Here I Go Again

I must need my head examined.  I am trying to jog again.  Here’s the thing…..I hate it.  I hate that I feel like my lungs are going to explode and that I’m so out of breath that it takes me longer to recover than my actual workout.  I hate that my brain wants to put on my shoes and run for a hour straight (shhhh I secretly want to be a runner) but my body has other plans.  Even though I SUCK at jogging I like the way that I feel that I accomplished something when I’m done.  At least I tried.  So I will continue to try.  Say a prayer for me that I turn into Flo Jo within the next week. 



Bucket List?

I was talking with a friend this weekend about our “lists”.  You know the ones we make in our heads that are filled with all the things that we want to do or buy in the immediate future – my top item is getting Botox followed by getting hair extensions and I threw some travel in there.  So this is definitely not a bucket list.  But it did get me thinking…….Do I need a bucket list?  Am I too young for a bucket list?  What would I even put on this list if I did have one?  That was followed by a downward spiral of thinking about mortality and how I’m almost ½ way through my life.

I digress.  That is a whole other blog post. 

Back to the BL.  I think that I need to start putting some things on it besides Botox.  Here are some that I thought of – in no particular order:

1.       Go to Italy (the mother land, lol) on a Cruise.  After cruising once I am hooked

2.      Re-new my wedding vows on a beach at sunsetJ wearing a dress that I actually like

3.      Get into a size of clothing that does not take like 50 yards of fabric to make

4.      Get hair extensions – sorry its lame but I really want to do that.  But whatev - it’s my list and I can put whatever I want on it

5.      Learn to speak fluent Italian.  Probably a good idea to start learing before going to Italy

6.      Learn to make wine the way my family has made it for generations

7.      Create a family cookbook with all the recipes that have been in our family for years

8.      Take a ride in a hot air balloon – this one is on my Grammy’s list too

That’s just a startJ  I'm sure as the years pass the list will get bigger  - but you can bet that skydiving, swimming with sharks, or anything that has to do with nature will not be on it!  What’s on your bucket list?

Lash Extension Review

To extend or not to extend …….that is the question.  I am happy to report that I got lash extensions and I love them!!  They are so glamorous – without being over the top if that makes sense!?!  Here’s a perfect example of what I’m talking about.   You know when you have someplace to go and want to look really cute/pretty but don’t want to look like you tried too hard.  Even though you probably spent 3 hours just doing your hair to make it look like you were born with perfectly tussled curls - like it was effortless.  Well that is how lash extensions are.

A couple of months ago I met a girl and the first thing I noticed was her eye lashes.  They looked so beautiful but not fake.  The makeup artist in me kept looking for the lash band that you see on a full strip of falsies.  I was floored because I couldn’t see anything – not even eye liner.  I had to ask her what her secret was.  She admitted that they were extensions.  I was shocked.  For years and I mean years I have seen many eye lash extensions and they ALL looked horrid.  Like a spider had a fight with a tube of superglue kinda bad.  I NEVER recommended them to any of my clients because I had seen so many bad ones.   Well they must have come a long way in the last 5 years!!

I did some research (Joe says “obsessing”) and found a salon here in town that only does lash extensions.  They are licensed estheticians that are certified in applying the extensions.  This is VERY important!!  You do not want to go to some shack downtown where your friend’s friend’s cousin got them done for $30.  You get what you pay for – the last thing you want in an eye infection!  Each of the estheticians has a full bio of their experience and certifications posted online.  So I felt pretty confident that they knew what they were doing.  When I got to the salon my lash stylist asked me how I wanted the lashes to look.  They have all sorts of different ways you can get them done.  I wanted them to be noticeable but not stripper.  I was instructed to lie down on a table.  Cushiony pads were put on top of my bottom lashes to protect them from the adhesive.  After that I closed my eyes for almost 3 hours.  It was relaxing but I have to admit it was hard to lay there with my eyes closed for that long. 

Once I was allowed to open my eyes - and my head stopped spinning from sitting up too quickly - I saw that I had the lashes that every mascara in the universe has promised:) So to answer the question on whether to extend or not to extend I will have to say yes!! 

Sorry about the pics – they are not the best – I’m trying to do all of this one handed.  So please excuse any typos too:)

Before - taken last week with full makeup on

After  - taken this afternoon with minimal makeup on - I can only do so much one handed, lol :)

Momma Said There Would be Days Like This

I’m having a “day”.  You know those days where you feel ugly, feel fat, feel like your hair is exactly the opposite of what you wished it looked like.  I love my hair but seems like every woman that I see with long hair just makes me wish that I never would have cut it.  Ugh!!  I had surgery yesterday and my mom told me that I should forgo weight day today since surgery will make you retain fluid.  I should have listened.  You can only guess that I did not lose.  So feeling sorry myself I decided to try to get my mind off things and go online.  Well I found this quote that I thought I’d share.  Now if I could just get myself to believe it…….

“Get Off The Scale!

You are beautiful. Your beauty, just like your capacity for life, happiness, and success, is immeasurable. Day after day, countless people across the globe get on a scale in search of validation of beauty and social acceptance.

Get off the scale! I have yet to see a scale that can tell you how enchanting your eyes are. I have yet to see a scale that can show you how wonderful your hair looks when the sun shines its glorious rays on it. I have yet to see a scale that can thank you for your compassion, sense of humor, and contagious smile. Get off the scale because I have yet to see one that can admire you for your perseverance when challenged in life.

It’s true, the scale can only give you a numerical reflection of your relationship with gravity. That’s it. It cannot measure beauty, talent, purpose, life force, possibility, strength, or love. Don’t give the scale more power than it has earned. Take note of the number, then get off the scale and live your life. You are beautiful!”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

Gunk Can Suck it

Hello Peeps!  I thought that I would share with you something so cool it blew my mind!  Ha!  I guess it doesn’t take much!!  I LOVE hair products – anything that will pump my hair up make it hold a curl is a product that I’m sure that I have tried or is already under my bathroom sink.  Problem is since they are so sticky they build up on my curling iron – not good.  Now a little build up is going to happen but recently my curling iron was sticking together – it was so bad that the barrel would not open.  Not something that I’m proud of but I had no clue how I was going to get off this caked on superglue.  I thought I was time for a new curling iron.  I am in love with the curling iron that own and can’t find it anywhere.  In fact I had to troll eBay for like 6 months the last time that my curling got this bad with buildup.  So I was not looking forward to having to try to find another one or (gasp) a different brand!  Trying to find a good curling iron is like trying to find a good bra or a pillow.  It takes forever and you have to try out a zillion before you find the right one.  I bought my car faster and with much less testing than I would a new curling iron.  So I turned to the internet.  Those of you who know me know that I Google everything (what did we do before Google??)  So why I waited this long to look this up is beyond me.  I found a way to remove the most stubborn buildup from my curling iron.  It looks practically brand new!  Yippee!!
To clean your curling iron or flat iron you will

• Clean Rag
• Small bowl
• Baking soda
• Water
• Screwdriver

 Take the barrel off the drum of the curling iron.  This is super easy.  Trust me.  I am someone that can’t hang a picture so when I say this is a piece of cake it isJ  If you are cleaning a flat iron you may not have to do this.  Put some baking soda in a small bowl and add just a smidge of water – you want to make a thick paste.  Rub it on the curling/flat iron.  Let it sit for about a minute.  Take your rag and get it damp.  Start working the paste in small circles.  The gunk that start to come right off.  For more stubborn areas you might have to use your fingernail to scrape it off.  If its really being stubborn then add a little more paste and let it sit for a few minutes.  Work that crap off!!  Once you do viola!  Clean curling iron JJ and happy girl!!

Curse of Weigh Day

So when I started Weight Watchers way back in the day Thursday was my weigh day.  A lot of scientific research was done to come up with this day.  It was close enough to the weekend that my extra points could be used if necessary but then far enough away from the weekend that I could make up from any badness that happened.  I’m a giant freak (dork?) I weigh every day.  And before you start thinking about how bad that is let me tell you it helps me stay on track.  If I’m down then it gives me a little boost and motivates me all day to not eat a chocolate donut.  If I’m up then it kicks my ass into gear and again I forgo the chocolate donut.  So for the most part my weight on Wednesdays would be sweet – I’d be downJJ  Then Thursdays I’d be back up!  So when I re-started WW a few weeks ago the only logical thing to do was to change my weigh day to Wednesday.  FAIL!!  Yesterday I didn’t lose but I didn’t gain.  I was scratching my head cause I have been really trying.  Well this morning I did my usual torture of getting on the scale (a.k.a Dirty Whore) and low and behold I was down 2.4.  Curse of the weigh day!!  Oh well – hope it sticks cause next week I can report pure awesomenessJ 

Week 2 Weigh In

Welcome to my giant suck fest!  I didn’t lose anythingL  I’m trying not to get discouraged but it’s hard.  When I say that I’m really trying – I’m really trying.  I am tracking everything down to a piece of hard candy someone gave me this week.  I did use all my extra points but I was under the impression that that was allowed.   Not sure what the problem is.  Maybe too many processed foods?  I will really have to think about this.  I didn’t gain – so I am going to stop the whining.  Just had to get it out.  I am not giving upJ

A Few of my Favorite Things

I thought it would be fun to share with you a few of my favorite things.  Yes….the song ‘My Favorite Things’ is running through my head as I type this.  Now if my husband was sitting right here I’m sure that he would argue that I definitely have more than a few.  But I have narrowed my list down:

1.       Laura Mercier tight line eyeliner - This stuff is a miracle worker.  It really defines the eye area so much more than just using normal eye liner.  Now the biggest difference is the actual technique that you use to apply it.  You don’t put this product on the water line you actually use a thin but stiff brush to apply the product in between your lashes.  It sounds harder than it is – trust me!  When I first started playing around with this product I thought how the hell am I going to get this in the space in-between each eye lash and even if I could how long would that take??  Just an FYI…. I take everything too literally.  You don’t have to fill in one by one every space between each lash.  Just one thin line will do the trick.

2.      MAC Prep and Prime Lash – put a thin coat of this on before your mascara. This will give the lash some extra oomph and length.  I swear this is a product that I would take if I had to go to a deserted island.  I have been wearing this for years and could not live without it.

3.      MAC False Lashes Mascara – WOW!!  I’m convinced that this mascara came from the heavens.  It really pumps up the volume and extends the lashes to give you a doll eye. Use it with the primer mentioned above and watch the magic happenJ

4.      L’occitane 15% Shea Butter Lotion – It’s a bit of a splurge at $30 for an 8oz bottle but so worth it.  It leaves your skin so soft and with a slight glow that doesn’t go away after an hour or so, it lasts all day.  It’s not greasy and has a soft pleasant scent.  Once a year L’oocitane has a sale and you can score a 16.9oz bottle for $45 Yippee!!

5.      Big Sexy Hair All Nighter Hair Spray – I should be from Texas.  I love big hair.   I’m talking like “Hi the 80’s called and wanted their Aqua Net and teasing comb back” kinda big.  I have tried so many hair sprays and finally found one that actually keeps your hair in place. This stuff is amazing.  It’s really stiff – get your minds out of the gutter – but doesn’t leave your hair so hard that it feels like a helmet.  Your hair is still manageable and soft.

6.      Got 2b Defiant – this is pomade that really pieces out your hair and gives it some definition.  The best part is the price!!  $5.50 for a good size tub that lasts me at least 2 -3 months.  I have found that it works just as well if not better than the high priced stuff. 

Seriously I could go on and on – I guess Joe is right?!?  Don’t tell him I said that. I’ll never hear the end of it, lol! 

Week One after Gettin’ Serious

As you all – ok my one follower – know I started Weight Watchers (for reals this time) last week.  Wednesday was my weigh day and I am happy to report that I have lost 1.8 pounds.  I was a little bummed when I first saw that that was all I lost.  But I had a mini reality check and told the negative Nelly inside of me that a loss is a loss – take it and shut it!  Two weeks ago I was sitting here wishing those damn magic fairies would come take the weight away.  To all the Magic Fairies out there – you can suck it - I don’t need you.  I’m doing just fine on my own. 

I’ll leave you to ponder this:

"Nothing ever goes away until it teaches us what we need to know." 

~Pema Chodron