While the last few months have been dominated by gridlock on energy legislation, lawmakers in Congress did make sure they would have a few things to talk about during their upcoming five week recess.

Both the House and Senate easily approved a pair of bills that would get headlines on their own, one on college costs, the other on toy safety.

A year ago, toy safety issues were a big deal in the Congress and around the nation, as the discovery of lead and other chemicals in toys imported from China set off alarms on Capitol Hill.

This bill bans lead from kids toys and sets up new checks and reviews for imported toys before they get to store shelves.

"We are going to make a big, big difference in the marketplace," said Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR) on the floor Thursday night.

The bipartisan nature of both bills was evident by the votes on them.  The toy bill was approved in the House by a vote of 424-1 and in the Senate by 89-3.

For those wondering who cast the one "no" vote - the one lawmaker voting against the bill in the House was Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX.)  Yes, the same Ron Paul that ran for President.

The higher education bill got through the House 380-49 and 83-8 in the Senate.

Critics say the 1,100 page bill will only mean more bureaucracy for colleges in dealing with the byzantine system of federal aid programs, a charge backers denied.

They say the bill will give students more information about the cost of college and simplify the procedures involved in applying and getting Pell Grants.

Also Pell Grants would go up over the next six years to $8,000 per year and would be available year round, to help students more quickly complete college.

Both sides hailed the bipartisan nature of the votes and expressed the wish that it could spill over to the energy arena as well.

Missing from the debate was one of the prime architects of the bill, Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) who is still recovering from surgery on a brain tumor.  His work was hailed by members of both parties before last night's vote.

Now while the Senate did approve both of those bills last night, it didn't bring an end to the partisan battling over energy.

Republicans joined to block a move by Democrats to switch gears and take up a major defense bill, arguing that the focus should be high oil and gas prices.

That debate will be continued after Labor Day, as lawmakers hit the road until September 8.  Whether we get much more done after that is anyone's guess, with talk right now of a government shutdown and more.

Stay tuned.