JewelBits box for October

I received my JewelBits box for the month of August. I switched my style from Boho Babe to Glam Gal. I received 2 necklaces and a bracelet this month.

I was really excited to get something silver since silver is what I wear the most of. However I am not a huge fan of where the necklace hits on my stomach. It's an area I prefer NOT to draw attention too lol

This is the other necklace and the bracelet. I love the bracelet, but the necklace is a little bulkier than what I usually wear. I plan in using it when I dress up for special events though. They are very pretty and very sparkly.

Overall JewelBits has been hit and miss for wether or not there are styles I like in the box. Generally there has been at least one piece in each box that I like.

Tanka Tuesday: Writing!

Writing is a way

To express how you feel and

Get emotions out.

I love to write all the time.

It helps me deal with my life.

Fire

Fire is beautiful

But it's also dangerous

If you play with fire

Be prepared for what may come

Fire can burn you really bad.

Closet

In my closet I have lots of clothes. I also have more shoes than I would like to admit. Many more shoes than is like to admit. At the moment I also have my almost 5 year olds borthday presents. So that adds a beautiful Frozen themed tutu skirt made with ribbons and feathers with a matching headband and a pink polka dot purse. I'm still going though all if our stuff from spending the summer at Sterling Renaissance Fedtival. So there are Faire clothes and accesdories galore that still need to be taken care of and socked away until next July. I think that's about it. Oh yeah....there are also the games that I hid from my kids. Having so many clothes and shoes does make my closet a great hiding spot.

JewelBits box for August

I received my JewelBits box for this month today. I love coming home to a surprise. JewelBits is a way for you to get a gift for yourself because you don't know what's coming in the box. You can choose from three different style choices and then they do the rest. I love it!

This month I ended up getting a lot of gold pieces which I don't really wear so a couple I'm going to be gifting, but there was one set of bangles that I absolutely loved. They are my favorite piece this month.

My five-year-old daughter really like this bracelet so I decided to let her have it. It's really pretty it's gold beads on a stretchy string. It just really isn't something I would wear.

This is a really fun cute owl peace and Wow I wouldn't wear it my sister absolutely loves owls and her birthday's coming up so I will be giving this to her. I actually almost bought her something very similar to this about a couple weeks ago.

I would say this necklace is my least favorite of everything in the box.

And these are the bangles that I fell in love with the minute I open the box. I was a little nervous at first but they might not fit because my wrists are kind of big but they fit great! 

I recommend Jewelbits for anyone who wants to surprise themselves with something each month and who loves getting pretty things in the mail and loves good jewelry.

JewelBits Box for July

This month I decided to switch from "Classic Chic" to "Boho Chic". Overall I like the pieces I received better. 

This is the first piece I opened:

It's no really my style, but I know someone that I think would really like it do I'm going to pass it on.

This is the second piece: 

I really like this bracelet, but it is really small. That is my 45lb 7 year old in the picture. I am neither 7 or 45lbs so this is very right on me. She wants to wear it so I am letting her use it.

Last but not least in the piece I love more than anything I have received from JewelBits:

I absolutely love this necklace! As soon as I saw it I knew this was perfect. It has a little bit of bling and I mostly wear silver.

Thanks for a great box JewelBit!

Tanka Tuesday: Chocolate

I do not like it

In any shape or form it

Is not delicious

What am I talking about?

It is the food chocolate.

Photo of the Day- "Black + White"

Pride

I am really proud of myself because the last few days I have not lost my temper with my 5 year old. She gets constipated and it makes her stomach hurt. Of course she doesn't tell anyone until it's bad and since I don't go to the bathroom with her I don't know. Anyhow...when it gets really bad she becomes extremely combative. And when she is like that for days on end I start to lose my temper. I hate to lose my temper and I get really frustrated when I do which does not help the situation. This week I have decided that instead of arguing I am going to tell her what I expect and if she does not do it she does not get to play outside with her sister and the neighbors. I will not fight with her and I have done really well with it the last few days. Hopefully I can keep sticking to it cause it's not easy sometimes.

BeautyArmy box for May

I received my BeautyArmy box for the month of May today.

I love opening it to the card that says "Hello Gorgeous" this months card also has a code for 30% off a 1 year subscription. 

This is a day/night serum set that I'm looking forward to using. It will most likely go in my travel bag like most if my sample sized items do.

I am not going to use the Kate Somerville CC cream because for the second month  in a row they sent me ligh/medium and I am more ivory/....death. 

The volumizing conditioner will go in my travel bag because I will use that. It is paranormal, silicon and phthalate free.

The argon oil moisture healing mask by Nelson J and the argon oil intense deep conditioning hair treatment will go in my travel bag. I have never used argon oil before, but I'm willing to try it.

 This is the Eslor Introductory collection. There is a refiner/cleanser, a scrub, a mask and a cream. I'm excited to try this set out.

While the BeautyArmy boxes are great for trying new things, the items usually are not big enough to truly tell if the product works.

I Just Joined Smiley360

I Just Joined Smiley360

JewelBits box from May

I received my first JewelBits box. I signed up for a 6 month subscription to get a discount on the monthly rate. I was really surprised at how fast it got here. I placed my order Thursday night and it was delivered today. 

I received a bracelet and 2 necklaces in mine. I'm not a huge fan of gold so 2 of the pieces I am gifting. In fact one of them I would probably gift even if I liked it more because it looks like something my mom would love. There was one necklace that I kind of liked so I've been wearing it around and it's growing on me. I probably would not have bought it for myself, but I like it. 

The bottom necklace is the one I am keeping for myself. 

Hopefully there will be more silver in the next box :)

Photo of the Day- "Alone"

May Ipsy Glam Bag Review

I received my Ipsy Glam Bag for the months of May and I love it! I think this is my favorite one.

The bag itself is a really nice canvas bag and I love the pattern.

I wasn't sure what to think about spring water spray, but I love using this after I walk on my lunch break from work.

I have not had a chance to use this yet, but I'm looking forward to it.

I like the sunscreen, but it came out kind of watery. It did the job though.

The endless euphoria by Calvin Klein smells really pretty and I have it in my purse for while I'm out.

The eyeshadow from Pacifica is really pretty, but the dark brown takes a few applications to actually be seen on my eyelid.

Overall I am very pleased with my Ipsy Glam Bag.

History of Me

A year ago I was working in the same office I am working at now. Pretty much everything was the same except for my age.

5 years ago my husband had recently been laid off and was looking for a job. My older daughter was 2 and my younger daughter was about 8 months old. He was in the process of looking for a job. Luckily I was able to pick up more hours at work and he found a new job before his severance package ran out. 

10 years ago I was 21 and in the middle of a 4 year on again off again relationship with my now ex. I was living at home (not where I wanted to be) and saving for an apartment. I had been working at my job for almost a year (it's been almost 11 years that I've been here now) and living it. I spent my weekends at the goth club and my week nights watching my neighbors kids.

REVIEW: The Life History of a Star by Kelly Easton

The Life History of a Star is written in diary form. It's the diary of Kristen who is 14 at the beginning of the story. The "ghost" of her brother lives in the attic. He was injured in the Vietnam War. 

Most of the book is about day to day life and while some of it was interesting I thought there would be more mention of the brother in the attic. It was a cute book, but not what I was expecting.

Photo if the Day- "Four Things"

Photo of the Day-"My Name is...."

Photo of the Day- "Chair"

Photo of the Day- "Cut"

Home

We moved into the first home that I remember well when I was almost 4. We had lived in an apartment and went from that to an old 3 story home. It was tan colored with a double lot yard. I had my own room until some time in high school when I started sharing a room with my younger sister. There is a big tree in the yard and I had a swing set. We also had a double car garage. I have a lot of fun motives from that house and since my parents still live there I get to share those memories with my girls.

Friday Flash Fiction

"That's weird,"thought Cupid. "I've never hit the wrong person like that before."

He sat there staring at the person he had hit. He was supposed to be finding true love for Brett Williford....and had hit his rival. The two had been butting heads since grade school. They are both very competitive and went from going against eachother on the playground, to the debate team. They both went to Harvard where they were the first and second in their class. However Roberta had gotten a spot at Brett's first choice law firm and he had to settle for his second choice.

"This is not going to end well" thought Cupid. Especially since at the moment the two were on opposite sides of a big murder trial. A young socialite had allegedly murdered her older, extremely wealthy husband. Brett was defending her. She actually was innocent, but even though Cupid knew that, they didn't. Brett had been falling for the socialite and that's why when court started that day he couldn't figure out why his eyes kept drifting to Roberta. He found him self liking the cut of her suit. And then after court was adjourned for the day he found himself asking her to dinner. Even more amazing to him was the fact that she said yes. It was a little tense in the beginning, but the wound up having a great time. They agreed that they shouldn't meet again until after the trial was over and they stuck to that. Once the trial was over Roberta and Brett started dating seriously and a couple of years later they got married.

Photo of the Day- "Heart"

This is what my hubby got me for Valentines Day. I hope you all have a fantastic Valantines Day full of love and laughter.

Olympics

I have not watched any of the olympics yet. I do plan on watching the figure skating tonight. The figure skating is really the only thing that interests me and I know my 5 year old will like it. I'm not sure if my 7 year old will, but since she will probably be in her room not picking it up again she will not be watching anyhow. 

Past Lives

I believe in past lives. I think that I drowned in a past life because as a child I had this completely irrational fear of putting my face in the water. It was a long time before I would even take a shower instead of a bath because I didn't like the water from the shower getting into my face. I was a nanny for a psychic right after high school and she told me that sometimes when people have irrational fears it is because that may have been how they died in a past life. At first I was not sure I believed it, but their I thought about it the more spence it made. I do put my face on the water and swim and take showers now, but water in my face is still something I don't particarly like. I'm never going to be a super great swimmer, but at least I am good enough that I can bring the girls to the pool and I can play with them. I am sure they are glad for that too.

Photo of the Day- "I am..."

Friday Flash Fiction

I've been sitting outside the subjects house for what feels like hours. In reality it has only been an hour and a half this round. This job has been one of the longest most uneventful of my career as a PI. Mr. Smiths wife called me convinced that he was having an affair, but so far I have seen nothing to substantiate this claim. So here I sit, waiting, waiting, wait-Oh! Mr. Smith is leaving! Finally the big moment I've been waiting for. I wait for him to get into his car and get a head start before I turn my car on and start to follow him. He makes a left onto Eengield Ave. and then a right onto Ridgeway Blvd. He continues driving until he is in an older part of town where there are not as many houses. It's not an area that I am familiar with, but then I recognize it as where the old carnival used to be every year. It has to have been at least 30 years now since the carnival has come. I get out of my car and follow Mr. Smith on foot. There are still a few old buildings behind a bunch of trees. I follow Mr. Smith to one and peek inside the window curious to see who, if anyone, is meeting him here. At first I don't see anything, but then I make out the shapes of several people. What is going in here? I asked myself. I realized that everyone was dressed as an old carnival side show. I waited a couple hours while they appeared to practice carnival tricks and side show acts from days gone by. As Mr. Smith walked back to his car I made my presence known. At first he didn't want to talk to me, but I explained who I was and why I was following him. He was suprised his wife had hired a PI, but at the same time he understood her frustration with his not talking about what he was doing. Apparently Mr. Smith and a group of local people wanted to try creating their own carnival, but until it was ready they didn't want anyone to know. So twice a week they came, put on the costumes they had found and practiced. I told Mr. Smith that I wouldn't give his secret away, but that he should talk to her and that she might be more understanding than he thought. I was glad to be done with this case especially since I was not going to have to tell Mrs. Smith that her husband was having an affair.

Photo of the Day- "C is For...."

Report Card

If I could be graded in any made up subject and be sure I was going to receive an A it would be "reading for pleasure". I love to read and would do it all day if I did not have responsibility. I read all different kinds of books. I am so lucky that my kids are developing my love of books. There are 5 bookshelves in our house that are full and only 4 of us that live there. And that is not counting the piles of books that are taking over my room that I have not read yet. Currently I am reading my way through the Song of Ice and Fire series by George RR Maryin and it is fabulous. I feel like I know the characters and like I am in the story with them. It has been a while since I have read something with characters that I am this attached to. I recommend it to anyone who likes fantasy novels. I'm looking forward to watching the tv show now that I am getting through the books.

Photo of the Day- "square"

Oh Parents!

My mom works in the same office as I do so I hear her talk about me to patients quite a bit. It's usually about the grand kids or things we have all done together, but sometimes when she is talking to a patient who needs to set up a colonoscopy she always seems to bring up how I had to have one when I was 21 and talks about my experience with it. If some of these people didn't know who I was it would not be so bad, but some of them do recognize me. However, I guess there are worse things she could do to embarrass me. And it is infinately better than when I was a teenager and she used to grill my potential boyfriends. (Although as a mother to two girls I can't say that I won't do the same thing)

Photo of the Day- "Childhood"

Photo of the Day- "Something Orange"

Best things

My favorite thing in my house is my bookshelves. I love reading and have a ton of fabulous books. That's not the only reason that is my favorite thing. I also love them because I have some pretty awesome knick knacks and photos on there. Most of the photos are ones that I took, but I also have photos from the late 1800s to the early 1900s that I collect from flea markets. In addition to those I have a bunch of seashells that I gathered on my last trip to the Outer Banks.

Saratoga PEanut Butter Sampler Pack Giveaway

check out this fabulous giveaway from Saratoga peanut butter

Photo of the Day- "Something I Bought"

Photo of the Day- "Tiny"

Photo of the Day- "Sun"

Education

I think one of the most important things kids today can learn at school is how to interact with other people. I know that it is not a "school subject" per se, but it is a very important life skill in my opinion. All their lives they are going to meet and have to work with all different types of people and the earlier they start figuring out ways to work with people who may not be on the same wavelength as them is by doing it. I know right now my 7 year old is struggling with this. She is very smart and wants to go in and get her stuff Donne. When she has to work in a group of people who may not be as focused as she is she can get very frustrated. I'm not saying that she deserves to be frustrated, but unfortunately there are going to be people like this that she will have to deal with her whole life and if she starts figuring out how to deal with it now then hopefully when she is older it won't be as frustrating for her.

Photo of the Day- "Upside Down"

Photo of the Day- "Lunch"