Today during C's (only) nap, I need to spend my time writing a paper about gastric bypass, but I'd much rather spend it blogging. Maybe I can just tell you all about gastric bypass and be extra productive/ (insert cliche that I hate about bird's deaths)? Nah, that'd be boring.

But, I will give you a sneak peak of a project I've been working on that is ridiculously time consuming but perhaps going to come out looking amazingly cool.

Sorry about the glare, kinda makes you involuntarily squint when looking at it.

I'll give you a hint, that's a piece of poster board sitting on a coffee table (coffee table is not part of the project). Can't wait to keep working on it tonight, after I've finished the gastric bypass paper of course...

Last week I didn't post my weight loss update but I stayed the same at 153lb (or maybe that was gaining 1lb?). I certainly need to kick it into gear and start trying harder! I haven't worked out in far too long and hardly follow my diet at all so I am at least happy to be staying the same, but I was hoping to be at my original goal of 145lb by this Friday and sadly that isn't going to happen! I am happy that my waist seems to continue to get slimmer despite my weight staying the same, but I'm hoping to start trying a lot harder starting now.

The past couple of Saturdays I have spent the morning checking out different thrift shops in the area and I have so many different projects I need to get started on (including the picture frames). Hoping to post a few before and afters on here soon! I'm pretty proud of myself for some of my finds, especially because I'm usually not much of a DIY-er.

I heard back from my first choice nursing program, Brookhaven, last Friday and everything is in order with my application and I have the number of points I was expecting. Now just to wait for the decision, which should come on or before April 21st! I am so anxious to find out, I just want to fast forward through the next three weeks.
I also got some good news today about another nursing program (also part of Dallas County community colleges) that is accepting their first class in August. Since they are still waiting for acceptance by the Texas Board of Nursing, their application deadline is much later than most programs so I will still have plenty of time to get everything in if I find out I didn't get accepted to Brookhaven. Though I would much rather go to Brookhaven because it is an accelerated program and I will be done much sooner, another program that is close by and still accepting fall applications is such a blessing and makes me feel much less stressed!

Sorry for the boring, picture-less post from my iPhone, some better ones to come this week :)

enjoying the small things

inspired by Kelle Hampton, here are the small things I'm enjoying today...


Gorgeous weather

I was beginning to fear Texas was skipping spring this year when it was 85 degrees yesterday, but I'm glad it has decided to prove me wrong.


A vase full of my favorite flowers on the bar

$10 worth of thrift store picture frames waiting to be sanded and painted



Not having to be at work until 10:15

Which of course meant no traffic! As well as sleeping in and going to the donut store for breakfast (sorry diet!).

Practicing my photography skills on C

Had to make him anonymous because I don't have permission to put him on the blog, but I'm pretty impressed with how this picture came out! (It's even better when you can see his eyes.)

My Little Black Book of Lenten devotionals

The bluebonnets are back!

My sad attempt at a picture while driving.

M and I sitting in them last year.

So excited to take pictures in them again this year, M's least favorite thing ever haha. (Also loving that I can totally tell I've lost weight in comparing myself to this picture.)

And, having air conditioning in my car finally after many months without it!

I got it fixed on Saturday and it makes me so happy everytime I get in the car.

What small things are you enjoying today?

bare minerals

I haven't forgotten about the Bare Minerals product review I promised, I just never had time over the past weekend to take pictures while I was doing my makeup! I was bored last night so I decided I would do it, but it was dark outside and I was taking them in the mirror so couldn't use flash and they came out horrible thanks to the lighting! So I will have to add some before and after pictures later, but I will go ahead and tell you what I think of it!

When Kelly at Kelly's Korner did beauty secrets for her Show Us Your Life Friday, I browsed through a lot of the linked posts to get some ideas. So many people mentioned that they used Bare Minerals (which is by Bare Escentuals, they aren't two different things, confusing), so I figured it was probably worth trying. I didn't realize until later that it is actually the make from infomercials/HSN that they show working miracles on TV! I usually don't wear much make up at all, just eyeliner and mascara and chapstick, and occasionally some pressed powder. Although I have some rosacea-like red splotches on my cheeks, I hate liquid foundation and my complexion doesn't bother me too much so I've never tried to really cover it up. After all the good things I heard about this makeup, I figured I would give it a try anyways.

Old picture from my 21st bday, but evidence of my red cheeks (This is my BFF's boyfriend, not M. We were the only ones of legal age :) )

Bare Minerals is an all natural loose powder that you buff into you skin and it claims to cover as well as a liquid foundation while feeling like you have nothing on. When the lady at Sephora did a demo on half of my face, it definitely did cover very, very well. I had no redness AT ALL, which was crazy, and I kind of hated it. It just didn't look like me anymore and she was using a color paler than my skin so I looked like a ghost/vampire with no color to my face at all. It was doing an excellent job at coverage though, I'll give it that. So I asked for a darker color because I figured I would get darker since it's summer/this color was already too light for me. The darker color she chose I liked a little better, and she put some blush on me as well so my face wasn't all one color and it looked pretty good. I felt pretty silly though that I had covered up my natural face so that I could just put more blush on, and I was back to thinking I like myself better with no makeup.

Still considering it, I went to Ulta the next day where the lady used an even darker tan color and not near as much, and also used the powder named Warmth that comes in the starter kit. I like this SO much better because I wasn't washed out and Warmth is like a bronzer/blush so I actually had color, plus with much less makeup I wasn't completely covering all the color I naturally have in my cheeks.

I went ahead and purchased it that day, and after using it about four times now, here's is my opinion.

First, if you want it to cover like a liquid foundation (like when the lady at Sephora applied it), you need A LOT. Out of the four times I've used it, it has never covered as well as that first demo at Sephora, so I'm thinking it is because I'm not using near as much. Of course, this is fine with me because that's what I didn't like about it, but for those coming from a liquid foundation, you should keep that in mind. At Sephora they also use a kabuki brush to apply it, which is much denser than the brush that comes in the starter kit, so this might have something to do with the amount of coverage you get. Also, she applied the Prime Time primer before applying the foundation. My kit didn't come with the primer, it came with Skin Rev-er Upper instead (which I hate, it's like greasy lotion), and I think the primer might help to achieve that "flawless" look that Bare Minerals is famous for.
Also, after never wearing makeup, it definitely does not feel like you have nothing on. It feels like you have powder on of course, quite a bit of it. It will come off on clothes or napkins and your face feels very dry and powdery. I supposed I'll get used to this eventually, but for now it bothers me quite a bit, especially when they claim it feels like having nothing on your face.
The color I ended up with is also too tan for my skin tone. Probably I am going to get tanner since it is summer, but afterwards I'll have buy a lighter color and mix the two, which seems like what a lot of people end up doing.
Overall though, I really do like it. It's 1000x better than wearing liquid foundation for sure. It is quite pricey, but since I basically only wear it on weekends or weeknights when we are going out somewhere (C doesn't care if I wear makeup when I come to work, so I hardly ever do!), I think it will last me quite a while. I would like to invest in their under eye concealer, called Well Rested, because I feel like my eyes look pretty dark underneath and that was one of the biggest reasons I wanted to wear foundation so I could fix that problem.

I got the customizable Get Started Kit, which you get to choose which color foundation you want. The regular Get Started Kit comes with two smaller packages of two different colors of foundation and you pick based on your skin tone. Looking back, I probably would choose this one so I could mix and find the right color, though I don't think they have a combination of the two that I need so that wouldn't have helped much anyways. Since they are the same price though, the customizable one ensures you're getting the most foundation for your money if you don't end up needing to mix them, so both kind of have a good and bad side to them.

Bottom line, it does work very well, it is 100% natural so it's good for those with sensitive or acne-prone skin, and it's an easy to use system that can give you a flawless look with a small amount of practice. I would definitely recommend it and I understand now why so many ladies do!

yummm

Cannot wait to have this for dinner.

Five Guys

My mouth is watering in anticipation.

fashion friday

I was having a hard time thinking of an idea for this week, so I decided to do mini product reviews for a few items I've bought recently! (Unfortunately I don't have pictures of myself in them, though that would make for a better review.)

I was surprised that I really loved this Express sweater. It's hard to tell but it has a banded bottom and then is a little looser above. The sleeves are ruched on the top, which is the only thing I don't love about it because I usually hate ruching, but I think they look fine on (surprisingly that is the correct spelling of ruched haha). The v-neck doesn't sit quite as high as it does in the picture. It' a great light sweater for spring and next fall. This was originally $34.90, but right now it's on sale for $24.50, so I would definitely recommend it! It comes in a lot of other colors too.

This sweater is also from Express. I've wanted one similar since last fall, but thought they made me look too bulky. I actually like this one a lot and I think the picture again doesn't really do it justice. It looks much more fitted on me, especially the underarms. It is pretty thick and, even though it's short sleeved, it's very warm. I wore it to church Sunday and I was really hot most of the day. I paired mine with just a white cami, jeans, and nude wedges. This sweater costs $49.50, but I used a coupon and ended up paying around $38. I do recommend it, but I would wait for it to go on sale.

This Express sweater is much thinner than the previous one. I wore it on a cooler day and it didn't offer much warmth, but that's probably better as we are going into spring. It's much longer than I expected to be (which I guess you can tell by it hanging down behind her in the picture), and I was able to wear it with leggings. It can be dressed up a little, but it is mostly pretty casual (I've even worn it with a cami and yoga capris). The only thing I don't like about it is the way it sits on your hips. You can kind of tell from the picture how the folded bottom gapes out a little. It wasn't a deal breaker for me, but it definiely feels a little awkward at first. They have a similar one with a shawl collar that is more dressy and doesn't have that problem at the bottom, which might be a better choice. I don't think this one is worth the $39.90 price tag, but on sale or with a coupon I think it's a good deal.

I purchased this dress (which I think I had on a previous fashion Friday) at Express as well. I haven't had anything to wear it to so far, so I don't have much of an opinion on it yet. I do like the way it fits and the style, but the print isn't my favorite. The colors are a little different than in this picture as well. I may still exchange it if something I like better comes along before I have a chance to wear it. They also have the same or a very similar dress in a couple more patterns and some solids last time I checked online, so I might also trade it for one of those (they are cotton, unlike this one which is chiffon, so they are also better priced). It was originally $49.90, which I wouldn't pay for it, but right now it's on sale for $34.90, which is a really good deal. I would definitely recommend it for the sale price!

I've been stalking this Anthropologie dress online ever since I posted about it weeks ago. It went on sale Tuesday morning for half off, and by the time I realized this (at 10am) it was completely sold out. If you call their 800 number, Anthropologie will locate your size in a store and you can then call that store and they will ship it to you and run your credit card over the phone. I needed to try it on so luckily the store at Northpark had some still in stock. I tried on an 8 and a 4 (unable to find a 6) and neither fit very well. The 8 looked frumpy at the bottom because there was too much fabric and the 4 was way too tight at the waist. I decided to buy the 8 and have some fabric taken out of the bottom because I really wanted this dress. I told the fitting room attendant this and she searched everywhere and found me a 6, which I then bought without trying on because I didn't want her to have gone through all that trouble in vain even though I had a feeling it might end up being too small. Of course at the waist (which sits almost like an empire, around your ribcage) it is really snug and the rest of the dress fits perfectly. I know my ribs aren't getting any smaller so I'm not sure what to do! This dress was originally $138 and I got it for $69. I would definitely recommend it if you can find one that fits well! I love it and it seems like it's made very well, so you aren't paying a lot for nothing. The pleating and details are so pretty in person. I'm going to figure out how to make it work somehow!

After my fashion on a budget post, I decided to browse Target's clothing section the other day and see what I could find. I got this boyfriend cardigan in the oatmeal color and I really like it a lot. It can be worn a lot of different ways, dressed up some or just worn casual. Again, I think it's better in person than in this picture, I probably wouldn't have purchased it online after seeing this. It comes in a lot of different colors and I would love to get a few more. At $18, this is an awesome deal on a really cute sweater, so I would definitely recommend it!

I've been going back and forth on whether to buy these since last spring, especially after they went on clearance at my Target. Last weekend when I had nothing besides sandals to wear with my new navy short sleeved sweater, I went and grabbed the last pair. They are pretty comfortable, especially because they are wedges. Next time I wear them I will get some kind of insole to keep my feet from sliding down in them though, which made them not very comfortable towards the end of the day. I think they're very cute and I got a few compliments throughout the day. They were originally $30 and mine ended up only being $12! They aren't on clearance at every Target, but I would still recommend them for $30 because they are cute and comfortable, and $30 is still a great price for a pair of heels!

Lastly, I also bought these at Target a few weeks ago. The heel is a little lower than what I was looking for, less than 3". With jeans I like them a lot because the low heel makes them much more comfortable (and you can't tell with jeans covering it) and I don't really care to be much taller. With a skirt I think the low heel would make them look too much like a sensible business shoe, and not do much as far as lengthening your legs. I will definitely use an insole the next time I wear these, by the end of the night my toes were hurting a lot from sliding down into the point. For $24.50, I think these are another great deal and would definitely recommend them!


I'm so excited it is finally the weekend I can hardly contain myself! Only two more hours (or hopefully less!) of work and I'm freeee!

ps. No weight loss update this week because of a scale issue. Yesterday I was at 152lbs, so I'm guessing at most I'm -2lbs since last week, not quite at my goal. Next week my goal is 149lbs, and I will be so happy if I can make it and get down into the 140s!

hurry up friday!

This week has been looooong and boring (and it's only Wednesday!). I have to babysit tonight and tomorrow night (after having watched C for 9 long hours during the day), and I just wish it was Friday already!

Every since reading through all the beauty tips and tricks that people posted/linked up to Kelly's Korner Show Us Your Life a few weeks ago, I have been wanting to purchase some Bare Minerals makeup. So many people recommended Bare Minerals I figured it must be worth a try! I purchased some on Monday and I have a product review coming up soon!

That was pretty much the highlight of my week, hopefully tonight and tomorrow go by faster than  the first half of the week has.