Two New Reads

This is Skinny Runner. How cute is she? I want to be her. Somehow she manages to look so fashionable even when doing a marathon! I am devouring her blog and loving it. Love her humor!

For comparison, this is what I look like when I run. (That's me on the left along with my friends Beth and Jennifer.) I have a giant forehead and a widow's peak, and I hate myself without bangs, but I also hate wet sweaty hair against my skin, so back those bangs go.

WAITJUSTAMINUTE.... did I not do a race report for MY FIRST HALF in December?????? WTF? Report to come soon......

I am also loving Do You Know the Muffin Pan- she bakes everything in her muffin tin- genius! I do not, however, see a recipe for muffin tin meatloafs on her blog, so I might just have to share mine with her!

Living Social- $20 Amazon gift card for $10

Are you signed up for Living Social yet? Today they have a $20 Amazon.com Gift Card for only $10- jump on it! You know I love my Amazon.com!

https://livingsocial.com/deals/21336?ref=conf-jp&rpi=4036199

The deal is only available for 21 more hours, so check it out and get in while you still have the chance!

Mascara: Giving One Another Chance

Last month I purchased L'Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes.

Because Eva Longoria (not Parker) told me to. And at $9, it seemed like a good bargain beauty product to try.

I tried it one morning and promptly decided I didn't like it. It didn't seem to do much, and it definitely didn't give me a million voluminous lashes.

But this week I decided to give is just one more try before I trashed it.

And all of the sudden it's fabulous!

I have this memory of my mom leaving her new tubes of Great Lash open on the counter for a few hours, telling me that letting it dry out a bit made it better...... so maybe using it last month and letting some time pass let it thicken up a bit?

At any rate, it's one of my new faves and now in the rotation. Moral of the story: Don't let your first experience with a makeup product decide its fate... give it another shot!

What mascara are you using right now?

Makeup Bags

You've seen how many lippies I have, right? Rest assured that I also own quite a bit of other cosmetics as well- blushers, eye shadows, mascaras..... I definitely have lots of makeup and always need something to keep it all in!


So when I got the opportunity to review a new monogrammed makeup bag, I was so excited!


Simply Bags sent me this bag and monogrammed it for me and I think it's just adorable.

I thought they did an excellent job with the monogram- pink is my favorite color and I just love it.

The bag retails for $17.99 and comes with a second bag in a slightly smaller size. The large makeup bag measures 12”W x 7”H x 3”, and the medium makeup bag measures 10”W x 6”H. The exterior is cotton duck cloth, and the inside is satin fuchsia easy-clean interior with zipper closure.

When Parents Text

Am I the last one to know about When Parents Text? Shame on your for not telling me.

11 in '11: Goal Nine

Goal Nine:

Have Better Handwriting

(yes, sadly, that's my handwriting pictured above.....)


O M G - I have absolutely terrible handwriting. Sometimes I look at what I wrote and think, "What the hell does that say??????"

Last year I stumbled upon some handwriting fonts, made from other people's honest-to-goodness handwriting samples by Amanda.

I want to be Bhea and have her handwriting.... how pretty is that?

So for Goal Nine, I'm going to stive to have readable handwriting, just like Bhea.

Missed goals my other goals? Catch up here.

Also, feel free to snag my 11 in '11 button above and join in.

11 in '11: Goal Eight

Goal Eight:

Join in the "Wear a Dress Tuesday" Movement

If you know me in real life, you know I'm not much of a dresser-upper. I am all about the comfy, and am lucky enough that my job allows jeans as long as we wear company-logoed shirts.

However, I stumbled upon the Wear a Dress Tuesday movement today at A Blonde Ambition and was moved by the idea! Sarah from The Strength of Faith came up with the concept and it's taking off.

Here's what Sarah says:

Here's the thing: Dresses make a girl feel special. They have the ability to take an ordinary day and make it extraordinary. Life can get to be pretty mundane and it's nice to have a reason to get dressed up. Life can get pretty stressful and it's nice to have a reason to pamper yourself. You take more time to think about what you are wearing and are able to have some fun accessorizing. You can take one dress and change the way it looks by adding scarves, earrings and a pair of killer heels. People notice and tell you that you look nice! Who doesn't like to be told that they look nice?

Starting next week (*whispers* I have jeans on today....) I'm joining in! What a neat idea and a way to have a little pick-me-up.
Missed goals my other goals? Catch up here.
Also, feel free to snag my 11 in '11 button above and join in.

11 in '11: Goal Seven

Goal Seven:

Purchase *Zero* Lip Products in 2011

I've shown you this before, and I must admit this pic is at least a year old. The bucket is even more full, and this is not the only one......

So I resolve to make my way thru it, weed out the products that don't work for me, and use the ones that do! And not purchase any more lip products in 2011.

Well, except one.

I am a big fan of Stila's various colors of lipstains.... and a new one called Coconut Crush *just* came out and I totally need it.

But nothing after that. Pinky swear.

Target Deal of the Day

Target has a great "Deal of the Day" today. These darling rain boots are $20 with free shipping! Quite a few places in the US are getting snow right now and these would be perfect.

Don't forget to go thru ebates for 3% back! (And if you are new to ebates, we both get a $5 referral bonus!)

I Am Not Sure I Could Do It

I have been thinking about the whole budgeting issue, and was considering instituting no-buy on cosmetics for 2011...... but then I see advertisements like this one, for the new Physicians Formula Happy Booster products..... and I know I just can't do it. I get way too much pleasure out of my beauty purchases.

But... I'm thinking I *could* do a monthly budget for cosmetics?

I was thinking $25 per month, and if I have my eye on something more spendy, I can save up my monthly allowance until I have enough?

But would that $25 have to cover my nail polish purchases too????? Hmmm... lots to think about!

Would you share if you have a cosmetics/nail polish budget and what it is?

11 in '11: Goal Six

Goal Six:

Keep a Household Budget

My bloggy friend Amanda at Buford Betty is a die-hard Dave Ramsey fan and I may just have to get on board. She actually is hosting a great giveaway right now for Dave's Cash Flow Planning DVD.

As a CPA, I've always thought I had a good handle on our finances. And honestly, I do. We do a great job of not spending what we don't have, but I think we really need to concentrate more on sticking to a budget. I know it will be scary to see where our money goes, but I'm going to bit the bullet and do it this month.

Amanda has a post where she offers up copies of her budget templates (in excel- and you know how I LOVE excel!) so I'm off to request my copies and get started!

How are you at budgeting?

Missed goals my other goals? Catch up here.

Also, feel free to snag the button above and join in.

11 in '11: Goal Five

Goal Five:

"Do!"

My friend Megan chooses a word every year for her resolution, and I absolutely love the idea! Her past choices were "Surrender" and "Rejoice" and this year's choice is "Give".

I decided mine is simply "Do."

So many times I have made plans that I have never followed through with. This year, I will "Do". If it's important enough for me to plan it, and think about it, I will do it. ASAP.

For example, I have been meaning to see about getting a new blog header, well, forever! It was on my long long long to-do list and just wasn't getting done. I finally got it installed today and I love it! Thanks to Wendy at A Southern Accent for my fabulous new look!

Missed goals my other goals? Catch up here.

Also, feel free to snag the button above and join in.

11 in '11: Goal Four

Goal Four:

A More Organized Household

To achieve this goal, I plan to follow Totally Together Journal's Daily 7 for a Highly Successful Household (albeit Sasha-ified a bit). Things can get a little, well, crazy around our house with both of us working outside the home, but following these 7 steps will hopefully keep our house a bit more organized and less stressful.

Number 1: Make Beds Every Day (at some point....) Sometimes people are still in their beds when I leave for work, so making them first thing in the morning won't work for us.

Number 2: Do One Complete Load of Laundry when the basket is getting full. For us, this will most likely be about every other day.

Number 3: Empty All Garbage Cans at the end of the day

Number 4: Keep Your Kitchen Sink Empty at the end of the day

Number 5: Clean Up After Yourself and Help Children Do the Same

Number 6: Bathroom Wipe-Down (I've got some Clorox Bleach Tabs ready to go in the toilets later today)

Number 7: Before Bed 10-Minute Clean Up

11 in '11: Goal Three

Goal Three:

More Purposeful Prayer, Every Day

To aid me in my spiritual quest, I purchased two books I am so excited about! I've actually been anxiously awaiting January 1st so I could get started!

First, Beth Moore's Praying God's Word Day by Day will give me a starting point each day with a scripture to focus and reflect on and will keep me accountable with an entry for each day. Second, I'll use Susan Branch's Days from the Heart of the Home as a both a prayer and gratitude journal.

I am totally ready to meet this goal!

Missed goals One and Two? Catch up here!

Also, feel free to snag the button above and join in!

11 in '11: Goal Two

Goal Two:

Complete Yoplait's

2 Week Tune Up plan

Yoplait's press release states: A recent study conducted at a leading University reveals that by following the Yoplait Light Two Week Tune Up plan – which includes replacing breakfast and lunch with a Yoplait Light yogurt, a grain and a fruit – women could lose five pounds in two weeks.

Sold!

Yoplait Light yogurt comes in more than 30 flavors with about 100 calories each, including the newest flavors Yoplait Light Black Forest Cake yogurt and Yoplait Light Triple Berry Torte yogurt. Each serving of Yoplait Light yogurt cups contains 20 percent of the Daily Value of calcium and vitamin D and zero grams of fat. Yoplait Light is available nationwide for a suggested retail price of $0.79 per six ounce cup.

The plan includes three important components; replacing your breakfast and lunch with a Yoplait Light, a grain and a fruit; eating a diet rich in lean protein and non-fat dairy including a sensible dinner, beverages and snacks; and walking 30-40 minutes daily.

All Yoplait products are made with milk from cows not treated with rBST. For more information on Yoplait Light’s Two Week Tune Up, visit http://yoplait.com/twoweektuneup and www.facebook.com/yoplait

.

Care to join in with me?

December in Review

My beautiful in-real-life friend Megan at Sorta Crunchy often does a month in review post and I'd thought I'd join in.

On My Nightstand: Prudent Advice: Lessons for My Baby Daughter (such a GREAT pick-up-and-put-down read) and Praying God's Word Day by Day in preparation for one of my New Year's resolutions: more purposeful prayer.

TV Show Worth Watching: We've been watching The Dog Whisperer as a family hoping to teach the kids, especially The Wild Child, the proper way to interact with our new dog Bella. He's an absolutely amazing man and I am so impressed by his techniques!

Movie I've Seen (in or out of the theater): Mr. Sasha and I watched Four Christmases last week and it's still on my list of all-time favorite movies. I meant to watch Love Actually during the holiday season, but didn't get around to it. Hopefully this weekend.

In My Kitchen: remnants of Christmas celebrations..... I need to get the leftover sweets out of there in the next few days to prepare for my new Shred It or Dread It plan.

In My Ears: Sophie Kinsella's audio book Can You Keep a Secret?. Love love love this chick lit story, and attn: Hollywood movie producers, this should be made into a movie STAT!


Three Newest Blog Reads:

1. Totally Together Journal. Keeping it all together is part of the "new me" plan and come January 1st, I am all over The Daily 7.
2. Picky Palate. Thanks to Jenny, I've got WC's birthday cupcakes down to two options, but haven't yet decided between her Hot Chocolate Cupcakes or her Fluffer Oreo Birthday Boy Cupcakes. Decisions, decisions, decisions....
3. Etsy Taste Test. Fun fun fun! Here's my results.

What I'm Looking Forward to Next Month: A new year, a fresh start! I've got big plans for 2011 and I can't wait to get started.

I love what Megan says at the end of her posts like that, and I'll ditto it: NOW then. Your turn! What are YOU into this month? Fill up the comment space or borrow this for inspiration on your own blog.

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon referral links.

Preview: 11 in '11

I have big plans in store for New Year, New Me. I'm calling my goals 11 in '11! I figure if I make that many goals, surely I can meet at least a few of them!


Goal One:

Exercise every day

Whether it's a 10 minute walk around the block with Bella, or a 6 mile run, I'll be doing some sort of physical activity every.single.day. Promise!


And one of my Christmas presents will help me meet that goal- Zumba for Wii!

This past semester, I attended a 6 week Saturday morning Zumba class and loved it! My crazy schedule didn't allow me to find a more regular class, and traveling put a damper on even the once-a-week class.

But with this Wii game, I can add Zumba to my workout schedule. I truly miss dancing (I was on the ADTS All-American Drill Team in 1991!) and this will not only help me get my fix, but also give me a hell of a workout at the same time.

What other workout suggestions do you have for me?

Apps for Kids

P is the proud owner of an ipod touch, and Mr. Sasha surprised me with an ipad this Christmas, so I've been doing some app shopping.

Of course one of our first purchases was Angry Birds, as well as Angry Birds Seasons. Cut the Rope is also a favorite.

And here are a few other ones I found that are tons of fun, and very well-liked by me as well as both kiddos (age 7 and almost 5).

I found this Rapunzel 3D Interactive Pop Up Book app and it's fabulous and well-worth the $1.99. Both kids were mesmerized, especially since we saw Tangled this weekend and loved it!

The kids are loving Cake Doodle (99 cents), and I'll admit to whipping up a few cakes myself last night after the kids went to bed.

And Cookie Doodle (also 99 cents) is the same idea, but of course, with cookies. Precious. You know I'm a sucker for a cute owl.

But Fruit Ninja (99 cents) is probably my favorite find. It's so fun! There are several ways to play and even a super easy timed version where you just can't lose- perfect for the little ones who get frustrated easily.

Do you have other app suggestions for the Sasha family?

Review: L'Oreal Paris Studio Secrets Professional The One Sweep Eye Shadow

Last week I saw a new L'Oreal eye shadow product, Studio Secrets Professional The One Sweep Eye Shadow, and it looked quite interesting, so I picked it up. Since I have blue eyes, I chose the shade "Natural Blue Eyes".

The product comes with an applicator that is designed to be swept across the shadow and then swept across your eyelid, to apply the three colors in one easy motion.


In theory, it's pretty cool. However, the way the three shades are layered in the case gives you a different look than what I am used to -- I typically apply the darkest shade I am using in my crease. With this product, the darkest shade is nearest to your eyelashes.... I just don't like that look on myself.

Still, for a drugstore product, it's pretty cool. MSRP is $10, although I think Walmart had it priced closer to $9.

Hope you and yours had a Merry Christmas!

I took a little bloggy break and enjoyed the holidays with the family.

This picture, taken by Trina Gibbins, was our Christmas card photo and I could just eat these two up!

I hope you had a lovely holiday as well!

New Year's Eve Babysitting

I just had to post this email from a friend..... we were discussing New Year's Eve plans and decided that since we most likely would not be able to find a babysitter at this late notice, we'd just stay in.

Here's the offer he sent us all:

Actually, for the good of the group, I'd be willing to stay back and watch the kids while everyone else goes out on New Year's Eve. I have options available for all budget levels and drinking levels:

BASIC PACKAGE:

$10/hour per child...5 hour minimum. Children must be picked up by 1am. Price includes bread, water, and access to a VHS player hooked up to a 13 inch B&W television. The kids will have great fun trying to figure out what a VHS tape is and why the tv isn't in high definition color.

DELUX PACKAGE:

$15/hour per child...5 hour minimum. Children must be picked up by 1am. Price includes all amenities in the basic package plus I will actually interact with your child. Why not pay a little extra and have your child experience the fun and wonders of talking about social and behavioral statistics.

SUPER DELUX GETAWAY PACKAGE:

$25/hour per child/adult. Price includes all amenities in the basic package and delux packages plus a couch (more likely floor space) for 1 adult. All non-family children and adults must be out of my house by 5:30am. Breakfast not included. It's cheaper than a DUI and more comfortable than sleeping in my driveway.

SUPER DELUX STAY AND PLAY PACKAGE:

$25/hour per child/adult. Price includes amenities in all other packages plus you can just stay at our house for the Fiesta Bowl. Price requires 8-10 hours of working/cleaning to prepare our house to host a football watch party. What better way to work off a hangover than cleaning toilets, making beds, vacuuming, and cooking? Little Debbie honey bun breakfast included.

Last Minute Gift Idea: Kiss My Face

Christmas is a nostalgic time when the familiar scents like rosemary, peppermint and cranberry fill the air and tickle our senses. Kiss My Face has some unique product offerings for the holiday season that contain traditional holiday ingredients while being quite green: they are natural and free of parabens, phthalates, and are not tested on animals.

Rosemary and Melon Self Foaming Liquid Soap ($7.95) offers the aromatic smell of rosemary next to your sink and cleans thoroughly leaving hands soft and smooth. I've placed this in our guest bathroom and have gotten some comments on it's wonderful smell. With kids in the house, we have found that foaming soaps work much better than liquid and really help the kids take care of that task on their own.

Peppermint Foot Crème ($8.99) works to stimulate and exfoliate feet while moisturizing with Grapeseed Oil. I've used this after an evening run and it feels great- the peppermint smell is divine and I woke up the next morning with super-soft feet.

(swatch of the Garnet Shine)

Sheer Organic Shimmers (stick form) & Shines (gloss form) ($3.99 each) contain natural mineral color, vitamins A&E to repair and protect lips and have a luscious organic flavor – mint with a hint of vanilla. I loved both of these products, but I think the Shine is my favorite- it was so moisturizing and wore so well.

Cranberry Orange Lip Balm ($3.49) soothes and protects lips with organic ingredients and SPF 15. This is a great balm for the guys- it's non-glossy and P claimed "It feels so good on my lips!"

Kiss My Face products are available at Target stores across the United States.

Disclosure: I was sent these products for review purposes.

A Fancy Nancy Christmas

Is your little girl a Fancy Nancy fan? I think you know mine is!

I just found out about the neatest thing - a free downloadable Fancy Nancy Holiday Guide! I just printed it out and it is darling and WC will love the ideas!

While we are on the subject, could you take a second to vote for her in the Fancy Nancy Fantastic Fan contest? She's holding her own at #183 of 511 with 29 votes.

Thanks to all who have voted so far! The prize is so neat- the winning photo will be illustrated in an upcoming Fancy Nancy- can't you just see a book about Fancy Nancy going to the pool? It would be darling!

I absolutely love that she dressed herself for the pool with a floppy hat, girly bag and high heels, and also love that she wore a football jersey to school the next day- she's a bit prissy, a bit of a tomboy, and I love her just the way she is!

Cocoa Chex Mix

It's totally a sickness- when I start researching something I can't stop.....

And all I could find about the Cocoa Chex Mix was info about a special edition Winter Chex Mix Cocoa from a few years ago. This article isn't dated, but it was definitely talking about a different version because the contents aren't quite the same. I keep finding 2008 references in regards to this version.

From the article linked above: This mix included pretzels shaped like stockings, snowflakes, sleighs, snowmen and Christmas trees (moronically described on the bag as "holiday trees" so as not to offend); mini marshmallows, the kind they include with hot chocolate mix; vanilla bread sticks; Corn Chex; and Frosted Mini Chex. All of those things had a thin coating of a hot chocolate-like powder that adhered to everything quite well.

2010's version has (clockwise from left): mini marshmallows (cereal style), circle and square pretzels, a swirly cookie, a chex densely-coated with chocolate powder, and a sweetened almost-frosted chex.

It's quite yummy, and now we can get back to tasks at hand (Christmas shopping!) now that I've properly research, photographed, and reported my new find. (Since Chex Mix doesn't feel it necessary to put the product on their web page......)

Have You Seen?

New Chex Muddy Buddies! Absolutely yummy and premade!!!!!

Props to Chex Mix for having them on their website! (Although I was unable to find the other variety I purchased at the same time - hot chocolate or maybe hot cocoa - on there! I did find some info on other sites about a past limited edition Winter Chex Mix Hot Cocoa , but that's not what I purchased....)