I recently returned from a two-month trip to Southeast Asia. It was a blast -- but I missed my dog tremendously. However, this year, for the first time ever, I was able to keep track of my dog's fitness and sleep, even from the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia, with the help of her FitBark.

This is important, not only because I care about her health... but also because I celebrate my return to the States every year with an epic girl-and-her-dog backpacking adventure, so she's got to stay in shape while I'm gone!

In a recent post about the ways in which I'm WAY healthier when I travel than I am at home, I totally fangirled out on Bath and Body Works hand soaps. So hardcore that someone actually asked in the comments, "Is this a product review?"

No, it was not... But this is. A lifelong lover of anything lavender (wine, deodorant, latte -- and, of course, essential oils), I was delighted to receive a PtahTex ColdAroma Pure Essential Oil Diffuser Introductory Kit for product review.

Play expert and game inventor Andrea Cuadra shares her favorite board games.
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My "thing" is playfulness -- which, according to dozens of young adults who participated in my research, often involves being silly. Makes sense. I love being silly! But sometimes, it's hard, right? Because it's easy to worry what people think?

I've written about three proven ways to stop caring what others think. Here's a fourth: find a legit excuse to be silly. Like... the entire month of October. Which ends in one of my favorite holidays: Halloween!

To that end, here are some perfectly silly and amazing Halloween shoes. 

Oh. My. Goodness. 

​Amazon's got this great little page called Interesting Finds, where they show you cute urban home and clothing items. They claim it's "updated daily," though I feel like I mostly see the exact same stuff every time I visit...

Until today, when I discovered Hot Chocolate Design, a Venezuelan shoe brand created by Carolina Aguerrevere and Pablo Martinez.

I ordered my FitBark (yes, it's a "FitBit for dogs") because I wanted to track Ruby Snoofer's activity. She's 11, and I wanted to make sure that a) she gets enough exercise when we're at home... and b) when we're out hiking or camping or backpacking, she's not getting too much.

I never imagined my FitBark, a tiny activity monitor that dogs can wear on their collar, would help me solve a mystery.

Basketball is a huge part of my life. I play several nights a week -- I'm even playing in a tournament this weekend! I've used basketball as a way to integrate into a new culture when I travel, and I've even made housing decisions around good pickup games. 

I consider myself quite knowledgeable about the game. But here's something I didn't know until last night: playing basketball in basketball socks -- as opposed to, say, biking socks -- actually makes a huge difference.

I know that most people aren't into mushy, over-the-top love stuff like I am. BUT IF YOU ARE! I Like You, I Love You, by Carissa Potter,  is an adorable "extended Valentine" you might really enjoy. 

Because, first of all, that cover is hilarious and amazing. (Even though I definitely wouldn't wear lacy underwear for someone I only liked -- it's still funny.)

I recently wrote 8 Good Reasons to Spend MORE, Not LESS, Money. If I were to go back and add a 9th reason, it would be: you only have one pair of feet.

In fact, if you're going to ignore everything in that whole blog post except for one thing, it should be that. It'a hard to be happy when you don't have healthy feet.