If the stores near you are anything at all like the stores near me, they had their Christmas decorations up for sale before they even put out the Halloween stuff. I was shocked when I walked into my local Target and saw this. When I was young, Thanksgiving was the marker and store did not put out the Christmas gear until after the turkey. So, now I’m thinking a lot about the Christmas decorations out in the garage.

I took most of the Christmas decorations after my divorce. I came into my marriage with most it, in fact. My tree lights are pretty old and as much as I like them, they are starting to get pretty hot if I leave them on for very long. Safety is an issue in our home, because I want to keep my family as safe as possible. You can buy LED mini lights for your tree now and that makes me feel great.

The LED mini lights are 80% more efficient than standard incandescent mini-lights. Plus, a LED mini light lasts about 50,000 hours. Your typical light lasts about 2000 hours. That’s enough of a difference to make me switch out all of my holiday lights. Just think about a world where everyone used LED lights for holiday decorating. I have read reports that talk about the energy spikes around Christmas due to decorating with lights. It’s just about as green as you can get and still use lights on your tree.

HolidayLEDs mini lights are even perfect for outdoor use. The lights come in a variety of colors and there is even the cutest white snowflake light. I like that one the best.

My Star Fruit tree is keeping me more than supplied with ripe fruit. In fact, I am just now sitting down from finishing the starts of the first Star Fruit I will dehydrate this season. Dried star fruit makes an amazing snack for when you are on the go. The flavor intensifies and although the slices shrink, they still retain their charming star-shape.

Make sure you dry only ripe fruit. Don’t purchase over-ripe fruit either. I’ve seen local produce markets around here trying to sell browning fruit for $1 each. Once a star fruit over-ripen, its flavor is slightly fermented and altogether unpleasant.

Dried star fruit (or carambola) is not only a great snack; it can be mixed into trail mix or sprinkled on salads as a garnish. When you are preparing old-fashioned Christmas tree decorations, don’t forget to add dried star fruit to your garland, along with the dried apples you are stringing with the popcorn and cranberries. It adds such a festive look.

I have not seen my daughter since Thursday morning. It was her weekend with her father. I thought perhaps she and I could go see a movie when I pick her up from school this afternoon.

Naturally, I checked to see what was playing. She has already seen The Game Plan twice. It is PG-Rated, but was perfectly appropriate. The only G-Rated film I even see in the entire Tampa area is Mr. Bean’s Holiday and I am sure that will go over her head.

Other than those two films, the only movies with even a PG rating are “The Seeker” (which may be too intense for her), the documentary “Sharkwater” (which will absolutely frighten her) and “Hairspray” (which she very well may love, but I’m not thrilled about seeing.

Again, Mr. Bean has the ONLY G-rating of the entire lot. My daughter is 4. Not all PG films are going to be OK for her. PG-13 and R films are absolutely not going to happen. It’s a virtual wasteland out there if you want to take a young child to see a movie.

I am sure things will shape of around Christmas, but why do the movie studios think that the only time children want to see movies are summer and Christmas? Do they think we shut them up I the house with old Barney reruns for the rest of the year?

My daughter is just as valuable as a marketing target as the next person. In fact, she is probably more relentless in asking me to buy things for her than a child between the ages of 10 and 15. If she sees a film, she wants everything out there associated with it. She may not have her own money to spend, but she wears me down more often than not. Isn’t that valuable to marketers?

I’ll think about Hairspray. Gigi loved the two High School Musical movies, so another film in the same genre might hold her attention. More likely, I will just bring her home and save my money.

I am a very lucky girl, indeed. October is breast cancer awareness month and I have so much to celebrate! My paternal grandmother is a TWO-time survivor of breast cancer. She had it back in the 60s and again in the 70s, when medicine was nothing like today. That she is still alive is a testament to her strength. Three years ago, my aunt was also diagnosed with breast cancer. It was hard for my grandmother to watch her own daughter battle the same illness, but my aunt’s strength also prevailed.

My grandmother and my aunt are both vibrantly alive.

I’m at risk, of course, but due to their diligence, I knew to start mammograms early.

October has become the month to celebrate pink. It is thrilling to see pink everywhere you look! What it means is that people everywhere understand the fight against breast cancer. Pashmina International has a whole line of pink pashmina scarves that also serve to support breast cancer research. You can find anything from a delicate, carnation pink scarf to their special hot pink pashmina. In October, Pashmina International donates a full 10% of their sales of pink scarves to help battle breast cancer. It’s a beautiful thing.

Pink rocks anyway, but this month is the time to go all out and splash pink everywhere you go. Make a statement. I even get my daughter in on the celebration and quest for awareness. She is a vital part of the women in our family, even if she is only 4 right now. She can look to my grandmother and my aunt and see the heritage of strength in our family. I’d love to take one of these cozy pink pashminas and fashion a little wrap-around skirt for Gigi. Whenever she wears something particularly striking in public, people stop to compliment her. That would be a fantastic opportunity to teach her how to tell people her skirt is a celebration of life and a tribute to the fight against breast cancer.

I also want to take this opportunity to remind everyone that breast cancer is not only a women’s disease. Countless men suffer needlessly each year as well. Get the word out!

Seriously, who hasn’t see National Lampoon’s Vacation with Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo, and Michael Anthony Hall (as well as the delightful Imogene Coca and Randy Quaid)? How can you forget when Clark Griswold tied the dog the dog to the back of the station wagon and then drove off? It was uncomfortably comedic, but it was also fiction. Not so for Maria Alvizo of Riverview, Florida.

Alvizo was pulled over by a Hillsborough County deputy this morning, because the deputy noticed she was dragging a leashed dog from the bumper of her moving Ford F-150.

The dog, sometimes called Blacky or Junior, was a stray that Alvizo said her family had been feeding. She alleged that a member of her family tied it to the bumper this morning so it would not follow the children to the bus stop. Alvizo said she did not know the dog was tied to the bumper of her pickup when she left for work this morning.

As crazy as all of this sounds, it also seems irresponsible not to at least look at your vehicle before taking off. And, how loud is your stereo to not hear a dog bouncing off the road behind you for 3 or 4 miles? I’m sure the poor thing cried and tried to keep up at first.

Reports say that no charges will be filed. I’m not so sure I agree with the decision. Who ties an animal to a car bumper? Apparently not just Clark Griswold.

I’ve never quite understood why a handful of people at recording companies decide who is going to be the next artist to have the opportunity to sign a recording contract. It seems to me that the public, those of us who actually shell out the bucks for the albums and concerts, should be the ones calling the shots. How does some small, select team of people know what the masses really want?

Algeka is a new website that supports my theory. It’s a place for unsigned artists to gain exposure and attract a new audience. The site accepts music video uploads from all over the world so that you and I (the audience) can check out new artists and emerging music videos. 30-second previews of the videos are free, but if you like a particular piece, you can download videos for $1.99 and MP3 audio files for 99 cents.

The listeners get fresh music for a fair price and the artist gets 20% of the proceeds. Plus, Algeka uses a system that shows you real-time stats to the music people are listening to the most. It’s an invaluable tool for the aspiring singer/songwriters out there. If you have original music you want to break out and give the world, Algeka gives you an ideal platform. As a music lover, I like the idea of scouting my own new music.

I’m having a blast poking around on the site. A lot of the stuff is rough, but there is absolutely talent lurking. Granted, some of the videos aren’t ready for prime time, so to speak, but that’s the whole point. This is raw, real, soulful art. I came across a video by Juliana Zhao and although it is not in English as stated, it’s still stirred me. Actually, I’m going to log off of here now and spend some more time browsing the videos.

One of my daughter’s favorite books for me to read to her was also one of my favorite books when I was little. It is called The Very Friendly Alligator and it is one of those books you can have personalized. I loved that my name was in the book, my address, and even the names of my little sister and one of my cousins.

Well, this weekend a book arrived at the house called Little Mermaid. I ordered it for Gigi and it’s a personalized book. I’m genuinely excited about giving it to her. I was hoping I would have the will power to wait until Christmas, but I am pretty sure I will hand it to her when she gets home from school tomorrow. Hopefully, one day she will read her personalized books AND my personalized book to her own children.