Awesome things: Lush bath bombs and bubble bars.

A few years ago—and oh, God, at this point it was probably six or seven years; HelloI'mOld.com—I went through a major obsession with Lush Cosmetics. I blame it on my friend Hayley. You see, Hayley is the person who introduced me to Lush and who fanned the flame of a soap phase so intense that I actually, on numerous occasions, drove 30 minutes to Orlando International Airport—the only place within 50 miles, at the time, where it was possible to buy Lush products—to pick up pounds of bath items. I am not kidding. It was bad for my wallet—I was a few months post-graduation and working part-time at Office Depot back in early 2006—but good for my soul (especially because it meant I got to see Hayley). And my skin. I smelled delightful, you guys.

After I moved to Sarasota in September of that year, my Lush obsession quickly faded—it was nearly impossible to get my hands on the stuff; I would have had to drive to Orlando or pay exorbitant shipping fees if I bought online. But I still loved the producs and what the company stands for—they're passionately anti-animal testing and all of their products are vegetarian, if not vegan—and whenever I was near a store, I'd pick up a bar of soap or some other yummy-smelling bath item. I'm not a big bath-taker—I'm much more a shower girl—so using a bubble bar or bath bomb felt incredibly luxurious. I liked that.

Fast forward to a few days ago: I was at the International Mall in Tampa and while ACS attended a business meeting, I (ahem) went shopping. I got a polka dot shirt (of course) on sale at Zara; I browsed the racks at J.Crew...and then I smelled that unmistakable floral scent. Lush was nearby.

Of course, I couldn't help myself, especially since my birthday was the next day: I walked in and headed straight for the bath bombs, wishing Hayley was with me, too. And one huge, round pink bath bomb and a floral-scented bubble bar later, I walked out of the store with a giant grin on my face. It's the simple things, sometimes, isn't it?

I haven't used either of the products yet; they're still nestled in their little bag. I'm saving them for a special occasion. Maybe I'll use one this weekend, and drink a glass of wine and read my new book. Who knows?