New Year

I know that you can recreate your own life & path at any moment. You don't need a new day, a new week, a new month, or a new year to start fresh & that's great. I love that! But, there's something about New Years. Something about saying "goodbye" to another year and really starting fresh!

Me and Corey were driving to Indy to see my family last week for Christmas and I just could not get these blog thoughts out of my mind. So I decided to go ahead and get this out. It literally flowed right out of me and here it is-

This year has seriously come & gone so fast. As I'm driving to Indiana to go see my sweet family for Christmas I keep having these same thoughts go around & around in my head & I felt compelled to jot them down while they're still fresh, looping in my mind.

As the year in review, wow. All I can say is time really does fly by. I feel like this year passed right before my eyes but it's also felt like a lifetime. This year has kicked my ass. This year wore me out, made me stressed, made me sad, made me question so much. This year also made me appreciate life, appreciate friends, appreciate family, made me laugh so much. I end this year exhausted, excited, confused & hopeful. Our family lost a few members this year, I've been personally challenged & challenged in my path, But this year has also given me the most heartfelt hugs I've ever received in my life.




This year felt like it was an entire year of tests & transitions. I've questioned my path & my calling more than ever this year all while feeling the most confident about my work and I have never been so proud of what I've done. If this year had a theme it would be "all or nothing." This year truly has been all or nothing, so opposite, so all over the gamut of life and emotions kind of year. If this year had a horoscope sign it would be Gemini.

I've grown in aspects of my life that I've really, really wanted to work on and I'm so happy to continue growing. Overall me and Corey were discussing on this road trip this year in review and we both have decided that yes, this year kicked our ass, but in a good way. We both have worked our butts off and taken huge risks in our careers, and we are exhausted and tired but we also have this underlying feeling that something really, really good is on the horizon.


All this work will pay off and it will be so amazing! I love fresh starts. I'm always excited to start a new year, have a fresh start. But I can say that this coming year, of all the 30 new years I've been blessed with, I am the most excited to start this one. I don't know what's to come at all, but I feel like it's going to be so, so sweet!


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Magical Tonic

Hi all! Merry Christmas! It's that time of year when all those Magical Christmas warm & fuzzies show up. But actually this year the warm & fuzzies are brought to you by the warm weather! I've had a hard time grasping that it's already December! With the true fact that time really does fly by & the fact that it's been 70 degrees here in mid December, I'm having a hard time realizing Christmas is just around the corner! It's next week!! (Whaaa????)







Besides our awesome Christmas tree from our local garden center, shout out to JVI Secret Gardens! And a few gifts I have purchased nothing has made me truly feel like it's Christmas season until I whipped up this magical little health tonic this morning.







It's Called Golden Milk. It already sounds pretty amazing and magical with the
name alone. It's quite simple and the health benefits are pretty awesome!

Here's the deal: Golden Milk is an Ayurvedic recipe that is made up of any form of non-dairy, non-soy milk. I used almond milk today, but I would definitely try out some coconut milk too. It also has a blend of turmeric, ginger, coconut oil, black pepper, cinnamon & other little goodies. I'll post my version of the recipe at the end of the post!






History: Turmeric started in India where it's been used for thousands of years. It has been used in cooking, health, beauty & it's active ingredient is curcumin. When you combine curcumin with black pepper all health benefits of each individual ingredient enhance even more to make the tonic magical.

Benefits: This tonic is an antiseptic and it helps with pain relief. It also detoxifies the liver and purifies your blood. It is also anti-inflammatory so it will help with joint pain and arthritis, as well as giving your body a huge immunity boost and antioxidants. And to top it off, this tonic works for many different skin problems.

Here is my recipe I blended from a few I found online:

Golden Milk Tonic-
1 cup Almond or Coconut Milk
1/2 t turmeric powder
1/2 t ginger powder
A couple dashes of black pepper
Generous splash of vanilla extract
1/2 T agave or honey or maple syrup
1/2 t coconut oil
Dash of cinnamon

Heat up non-dairy, non-soy milk on stovetop. You don't want it to boil (but almost get it there) just put it on medium heat and then add in turmeric, ginger, black pepper, vanilla, and your choice of sweetener (honey, agave, maple syrup) I used agave because that's what I have around right now. Whisk it and get it nice and hot and all blended. While that's heating up I add my coconut oil in my coffee mug and then pour the golden milk mixture on top of your dollop of coconut oil. I stir it in the mug and add a dash of cinnamon. Drink & enjoy all while knowing you are nourishing your body with antioxidants and tons of health and beauty benefits!

*very small reports of turmeric allergies. If you haven't tried turmeric, start with a very small dose and make sure you observe your body's reaction



www.healthyandnaturalworld.com



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Drink to beauty!

Ok so I'm going to do a little segment called "drink to beauty." It's going to go over all the latest health & beauty "it" drinks that I love. There are a bunch out there but I will go over my tried & true favorites with you.

I'm also going to try and blog more...haha I know. I pretty much open every blog with that statement. But, I'm going to start writing smaller blogs that focus on one item or subject. I'll try and do this about once a week and that will cut down on as much writing & research for me & less reading for you! I tend to really drag out a blog and write about millions of subjects because I just love health & beauty & I digress. So, I'm sticking to one subject a blog now! Unless!! Yes, unless I just need to decompress about life and then you can either just skip over or buckle up & hang on for the ride!

I'm also going to update you on some of the things I'm loving and thankful for at the moment before I dive into the subject at hand-

Today's loves are:
My view & this weather on my walk/run today



I'm thankful I'm able to run. I'm thankful for this amazing weather. I'm thankful I can get out and do this sort of thing in my neighborhood. getting out and being in nature is amazing and it changes my entire day & attitude.

Taylor swift's "wildest dream"


Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm not ashamed! This sucker has been on repeat!! I actually only bought her whole cd because of Ryan Adams covering 1989. But I'm glad I bought it. This song, you guys. Oh man. This girl gets it! It took me back to a young age where i was realizing there are certain people (boys) in your life that you know you won't be with forever but you're just too far gone & you just hope that they'll remember you in the best light & have the best memories of you. Taylor, you're freakin awesome! She even got to 30 year old me and it takes me back. Literally to that same feeling of being 16 and just facing the facts of knowing you won't be together forever but you also can't let go, but also don't want them to ever forget you. Damn it Taylor! Thankful for memories. Thankful for growth. Thankful for learning lessons & thankful for things going wrong then, to have so many things go so right, now.

Also thankful for, keeping to the Taylor trend, Ryan Adams remaking 1989



I love it guys! Totally different sound and it's awesome! Get both!! I love Ryan Adams and he really can do no wrong. 1989 is great no matter if it's Taylor or Ryan singing it and it's pretty cool to hear their different takes of each song.

I'm also thankful for this adorable little mug I got at target!


Do I need another coffee mug? Heck no! But how can I pass up this!!?!? It's adorable!! Add it to my collection! Thankful for a beautiful summer. Thankful for the promise of fall! It's going to be a beautiful one this year! I can just feel it!

Ok! Now to the subject at hand. Drinking your way to feeling good & looking good! The first drink I will focus on is coconut water. Coconut water comes from young, green coconuts. In Sanskrit coconut is called "Kalpa vriksha" which means "tree which gives all that is necessary for living." I mean do I even need to give you more reasons to believe coconut water is good for you? If you need more convincing, read on & here you go!


Coconut water is my Everest. I hate coconut water!! But I also really want to love coconut water. I appreciate it and i am completely impressed by the benefits. But i just can't drink it. I have found a new version that I can handle though. It's VitaCoco coconut water with lemonade.




Yes, it has added juice to it. No, i do not care right now. I'm trying to transition here from a great hatred of the taste to a mild tolerance of the stuff so I can drink it daily. So I'll get to the pure coconut water eventually. I just can't do it right now, and a juice mix will have to do while I adjust!

Here's the breakdown about coconut water-
Super hydrating!-of course we all know hydration=beautiful skin. So this little drink here will get you there! I truly believe coconut water is a huge key to looking & feeling beautiful. Of course it's important to drink good ole regular water too. but coconut water obviously comes from coconuts and A huge portion of hydrating our skin has to come from the water of fruits and veggies. And this little drink here will do it for you!

Great substitute for sugary drinks because coconut water is a low calorie drink. It also helps you reach your weight loss goals because it is so detoxifying. Since it does remove toxins from the body not only does it help with weight, it also helps give your skin this beautiful glow because the toxins have left the building! Know what else it gets rid of? Cellulite. Yep. Enough said, give me a glass of this stuff!

Coconut water also has tons of vitamins & minerals ideal for human health-
Potassium-(1 serving=13% daily value)vital for brain & nervous system function. Reduces stress, fatigue, and helps maintain muscle relaxation
Magnesium-(1 serving=14% daily value)very important component of our diet. Low magnesium levels can lead to low energy, or serious health issues like asthma, diabetes, osteoporosis & only 32% of people consume enough magnesium daily.
Copper-(1serving=11% daily value)essential mineral for health that helps with organs & your metabolism.
Antioxidants-help prevent damage to our bodies caused by free radicals.
Cytokinins-science has found that cytokinins slow down development of cancerous calls & also slows down the aging process.

Good facts huh? Another great thing about coconut water is the electrolyte factor. Coconut water has been used in IV's for emergencies due to the high amount of electrolytes & coconut water is sterile because it's directly from inside the coconut itself. So basically, Coconut water lowers blood pressure, helps with weight loss, boosts energy, lowers cholesterol, reduces cellulite, and relaxes muscle tension. Do we need any more convincing on this stuff? I don't think so! Now to just transition to 100% pure, plain coconut water. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.

If you're ready to take the plunge, I've read numerous articles that say is the absolute best to try-



Right now, I'm really digging the VitaCoco lemonade one. I love lemonade and the flavor is great! It has enough lemonade flavor to keep me happy but it still has a nice hint of coconut water taste so I think it will help me transition into plain coconut water.
I actually add plain coconut water to anything I can right now. I currently add it to smoothies, juices, and this little almond milk/matcha blend (I'll write about this drink in this little segment soon!) and it's great to add into whatever you think you can add it to! The more coconut water the better, in my opinion! Woo hoo! Now to get addicted to this amazing nectar from the gods.




Www.bodyandsoul.com
Www.draxe.com
Www.mindbodygreen.com
Www.livestrong.com

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Skin Jumpstart!

I just got back from vacation and man, was it a good one! I really took advantage of just relaxing & appreciating every single awesome moment on the beach relaxing; Soaking up the sun, sand, & salt water. Apparently so did my skin! It has been so congested since coming home!

Every time I come back from vacation or out of town in general, my skin really struggles. With piling on the sunscreen, wearing hats constantly, being sweaty, getting out in the ocean, and drinking a few (hundred) beach side cocktails-my skin is struggling right now! I can just tell it's clogged and dehydrated!

This is going to be a quick rundown of my post travel (especially beach) ritual. Something about the sunscreen really clogs my pores so this regimen is a little heavy duty in the pore cleansing department. Here it goes-




I got this little beauty in my Birchbox, lord, I don't know how many years ago. I subscribed to Birchbox and loved it. But honestly, I do not need any more samples of Skincare coming into this house ever!! So they all just sit in a bag and well, sit. I pretty much stick to my own special Skincare regimen of my homemade goodies that i concoct in my kitchen and that's about it. But this little guy caught my eye and it has changed my world!!

I really am into natural products and that's what has steered me away from lots of product testing lately. But this little gem is 70% organic, made in the USA, & vegan! Like I said, I've really been into all natural ingredients and I LOVE activated charcoal (I'll write a whole blog about this ingredient later) and that's one of the active ingredients in this scrub. I also love that the exfoliation agent in this scrub is all natural jojoba wax beads. It also contains tea tree oil to disinfect!

Active charcoal pulls out impurities and toxins in the skin. Activated charcoal also saved me when I got shrimp food poisoning at the ladder of our vacation when I took it internally as a vitamin. Y'all, shellfish food poisoning is no joke, 6 days of sickness and today is my first day of eating real food! Woo wee. No need for that post-vacay cleanse I was talking about. Anywho, I stray. Back to activated charcoal, It's such an awesome little ingredient that packs a big punch. Its very absorbent and basically "detoxes" the skin. This ingredient is perfect for skin. It will cling right to those deeply clogged pores and really deep clean, but in a gentle manner.

Jojoba wax beads and spherical beads that aren't too gritty and harsh on the skin. So you don't have to worry about broken capillaries or more damage in the long run just from exfoliating your skin!

This scrub will smooth your skin, brighten, & deep clean all in one! Great for all skin types as well!




Me with the Jojoba Charcoal scrub on as a mask & me after with no makeup, just fresh faced!

Another tip-clean skin with a good ole regular cleanser (I love gel cleansers) then put this scrub on your skin and leave it on for 10 minutes. Then, add a little water to the hands and scrub your face & rinse off! Voila! Really beautiful, clean, glowy skin!

This brand has really, really impressed me! The price point is great too! This little scrub is only $19!! It'll last you a long time too because I would only use this when your skin feels congested or once every other week or so for maintenance! At most, use it once a week! I can't wait to try more Michael Todd products!

Seriously, it's that Simple! Wash face, use the magic scrub by Michael Todd, I use a toner afterwards (my own blend, if you want to buy some let me know!), then I use an essential oil blend serum I made, followed with eye cream and face cream, all made by me!


Go to www.michaeltoddusa.com to check out the whole line!

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It's Getting Real

So I'm turning 30 in August of this year. I'm not scared, I'm actually more determined than ever to reach the goals that I want for myself. I have always has this idea in my head of how I've wanted my life to be. Ever since I was a little girl I have had an idea in my head of what I wanted in life and how I wanted to live it. Now over the years my ideas have changed a little bit here and there but overall the idea was this-live a life doing something I love in the creative field. Now what my job would be has changed over the years, i wanted to be a fashion designer, a wedding planner, a makeup artist, a wedding dress designer, an artist. It's all been in the same field, it just took a few years to figure out what direction that it would turn out to be. I at least ended up being one of those things! No matter what my idea of my future would be at whatever age I was, it was always this-live a life doing what I loved creatively, be outside and be one of those nature-loving, zen creatures who hike and do yoga poses on mountain tops, who wear yoga & workout clothing while out on the go because they just got back from a great workout, ate right & cooked really well, had a really cool & funky house with plants and a garden and big backyard with dogs running around, truly happy, did random weird jobs here and there. I never envisioned myself as a teacher, doctor, working in an office of some type. It just never happened. I feel like in my mind my whole life I've known my normal wasn't going to be most people's normal, and that's ok. I envisioned myself with kids some time in my life, but probably a few years down the road. Anyways, my long, rambling point is-I'm turning 30 and I feel like I need to get my sh*t together!












So far everything is just flowing right into place. But once you reach a pivotal age like 30, it makes you reflect and assess how your life is and where you are going.

I am coming to an age where it's like there's no turning back now. You're in your 30's and you better have it together because things are changing with you, in your life & in your body and it's going to only get harder and harder to correct any changes you want. I know 30's the new 20, yeah, whatever. I don't want to relive my 20's. I want to perfect the life I want and to really be this person I've always wanted to be and I feel like 30 is the goal! It's the major life point where I can look back at all I've done and say, "ok, you've done well!" Or say, "oh gosh, what in the world have you done the past 30 years!"












So far looking back at my almost 30 years on this earth, I feel good. I have a wonderful husband who goes on hikes with me and we have 3 awesome dogs who run and play in our great, big backyard with our garden and beautiful plants that we are adding more & more to. I do yoga & love to workout, I have to have it in my life. I'm happy about that. I like that I need it in my life to be happy and feel balanced. I have to eat right and cook well. I really have to. I've taken things out of my life, like eating well & working out and it just doesn't work for me. The later half of last year threw me for a loop and really knocked me down. I let go of a lot of things that I love and I know I need. Mainly it was cooking clean, healthy, whole, foods and working out. I just kind of stopped and chilled for a bit. I kinda needed it and it worked. After a few months I felt refreshed and renewed and all was well. Well, except I had really lived an indulgent life and I had definitely gained some weight.

By July of last year I was actually liking the progress I was seeing. This was a first in a long, long time where I was actually proud & happy of myself and my lifestyle. Then fast forward to a few months later and boom-here I am a little softer than a few months before and really out of shape. And that's ok. I needed to sit back and relax for a while. But now August is creeping up and I'm back on track! All I can say about that is this, life throws a few bumps in the road and all you can do is buckle up, hold on & then get back on track to really listening to you. If you have to change routes, so be it. If you have to pull over and take a break, do it. Whatever your body needs, listen to it & do it.

So my goals for 30 have been floating around in my head for a while. I want to really have my healthy lifestyle down and cook healthy foods and eat clean. I want to have a great fitness routine down, I want to practice yoga daily. I want to run around on the beach in a bikini and look freakin awesome. But really, what it all boils down to is-I want to love myself.











It has taken me a month to write this blog because I have been so busy and what's funny is the first intention of this blog was to hold myself accountable. It was to publicly state that I'm going to be in a bikini on the beach on my 30th birthday looking awesome and since I stated it out loud, it would push me to really do it. But within this month of really thinking, noticing, looking & focusing on health, fitness & wellness my goal has changed. I just want to love myself. I don't have to look awesome in a bikini to do that. I need to accept myself for who I am and make the most out of that. I need to be thankful and appreciative of the body I have and take advantage of that to its utmost ability. I don't need to have washboard abs to look good in a swimsuit and to love myself, and i don't need to meet this unrealistic standard of beauty that's out in the world.

Look around you when you're out in public, watching tv, or on social media even, honestly it's everywhere. Notice how many unrealistic standards of beauty there are out in the world. It's crazy!! There are these 40-something year old mothers of 3 on magazine covers with these amazing abs and these extremely tiny legs and arms. There are all these Kardashians with this crazy amount of contouring going on, tons of makeup, perfect lighting making this stupid pouty lip face, that you would never normally make in public, but it makes your cheekbones look awesome face. It's not real!!!! I'm a makeup artist and I even think makeup is getting out of control. We are contouring and changing the looks of our own features to completely change the look of our face! People are looking crazy scary and unrealistic. Not only is it with the makeup but it's the fitness routines that are unrealistic as well. These celebrities have personal trainers and workout like crazy! I read once how Kate Hudson got her post-baby body back. You know what it was? It was working out 6 hours a day!!! 6 hours!! She was quoted saying she would be crying while running on the treadmill. Umm...guys. This is not normal!!! Gwenyth Paltrow has an awesome body. She does the Tracy Anderson Method. I was like, "ok, cool let's do this." Umm...no. No I can't do this. I don't have 2 hours a day 6 days a week to do her fitness regiment. Who seriously has time to do that? And for me, why would you? Don't you want to spend time with your family or chill outside? We need to start enjoying and appreciating what we have. We can't devote all our time to working out when we are missing out on real life stuff. We can't keep changing things on our face and body to look "beautiful." You ARE beautiful!












Now I'm all for makeup. You have great eyes, play em up! You have awesome lips, throw a beautiful gloss on & go for it. But this whole contouring the nose down and changing the complete look of your face is crazy. Love & accept who you are! You don't need to change a thing!! Once we stop looking at all the outside standards of what's beautiful and popular and you completely let that go, you really start seeing what's important-your health, your life, your family. We have got to stop wasting time hating our bodies!!! I have wasted SO many years of my life hating my body. I hated my body back when I really shouldn't have hated it! I've realized if I keep this certain standard of beauty in my head to reach, I'm going to always hate my body and I'm tired of that. I'm tired of hating my body and wanting something that will never be reached. You know what can be reached? Loving yourself. Make goals that make you happy. Not goals that you think will make you happy. I have decided to stop making number goals. Like, I want to be a size ______ or I want to weigh ______.These goals will not make me happy. You know what goals will make me happy? I will not let the number on the scale or on my pants tag bother me. I'm going to love myself and appreciate one part of me every day. No more bashing myself. Only love and appreciation here.












Start loving yourself and appreciating what you have and who you are. Start complimenting yourself, stop picking yourself apart. When someone compliments you, take the compliment! Give compliments. Until we stop criticizing each other & start uplifting each other as females, none of this is going to get any better. It's time for us all to be on the same team and that team is loving ourselves, loving one another, appreciating our own bodies and what makes us beautiful, appreciating others and reminding one another what makes them beautiful, letting go of worldly views of beauty & those ridiculous standards, accepting your own beauty and reminding yourself daily how blessed, beautiful & lucky you are, and uplifting one another.












Now I'm not saying I'm just throwing all health & wellness out the door and ripping open a bag of Oreos. I'm just saying I'm throwing all negativity and hatred of myself out the door. I know what makes me feel good and what makes me feel beautiful. Working out and eating right just so happen to be two of those things. So I'm going to continue to take care of myself and live the life I want to live. I'm just going to start loving myself, appreciating the body I have, and letting go of all that other garbage that's out there in the media. It's time to stop body shaming ourselves and others! Time for love! #thisis30


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Life is Beautiful

I have been so inspired today to write a blog just by this one simple quote I saw on Pinterest today.

I was doing my normal day off routine, hanging out on the couch, a little Sam Smith Pandora playing on the tv (thanks to my best friend Brittney for introducing me to it, that's all I've listened to lately), drinking a little iced coffee and checking out Pinterest. Yes, it's a pretty awesome way to start the day. Then I stumbled upon this quote and I just felt so compelled to write what's going on in my mind right now.



Why did this quote get to me so much? I don't know, but it did. It made me think about all my amazing aunts, cousins & family I have in my life and how lucky I am to have them. I have been blessed with the strongest, funniest, best grandma ever, Bobo, as I call her. She's tough, and she doesn't let life or anyone knock her down and the older I get, the more I realize she has really helped me become the person I am.



I have an amazing mom and aunts all from Bobo as well, who she has raised to all be strong, amazing individuals as well. All these women have made me who I am too. I feel like I've got a little bit of each aunt & my mother in who I am, and I am so proud of that. I have so many amazing memories that pop into my head of being with them and laughing until we cry and it's seriously the best, and makes me so grateful.



On top of those awesome women, I have 3 amazing cousins who really do make me so happy and smile every single day. From them being some of the cutest darn babies ever, to now being teenagers (agh!!! They're getting so old!!) who really do surprise me every day. They're becoming these strong individuals with these awesome personalities and I am so proud to know them and have them in my life.


This quote really hit me with not only my family, but also the family I have been so lucky to pick up through life, my friends. Of course, my closest and best friend, Brittney. I mean, how many people can truly say they have had a best friend since birth? Because I can. Our parents were neighbors and she was born in September and that next August I came around and we have been best friends ever since. She is my "sissy" and even though I don't have any blood brothers or sisters, she's mine and I know she will always be there for me no matter where life takes me. We have been through so much and no matter what, she's always there and I am so thankful for that. I also have a handful of very, close, best friends that I have had from high school or earlier. We've made it though many, many years of growing and changing and we are all still there for each other. My friends are so supportive and encouraging and caring & wow, I am just so lucky. Laura, Suzanne, Jennifer, Tiffany-you guys mean so much to me. We constantly keep in contact and are always checking on each other and it's so refreshing to have relationships with strong women your own age who encourage and guide you through so much. I am so thankful for all you gals to call me your friend. I love you.


I also have an amazing husband who has let me just fly through life being happy. He's so supportive and has encouraged me to follow what I've worked so hard on. He knows I dance to my own beat and he has never once told me to do differently. Yes, it would be easier for me to find a normal 9-5 job with a steady income, but he has never once mentioned it to me. He knows I have worked too hard to give up now and I appreciate that so much. He has always been there and told me to do what I need to do to be happy. Never once made a comment or suggestion otherwise and that makes me the luckiest girl ever.



We have been changing, growing & progressing into a life that we want. And it's hard. It's actually hard to listen to exactly what you want to do and follow through with it. The outside world has an exact idea of what you should do and when you should do it, and we are ready to get out of that mode. It's not about doing what the world and society thinks you should do. Do what YOU want to do. Listen deep down, and do it! Yes, it's not conventional, but it's what you want.



I tend to juggle about 5 jobs at a time, but guess what? I love every single job I do. I don't want to do the same job every single day. So I do makeup and facials for certain brands, work beauty events at department stores, travel on occasion, I put a day or two of work in for an event, and then I'm done there. I do my own makeup and facials for my own business, but I don't want to completely rely on that. I feel when you solely rely on your passion to make a living, I lost the love and excitement of it. So I now fit it in, along with these other jobs. Not everyone sees it that way, that's just what I noticed in my life. I also work at my good friend's bakery & I stinking love it! They followed their passion and did what they love and have this awesome bakery with loyal customers who love them just as much as they love their awesome baked goods. It's a happy, actually hilarious, environment that has the best, encouraging bosses around. I am starting a new venture on a fantastic fashion boutique that encourages women power and to love yourself and it promotes self love and really is changing the standard of beauty which I am so proud of. Yes , that's lots of jobs but I love each and every one of them. I have found a job that fills every single of my joys. Look into yourself and see what you love and follow it! Do stuff that feeds your soul. It doesn't have to be "normal" and it probably won't be normal. Most people will think you're crazy, but hey you'll be a happy, crazy person.



Another exciting thing I am about to go through is enjoying the art of simplicity. My husband and I have decided life is really about memories, spending time together, and spending time with friends and family who make us happy. We are trying to forget following the normal path of "what we are supposed to do" and do what we want to do. We want to start challenging ourselves of letting go of material items and focus on enjoying the outdoors and the simplicity of doing nothing but enjoying the day. We don't want to spend much money, just to eat, feed our dogs and pay the bills. I'm going to have to let go of spending $150 every grocery trip to make the latest Pinterest recipe. i think that will be my biggest challenge, but I will be just fine haha. We are going to eat what we have and learn to live a life of appreciating what we have and not "needing" things. because guess what? We have everything we truly need. We have amazing friends, awesome family, 3 of the cutest dogs ever, a cute little house with an awesome backyard to lounge in, & each other.



This quote hit me so much because it jut reassures me, I don't need things. I have the most amazing people in my life and that's all I need. I am so lucky.
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Affordable Beauty Finds for the Eyes

Ok, as much as I love natural living and a peaceful calm life, which I've noticed has really taken over my blog. I still love makeup. As much as I try to separate myself from sometimes the fickle, crazy, and materialistic world that beauty can be, I can't help it. I love it! I love sharing my tips and helping people out. I love applying makeup. As I like to almost "paint" and the face is my canvas. I love to mix colors and contrast and highlight. I can't help it! I just love it!

As much as I try to think about things that more important in the world & as much as I try to show people true beauty is how you feel about yourself and what you can do in your life to feel beautiful-sometimes a new lipstick or eye shadow can really just make you feel good! There's something so cathartic to me about taking time out of my day for myself and get a facial or try a new beauty product or look. I love to take time at least once a week to give myself a facial. I like to evaluate what's going on with my skin each week, because let's be honest-every week, heck, every day my skin is different. So I like to take time at least once each week to see what's going on with my skin and then do a custom mask to help ease whatever my skin might be going through that week. I love finding beauty looks that I love and trying to achieve them. It just makes you feel good!

So as much as I want to state that true beauty comes from you loving yourself & taking care of yourself, naturally. I also want to reiterate that sometimes it's just nice to find a great beauty product for a great price as well! So now my blog will a balance of the two. Sometimes I'll write about natural beauty & living. Sometimes I'll write about life lessons I've learned to help live a more fulfilling life. And sometimes I'll write about just a really great beauty product!

So I just wanted to share with you one of my favorite, affordable beauty finds!

I have a real bad addiction to Target. I have done well limiting my visits to once a week now but there for a while, I'm surprised they didn't know my name! Anywho, all my affordable beauty finds are usually at Target. I'm sure they're in other drug stores as well but this is where I go to get my affordable beauty products. Here are a few items I've gotten and just love!

Sonia Kashuk Retractable Lip Brush-$6.99



Ok, so I have 2 of these. One I use as a lip brush and one I use as a gel liner brush. Yes, I know it's a lip brush. But I don't care. It has the perfect brush to line gel liner with & I love it! And for that price, you can't go wrong!
Soniakashuk.com

CoverGirl LashBlast Volume Mascara-$7.99



I have used this mascara for years! For me, I just love it. I have some people who are not fans, but I really like it. Mascaras are so personal though. Each person has different opinions and needs in a mascara. I like something thicker in consistency but also adds a lot of volume without being too clumpy or tangling my lashes together. I don't have issues with my mascara running so that's not an issue. If running mascara is an issue for you, well hang tight! I have an entire blog on different drug store mascaras I've used!
Www.covergirl.com
Since I've noticed this entire drug store blog has been about eye products why not just add another! Here is my final drug store pick for eyes. To me, it's the best base shadow!

L'Oreal Infallible 24hour Eyeshadow in Endless Pearl-$7.95



This is the perfect base eyeshadow to throw on from lash line to brow. It evens out the lid and it's a great color to layer others on top of. If you use it alone, it's a great all-over color to look even and wake and sometimes I only wear this just as an easy look. If you're into that Marilyn Monroe simple eye with a graphic liner, this is a good option too. Just layer a couple more skin tone shades on lid and crease and voila you're Marilyn Monroe! This shadow is also a great one to really highlight the brow bone. Applying this right below the arch of your brow will enhance those pups and really lift the eyes! I love the shadow!! Also, while looking at the website it says it's waterproof! Haven't tried that out, but that's pretty cool. This is just one color I've tried from this line. I want to get more colors because I'm just so in love with this shadow and I'm so pleased with the pigment and wear.
Www.lorealparisusa.com

Ok folks, there you have it! Three of my favorite, affable pieces from Target for the eyes! Go check them out and enjoy!!


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