels and an overall charm that makes it the perfect getaway for families or a group of friends traveling together. If you’re wondering what to do in St. Augustine, I’ve …
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It’s heartbreaking to think about all the animals sitting in shelters these days, especially due to overcrowding. But there are some ways you can help homeless animals and brighten their day. If you’re shopping, consider picking up some discounted pet toys and donate them to your local animal shelter. You don’t even have to make a special shopping trip – just grab some pet toys on sale at your grocery store, big box store, or …
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After the laborious, and quite frankly, sad, task of cleaning out my mother’s home when she passed away, it got me thinking about all of my own stuff and how to alleviate this burden for my own children. My mother’s aneurysm incapacitated her quickly which meant she had no time to “get her affairs in order.” So dealing with disorganization in the midst of downsizing was challenging. If you’re facing that daunting task of decluttering …
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When my kids were young, just 7 and 9, we moved to Italy because I wanted them to see the world and realize that there is so much beyond the U.S. In our 2+ short years there, we traveled extensively throughout Europe seeing so many countries and experiencing so many cultures. I spent a lot of time looking for the best family vacation ideas. People, including the headmaster at my kids’ school, could not understand …
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True confession: an African safari was not on my bucket list. Not because I didn’t want to go, but the logistics of planning such a trip were dizzying for me. Long (and expensive) flights. Health and vaccination requirements. Logistics of getting around in a foreign country. Not knowing the African safari hunt cost. Not to mention finding someone to mind the pets for an extended period. But when my brother suggested this as a special …
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While most visitors to Northern Italy flock to Lake Como in hopes of catching a glimpse of the island’s most famous resident, George Clooney, many are missing out on what is truly the region’s most impressive lake, Lago Maggiore. And over the years, those who’ve followed my advice to choose Lake Maggiore vs. Lake Como, still thank me for introducing them to this surprising destination in Italy’s lake region. Surrounded by mountains and a rigid …
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My travel style has certainly evolved over the years. And while I’ll never turn down a stay in a luxury hotel, I have found that I prefer to stay in independent accommodations when I travel to Italy. We go to Italy every year and always opt to rent a villa in Tuscany or Umbria or anywhere we decide to go. When we moved to Milan, our first month I decided to rent a villa in …
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I’m just a girl, staring at a bowl of soup, wishing it to be an Italian sub. Consider this my PSA in how to survive the ProLon fasting mimicking diet, and especially Prolon Day 1. I’m now on my second ProLon experience and I’m a convert. (This is not a paid post – I purchased the program on my own = honesty!) I was interested in trying it for a couple of reasons. First, I …
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I took advantage of this quarantine to create a morning routine and I’ve been pretty good about sticking with it three years later. I read how top CEOs, busy executives, and just really cool people like Shonda Rhimes and Oprah both have healthy morning habits. And since I too often find myself, cup of coffee in hand, sucked into the social media blackhole arguing with nitwits on Facebook while my poor dog stands next to …