Weekly Slice #3

Happy May 26 to those who 🤡

I love how I was super excited about starting a Substack and writing and sharing and being more personal again, and I was full of ideas, and then my life said haha HOLD MY BEER and well, now here we are.

Mel is home, and he’s recovering. It’ll be awhile before he’s independent; he’s hooked up to a machine and is very weak, making it hard for him to get around, but he’s home. We’re all happier now, even Abby, who punished him for 3 days and is finally acknowledging his existence again (sort of).

I haven’t baked in 3 weeks and I’ve done the most minimal amount of work I needed to so part of me is excited to have more of a homebody routine and part of me is resisting returning to “normal,” whatever that may be now.

I’m the support of my family, which is a huge blessing and also a curse, meaning that I don’t have the luxury of just letting the blog run itself for awhile. Thank god for my amazing assistants who have kept stuff going behind the scenes - but now I need to put more than 1% back into my work life…even if it’s 90% still from the couch, Mel next to me, random shows on TV and the gurgle of a wound vac running in the background. And also, the sound of Abby growls and howls because the Amazon person is here (again).

What YOU Should Bake This Week (‘cuz it ain’t gonna be me)

• Lemon Shortbread Cookies

• Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

• Fruity Pebble Rice Crispy Treats (fruity pebbles are currently my comfort food)

• Gooey Oreo Cookie Bars

• No Bake S’mores Bars

I read a book!

I know right? I shocked even myself. On the advice of Julie and my daughter, Jordan, I read Carley Fortune’s new book One Golden Summer. It was so good, 5 stars, read in about 2 days. See it on Amazon

Mel’s Jordan’s Cardboard Pile

I’ve been doing an insane amount of shopping, but most of it isn’t very fun (i.e. a walker and gloves, pill boxes and vitamins) but I have gotten a few things lately I wanted to share:

Dry Shampoo
I’ve been on the hunt for a new dry shampoo for months. I used Dry Bar exclusively for YEARS until they recently changed the formula which caused me to go into a deep dirty hair depression. I have, quite possibly, tried everything out there to find one I like, and spent an absurd amount of money on them too. Here are my favorites:

• Budget Option: Batiste Bare. It’s a good option, is a spray, smells neutral, and does the job. Is it my favorite of the three? No. Is it my favorite drugstore option? YES. Is it the most affordable? Yes, and you can find it almost anywhere.

• Salon Option: Bumble & Bumble Pret a Powder (not the spray). I’ve loved B&B for a really long time but rarely want to fork out the cash for it. Whenever I do, I love the product. The powder option is fantastic, doesn’t smell, and it’s not super cheap, but I seem to use up powder slower than spray. This was my go-to until a friend introduced me to the luxury model, which I kind of hate and love her for.

• Luxury Model: Crown Affair powder. It’s pricey but I can tell it’s going to last a long time. The scent is nice and I’ve even been complimented at how nice my hair smells. My favorite part is that it comes with a brush for application. It lasts too - I can go my normal 3 days between washes and my hair doesn’t feel gross until all of a sudden it does, if you know what I mean. For me, it’s worth the price, because I cannot stand washing my hair and want to do it as little as possible.

Electrolytes
I am kind of an electrolyte snob - I’ve tried so many brands and I always go back to Liquid IV - until now. HydroMate Fruit Punch is SUPERIOR! It’s low sugar, has great flavor, no weird aftertaste. It’s on subscribe and save now.

There’s more but I’ll save something for next week.

Last Random Thoughts

• Does anyone else’s dog watch TV? Abby loves TV - especially commercials and HGTV house hunting shows. You never know how many dogs are in commercials until you’re watching TV with Abby. She knows when the commercials start and watches for them - so she can bark like a tough girl at every animal she sees. IRL she cowers behind me whenever she sees another animal, FYI.

• Cheez-It’s are superior to all other crackers.

• It’s May 26. Are we all clowning or is it just me? 26 rep mentions, she was 26 during the rep era, the grid is aligned, she’s got a scheduled IG post….this is probably the 26th time we’ve clowned since 2022…fingers crossed?

See you soon,
Dorothy