No More Cookies!

My husband made cookies on Sunday and I can't seem to keep my fingers away from them.  Seriously!  It's bad.  I needed some motivation to eat healthy so I stuck this on my fridge from pinterest from a place called, ironically, Put the Cookies Down. 

It gives me more motivation to eat more healthy when I have many choices in front of me.  No more cookies for me.  Ummm, that might have to start tomorrow because I've already eaten some today.

Monday Must Reads

So, my new addiction is listening to books while I walk/exercise.  I used to "read" or listen to books on my way to work but now I don't spend as much time in the car as I used to so I rarely get a chance to read.  If I wait until bedtime I fall asleep and there will be no reading getting accomplished.  The first book of the new year is Open by Andre Agassi.  I really liked it.  It was truly an eye opener for me in some ways.  One thing I didn't like was the language.  Foul!  It is so harsh when you listen to it rather than read it.  Good book.  I highly recommend it.

Next up on my list is:

What are some good books you have read lately that I should download?

Blog Book

Sorry I've been kind of MIA lately.  I've either given in to my urge to sleep while my son is taking a nap or working on my blog book from Blurb.  I turn my family blog into a book every year so it is like a journal.  We love looking back at year's past.  Since I don't really print out pictures it is nice to have something to read and look at pictures in.  In fact, my son and I looked at pictures of when I was pregnant with him and when he was a baby.  He loved it!

So, excuse me if I'm absent a bit.  I have to get this done ASAP.

Thanks!

For Christmas, I bought myself Santa brought me some more makeup.  It was many different colors of eyeshadows.  I used to wear different colors to match what I was wearing but then went to just boring old brown.  Well, one day while shopping at Sephora I was talking to the makeup artist.  She told me to be more daring with my makeup and branch out and wear colors again.  So, I am! 

What are your thoughts about switching up your eyeshadow colors?

WIWW: You are my sunshine!

This outfit just makes me happy.  I love wearing new clothes but bright, cheerful colors are always a plus in my book.  I felt great the whole day in this outfit.  Too bad I didn't have too many places to be because I definitely had a skip in my step.

Linking up:
The Pleated Poppy
Momma Go Round

Organize, organize!

As I last stated in my resolution post, I wanted to get more organized.  Not sure if it is nesting (already) or if it is the annual January declutter mode I tend to get in.  Anywho, I've been busy and feel like a ton of bricks have been lifted off of my shoulders.  Well, let's not forget I have many more projects to go but I can give myself credit for the ones I've checked off my list so far. :)

Mail Station:  My inspiration was this picture from the Nest Effect.  My mail station was anything but neat and it just bugged me.  So, of course I pinned a lot of ideas and went with something similar to this.  I love it!  I even bought a weekly dry erase calendar so we can ALL see what is going on in the week.  Not sure if my hubby looks at it but it is there for him. :)

Junk drawer and art drawer:  Trust me.  It's a step up from what it was.

I also created this Home Management Binder.  I've been meaning to do this for ages but finally did it.  I got the idea from The Nest Effect (again) and I Heart Organizing.  A friend of mine also told me what she does.  I only have one kid so my life isn't too busy with different schedules but it will be soon enough.  I simplified it to fit our life and here it is.   

Next up: The Pantry and Kitchen Drawers.  I would say I know where everything is in my kitchen but needless to say some things were needing some change.  My main reason to redo pantry was to make a snack area where my child can grab snacks as he pleases.  I really don't want him eating snacks all the time (and he isn't asking as much as I thought he would), but it is nice to be able to say, "You're hungry?  Well, go get a snack!"  Genius, I tell ya!  I redid all the drawers with fancy compartments to keep everything in it's place/home.  I'm pretty sure no one will be pinning these pictures but I'm loving every second of my new set up.



What have you been organizing or decluttering?

New Year's Resolution

I'm a little late in the game about posting some of my resolutions but this week it became apparent that it is for sure my goal.  I have many goals but I will share two with you:

1-Be nice!

I need to train my brain to just think of others instead of myself all the time.  I'm not very good at just thinking, "Oh, I should do that for someone" or "I should take them dinner or take their kids."  Call me selfish but I need to be better at it.  This week at church we talked about Loving Thy Neighbor and it confirmed that I really needed to focus on this goal this year.

2- Get more organized.

I'm a pretty organized person anyway but I need to be more organized.  There are a few things on my list of things to organize that need to happen soon or I'll go crazy.  First up, the pantry.  I want to train my son to get his snacks by himself so in the next year if I can't leave my couch for various reasons, he is set.  My neighbor suggest I go to Pet Smart because they have things used for that. Ha!  It gave me a good laugh.  I guess I do sound a bit crazy but just you wait.  It will come in handy.

What are your goals?

WIWW: The reason for the owl necklace hunt

So many moons ago I pinned this outfit and fell in love with the owl necklace.  Then I kept seeing people wear owl necklaces so I knew it was the next trend.  I needed an owl necklace pronto.  But it wasn't until mid-December I found one for me.  I have had this outfit in mind but needed a cute dress and a red cardigan.

Well, remember how last week I wore the same cardigan twice?  Enter it again this week and I was able to recreate this outfit.  I told you I love this cardigan. :) I also busted out some "fat" clothes and whalah! there was a blue dress. So instantly I thought of my owl outfit that I pinned ages ago.  A new outfit was born.

Linking Up:

Momma Go Round

Pleated Poppy

All Things Lovely

Potty Training Woes

We have just started Week 2 of potty training around here.  Things are going okay.  I need to give my son credit where credit is due.  He got it half way through Day 1 with #1 but we are still struggling with other parts.  Let's just say I've become quite the cleaner-upper of things I don't care to clean up.  Sigh.  I don't see getting a dog in our near future.  Maybe in 10 years!

I just wanted to share with you where I got some of my material in case you are in the same boat as I am.....going crazy!  I loved this website Three Day Potty Training.  It gave me great things to say/do with my child.  I love it!  Plus, it didn't take long to read at all.  You do have to pay $25 to get the ebook but it is well worth every penny.

I have survived one week but we are restless to leave the house.  We are going to adventure to some stores this week but still keep low.  We have been to a few restaurants and an all morning outing with outhouses and he did great.  And I forgot a long car ride.  It is when he gets busy playing with cousins where he forgets to tell me.  Well, he just hasn't quite figured out how to signal that part of his body yet.  So, both times we have been with family or friends it has been a pooping fest!  Not going to lie.  It's horrible but I guess one day he will get it, right?

Any suggestions on this would be helpful.  Thanks in advance.

Happy MLK Day!

I hope everyone is having a great MLK Day.  I'll be spending time with family but I wanted to point out a thought I had.  Actually, one of my friends posted it on facebook and it really hit home.  She said,

"It made me tear-up a little today when I was reading a story about Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.to my kindergarteners. I asked them what the "Whites Only" sign in the restaurant meant. I got many answers..." You can only wear white pants." "You can only wear white coats!" "Your clothes have to be white." They have no idea what discrimination is. They truly live in an environment where they are treated equally and the color of your skin is not important. Being kind and loving and respectful to everyone is the standard we live by today. Dr. King is still making a difference in our lives today!"

I taught elementary school where most of the kids did not have "white" skin.  Maybe it hit home so much when she posted this because I truly felt that my students felt loved and respected.  I loved and respected them for who they were.  I did not care about skin.  I'm glad that I can live in a time where it is appropriate and expected to treat everyone with respect.  Thank you, Dr. King!

Friday Plus-Jan. Photos Wk.1

I jumped on the bandwagon of taking a photo every day during January.  If you are on Instagram then do it (#janphotoaday).  It is really fun.  I look forward to seeing everyone's pictures.  I'm not going to include all the pics I take because some are boring so here are just a few.

Picture of Me

Something I adore 

Something I wore...love my Toms 

Favorite- I love Old Navy.  One of my favorite stores.

Daily Routine-we may or may not play cars all day every day around here. 

"I'm Sexy and I Know It"

I know I have shared my love for Sexy Modest before here and here.  But I must say I am impressed once again.  It is my go to store now everytime I am in Utah.  They also have an online store so you are in luck but if you are ever in Utah, you must go!  When you are there, you will get the V.I.P. treatment!  Plus, they are honest with you so you will always walk out of there a winner.

For example, I had a shirt in my hand and the owner said, "You probably won't like that when you try it on."  He was right! I basically stayed in the dressing room while he brought me clothes he knew I would like, be good for my climate (AZ), and shirts I can "grow" into.  He has a set of twins so he knows how huge

I'll get. lol.

But the kicker is what he picked out for my mom and sister.  He picked out a shirt for my sister that I didn't think she would go for but she loved it!  He asked me if I thought she would and I was hesitant.  Who knew? (sorry no pic) And my mom.  Let's just say even if you tried to guess her age you wouldn't come close because she is as hip as the rest of us.  He dressed us all and we all looked great.  We went to a family party that night and my mom wore one of the outfits (that I'm still awaiting the picture of...uhem...).  She blended right in with all the fashionable peeps there.

Here are a few pictures of what we have gotten there:

belt/cardi

pants/cardi/belt/necklaces

So, head on over to Sexy Modest and tell them I sent you.  You will not be disappointed.

WIWW:Same Piece, Two Outfits

One of the blogs I read, Momma Go Round, she wore a vest every day during the week.  She wanted to see how many ways she could remix it into outfits.  Well, I didn't wear the same thing all week but I did wear it a few times.  And the only pictures I have this week include the same piece.  Ha! It's a shame I wore the cardigan the same way just with a different shirt but hey, things aren't fitting quite like they used to.  And I won't lie, the cardigan is in the staging area for this week too.  What can I say, when you love a piece, wear it!

Shirt: ??? It's been that long

pants: Costco

cardigan: H&M

shoes: Ross

shirt/cardigan/jewelry: H&M

pants/boots: Target

Linking up:

Momma Go Round

Pleated Poppy

Operation Potty Training

We have started Operation Potty Training around here so I'll have to report how it is going next week.  That is after I get through scrubbing poop and pee off my floors.  And if I'm not back next week, you know I didn't have enough Diet Coke to survive it.

Have you been threaded?

Last week I got threaded. 

It was quite the experience.  My sister got it done with her SILs and told my mom and I about it.  The very next day we went to the same place to be "serviced" as well.  Wowza!  Is all I have to say.

I have never been threaded before or any of the sorts (i.e. waxing) on my face before so needless to say I was a hairy beast.  Maybe I've shaved here or there my peach fuzz but no wax.  No wonder it hurt me more than my sister or mom.  But it was worth it.

Beauty is pain right?

I actually would recommend this technique because there are no chemicals and no chance of burning.  Plus, my face is silky smooth.  With my clarisonic and my threading experience, my face will never feel the same again. 

And that my friends is a good thing.  My husband is going to love it.  Shhh!  He doesn't know yet so let's see if he figures it out.

WIWW: New clothes

I don't have any pictures but wanted to let you know I did some shopping over the holidays and got some fabulous clothes  that I can't wait to share with you.  Some items include things from H&M, Nordstrom Rack, Unpredictable, and Sexy Modest.  You will have to wait until next week to see some of the clothes (I need to wear them first). Ha!

Big Announcement!

If you can guess this you get serious props because I know several people who needed some direction.  Sorry about the photo...it is a picture of a picture so when I get home I'll put the real one on.

Yep, we are expecting twins!  We are beyond thrilled but also scared.  You could say we have every emotion in the book.  But luckily I have lots of friends that have done this before so they will be my go to people for questions, complaints, or just reassurance. :)  I'm due June 4th!

Happy 2012 to us!

Monday Must Haves-Jan. 2

I hope everyone had a fantastic New Year's.  Mine was pretty low key but I did have some fabulous seafood at a fancy restaurant. I"m still enjoying my vacation but I do have one thing for today's must have.  It is.....

drumroll......

The Clarisonic Mia!

My mom gave one of these to me for Christmas and I have already used it and am a believer.  My face has never felt so smooth.  It also feels like a spa facial right in my shower.  I'm loving it!  I can just hear my pores and skin saying thank you.  I highly recommend it.  Read more about it here.