Blog Posts by The_Stir

La Perla

Confession: I buy almost all of my lingerie at TJ Maxx and Marshalls.

Over time, I've amassed a decent collection of brand-name lingerie at rock-bottom prices.

But if I'm honest, I've always dreamed of having a drawer full of La Perla and Agent Provocateur underthings -- bras and panties that cost far more than I'm accustomed to paying, like this lovely $230 La Perla bra to your left.

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I always imagined that this kind of lingerie costs so much because it feels like pure luxury against your skin -- or better yet, nothing at all.

I didn't think I'd be able to justify the price tag of La Perla any time soon -- but then Gilt Groupe, the invitation-only flash sale site (you can get an invitation here if you want to check it out), had a La Perla sale. With credit I had stored up, I bought myself a bra and and panty set. Total price at deep discount: $150.

Want to know what I

Peanut Butter SnickersWhen it comes to candy combinations, chocolate and peanut butter reign supreme. And since it was first introduced to Americans in 1928, the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup has been delivering it up well in its neat orange packages.

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Many other candy makers have offered their own versions, adding ingredients and varieties and morphing it into various shapes and forms over the years. But the question remains: Can anything taste better than a Reese's Butter Cup? We put some of the top candies to a taste test in search of an answer. Here's what we found:

Snickers Peanut Butter

First up, the newest treat to hit the market. Described as: 2 squares filled with peanut butter, peanuts, caramel, and nougat, covered in milk chocolate. Basically, it's a Snickers with a thin layer of peanut butter added.

Verdict: It's good, especially because of all the salty peanuts, though the combination of peanut butter and caramel

I thought I'd settled into a pretty good routine balancing out work and home life. The whole family was getting up at the same time every morning, and while the kids were having breakfast and some morning play time, I would grab my coffee and settle into my first article of the day.

The problem was, that's when everything would pretty much go to hell.

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My toddler would climb into my lap and joyously smash his cereal-sticky fingers into my keyboard.

My 5-year-old would poke his head in to ask, "Hey, hey, hey Mom? Hey Mom? Hey? Mom? Hey, what goes faster, a subway or a bus? I think a JET but anyway, Mom? Subway or bus?"

The toddler would demand a viewing of his favorite Internet video, the one with the hedgehogs running around with their heads stuck in toilet paper tubes, and when I said no honey we'll do that later, he'd weep angrily, kick my chair, then run off to the other end of the house to

worst housewarming giftsWhen my husband and I got married, we received a wedding gift that we really, really wanted to return. The problem was it was a work of "art," and rather than trying to sort out what gallery might accept it back into its own home, we tried instead to pawn it off on my in-laws. They managed to sneak it back into our suitcase before we left, and ever since then the wooden couple having sex has remained closeted in our home, never to see the light of day.

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Curbed turned me onto the website Why Did You Buy Me That? where people on the receiving end of crap go to share their tales, and came up with some of the best (worst) house accessories ever given as gifts. Which is making me re-think my less than generous assessment of our wedding gift. Upside down horse as wine holder, anyone?

So I did a search myself and found some even more frightening house gifts. Check out these other gems from Why Did You Buy

Is Jenny McCarthy afraid to be by herself? Since her five-year relationship with Jim Carrey ended last April, McCarthy seems to be spending a fair amount of time looking for love.

On New Year's Eve, she was spotted smooching with her new boyfriend, Paul Krepelka. They've been dating for a few weeks. Krepelka is a sports attorney from Boston who works for the Orr Hockey Group as an NHL players agent.

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This relationship started not long after McCarthy and Las Vegas-based bodybuilder/entrepreneur Jason Toohey broke up after four months together.

McCarthy started seeing Toohey in June, a few months after her breakup with Carrey, even moving in to his apartment in Las Vegas for a while because her house in Los Angeles was being renovated.

Funny man, bodybuilder and now NHL agent. At least she's varying her types. But I'm not too optimistic about her future with Krepelka. It seems to me, after being in a

M.A.C.For years, I had a very nice set of M.A.C. makeup brushes. But when they started getting worn recently, I replaced them with cheapo makeup brushes from Target.

After all, what was the difference, besides price? Both used synthetic bristles, and the cheap makup brushes looked pretty much identical to the expensive ones.

It wasn't long after I started using the cheap brushes that I realized it was taking me twice as long to do my makeup, and I wasn't very happy with the results.

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And so when M.A.C. offered free overnight shipping a few weeks ago, I bit the bullet and invested in three nice, new makeup brushes, determined to find out once and for all whether expensive makeup brushes really were worth splurging on. One day later, they arrived and I got my answer.

YES.

Oh, yes, yes, yes!

My new makeup brushes have been dreamy. My eyeshadow, brushed on with a luxe new eyeshadow

Think you're fit? Are you the master of your diet destiny? Confident that you make mostly smart decisions about food?

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A new poll from Consumer Reports says that close to 90 percent of Americans claim to eat a healthy diet, but most of us may be giving ourselves more credit than we deserve.

Of those surveyed, only 15 percent actually counted calories and only 58 percent ate the recommended five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Roughly 30 percent who say they "carefully limit sugar" actually slurp up a sugar-sweetened drink most days. And 10 percent who say they "strictly limit their fat" had bacon or another fatty meat for breakfast.

This is sad and pathetic news, people. It's this very same delusional way of thinking that has our country pushing higher and higher obesity rates every year. Just as with alcoholism, drug addiction or any other chronic issue, admitting you have a problem is the first step to

Oh headaches, how well you have served us. When he came to bed after not brushing his teeth and actually expected us to enjoy making out. When he acted like an insensitive butthead after our favorite pair of jeans wouldn't button ... and then expected us to get nekkid in front of him. You've been such a good friend to us that it's time to give you a break, oh favored get-out-of-sex-free card.

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A new study has determined that when a guy finds a woman crying, he automatically reads it as a "no sex" signal, and he suffers a testosterone dip. She doesn't have to say a word! Quick, hide your laptop from your guy so he doesn't see this. We're going to let you in on a little secret.

Technically the study said they had men "smell" the tears (I'm not even going to ask how they accomplished this), so you'd assume guys could tell the difference. But how many men do you know who want to get close to you when you're crying? And