Influenster #UltimateStraight VoxBox from L'Oreal Paris

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Once upon a time, in a land not so far away from most of you, a wife told her husband she wanted a small garden. 

Now, this husband of hers asked a few simple questions, to which the wife ultimately responded, "I don't know. Here, look at this picture on Pinterest." 

A few weeks later, the pair stood in a Lowe's while mental math and verbal discussions of dimensions and layouts were discussed. This taxed the wife's brain, as she's never been good at things without seeing them, and she really still didn't know what she wanted other than a patch of dirt. Nonetheless, lumber and chicken wire were purchased and away they went. 

One sunny Sunday Memorial Day weekend, the pair woke up, grabbed some Krispy Kreme, and started the project. 

Tools were brought together, and things started morning forward. A box was built. 

The perfect spot was selected and marked out. 

A medieval torture device was given to the wife, appropriate considering her profession. She was instructed in its use on demolishing her gorgeous grass and was set to work. 

Reinforcements arrived, and before the husband and wife knew it, the garden was constructed. 

There was a minor setback, as a giant metal pipe was discovered in the center. 

A jackhammer, a saw, and some hard work demolished it quickly. Walls were erected, wire was laid across and stapled up. 

The sun began setting, and the help went home. The next morning, the husband and wife got back to work. 

The husband constructed the gate

The wife did this

Days passed. Dirt was ordered and picked up.  Dirt was returned. More dirt was picked up. 45 bags of dirt were poured, raked, and tilled. 

Plants were planted. Dreams were made. 

Stitch Fix #3: a Review

Over the past year or so I've started "rewarding" myself with Stitch Fix, which a personalized box of clothing & accessories that are hand picked just for you based on a survey & your Pinterest boards. I thought I'd take a minute to share with yall my latest box & how I feel about it! 

When you order the box, it costs $20 in a "styling fee" which is then deducted from the cost of the items you purchase. In each box, you receive 5 items. I have generally gotten a mix of tops and bottoms + one jewelry piece. Other people get purses, but I'm not a purse girl, so I have my settings to never send me purses. Or pink items since I hate pink. Stitch Fix is good like that. They also come with the prices, which I'll share. Keep in mind, I am set to the cheapest level possible. Repeat. CHEAPEST. 

With the 5 items, you also get a card with outfit ideas & a personalized note from your stylist discussing why she (or I guess he, idk) chose the items in your box.  I love the notes because it helps me rationalize why certain items would have been included and what holes in my closet they could meet. 

Here's my box. Ignore the messy bathroom. And the awkward faces. And the scrub bottoms. I'm ready for bed before I fix super. 

Item 1: vesta swirl drop earrings $28

I like these a lot. Unfortunately, my skin, especially my ears, reacts poorly to the nickle they are made of. So back to stitch fix they go.  

Item 2: Level 99 Cayden Skinny Jeans $98

These jeans are SUPER SOFT. They also fit, for the first time since I've ordered these, which is probably more AdvocRe related than anything else.  But (a) they're $98 and I just bought $11 skinny jeans, (b) they're cropped pants, which I don't do. What's up with that trend anyway? I look like I bought my jeans too short, and (c) they're freaking $98. I only tried them on to make sure the size was right. 

Item 3: Renee C Gabe Maxi Skirt $48

This was my favorite item. Unfortunately, I already have a black maxi, and a black and white patterned one. The pair of which didn't cost me $48. I don't need another one. If you were to stalk my Pjnterest board, you'd probably think the only maxi I want to wear is this one. Returning but with a sad heart. 

Item 4: Marke & Spruce Aleah V-Necked Heathered Dolman Sleeve Shirt $48

I really like this one. It's really soft, and I think will work all school year through. It's going to be really comfy. I'm not 100% sure about the sleeves & where they should end, but I will play with it some. Keeper for sure. 

Item 5: Sweet Rain Isaac Floral Print Tan-Sleeve Blouse $48

This shirt is see through. That teal underlay is the same shirt I have on in the other pictures. Idk why people think see through shirts are okay. They aren't. They certainly aren't dress code appropriate (as I remind my teenagers constantly.) If you can see through it, you may as well not be wearing it. (And I usually say to them, would you wear that outfit to school without the see through layer? No? Then you shouldn't wear it to school with that layer either) It's also made of a material that my thumbnail snagged on twice just trying it on. So it's going back. 

My next step is to fill out my checkout feedback, which includes what I like & dislike about each item. Then I mail it back within 3 days. They'll use the feedback to guide future boxes. Also, if you keep it all you get a 25% discount on all items. 

It's a lot of fun, and it leads me to purchase clothing that I normally wouldn't try on. I only keep one thing, because I'm a cheapskate. Or on a budget. That sounds better. 

Interested? Use https://www.stitchfix.com/referral/3814863 to sign up! 

February Mid-Month Confessions

I am sooooo excited for the partnership this year between E at Teaching Sam and Scout (a person I actually met in my real life when we both taught at the same school) and Heather, the super cute blogger at Notes from the Nelsons that I have been stalking following for about a year now.

They have brought back E's Confessions series but only on a monthly basis.  Y'all know these are my favorite posts, so I'm pumped to link up with them. Seriously, if you aren't reading Teaching Sam and Scout and Notes from the Nelsons every day, go add them to your blog feed.  Now.  You can come back to my confessions later!

So here goes:

1. I had a fantastic list all typed up in my blogger app, and forgot to hit save, so I'm making this up on the fly.
2. I am like a kid when it comes to snow days.  We had a 4 day weekend already scheduled, so Thursday was the last day of the week for us.  With approximately 30 min left of 4th period, it started snowing outside.  I officially was done.  As in, my kids were supposed to be working quietly in pairs on an assignment and I'm not sure they, or I, got anything else done that day.
3. Also on Thursday, I spent 45 minutes going over MLA formatting.  I teach history.  My pre-AP freshmen claimed to have never heard of in-text citations, and certainly didn't understand why it was that I was asking them to give credit within their papers to information.  The quote that drove me to the discussion "Well doesn't the url at the end of the paper tell you that?" NO.  NO IT DOES NOT.  IDK what's happening in younger grades, but if you teach middle school English (or high school, for that matter, or history at any level), could you please make a better attempt at teaching them how to properly cite information?
4. We throw away obnoxious amounts of food.  It's been better post-Advocare, but I just dumped out the equivalent of 3 chicken breasts.  Why?  Because we didn't put it away after we ate it.  So chicken breasts just sat in our crock pot.  Overnight.  And then all the next day.  And maybe a few more nights and days.  Gross?  Wholeheartedly yes.  I'm trying to be a better wife/cook and D is trying to be a better husband/kitchen helper.
5. I am a terrible reverser.  As in, I cannot for the life of me back my car up in any decent way.  Recently, I began parking in our garage.  It's been at least a month, and probably 5 of every 7 times I have to pull up and do it again, and I still end up in the garage crooked.  It's terrible.
6. I went to Wal-mart at 7:00 this morning.  Un-showered.  Yogas & Uggs (or, well, fake Uggs.).  No makeup.  Total Noke student status.  I put way too much trust in the meteorologists, and I assumed the snow we are getting wouldn't start until lunch time.  So, I stayed home yesterday, and when Dusty got up it was already snowing.  So there I was, in line at Wal-mart at 8 something in the morning, with all the other crazies.

And there you have it!  I'm sure I could think of more, but it's snowing, so I can't focus on anything.  Want to join it?  Use the button above to link back to either E or Heather!

Celestial Seasonings

One of the items in my #FrostyVoxBox from Influenster was Candy Cane Lane Green Tea from Celestial Seasoning.

Now, I've never been a huge green tea fan, so I figured I would just skip this one.  Now, considering that the tea was FREE and it is less than 20 with a wind chill that makes it feel almost 0 degrees, I figured I'd give this a shot. 

Free Tea :)

I'm thinking these teas are definitely Advocare friendly, since they're 100% natural, and I don't think I'm going to add anything to it, but maybe some honey would be good. 

When I opened the package, all I smelled was peppermint. Hard core. I added some hot water to my mug and let it steep away. 

Steep Steep Steep

The bag doesn't have a string. For some reason, this really bothers me. It probably doesn't bother most people. 

The verdict: it tastes like peppermint. This would be really yummy if you're sick, especially with a cold. It's also really yummy now, when I'm freezing cold. I think this is a holiday item only, so maybe next October when the retail stores think Chrismas has started you can grab some! 

Disclaimer: I received this tea free for review purposes from Influenster.  All opinions are my own.  Contact me if you want to win free stuff for review too!

#FrostyVoxBox

It's that time again!  I just LOVE being a member of Influenster.  Periodically, I get sent free stuff to use & review!  It's amazing.

This go 'round, I received the Frosty Vox Box, which I honestly expected to be a lot of winter survival things.  Not so much, but so much better!!

Fist up was the NYC Expert Last Lip Color in Sugar Plum

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I'm not usually a lipstick girl, but I do really love this color.  It's not overpowering, and it's more of a natural lip color.  The last is, at least in my opinion, pretty typical.  It's gone within a few hours.  Honestly, that's one of the things I don't like about lipstick.  You have to reapply it so much.

Next: Celestial Seasonings Candy Cane Lane Decaf Green Tea

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If I'm being honest (which I am), I haven't tried this yet.  No special reason, I just haven't.  I usually like hot teas, but decaf is not really my thing, and with Advocare I haven't really wanted to add in the tea.  (Unrelated side note - you can have tea on Advocare, as long as it doesn't have added stuff.  I haven't checked the ingredients in this yet.)  If anyone loves this, let me know! I'll send it to you since it doesn't look like we're getting the snow day we need for me to down this!

Item 3: EcoTools Hair Brush

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It's a hair brush.  I think it's supposed to be all super green & all that jazz.  It's also supposed to make your hair drying time faster.  I don't have a long hair drying time.  So for me, it's just a brush.  And all that brown is rubber, which really just makes it hard to clean out.  My cheap Conair brush may not be as good for the environment, but I like it just as well.

Item 4: McCormick Gourmet Thyme

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This is yummy!  Of course, it's thyme, and I had to Google things to use it on.  My favorite so far?  Homemade rotisserie chicken.  I buy a whole chicken from the meat department (and they had 2 packs at Sam's the other day), take out the nasty bag of insides (why do they even leave those in there?), and then put the chicken in the crock pot (sitting on 4 aluminum foil balls.)  Sprinkle with thyme and some season salt, cook on low for a workday.  It's pretty awesome!!

Item 5: Fruit Vines Bites in Strawberry

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I am ashamed to say that I ate an entire package of these in one sitting, and not the small single serving size either, the 2.5 servings per bag one.  They. Were. Awesome.  Now, they aren't Advocare friendly, but I ate them before I started the program.  And they'd make a great cheat day snack.  

Item 6: Rimmel Gentle Eye Makeup Remover

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This is pretty good stuff.  I'm not an eye makeup remover connoisseur, but I like this kind.  The brand I usually use is more of a creamy type that tends to make my greasy skin worse & hurts my eyes.  This is a clear liquid, so that helps with the oiliness factor.  I'm also TERRIBLE about just leaving my makeup on my eyes, so getting this one has meant that I have, on occasion, done a better job of taking off my makeup at night.

Final Item: Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl Kajal Eyeliner

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Oh goodness, y'all.  This has been my favorite thing.  Even more so than the Fruit Vines!  I got this in the black shade.  If I had been buying it for myself, I probably would have bought it in brown.  Historically, I've always used a liquid eyeliner, so this was a change for me.  It does have more of a tendency to smear than my liquid version, but it also goes on smoother and more precisely.  Not gonna lie here, I had to buy an eyeliner pencil because I've used the tip totally down & loved it so much I couldn't let it go!  This is good stuff.  Go get some for yourself!

So, there you have it!  I got all of these wonderful things for free from Influenster, just for the purpose of using them & sharing my opinions with the world!  Want in?  Send me a message or leave a comment & I can send you an email with the connection info!

We Went #All-In and are LOVING It!!!

I know, I know.  It's been FOREVER since I've put together a blog post.  I even had a relative mention it at Thanksgiving (I'm looking at you A!!!).  I would love to say that life has just been crazy busy, but that would be a lie.  I just haven't blogged.  I  have been reading blogs a lot, and I love doing that.  I just keep finding other things to do instead of actually putting together a blog post!

I wanted to take some time out of my MLK day to give you a little insight into a WONDERFUL lifestyle change D & I have made for 2015.  We have gotten into Advocare, thanks to the wonderful progress of my friend L.  I'm 100% serious when I'm calling this a lifestyle change.  Since January 7, we have eaten every. single. supper. at. home. This is such an unbelievable change for us, since we have been known to eat every supper out (or via takeout) in a week.  We've also eaten every breakfast at home, and almost every lunch.  There's only 2 exceptions to that, and they both fell on the same weekend when we had 2 birthdays.  Even then, I was able to eat fast food and stay on track.

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Here's the rundown of our decisions to join Advonation.

1. D's health evaluation.  His work has a tiered health insurance system, where you pay a certain amount based on a series of tests.  He didn't have a wonderful evaluation, and with parts of his family history (and mine), I knew we had to do something different.
2. Our finances.  We spend WAY too much money dining out.  As in, dining out was our #3 expense for 2014, behind our mortgage and our truck payment.  We spent more money dining out than we did on gas.  or groceries. and 2x more than we paid on my student loans.  CRINGE
3. The Comment.  This is, admittedly, 100% superficial on my part, but it nonetheless became a motivator for me.  In December, a work friend pm'ed me asking if I was pregnant.  I AM NOT.  When I asked her why the heck she asked that (and also laughed at how certainly I would have told her if I were), her reponse was that a kid had asked her.  A kid who I haven't seen in months.  Which means that my expanding gut, which was caused by none other than my poor dietary choices, was now the fodder of my high school students' rumor mill.  Rest assured, I squashed that immediately, both with her class and my own.  Now, I'm not proud of this, but it bothered me, so, I wanted to make a change for myself.
4. L's family results.  They were phenomenal.  She and her husband both look as great as they did when I met them 10 years ago.  They've had 3 kids since then.  And we've aged 10 years.  

So now, we have jumped in.  We've even had such wonderful results that I've decided to become a distributor, meaning that if you want in, you can order from me!  I'm not ready to share our results just yet, namely because D is a few days behind me, and my results are more intangible than photographable or numerical.  What I can do is give you a few basics.

1. We started with the 24-day challenge.
2. It involves essentially clean eating.  Cut out the processed junk we shouldn't be eating anyway.  But only cut it out completely for 24 days.  Then after that you can stick and stay at 80% on and 20% off.
3. It's a nutrition plan, not a meal plan.  You eat real foods that you love.  This can involve eating out or dining in.  It also involves eating fruits, veggies, lean meats, and the like.  
4. There are vitamin supplements to take.  Like, a lot of them.  But, if we're being honest, most of us are getting the nutrition we need.
5. You need to eat.  It gives you the opportunity to eat 6 times a day
6. You need to drink water.  Current health recommendations, which are part of the plan, set a minimum of 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water.  So if you way 200 lbs, you need 100 ounces of water.  I thought this was going to be a daunting task.  It really isn't.  D already drinks way more than he needs to, and all it took for me was to fill my Tervis and drink it down 3 times.  If I do that, I get more than I need.  

In the next few days, I plan to share some of our Adovocare based meals.  For now, I encourage you to check out the system here or email/facebook/tweet/text me with any questions you have!  Also, talk to you doctor if you're under their care for anything.  We don't want to thwart your personal health scenario by mixing supplements.  You can also order from me here if you want, but I'd love for you to contact me about it first!  I can give you more options.

I'll leave you for now, with a quote from D's mom.  "D says he feels like a million bucks!"