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Along with its comforting, rich scent, pumpkin contains powerful enzymes and antioxidants, including vitamin A, vitamin C and zinc, which heal and rejuvenate the skin. Pumpkin's healing enzymes leave you glowing and refreshed. We're dying to try the Pumpkin Enzyme Facial and Body Treatment, $190 at Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa.

Here are other pumpkin products that celebrate the arrival of fall:

--For your lips, try Stila Lip Glaze in Pumpkin Spice, $20 at Sephora.

--Shower happy with Philosophy Pumpkin Pie three-in-one shampoo, bubble bath and body wash, $16 at Philosophy, Sephora and Nordstrom.

--Bring dessert to the bathtub with this Pumpkin Pie Paradise exfoliating scrub, $12 at Bath & Body Works.

--This baby-licious hand-knit pumpkin hat was made by local artist Lynne Bonnell, $40 at Frances.

--Tiny cookie party favors made from chocolate-covered stacked Oreos are insanely adorable and created by local artists. Think Thanksgiving table, $6.50 each from Favorz, a cookie kitchen in Chandler, and favorz.net.

--This vintage-inspired pumpkin man by Olive Rose wants to hang out at your house for Halloween, $50 at Frances.

Toss away those razors and stinky depilatory creams. For those long Arizona summers, we need long-lasting hair-removal treatments. Here are three methods that'll help keep away the daily stubble.

WAXING

Sure, the image of a spatula of hot wax near your nether regions might not sound like the most pleasant way to spend an afternoon, but it's the aftermath that we can't get enough of.

Before you try it, take some tips from Dannielli Marcelino of Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa in Phoenix. Valley women flock to the Brazilian-born waxing guru for her precise technique and lightning-fast rip. She uses a creamy, honey-based wax with vitamin E, leaving your skin fresh and smooth.

A regular bikini wax is $35, a Brazilian wax (where it all comes off, except for a small strip or a triangle or another fun shape of your choice) is $65. Results can last about three to eight weeks.

* Make sure hair is about a quarter of an inch long before you wax.

* If you're sensitive in that region, take an ibuprofen about 30 minutes before the procedure or try the spa's Relax & Wax No Scream Cream.

* Don't get waxed during or near your menstrual cycle. It's best to do it at least five days before or five days after.

For summer-smooth skin, here are your bare necessities:

Before you wax

* This stuff reduces the screams to a faint yelp. The secret ingredient is benzocaine, the stuff dentists use to numb your gums. Pure genius. Apply it 30 to 45 minutes before you wax. Relax & Wax No Scream Cream, $17 at Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa.

Waxing kits

* Banish hair at a bargain price. This all-in-one waxing kit includes microwave wax, soothing oil, 20 cloth strips and two applicator spatulas. Avon Skin So Soft Fresh & Smooth Hair Removal Microwave Wax for Face and Body, $15 at avon.com.

* This low-temperature hard wax doesn't stick to skin the way soft wax does, so hair removal is easier and gentler. The kit comes with pre-waxing oil and post-waxing cream for soft, bump-free skin. True Blue Spa Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow Professional Waxing Kit, $20 at Bath & Body Works.

Post-wax

* Arm yourself against ingrown hairs. These bump-fighting pads contain glycolic acid, which clears away dead skin cells, and salicylic acid, which blocks bacteria buildup. Bikini Bump Blaster, $32 at completelybare.com.

* This roll-on soothes and protects you from ingrown hairs after you wax. PFB Vanish, $25 at Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa.

July sales are the only glorious thing about this inhumane heat. We shop, score gloat-worthy deals, snicker when the stores bring in the fall sweaters in August, and happily flit about in our discounted T-shirts until November. This is how I am brainwashing myself -- how lucky we are to have such an array of wearable bargains -- because there is already fur for sale at neimanmarcus.com. Fur! Animal cruelty, indeed.

Head for Heidi Boutique in north Scottsdale, where the summer sale just started, to find Citizens of Humanity jeans and Ella Moss tops at 40 percent off. You'll see these Citizens Bardot capris, regularly $140, and Ella yellow ruffle wrap T, regularly $92, and lots of parking right next to the store. This is important in triple-digit times.

If you've somehow missed our breathless endorsements of Hidden Closet, a Scottsdale shop that feels like you fell into a retired showgirl's attic, here's another: this vintage Christian Dior bag is on consignment there now, $800.

There is no thing more beautiful than a sale at Banana Republic. (The Casa Paloma store in Chandler, by the way, is where your size is hiding. The place has piles of deals.) Look for this white cotton eyelet skirt, which was $118, now $43.99.

I stalk eluxury.com. Since the site's sale started, I've been visiting daily just after theSuperficial.com, which is a celeb-smear spot so snarky and pokey and perfect that you better not read it if there's something in your mouth. Anyway, look at the eluxury.com loot: Pucci sandals, regularly $375, now $187.

This is important news in the height of the cruel season of swimwear. Bikini waxes at Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa are $10 off the regular $65 price for first-time visitors, and even better: the Relax & Wax No Scream Cream (yes, really) is 10 percent off its $17 price tag. Stop giggling, already. They swear this stuff works better than Advil and martinis.

In the past decade, massage has shifted from luxury item to lifestyle component.

More people are using massage as they would vitamins or exercise to boost immunity, speed recovery and relieve stress. This savvier clientele has prompted Valley massage studios and spas to introduce fresh, non-traditional types of massages.

"As people have become more relaxed and understanding of what massage does, they have become more sophisticated about knowing exactly what types of massages to ask for," said Luzivone Damaceno, an acupuncturist and founder of Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa in Phoenix. "They are curious, too: If this one relaxes me, will this one relax me even more?"

Ten years ago, the U.S. had 54,000 massage therapists and body workers and 240 state-approved massage schools, according to the American Massage Therapy Association. Today, there are 175,000 therapists and 1,067 schools.

In the past year, many massages rooted in ancient Eastern and holistic techniques have been unveiled in the Valley: aqua reflexology, aroma mineral massage, ashiatsu and Thai yoga bodywork.

Suddenly Slimmer, for example, recently began offering the Body Bliss Vibrational Oil Massage, which focuses on the body's seven chakras, or energy centers, while using different aromas to relax each chakra.

The techniques have attracted such clients as Phoenix airline pilot Paul Bailot, who had treated his stiff back in the past two years with Swedish or sports massages but is now trying the chakra massage as part of his wellness routine.

"I figure I owe it to myself to have it done," said Bailot, 45. "You walk out feeling refreshed, and the toxins have been flushed out of your system. It totally transforms your body."

More people are discovering the benefits of massage every year. A 2005 study indicated that 47 million Americans received a massage within 12 months of the survey, 2 million more people than the year before, according to the American Massage Therapy Association.

Of those polled, 60 percent said a physician recommended massage therapy, and massage was tied with medication as providing respondents with the greatest relief from pain.

Increased demand

Some come just to feel good. Others come because they've heard that massage can slow heart rates, relax muscles and lower stress-hormone levels that are linked to numerous diseases. Massage is also linked to an increase of brain chemicals such as serotonin, which may help control pain.

What's new on Valley spa menus

Type: Aqua reflexology

Expect: Clients wear bathing suits and sit in a watsu pool, or private, warm pool, while a therapist manipulates reflex points in hands and feet.

Best for: Improving circulation and easing pain.

Price: $125 (Mon. - Thurs.), $135 (Fri.-Sun.)

Type: Aroma mineral massage

Expect: A blend of Esalen, Thai and Swedish techniques. This massage is synchronized to the time of day using semiprecious-gem balms and essential oils. For example, in the morning, smithsonite balm is used to create a stimulating, firming and regenerating effect. By midday, therapists use malachite to detox and purify. In the evening, therapists use rhodochrosite to help clients relax and release tension.

Price: $130.

Type: Ashiatsu

Expect: Therapists, supporting themselves with bars attached to the ceiling, apply different foot strokes along the body. This allows more pressure than would be possible with the hands. "Ashi" means foot and "atsu" means pressure in Japanese. This type of massage was brought to the West by Buddhist monks.

Best for: Chronic lower-back and neck pain.

Price: $195.

Type: Body Bliss Vibrational Oil Massage

Expect: The body's seven chakras, or focal points of energy, are massaged while the client is treated to corresponding aromatherapies. The aromatherapy and massage work in tandem to relax the chakras.

Best for: Increased energy.

Where: Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa in Phoenix.

Price: $130

Type: Bye! Bye! Belly Jelly!

Expect: A vigorous kneading and skin wrapping, combined with cupping therapy in which glass or plastic cups are used on the skin to create vacuumlike suction to promote circulation. Therapists complete the service by applying a gel that aims to prevent cellulite from forming.

Best for: People wanting to reduce belly cellulite and help improve digestive system.

Where: Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa in Phoenix.

Price: $125.

Type: Cellulite Massage with Intense Pulse Light

Expect: A therapist uses an IPL wand and massage to work on the cellulite.

Best for: Anyone hoping to reduce the appearance of cellulite.

Where: Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa in Phoenix.

Price: $110 (50 minutes).

Type: Energywork

Expect: A massage therapist combines reiki, shiatsu, polarity and reflexology techniques. Clients may wear loose, comfortable clothing.

Best for: Stress reduction.

Price: $125 (Mon. - Thurs.) $135 (Fri.-Sun.).

Type: Thai yoga bodywork

Expect: Clients remain fully clothed while a therapist uses her hands, feet, forearms, knees and elbows to free tension and gently assist guests in lifting, bending and stretching their bodies.

Best for: Yoga practitioners and people looking to loosen and open joints and improve circulation.

Price: $130 (50 minutes).

Common massages at spas and studios

Type: Deep tissue

Expect: Uses many of the techniques of Swedish massage, but pressure is more intense.

Best for: Chronic joint and muscle injuries.

Type: Hot stone

Expect: A therapist uses smooth, heated stones to perform the long strokes of Swedish massage. When the stone cools, the massage therapist uses another. The therapist also may leave the heated stones on points of the body, especially along the spine, to encourage energy flow.

Best for: Muscle knots and stress.

Type: Shiatsu

Expect: The therapist applies steady pressure with fingers and palms. He or she also may use rolling, brushing, vibrating or grasping.

Best for: Depression, headaches, hypertension, insomnia.

Type: Sports

Expect: The therapist focuses on injured or aching body parts with compression and deep pressure. Stretching is usually incorporated. You may be asked to switch positions to facilitate the work.

Best for: Repetitive-stress injuries and sports or "weekend warrior" aches and pains.

Type: Swedish

Expect: A firm but gentle pressure is applied along with long, gliding strokes, kneading of individual muscles, friction and tapping. The client is covered by a sheet. One part of the body is uncovered, massaged and then re-covered.

Best for: Muscle tension, minor back pain and stress.

Choosing a massage

* Do you prefer a light-as-a-feather touch? Consider a lymphatic massage. Deeper kneading more your style? Consider a deep tissue massage.

* Consider your aches and symptoms. Many massages are created to relieve such ailments as lower-back pain (deep massage), migraine headaches (craniosacral) and menopause (therapeutic combined with acupressure).

* Check with your health-care provider to learn whether a particular massage might interfere with any current treatments. For example, a prenatal massage is the only type recommended for pregnant women. Massage also may not be recommended for people who have had recent surgery or a stroke, have blood-clotting issues, recent fractures or rashes.

So, the United States is out of the World Cup. Boohoo. Now, let's go to

espn.com and find pictures of David Beckham whipping off his shirt.

All week, many American women have been playing wink-wink with the World Cup, coyly pretending to be caught up in the global celebration of international sport. Sure, Honey, you can watch the game. Let me sit next to you and we'll watch together. Let me hold your beer. Let me rub your feet.

But all along, this passion has been about something else entirely: watching the international festival of six-packs and reveling in soccer-player lust.

The Americans were just a distraction. It's as if the gods of the universe rounded up all the pretty men on the planet, plunked them in Germany and put them in shorts. Why don't we live in Ghana? Croatia? Serbia and Montenegro? And oh, Lordy, have you seen the Italians?

All these brawny boys on the screen, chiseled and muscled and universally bronzed -- it's like the Mr. Universe pageant, with sweat and no words. What more can you ask for from your TV?

There's even all that heated shirt removal, which seems to be what footballers do to cool off instead of pouring water over their heads. For this alone, soccer is the best sport of all time. Just try to find a photo of Argentina's Javier Saviola where he's not running about, indulging his habit of yanking up his shirt every time he gets mad/happy/overheated, and in turn giving the world a glimpse of some serious abdominal achievement. At a bridal shower Sunday in Chandler, in between bites of dainty white-frosted cupcakes, Beth Scheall and a gaggle of girls skipped the dress chatter and got down to the nitty-gritties: discussing the varied loveliness of the Mexican and Italian soccer teams.

"The physique and athletic build was just amazing to us," says Scheall, 25, of Gilbert. "I don't think I've ever met a soccer player that wasn't hot -- outside of my brother. They just have the best bodies."

At the George & Dragon pub in central Phoenix, our local World Cup party headquarters (Sunday's fest begins at 7 a.m.), the carousing is definitely coed.

"Women are watching," says bartender Summer Spaulding, 32, of Phoenix. "There are ogles at the screen constantly."

And did you catch the replays of Mexican President Vicente Fox doing a very weird dance to celebrate goals, with his wife, Marta Sahagun, looking ever so chipper by his side?

When Jeanie Marcelino and her fellow Brazilian-Arizona expats catch the games with their men, the husbands get all fussy when the girls start twittering over Kaka (Brazil's most eligible bachelor, and "when he shows up somewhere, all the girls go crazy," Marcelino says).

"We understand to a certain extent what the rules ... are," says Marcelino, 34, spa director of Suddenly Slimmer in Phoenix. But "what we're really watching for is cute guys playing soccer."

She offers a technical explanation of this flesh feast: "Their legs tend to be more muscular, not so thin and long, the whole body exhibits sexiness. They're sweaty, and they're running around, and they're getting upset. All the hormones are going."

And, in soccer, there is nothing to impede the view. No football helmets or baseball caps. No shoulder pads. No hockey masks.

Tell us again why this sport isn't more popular in the United States, because women of the world are onto this and have done excellent work virtually scrapbooking soccer beauty.

If Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon (that's Gigi, if you're sassy) is your fave, you can go to buffononline.com and download screen savers, or click into the chat room to bond with other soccer lovahs, who'll go dig up and post pics of "new hottie" Luis Garcia, if you ask.

At www.alliwantisronaldo

.com, learn that Brazil's Ronaldo has a preferred method for gearing up for a big game: a lovey-dovey bedroom session with his wife. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what's called "rubbing it in."

Get a little Googly with Italy's Francesco Totti, and you can discover he "likes girls with dark hair and dark skin," and that "when he is with his girl, he forgets all the problems, difficulties and controversies of everything. He comes back to (being) a normal boy." Oh, Francesco, how we'd love to help.

God bless the constantly updated photos on espn.com, which is keeping Gilbert's Jessica Hansen, 24, in eye candy while she's at her Phoenix office.

By day, she wakes at 7 a.m. to catch the matches. At night, she watches with her husband and calls her sister to review the day's events. (Which is to say, when America's Landon Donovan or England's Beckham performed the shirt-tossing routine.)

When Mexico or Brazil is playing, Julie Cosio's family piles into her parents' Phoenix home. There is a solid showing by the ladies: moms, cousins, the works.

"The guys just look at us like we're crazy," says Cosio, 20. The men shout and celebrate when their team scores a goal, she says.

"And all us girls yell when we see them take off their shirts."

CAPTION: England's David Beckham trains for World Cup competition last week in Germany. Lifting his shirt, alas, was not part of the drill. The World Cup is drawing packs of female viewers, who are discovering the, ahem, finer points of the sport. CAPTION: Francesco Totti is Italy's contribution to World Cup eye candy. CAPTION: After scoring a goal against Ivory Coast, Argentina's Javier Saviola kisses his shirt and sends the world's female viewers wild. CAPTION: Kaka, Brazil CAPTION: Luis Garcia, Spain

As if Arizonans need another excuse to head to San Diego, here's one more.

San Diego-area resorts have jumped on the "babymooning" bandwagon, offering pre-baby ways to baby yourself.

That is, resorts are luring expectant couples with the promise of a last chance for rest, relaxation and romance before a baby arrives.

Maternity massages and specifically designed menus, pillows and Pilates classes are part of the last-hurrah vacations. The resorts are responding to a demographic shift in which the average age of first-time mothers is at an all-time high at 25. This means more-advanced careers and heftier paychecks that give two-income couples getaway cash. The May issue of Child magazine bills these trips as "the hottest travel trend for parents-to-be."

"I think having this time together in a location free of fax machines and vacuum cleaners gives you an opportunity to focus on what's important," said Child senior associate editor Kelley Heyworth, who wrote the Child article.

As Debbie Agnew sees it, "Once a baby comes, it's all about Pampers and less about pampering you." Agnew, marketing manager for L'Auberge Del Mar Resort and Spa in Del Mar, Calif, said, "More and more couples are taking some time with their spouses to take a special trip together before it all gets too crazy." Those last flings are marketed as a "babymoon."

Such trips can be overnight or overseas, bargains or not. Many babymoons, which usually occur safely enough midpregnancy, are just playfully renamed excursions. But others come with baby booty or special menus or massage classes. Most pamper the woman, but a few throw a bone to the father-to-be in the shape of, say, cigars.

Tonya Sakowicz, 39, of Phoenix, and her husband traveled to San Diego in June and August before their son was born. Sakowicz hit the beach and the surf and didn't worry about holding in her belly while in a bathing suit.

In San Diego's favor as a destination for expectant couples is its relative nearness to Arizona. Although traveling when pregnant is easiest during the second trimester, staying relatively close to home offers peace of mind in the event of complications, said Andrea Stark of Phoenix.

"It's just far enough away, but not too far," said the mother of two, a 3-year-old and a 6-week-old.

Stark, 27, and her husband, Mike, 31, took their first San Diego "babymoon" before 2002, when the term started appearing in publications. Even if parents-to-be have only one night in which to get away from their routine, she urges they do so and reconnect as partners in love.

"(Couples) need that time, especially with their first child, to kind of remember what they're about," Stark said. "Get a massage (prenatal massage only and per your doctor's OK), go to a spa, use that time to feel good about yourself."

Overnight delight

Nearly 60 percent of 800 new parents who responded to an

online survey said they took an overnight jaunt, BabyCenter, a parenting Web site (www.babycenter.com), reported in

February. Granted, it's a self-selecting group, but 64 percent spent up to $1,000 on the trip. Compared with expectant parents who stayed put, "babymooners" were older (median age 30 vs. 28) and wealthier ($78,500 annual income vs. $66,200).

-- Philadelphia Inquirer

San Diego-area 'babymoons'

A sampling of hotels with packages that cater to pregnant women and their spouses:

Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa, La Jolla

Ask for: "Stress Free Parents to Be" package.

Features: Guest room or suite; sparkling cider and chocolate berries at turndown; breakfast in bed; dinner for two; baby spa gifts of lotion, baby massage, gel and soaps; and spa package. Spa package includes prenatal couples massage, spa lunch, hydrating scalp treatment, his-and-hers facial, his-and-hers manicure,

Pilates class, and more.

Cost: Three-day package rate for an estate room, $2,000; three-day package rate for an estate suite, $2,500. Per night stay only $279-$299.

Details: estancialajolla.com or 1-866-794-6396.

La Costa Resort and Spa, Carlsbad

Ask for: "Babymoon" package.

Features: Three-day, two-night stay; two 50-minute spa treatments; in-room aromatherapy bath basket and unlimited in-room movies. The (Deepak) Chopra Center at La Costa is also on-site, complementing the spa with mind-body healing treatments.

Cost: $1,754 for two-night package; $899 for one-night package; $300 per night regular stay.

Details: lacosta.com or 1-800-854-5000.

L'Auberge Del Mar Resort and Spa, Del Mar

Ask for: "Spa Escape for Mommies-to-Be."

Features: 25-minute pregnancy massage, 25-minute facial, and spa manicure. Also, a meditation garden and boutique with baby clothes are a short walk from this resort overlooking the Pacific.

Cost: $150 spa experience; $200-$450 per night stay.

Details: laubergedelmar.com or 1-800-245-9757.

'Babymooning' in the Valley

Escaping to a resort or day spa in the Valley is a restful alternative to San Diego.

Here are Valley day spas and resorts that cater to "babymooners":

Suddenly Slimmer Day Spa

3313 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix, (602) 952-8446 or suddenlyslimmer.com.

Features:

* One-hour pregnancy massage with special tables so mothers can lie face forward.

* Four-layer facial.

* Stress-release alternative counseling (a 20-minute program created by a licensed hypnotherapist, counselor and acupuncturist).

Cost: $260.