Wednesday, December 31, 2014

2014...2015

Well, it's here New Years Eve. It's time to start thinking about what we want to change in the next year. What goals we want to set and what we regret from the year that has passed by. Here's what I want to change:

1. Be Social.

In case you weren't aware (I don't think I've ever discussed this on the blog before) I suffer from anxiety. One of the best things one of my ex-boyfriends ever did for me was convince me to see a doctor and get anxiety medication. My anxiety is mostly social- I get nervous entering into crowded rooms or going somewhere and meeting someone. I'm always nervous that I won't be able to find the person I'm supposed to meet and will end up wandering aimlessly while people around judge me. It sounds stupid- but it's really difficult to function in a world like this.

My goal for 2015 is to work on being social. I want to talk to more people and not hide in my shell. I'm a pretty shy person and it's difficult for me to think up things to talk about in social settings. I want to work on combating that this year.

2. Let My Guard Down, But No Broken Hearts

I fall fast and hard. This is something I also haven't discussed here on the blog since it's a more personal issue, but I think it's important to share. I tend to do one of two things when meeting someone new: I either guard my heart with walls of steel or I let my guard down too quickly and end up with a broken heart. I know it seems like an unrealistic goal but I would like to find a happy medium where I'm not hurting but also not regretting how I lacked putting myself out there.

3. Find A Healthy Balance Of Health and Fitness

I now work at a place with a gym built in- and get a free membership. It's a pretty amazing perk but I also don't want to hang around at work more then I already have to. I need to create a plan to fit exercise into my life in a healthy way. I also want to start planning out my meals and making sure I'm living a healthier lifestyle. This isn't to lose weight or reach a crazy fitness goal- it's simply about being healthy.

4. Create Balance On The Blog

I need to work on creating a balance in my life that allows me to get all my work done and still have fun. I also need to remember my responsibilities. I go through phases where all I can think about is this blog and getting new content on the site as quick as possible. Other times I forget about it for days because there is so much going on in my personal life.

I enjoy blogging so much that I know I could never give it up- but this year I may not always post five days a week. Project 365 will be ending tomorrow and I will not be doing it again in 2015. Couponing Wrap-ups will no longer be weekly and I will only post them when I actually feel like couponing. I'm not sure what other changes will come throughout the new year but I promise my presence in this little corner of the web will never disappear. =)


What are your goals or resolutions for 2015?

Have a great New Years Eve everyone- be safe and I'll see you all next year ;)

Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Paper Towns

Before I start today's post- I must say a huge HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my dad! I hope you have a wonderful day dad!!!! =)



Back when I read The Fault In Our Stars and ugly cried more then I've ever ugly cried before, I decided that I wanted to read every book that John Green has to offer. Finally, a few weeks ago in Target I saw Paper Towns on super sale and decided to pick it up!

Although I wouldn't say that Paper Towns in comparable to the epicness (is that a word? well if it's not, it is now!) of The Fault In Our Stars, it was still wonderfully written and had me hooked from the first sentence. John Green certainly knows how to tell a story! This particular one started with Quentin Jacobsen and his neighbor Margo Roth Spiegelman who at a young age discovered a dead man together in their neighborhood. Quentin wanted to forget it, but Margo was interested in investigating the situation. Flash forward to their high school years and Quentin and Margo are not exactly what you would call close friends. However, one school night Margo enters Quentin's bedroom through his window and they go on the greatest adventure he's ever had taking revenge on their classmates. Quentin's obsession with Margo only grows when he discovers she has gone missing...and left clues for him to follow.

I was hooked trying to figure out where Margo could have gone and I loved reading about how Quentin carried a torch for Margo throughout his entire childhood. This was an easy read that I finished in one night and would definitely recommend. Although, if you haven't read The Fault in Our Stars- you should make that your first priority. 

Right now I've moved on to An Abundance of Katherines...which you will be hearing about soon!

What books have you read lately?

Monday, December 29, 2014

December Birchbox Review

This month I got some nice products in my monthly Birchbox! 



I thought this Rusk texture spray would be more of a texture inducing spray instead of a hairspray- but it is definitely hairspray material! This gives my hair more of a hold then anything else and also smells like hairspray.

I will definitely continue to use it up but it's not something I would ever feel the need to purchase in the future.



I used this Dr. Jart+ BB cream instead of foundation a few days and found that it has terrific coverage. I like BB (and CC) creams because I find them to be lighter on my skin but still have great coverage. I found that the color isn't always an exact match for me though since my skin is so light. This particular beauty balm was nice, not an exact match for me but I managed to make it work.


I am not usually a lip product person since I am completely addicted to my Burts Bees chapstick, however I've been trying to wear more lip products when I go out and a few weekends ago I wore this  Date Worthy Lip Lush out and loved it. The color is very subtle so it's not obvious that you are even wearing a gloss. I also felt that it kept my lips fairly moisturized which is my biggest issue when I'm not wearing my Burts Bees. I will definitely use this again next time- and I also love the name of this gloss, very creative!


I've used this SeaRx serum under my moisturizer a few times and don't know that it's doing anything too much for my skin- but it's been fun to try out. I will use up the same but I don't think it's something I need to repurchase or use long term (at least not yet!)


This Kajal extreme liner by Vasanti is so much fun! I wasn't totally sure how I would feel about this rose gold eyeliner but it is beautiful! I love how subtle it is and have been using it on my lower water line mostly. The color really brightens up my eyes and isn't too intense! I will definitely be using this more- and it has made me consider bolder eyeliner choices in the future!

Stay tuned this week will have some fun blog posts- including my last Project 365 as well as some New Years Resolutions!

I hope you have a great start to your week! =)

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Project 365: Week 51

Sorry for the delay in this weeks Project 365 post- with Christmas and everything happening it has been hard to just keep up in day to day life lately!

I can't believe that I only have a few more days of Project 365...next week will be the last one! Here's what happened during week 51...


Day 354. It was ugly sweater day at work, I wore my dads Grinch shirt since I didn't have an ugly sweater, which I think I will have to run out and get during post-Christmas sales! 


Day 355- My co-worker Kate gave this to me, how cute! She made them with her daughters and she told them that I loved Kitkats...so of course they gave me almost all Kitkats =)


Day 356. This Saturday was a day of baking- mom and I made all of our pretzel treats and also a new Christmas bark recipe we decided to try.


Day 357, on Sunday my trivia team (the A-team) had a Christmas party and we had a blast eating, exchanging gifts and of course playing a trivia game. I forgot to take any pictures while we had the party- so I snapped a quick picture of all the things I received!


Day 358. Finally everything is coming together. This is the fireplace area in the living room and it's officially a construction free zone!


Day 359. It was a cloudy day and I decided to braid my hair that morning. 


Day 358. I spent Christmas Eve with my family and it was a really nice night. I love spending time with my family and it was especially nice to have my cousin Andrew home from the navy!

How was your week 51?

Friday, December 26, 2014

50 Shades...

It took me almost two years to muster up the courage to read the 50 Shades of Grey series. I had heard so many things that encouraged me not to read them. I heard from people who were uncomfortable while reading them and many who told me not to read them. However, a few people continually told me to read them..so eventually curiosity took over and I decided to read the series.


I expected the series to be absolutely disgusting, filled to the brim with sexual scenes and no plot line. That's not what I discovered. I found myself addicted to the plot, wondering what in the world could have happened to Christian Grey in order to get so screwed up.  I read books one and two in two days and then waited a couple of weeks before reading book three. 

Although the writing itself was pretty poor- the concept that the book was originally based on Twilight's Edward and Bella kept me looking for similarities in their characters. I really did enjoy the story and wanted to know what had happened in Christians life. There was also a nice air of mystery as Christian's foes attempted to take him down and he dealt with life in his childlike manner. 

These are not books I would ever need to read again- but I'm glad that I did read them and understand the concept and backstory behind them. As for seeing the movie- it's something I would like to see although I'm not sure I want to see it in theaters! =)

Have you read 50 Shades of Grey? What did you think of it?

Thursday, December 25, 2014

Merry Christmas!


Merry Christmas everyone!!!



I hope you enjoyed a wonderful day with your friends and family! =)

Monday, December 22, 2014

My Shelving Unit Basket Storage

Remember when I showed you my knock-off Ikea Expedit Shelving Unit? 

I bought a similar version from Walmart's Better Homes and Gardens line for a lot cheaper then the Ikea version costs and then I purchased Ikea baskets to slide nicely inside each section. 

In my old bedroom I had a lot more space- in this bedroom I have to stand the unit up tall- which isn't bad although now I have less space to hold my tv and dvd player- but besides that it wasn't too bad!


I get a lot of storage out of these baskets- so I thought I would share how I've used them...



I store all my medicine in one. Along with heating pads- this comes in handy when I need to grab allergy medicine in a pinch.


I keep all my "tools" in one basket. Tape measures, hot glue guns, paint brushes, etc are all stored in this basket. I get a ton of free tools from Harbor Freight so I like to keep them handy.


I keep a basket full of extra gifts. These are great in case you need a gift for someone quickly or need something little to throw in a gift bag. I have been buying small items for years and throwing them together and have created a nice little section to keep everything in!


The bottom basket holds my paint, hardware and mod podge. A strange collection of items I know!


I usually do my hair at my desk since I can sit at it almost like a vanity, so all my hair tools are conveniently located in the closest basket.


I keep the majority of my cleaning supplies in one of the top baskets. I love having wipes, cleaners and rags handy!


Extra office supplies that I buy on sale stay in one of the bottom baskets. Anytime I see office supplies on clearance or get them for free through couponing I toss them in here so I can replenish my stash!


I also keep a basket as neat as possible holding all my batteries and cords. I try to keep apple cords in one section and all other cords in the other. It makes them easy to find!


I get a ton of storage in this unit! Do you have something similar? What do you store inside? Do you have it standing tall like mine or how I used to have it?

Have a great Monday everybody!

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Project 365: Week 50

It is officially the holiday season everyone! This week really reminded me that Christmas is in fact arriving soon and I actually started to exchange gifts with a few friends. There's so much going on during this time of year- I feel a little overwhelmed as I'm sure you do too. I'm amazed by how fast the year has gone by...

Here's what happened this week...


Day 345. This was the night of the first basketball home game and the first night that the dance team performed- they did great!


Day 346. On Tuesday I shared with you the cinnamon ornaments Brittni and I made!


Day 347. My Birchbox came! Which you heard all about on Monday...


Day 348. My mom and I went to see my little cousin Annabel's winter recital. She did a great job and danced to Do You Want To Build A Snowman? from Frozen which was adorable!


Day 349. My dance team performed and they did an amazing job! I was so proud of them!


Day 350. I had dinner with Rachel and Ant and showed them around the new house! It was great to see them because it had been a really long time!


Day 351. The kitchen is getting there...all the cabinets are now *almost* installed. I also love our new appliances- but only the refrigerator is in so far! Stay tuned for more updates!

How was your week?

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Cinnamon Holiday Ornaments

This past weekend Brittni and I spent some time making ornaments for our co-workers. This was a easy gift to hand out to our co-workers since neither of us were sure if people at work exchanged gifts or not. We thought that this would be a cute idea and ended up being relatively easy so I thought I would share what we did in case you are interested in making some ornaments this holiday season!



This is our finished product- don't they look cute?


Brittni had received adorable cookie cutters for her wedding shower- the shapes were perfect for winter. We used the following shapes: reindeer, penguin, fox, bear, owl, rabbit and bird. They were all so cute but the bears and penguins ended up turning out best since they are solid shapes and were easier to remove from the cookie cutters.


We had a little helper with Brittni's three year old niece. She was great at using the rolling pin!

We used one cup of applesauce with a little over a cup of cinnamon. We learned to be very generous with the cinnamon since it helped to keep the dough not as sticky. I dug my hands into the bowl with cinnamon and applesauce and mixed it by hand until is was doughy, Then we made small balls of dough and rolled them out on the table (adding cinnamon as needed) and used cookie cutters to create ornament shapes.

After we had all our ornaments cut out we placed them on parchment paper (which we draped on the cookie trays). We made sure to use a straw to make a hole in each ornaments so we would be able to loop ribbon through it.  Then we baked them in the oven for two hours on 200 degrees.

After two hours we simply pulled them out, looped ribbons through and voila!


Ornaments for everyone!

Have you ever made ornaments? There are so many fun ornament craft projects out there- I would love to make something different next year! =)

Have a great day!

Monday, December 15, 2014

December Birchbox

This months Birchbox came in a beautiful box! 


The box itself was enough to put me in the holiday spirit. I really liked how they made the December box extra special.



$10 to spend at the GAP?!


There were a ton of fun products inside!


I love trying new hair products and this month in my Birchbox I received Rusk texture spray. I'm thinking I will use this on a day I decide to wear my hair natural. I will let you know what happens!


Dr Jart+ black label detox BB beauty balm will be a nice things to try instead of using foundation one day. I have tried a few BB and CC creams and I really like the idea of it so I will give this a try soon.


I am usually not a huge fan of lip products other then Burts Bees but this month I am determined to try the Acure Organics Date Worthy Lip Lush. The color is gorgeous and I've decided to wear lip glosses and other products when I have special events instead of my Burts Bees so maybe I can wean myself off of it. I will give it a try!


The SeaRX anti wrinkle facial lift treatment serum will be a nice product to try this month. Since my skin dries out so much this time of year I will definitely appreciate a serum to use under my moisturizer. I love the packaging this on well- the pink is gorgeous!


Finally, a product that I can't wait to try and I think will be really fun to use! This is the Vasanti Cosmetics Kajal extreme intense eye pencil in rose gold. Rose gold has been a huge trend in the jewelry world throughout the past few years and I think this eye liner is gorgeous!

What products are you trying this month?

Saturday, December 13, 2014

Weekly Couponing Wrapup

Just a quick deal this week!

On Sunday I headed to CVS to get a few cheap items and use some Extra Care Bucks.


3 Lindor Caramels @ $3 each, $9 total

2 Covergirl Glosstini Polishes @ $1.99 each, $3.98 total.
$1.50 coupon from the newspaper
$2.48 total, $1.24 each.

1 Crest Sensitive Mouthwash @ $4.79
used $1 coupon from the newspaper
$3.79 total.

2 Kitkats @ $1.25 each, $2.50 total.
buy one for $1, get one for 25 cents.
$1.25 total.

I used $15.19 in Extra Care Bucks.

My total was $2.50 and I received $3 in Extra Care Bucks for the Crest Sensitive Mouthwash. 

It was great to get some chocolate that I will be able to give out as Christmas gifts, and some other cheap items. 

Did you get any cheap or free items this week?!

Project 365: Week 49

We are getting so close to the end of the year it's crazy! Only three more weeks of pictures and then I will be finished with project 365! So crazy!!!

Here's what happened this week:



Day 339 we had a training at work in case anyone comes in who has ebola (I work in a medical facility). The doctor running the training asked for volunteers, Brittni of course volunteered herself and then me. We had a blast dressing up in "ebola" clothing and then demonstrating how to remove it without touching your skin. It was the best part of the work day!


Day 340. This year instead of a big Christmas tree- we picked up a small tree. With all the renovations going on- there isn't really room for a tree, so this small one looks really cute in the window and gives us a little holiday cheer!


Day 341, Speaking of renovations- the kitchen cabinets were (mostly) torn out on this day. They are all getting torn out and new cabinets are getting put in. New appliances are getting delivered and new counters are being put in as well! Exciting things are happening in the kitchen!


Day 342. This beautiful season is unfiltered and was taken at a local spot called Split Rock. It's great to live by the water!


Day 343. I spent over a week pet sitting this dog Molly and this was my last day with her. 


Day 344 I caught up on Once Upon A Time after going to dinner with my friend Kristin. She talked up the previous episode so much that I needed to catch up! I am excited for the mid-season finale on Sunday night!


Day 345. These earrings were my earrings of the day. I purchased them at a local store called Basketcase. I have a hard time wearing sue earrings at work since I spend a great deal of time on the phone and after leaning on the phone my ear lobes start to hurt. However, dangly earrings are great for talking on the phone! =)

How was your week? Did you do anything exciting this week?