My favorite season

Fall is my favorite season. I love the colors, the smell, the weather. Everything about it.

My mom also has to be the sweetest person alive. Knowing I loved fall, she put together an adorable box full of things to welcome my favorite time of the year.

The box included spiced cider packets, a bottle of Starbucks Caramel Sauce, a cute cup from Pier 1 with it's own spoon and a bunch of other cute goodies packed in to a recipe card box. It was fun to unpack today and enjoy my first caramel apple cider of the season.

Thanks Mom :) I love you!

I hope everyone is enjoying the start of the new season.

Happy 100th Post: A little gift for a lucky someone!

I don't have any updates on the room. I have been feeling under the weather and haven't made any further progress. I still have three days of vacation to get through the painting. I will most definitely have pictures to update with before I head back to work on Wednesday.

On to something more fun! I was excited to find this is my 100th post! If I'm most impressed with anything, it's that I've stuck with this blog for 100 whole posts. 6 whole months, and I've made some great blog friends along the way.

I think giveaways are fun. Though I haven't been lucky enough to win one yet, it's really sweet that so many of you extend the courtesy. In honor of my 100th post, and that summer is coming in all of it's sunny glory, I'm having a giveaway for my blog friends!

I have a glass addiction. I have at least 15 different kids of glasses in my cupboard. I especially like cute summery glasses perfect for a BBQ or a glass of lemonade while basking in the sun. I found these, loved them and decided I wanted to share them with someone else.

A set of four polkadot tumblers in summer colors!

To enter just leave a comment with your favorite summer drink. That's it! I'll announce the winner on Wednesday morning, so leave those comments!

Good luck to everyone, and thank you again so much for reading. You give me a reason!

Review: Organic Wear

I mentioned here that I had purchased new makeup products from Drugstore.com. I had decided I'd take the route of testing a newer line of organic products I'd seen out. They were a little spendy for what I'm usually willing to pay at Walmart, but when I found the prices to be considerably less online I thought I'd give them a try.

It was mentioned to me (thank you, Mom) that just because a product is labeled as organic, doesn't necessarily mean it is organic. If the ingredients don't say specifically that they are organic then your product may not be 100% organic. As this may have been the case with these products, I chose to do a little research online. I looked at their website, Organic Wear Makeup and was reassured that the products I purchased were either of natural origin with no chemicals added or certified organic.

ECOCERT is the organic certification for cosmetic products (as the USDA does not certify cosmetics, only food). As long has your cosmetic product has this label it meets the standards to be organic. All three of the products in this post hold the ECOCERT label.

The first product is the Organic Wear Natural Bronzer in Natural Glow. The packaging is adorable. The compact is paper and similar to the box my Benefit 10 is packaged in. It has a clean scent, applies evenly and is soft to the touch. It wears well for over 12 hours and at the end of the day it doesn't make my skin feel greasy. I absolutely love this bronzer.

Next is the Organic Wear Eyeliner in Black Woods. I wasn't sure what their clever names were for and then I realized woods stands for brown. Sometimes I'm a little slow. I've always had trouble applying eyeliner until I found this one. I get a smooth line and it blends easily. If you were to rub your eye it would smudge, but it doesn't run on it's own. I avoided wearing eyeliner, but gave this a shot and I was sold.

Last is the Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Mascara in Black (why the long name?). The packaging is a little silly and the wand was a little whimpy. However, wand judgement comes solely from my usual mascara being Bad Gal Lash by Benefit and their wand is huge. Even with the whimpy wand, this mascara gives full, lengthening coverage. It doesn't have a harsh smell and I don't have a problem with clumping or flaking. I'm impressed with the overall look even when my lashes are lacking curl that day. I will definitely buy this product again.

I'm very happy with all three products, which is always nice and unexpected when trying something new. I feel like they're good quality and priced decently for a drugstore brand. I've been able to thin out my makeup bag and the majority of my products are now Organic Wear & Benefit. If you're looking to try something new, I encourage you to spend the money to try these products!

Favorites: In the Kitchen

Last weekend I took a ton of photos. I had borrowed a DSLR camera from a coworker who is interested in selling it. They were nice enough to allow me to use it for a few days to decide if it would be the camera for me. And though it wasn't, I was snapping away in the kitchen of some of my pretty vintage things.

That's when I realized they were some of my favorite pieces in the kitchen. And to top it off, they all have something very sweet in common. They all belonged to my husband's grandmother. The relationship he had with his grandmother was similar to the one I had with mine. Though I don't have anything but a memory left of my grandmother, I was more than touched to have the opportunity to have some of his grandmother's things in my kitchen to use.

This beautiful yellow Pyrex bowl. It's small and dainty, perfect for a hearty serving of salsa.

These peach depression glass relish dishes. I use these when I make tacos. I place my diced tomatoes, onion, cilantro & avocado in them.

Another peach depression glass relish dish. This is usually on my counter filled with fruits or vegetables. Onions, apples, bananas, potatoes. Anything I've brought home from the store that week.

This blue Pyrex mixing bowl. I realized I had this and the yellow bowl over Easter. I was looking for something to put the rolls in that would have a little spring color. I now keep it on the counter in my kitchen because it's the same color as my KitchenAid mixer!

My last piece of peach depression glass. This serving tray held the pulled pork & tortillas from my earlier taco post. It's also out in the kitchen to be seen. It's just too pretty to put away.

The mixing bowls were something my husband received many years before our time together. They've always been something he's enjoyed having. The glass pieces were my birthday gift from my mother-in-law last year.

I couldn't say enough good things about that woman. When we had been down at her house in the spring of 2009 I had admired the pink glass dishes in her china cabinet. She told me they were her mother's and that they used to use them during holiday meals. I had never seen depression glass in pink before and thought they were beautiful. Mind you, I never go to her house and comment on her things in hopes to have them gifted. You'd imagine my surprise when she sent us home with my birthday gift but made me promise not to open it until July. I pulled out that gift on my birthday and cried. How sweet to receive such a beautiful and thoughtful gift. I felt so absolutely blessed that I was unable to find the words to thank her.

I love vintage things that have a story. I look forward to adding to my vintage kitchen collection whether they be meaningful heirlooms or just items we find on our own. Remeber to enjoy those things around you that hold special meaning.

A Survey: Skincare & Makeup

I ran across this survey a couple of months ago, but didn't feel like I was makeup saavy enough to post it. But I came across it again this week so here it is (Why do I suddenly feel like I'm filling out a Myspace survey? Yeeesh).


42 Questions about Makeup
1) How many times do you wash your face daily? Twice on days I run, once on days I don't (bad, I know).

2) What skin type do you have? I would consider it oily. However my new & simple skincare routine has greatly improved that.

3) What is your current facial wash? Purpose by Johnson & Johnson

4) Do you exfoliate? Once weekly. I'm prone to redness, so anymore often is bananas.

(Umm, where did #5 disappear to?)

6) What moisturizer do you use? Purpose by Johnson & Johnson - On days I wash my face twice. I usually run after work, so I'll wash my face then moisturize before I go to bed.

7) Do you have freckles? Yes, but I wish they stood out more like my mom's do.

8) Do you use eye cream? Sure don't.

9) Do you or did you have acne prone skin? I get one pimple about once every three months. I know, I'm kind of lucky in that area.

10) Did you ever have to use Pro-Activ? Have never needed to.

11) What foundation do you use? None. I sometimes use Benefit's You Rebel tinted moisturizer as foundation if I feel like I need a little help or I have a special night out planned.

12) How about concealer? I do have a Smashbox concealer I use for the same reasons mentioned above.

13) Do you know your undertone color? I've been told they're yellow.

14) What do you think of fake eyelashes? Yeah, no. last time I tried them I looked like a hooker. Pass.

15) Did you know you were supposed to change your mascara every 3 months? Sure do, however I change it when I feel like it's dying. Different formulas and brands have different life spans. You know when it's not working all that well anymore.

16) What brand of mascara do you use? Benefit Bad Gal Lash, however I've ordered a new organic product I'm looking forward to trying!

17) Sephora or Mac? If this question is in regards to the product the brand produces itself, then Mac. If you're speaking in reference to the store, then Sephora.

18) Do you have a Mac Pro card? Nope, don't wear enough makeup to even consider it.

19) What makeup tools do you use in makeup application? My fingers, and a few brushes (for shadows & eyeliner).

20) Do you use makeup base/primer for the eyes? Nope. My skin was always too oily for that.

21) For the face? Again, no.

22) What is your favourite eyeshadow? Colour or shade? I enjoy anything in neutral colors. I have a Stila baked shadow combination that contains a light bone color, a dark copper color & a warm gold color. Love, love, love it.

23) Do you use pencil or liquid liner? Pencil liner. I have a Stila liquid I'm still practicing with.

24) How often do you poke your eyes with an eyeliner pencil? Never.

25) What do you think of pigment eye shadows? I've never used them.

26) Do you use mineral makeup? I like it. I have Bare Escentuals I use on occassion. Mostly just their bronzer and a few of their shadows that fit the neutral category.

27) What is your favourite lipstick? Maybelline "Born With It" lipstick. Suggestion from another blog and it's the only lipstick I've ever worn.

28) How about lipgloss? I have a Smashbox lipgloss I totally love, it's just clear. I also have a vanilla mint & chocolate mint clear gloss from Old Navy (weird, I know) that I totally adore.

29) What is your favourite blush to use? I own no blush, can you believe it?

30) Do you buy your makeup on Ebay? I've gotten nail polish on Ebay.

31) Do you like drugstore makeup? Of course! I have a drugstore eyeliner & mascara in my bag right now.

32) Do you go to CCO's? Cosmetic Company Outlet? Nope.

33) Did you ever consider taking makeup classes? I've never really given it that much thought.

34) Are you clumsy in putting on makeup? I'm not great at it, but I don't think I've ever had bad looking makeup.

35) Name a makeup crime that you hate? Spider lashes. Please get new mascara!

36) Do you like colourful shades of makeup (lipstick or eyeshadow) or neutral ones? I prefer neutral, but love it when others can pull off beautiful colors.

37) Which celebrity always has great makeup? Kate Beckinsale

38) If you could leave the house using just ONE makeup item, what would you use? Mascara

39) Could you leave the house without any makeup on? I did today. Ran errands that included running to my work & Home Depot. I'm not shy. I've got good skin, my eyes just look a tad tired.

40) Do you think you look good even without any makeup on? I do. Like mentioned above, I look a little tired. However, I've always gotten compliments on how nice I look without makeup. I have a few friends who prefer me without it, they think I look more like myself.

41) In your opinion what is the BEST makeup line? Given I have the most experience with Benefit, I'd say they're a good candidate. I totally love them.

42) What do you think of makeup? I think makeup is a wonderful thing. It's a great bonus for me on a day where I'm just not feeling so hot. As long as I have a fresh, presentable face, I'm ok with going out with a pony tail. I think everyone could benefit from just the smallest amount of makeup. Staple items that every girl needs is an eye lash curler, mascara, blush or bronzer & lip gloss. These are my staples day to day and I just think they make you look fresh and polished.


What are your answers to these makeup questions? Please feel free to post this, I'm always interested in what my favorite ladies have to say!

I've got some lovely ladies in my (internet) life - Blog Awards

I feel lame and ungrateful that I've not acknowledged the blog awards I've received over the last month or so. Though my following is small, I have wonderful followers who I equally enjoy reading. I feel like I've met some of the nicest, sincere people through the channels of the interwebs.

So today I'm going to acknowledge, thank and promote those I've received in hopes that I can send them new readership. They're great! Promise!

The Stiletto Award

This was given to me by the lovely Care over at The Exposed Mom. She's beautiful, sweet and entertaining. She's a wonderful read. I've missed her in her seeming absence over the last week.

1. Display your Stiletto Badge of Honor, wear it with pride!

2. BRAG ABOUT IT! - Write a post about your award. Include the link to this page so everyone will understand what it’s all about! The Stiletto Award

3. SAY THANKS! - Include a link to the friend who nominated you for the award.

4. SHARE THE LOVE! - Nominate 5-10 blogs that you feel deserve the award. Include links to them in your post -and- leave them a comment to let them know they are nominated.

5. DO WHAT YOU DO! - Keep at it. Keep inspiring and encouraging and sharing your life! We love it and we thank you!

My nominations include:

Momma Confessions

How Sweet It Is

Fetching Fashions

Superficial Obsession

High Heels & Aprons

*******

The Beautiful Blogger Award

This is my second Beautiful Blogger Award. Thank you so much to Ashley over at The Thing About Daisies. I can't tell you how fabulous this girl is. First of all, she has incredible style and a vintage collection that will make you drool. Second, she's absolutely to die for sweet. And third, totally talented in more ways than one. I think if we lived close, we might be best friends (stalkerish Ashley? maybe).

The rules for this one is:

1. List 7 random things about yourself.

2. Give this award to 7 people.

3. Let them know!

I ran 4.75 miles today and I'm dog tired. I've got a new "trainer" and she worked me hard today.

I hardly ever crave fast food. Ever. I'm more likely to crave cupcakes.

Right now I'm craving oatmeal. With a little brown sugar & almond milk. Yum.

I have a tiny chihuahua sleeping on my chest & a yorkie sleeping on my legs. These two tiny dogs put off an immense amount of heat. That's why they make awesome heaters under the covers!

I learned how to play backgammon this week. I love it. It makes me feel like I'm living in the 1940's.

I picked up my supplies to get the chalk board for my dining room all done up. Now to actually do it.

I still haven't finished my spa bench. Awesome, right? It's still waiting for a coat or two of poly.

My nominations include:

the Fick Family Blog

Dear Baby

Posh Pieces

*******

The Gorgeous Blogger Award

I received this award from Francis over at the Fick Family Blog. She's a beautiful mother to two beautiful children. Her son is one handsome little thing, while her daughter steals my heart. She's sweet and you can tell how much she loves her family. She's always positive and always has happy, encouraging things to say when she visits me.

Here are the rules:

Accept and thank the person who gave it to you!

List 10 things about yourself

List 5 additional things you DON'T like

Then pick ten people to give this lovely award to!

This might be easier if I was actually being asked questions. I have a hard time thinking of so many interesting things about myself.

1. I'm the oldest child in my family.

2. I have one sister & one brother.

3. I believe I'm still the tallest of my siblings at a whole 5'3".

4. I think my natural hair color is dark blonde.

5. I've colored my hair since the age of 11 (Sun-In the summer after 5th grade).

6. I was a cat person until I suddenly became allergic at the age of 17.

7. My last remaining cat still lives with my mom. She turns 9 years old next month.

8. My mom is only 16 years older than me. I could never imagine being a mother so young, not even right now at 26. But she was the most down to earth, level headed mother you could ever meet.

9. I absolutely love Top Ramen, even though the sodium content is through the roof!

10. I'm the worst softball player you'll ever meet, but I love playing.

1. I don't like people who don't use their blinkers.

2. I don't like people who can't seem to pull over for emergency vehicles. It's just as important to move over for a police officer as it is an ambulance or fire truck. Thanks.

3. I don't like Humane Society or ASPCA commercials, I choke up regardless of what's happening or where I am. It also hurts my heart when I have to take calls at work about deer hit by cars.

4. I hate animal cruelty period. Animals are innocent & in most cases helpless. It's our job to help protect them.

5. I don't like trimming the chihuahua's nails. I always think I'm going to hurt her.

My nominations include:

The Exposed Mom

The Thing About Daisies

Blonde Ambition

The Hutton House

*******

If you stuck it out through this long wordy post, thank you! For those of you who have nominated me for awards, thank you! I love the blogging community no matter how big or small it may be for some of us. I enjoy daily smiles and inspiration from you all.

Hungry, even when I'm not.

Since I began blogging in December, I haven't kept up on the majority of my favorite blogs like I used to. I have them all neatly organized in my favorites folder and had been visiting each one daily for updates. I consider this both good and bad. You see, the majority of my favorite blogs are all food. Cooking & food, cooking & food. Oh my.

I enjoy reading recipes and decided I'd get myself caught up on what I've been missing. I even went through my recipe folder to take a look at individual recipes I've saved for a later time, but might not have made yet.

Here are my picks for a few totally crave worthy recipes. They have me hungry, even when I'm not.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

by Love & Olive Oil

{image credit: Love & Olive Oil}

Whole Wheat Chocolate Peanut Butter Pancakes

by How Sweet It Is

{image credit: How Sweet It Is}

Tortilla Soup with Pinto Beans

by FatFree Vegan Kitchen

{image credit: FatFree Vegan Kitchen}

Turkey Chili

by Elana's Pantry

{image credit: Elana's Pantry}

Bacon Stuff Avocado

by How Sweet It Is

{image credit: How Sweet It Is}

Banana-Maple Oatmeal Cookies

by FatFree Vegan Kitchen

{image credit: FatFree Vegan Kitchen}

These are on my list and I plan to make them very soon. Especially those cookies! I'm always in the mood for a cookies. And most fall in line with eating healthy, that's always a winning combo. If you try any of these, please let me know how they've turned out! In the mean time, check out these lovely food blogs.

happiness is

The love of my life, my husband.

The second love of my life, beer.

The third love of my life, my husband & beer together.
Oh, and margaritas.

Early Morning Loves

I've been thinking a lot about prints. I have a lot of empty walls in my house. My photos I posted yesterday of our weeping cherry tree turned out so well for being taken and edited on my phone. I think they'll fill a few 3"x3" frames I picked up while thrift store shopping. I'm not sure they'd size out any larger than that and still look good anyhow.

But of course, there are many walls in the house to fill and I have had some great luck on Etsy print shopping in the past. Here's what I found this morning that I love.

{image credit ALPhotography}

{image credit ALPhotography}

{image credit irenesuchocki}

{image credit irenesuchocki}

I love beautiful dreamy pictures. I envy those who can capture the true beauty in things seen only by the naked eye and have the ability to translate that in to a photo. But as long as others can continue to develop this talent, my home will always have beautiful photographs.

In the morning

My favorite time of the day right is in the morning. We live in such a beautiful place. The sunrises are sometimes more magnificent than the sunsets. I love leaving work at first light, coming home through the beautiful evergreens that have been beaten by the ocean wind and standing in my yard under a pink sky. It's magical.

As I drive along and look to the east I'm welcomed by a beautiful pink and orange sky, sun rising. As I look to the west the island is still sleeping, sky deep blue with stars. You can almost see the line down the middle where the colors are colliding.

I felt like the flowers starting blooming so early, then I realized it was almost April. I have a few bulbs that came up earlier than I had thought and our weeping cherry tree is in full bloom.

The weeping cherry is a beautiful canopy of white. Even after taking several large limbs off of the tree last year, it continues to sprawl over both ours and the neighbors yard. It's enormous and absolutely stunning.

I will be so sad when the flowers are gone. But in their place will be a thick layer of green leaves.

I apologize for my seemingly sporadic blogging over the last week or so. I've been tired and didn't have the opportunity last weekend to write up a few posts. Writers block perhaps in combination with wanting to relax every second of my 4 day weekend with my lovely husband. I will make up for lost time soon. 

Favorites: In the Kitchen

I haven't had a lot of time in the last couple weeks to cook up a ton of new recipes and I kind of miss my kitchen. Thinking of what I might do with myself today as my husband will be gone for the day instructing a training class for work, I decided finding a couple new recipes to make up while I'm home alone would be a good choice.

When it comes to the kitchen I have a few things that reach my all time favorites list. Things I use all the time. Most of these things aren't items I would have ever considered having in my kitchen 3 or 4 years ago, and it's such a shame I didn't know better way back then (especially since I had a gas stove to cook on). I'm glad to say I've broadened my horizons.

1. Lodge 3-qt. Cast-Iron Covered Chicken Fryer

This cast-iron skillet was bought as a wedding gift by my mother-in-law. I had found the Pioneer Woman earlier in the year and was excited for my new skillet as she used hers for so many of the recipes she made. As "country" as this skillet may have been to me at the time, I've never cooked in a better pan. This thing can do it all. I love that it can go from the stove top to the oven, and how well the pan conducts heat. This will turn out the best pork chops and chicken you've ever had. I use this pan more than anything else in my kitchen.

2. Lodge 5-qt. Cast-Iron Covered Dutch Oven

I received this dutch oven with my skillet and I love it too. It doesn't get used as frequently as the skillet for this reason only: if had had bought it myself, I would have chosen to purchase the 7-qt. size. Almost every recipe for soup or chili I've made in this dutch oven has required me to split it between this and the skillet. It just doesn't fit the quanity of most recipes. I use this to turn out incredible homemade french onion soup, white chicken chili, cranberry beef stew, drip beef and pot roast. Like the skillet, it goes from the stove top to the oven, conducts heat better than any regular soup pot and turns out the most tender roasts.

3. KONCIS Thickening/Sauce Whisk

This whisk is awesome. I love anything silicone coated, it makes the world better. A flat whisk works perfectly for getting in to the corners of a pan while you're thickening your enchilada sauce, country gravy or stew. This is one of the best purchases I've made yet for the kitchen.

4. OXO Red Silicone Spatula

I use this for everything but flipping burgers and pancakes (I'm still trying to find that perfect spatula). I've loved this particular item for a long time, I've had it for years. But I'll tell you why I started using it so much now: my husband hates the sound of metal utensils clanking on the pans while I'm cooking. I think it's an OCD thing for me and I must tap tap tap my spoon on the side of the pan way more often than I realize, and it drives him crazy. However, this thing works like a charm. It gets everything scraped off the bottom of a pan or all of the cake batter from the bowl. It's heat resistant up to 600 degrees so you can stir any soup you're cooking. And for my very most favorite part, it turns out perfectly fluffy scrambled eggs. Yum!

5. KitchenAid 5-Qt. Artisan Stand Mixer

This KitchenAid mixer was a gift for my birthday last year from my husband. And though he didn't exactly surprise me with it (he took me to pick out the color) I was excited and surprised. I had been wanting one for a very long time. I haven't used the mixer a ton, but it's fun to use. I've made pizza dough, bread, muffins and cakes with it. It's so easy to just throw the indgredients in and let it go to work. Bread is very intimidating for me, but hopefully I get up the nerve to use it for bread again soon. I do have a few recipes saved to try. This mixer is what began defining the color of my kitchen. I didn't realize that it was Martha Stewart Blue until we had left the store (I don't really love Martha) but I eventually got over it.

6. Keurig B70 Platinum Brewing System

Even though I don't cook with this, it's a coffee revolution in our household. This is a single cup brewing system with 5 cup sizes available. You buy the cute little K-cups that come in so many different flavors and roasts that there is surely something for everyone. They even make hot chocolate, tea and iced tea K-cups! We're both coffee drinkers (I could potentially classify as coffee adict) but have struggled with agreeing on coffee roasts. He prefers a bold roast, I prefer more of a medium. I also like to waste half my cup of coffee many days, and this is helpful as I'm only wasting half a cup versus half a cup and 3/4 of the pot left. I would consider this success.

Do you have any favorite kitchen gadgets? Do you enjoy cooking? Anthing you love that you think I should add to my own kitchen? Let me know!