Day To Date Makeup

I am pretty low maintenance with my makeup routine. Now, don't misunderstand me, I still wear makeup every day. Well, almost every day. Some days my face needs a break.

However, I am a big believer that part of feeling good is to take care of myself and to look my best. So I work out. I get dressed. I do my hair. I put on makeup.

As a busy mom, my makeup routine for a normal day is pretty simple. I am a big fan of the healthy glow, kissed by a bit of color look. I don't have a lot of time in the morning. So it has to be fast. As a wife getting ready for a date with my oh-so-handsome husband, I want that same healthy glow, kissed by color look, but just a little more spectacular. I am not always the best at making that transition though.

I am all like, "How do I go from taxi-driving, lunch-making mom to kiss-me-you-fool wife to handsome husband?"

I recently got to try out a few makeup looks thanks to Mary Kay®. I was provided with opportunity to recreate a few country music-inspired looks created by celebrity makeup artist, Moani Lee. Mary Kay® is the Official Beauty Sponsor of the 50th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

Of the three makeup looks - All-American Girl, Queen of Country, and Boho Beauty - two looks fit perfectly for my lifestyle and that perplexing day to date makeup dilemma I was having.

An All-American Girl look fit perfectly for my busy kid-chasing day.

I loved the glow that the light makeup palette created. There was nothing heavy. I looked like me, but not tired. That, my friends, is a pretty big deal. My look lasted all day.

My face stayed fresh and glowy through errands, toy pick-up, lunch, chores, and little itty bitty sweet boy kisses.

By the end of the day it was time for a date. Just me and The Hubs. Now to take that fresh face look and sass and glamour it up a bit.

I went from a soft palette to a little more smokiness and sizzle. From All-American Girl to Queen of Country, which is pretty fitting since we live pretty close to the country.

To amp up my day look and get it ready for a date, I swapped out lighter neutral eye colors for rich plum and charcoal colors. I also used black liquid eyeliner, lash primer, and black mascara to complete a smoky eye look. Then, I had to make the lips pop out a bit more with a rich lip gloss.

Look at that face. I am pretty sure I am all like, "You know you wanna kiss me!"

Just a couple of easy changes with some fabulous makeup and I went from day to date. I went from glow to sizzle.

I felt radiant in both of these looks. The makeup was light on my face and the look lasted.

Just when I needed some inspiration for my makeup routine, I got some fabulous help. If you find yourself needing some makeup inspiration and some fabulous makeup head over to the Mary Kay® website, where you can also find tutorials on the looks above. You can also find Mary Kay® on Facebook or on YouTube.

I had so much fun with my face and with this makeup. I am looking forward to many more day to date days. How do you do your day to date look? Leave a comment with your answer below to enter for a chance to win a Mary Kay® prize package!
Brought to you by Mary Kay. All opinions are my own.

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Cereal Glazed Donuts

Years ago I had something that changed my life. I had a raised donut that was glazed and then covered in cereal. CEREAL. I knew I just had to come up with my own version of a cereal covered donut.

I recently had the perfect opportunity to recreate these donuts of my dreams when I worked with General Mills and received a few of our family's favorite cereals. The bonus is not only did we get these yummy boxes of cereal, but because General Mills is also teaming up with Skylanders with a free exclusive Skystones game the boys got a fun card game that gives them tons of entertainment.

Bonus-they LOVE anything Skylanders.

Hidden inside specially marked Big G cereals, you will find Skystones cards playable on the game board found on the back of the cereal box. Participating Big G brands include Honey Nut Cheerios, Frosted Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, Reese's Puffs, Cookie Crisp, Lucky Charms, Trix and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Waiting to open these boxes of cereal was torture for my boys. They were so excited to not only eat the cereal, but to play the Skystones game.

Once I told them they would get to play the Skystones game over a breakfast of Skylanders Cereal Glazed Donuts, well they were so excited I am pretty sure I locked in the Mom of the Year award.

Before I would let them play, we opened up our favorite Big G cereals and got ready to make Skylanders donuts.

You too can make your own Cereal Glazed Donuts.

You just need to open up a few of your favorite boxes of Big G cereals.

My favorite are Fruity Cheerios. The boys love Cookie Crisp.

Making the donuts is easy. All you need is--

-refrigerator biscuits
-oil for frying
-powdered sugar
-milk
-vanilla

Heat the oil up over medium high heat. Cut a whole in the center of each refrigerator biscuits. Fry each donut for 1 1/2 minutes per side or until each side is golden and the donut is cooked through. Drain the donut on a paper towel.

Mix 2 cups of powdered sugar with 2-3 Tablespoons of milk and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Mix until it is the consistency of a thick glaze.

Dip the donut in the glaze. Then dip the glazed side of the donut into the cereal of your choice.

Now you have a seriously yummy donut for breakfast.

A Cereal Glazed Donut any kid would enjoy.

With donuts in hand, it was time to play the Skystones game. There are four different Skystones card sets, and you can collect all four to make the game as fun as it can be. The boys laid out the cards and each chose five cards. The back of each cereal box has a Skystones game board on it.

One player is Team Blue and the other one is Team Red. They lay cards down, flip opponents cards and ultimately try to get all the cards to be their color.

They might just love to play the game so much that they get distracted from finishing a very delicious Cereal Glazed Donut. Little even declared it one of his new favorite games.

The fun just keeps coming with the free Skylanders Collection Vault app that is available on your phone or tablet. Each set of Skystones cards has a downloadable code to unlock characters in the popular mobile Skylanders game.

Run and go grab yourself a few boxes of General Mills participating cereals, make your kiddos some cereal glazed donuts, and collect all 4 Skystone card sets.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Inside Out Philly Cheesesteak

This week started an Eat-More-Veggies regiment at our house. The introduction of our healthy eating campaign was pretty funny. We have a weekly family counsel where we spend time together learning and growing. This week I decided we needed to talk about making healthier choices.

Without giving away the topic of the conversation for the night I simply told the boys that the whole lesson centered around a Berenstain Bears book. There was eye rolling from Oldest. What? Are you too cool for the Bears now? Geez.

Any guesses which Berenstain Bears book I read to them?

If you guessed Too Much Junk Food, you would be correct. While the boys (besides Oldest of course) appreciated a bit of story time, they did not appreciate when I told them we would be having no sweets during the week and that there would be more vegetables in their meals.

Insert a collective groan here (except from Bean because boy howdy does that kid love his veggies). They tried to barter to have more fruits and less veggies. After all, they like fruit. Ha! Silly children.

So more veggies it is.

I was really excited for these Inside Out Philly Cheesesteak peppers. I was so excited that I kept dinner a secret the whole time I was making them. I didn't want to hear no pepper-haters up in here.

My house smelled amazing the whole time these were baking. That alone got the boys all hungry and excited. I sat the boys down and served up my Inside Out Philly Cheesesteak peppers with a flare. There were some very silent groans.

Then they started to eat. Then they kept eating. Then before I knew it, their plates were clean. As was mine. I was wishing for more immediately.

They were SO good. They were also really easy to make. So a win-win.

Yum. I want another one right now.

Here are to more veggies!

Print HERE

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Girl with Bangs Problems

So first off, let me just say I really do LOVE having bangs. I do. Like a lot. I have had bangs off and on for years. I have done the side sweep bangs. I have done these luscious bangs. I have even done the 90's curl up curl down bangs. You know what I am talking about! I love myself a good set of fringe bangs.

I think one of the reasons I love bangs so much is that it gives my hair a specific on trend style. I gave up a long time ago at having long gorgeous hair. My hair simply won't grow. It will reach just past my shoulders and then never get longer. While it is rather annoying, I have embraced my hair and I hoover around variations of a similar style that allows me to feel trendy and beautiful.

One of those is obviously bangs. I know there are a lot of haters of bangs. Man, I get it. They can be a real pain in the butt. There are definitely problems that come with having bangs. With all of these problems, I am still a huge lover of bangs.

However, the problems are there. I face them on a weekly basis. Sometimes is it comical. Sometimes annoying. So if you have bangs, or have had them you will relate to this post. If you haven't ever done bangs, well then get ready to have a good laugh at the troubles we Girls with Bangs put ourselves through (might I add I think it is worth it).

The other day as I was finishing getting my make up put on, my bangs just happened to move a bit. That is when I saw them. Oh mercy. How did my eyebrows get so unruly and unkempt? Oh that is right. I have these wonderful bangs that perfectly hide my eyebrows. You know what they say. Out of sight, out of mind. Which when your eyebrows are concerned that means they grow uncontrollably and will be rather shocking when you finally do pay them some attention.

So bangs might lead to longer eyebrow plucking time in light of neglect. Oh well. No one can see them anyway.

I have greasy hair. I can rarely go more than 24 hours with out a good washing or at least some dry shampoo. Add to that the fact that I exercise everyday and my hair can get all kinds of nasty. Bangs, because they are short, will get a little greasier. Especially if you are a mess-with-your-hair kind of girl. The more you put your hands in your bangs the greasier they will be.

Some days even after a shower, my bangs just seem to start off the day a little more apt to be greasy. That is when a little cocoa mixed with cornstarch helps me. If you are blond, then baby powder will work for you. I also try really hard to just keep my fingers out of my bangs.

If you ever run into me and have the glorious pleasure to be up close and personal to my face, you might notice a little bit of make up in my hair. Most of the time I am really good about moving my bangs to the side, carefully since I don't want to touch them too much (refer to the a fore mentioned grease lightning section) to put on my eye make up. 

Alas, sometimes I am in a hurry and boy howdy that mascara just gets all over the tips of my bangs. Man. Well I guess ombre hair is in right? 

 

One of the hardest things to get used to with bangs is having to look through them from time to time. I like my bangs a little on the longer side. That means I spend a bit of time looking through them. This is most noticeable when I am at a movie or basically looking at something with my eyes slightly upwards. This also happens once they grow out a little bit (more on that in the next section).

I just chalk up the annoyance to the fact I like my bangs longer and I deal. Kind of like I enjoy wearing really high heels so I put up with the discomfort it can bring.

So if you see me at the movies and notice my face tilted jut a little too high up, don't worry. I am just trying to look around my bangs.

Okay, so this is the part of having bangs that drives most people crazy. Bangs require very regular upkeep. Even for me whose hair does not grow. For wouldn't you know that my hair as a whole will never grow, but my bangs grow like weeds. I often find myself wishing that my whole head of hair grew like my bangs.

So here is the dilemma that people with bangs face--as they grow out, do I get them cut, do I cut them myself, or do I just give up and let them grow out. Growing them out is the part most people hate. There is of course an awkward stage where bangs are long but still too short to pull up.

Cutting ones own bangs can get tricky if you have no clue what you are doing. There are lots of tutorials on Pinterest that help you out with that.

I am lucky enough to have a hair wizard of a friend who I call up every month and she just snips them up right there in her house. Don't hate me. I know I have got it good.

So that right there is my list of Girl with Bangs Problems. As a whole I realize this post is way more entertaining than informative. Hope that is alright. I just got such a giggle out of myself when I started listing off all of the problems that I willingly put myself through all in the name of cute hair. I really wanted to share it all.

If you have bangs, then you relate. If you never have but have thought about it, do it!! Just know the problems are worth it.

Have a grand and glorious day!

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St. Patrick's Day Teacher Appreciation Gift (Printable)

Sorry I am sharing this St. Patrick's Day Teacher Appreciation Gift so late. I had the best of intentions to get it to you guys yesterday. That would at least give you half a day to whip something together if you wanted to. Alas, it obviously didn't happen.

My computer has seen better days people. I normally try and work on The Hub's computer after he gets home, but he has been needing it for work and that means I am back to Old Bessie here. After my card reader (yes that is how old my computer is) led me on a merry chase, I finally was able to get to my photos and edit them.

I debated still sharing these, but they are so gosh dang cute I just had to. Plus, thanks to Pinterest holiday ideas can live on past their actual holiday and be saved for the next year.

So here is my St. Patrick's Day Teacher Appreciation Gift.

I went to a local store and cleared them out of all their green soda. The cashier was all, "Wow! You must really like this soda." He seemed only a little less confused when I told him I was in PTO and it was for our teachers. Haha!

I created this tag in PicMonkey and used the "POPPED" as a play on words of the soda. You all know how I like a good play on words!

You know what else I like?

Color coordination.
Paper Straws.
Washi Tape.

So I had to use it all.

I hot glued the St. Patrick's Day label (CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD) to the bottle. Then I taped a paper straw to the side. Easy Peasy. You could tape these to green cans or bottles of soda if you can't find green colored soda. Any way you do it, it is a fun way to tell a teacher you feel lucky to have them.

For another idea, here is last year's St. Patrick's Day Teacher Appreciation Gift:

Lucky To Have Teachers Like You

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Project Master Bedroom: Embroidered Throw Pillow

A small group of people start and finish a room makeover in a small window of time. However, most of us finish a room project in bits and pieces. I won't lie, the impatient, HGTV show lovin' self would like to be able to get my rooms done in a week with all the details just so. Who wouldn't? But that is not a reality for most of us.

Bits and pieces. Save up. Buy a little at a time. That is how most of us make over a room. So no more beating ourselves up or hiding our room projects away because they aren't 100% done. We are all in the same boat. So let us cheer each other on in our various stages of projectness (totally a word).

So here is my Project Master Bedroom update.

As I have said before, in the almost 14 years that we have been married this is the very first time we are getting a lovely master bedroom. We have done all the other bedrooms and have even done a guest bedroom but have yet to even paint our master bedroom.

I have a vision in my head of how I want this room to come together. Now thanks to new white doors and trim, a few coats of paint, and a hard-working husband who put up my board and batten focal wall I am that much closer to having a super lovely and cozy room.

With the big stuff done, it is just time to add here and there. Some of my wishes are things I have to save up for. A reading chair and white bamboo shades are two items on my wish list. So while I save up for a few big wishes I will tackle the bedding.

The main bedding we have had on the bed for over a year. I added the Flour Sack Euro Sham a few months ago. Recently I added just one more pop of blue, because you all know how I love blue, with this throw pillow.

I bought this textile from IKEA and I have been holding on to. I finally deemed it time to make it into a pillow. Instead of simply cutting out the fabric into two pieces and installing a zipper, I decided I wanted to add a little embroidery detail. I cut three separate pieces for the front. I sewed the three pieces together and then hand stitched with embroidery floss on either side of each seam before I sewed together the whole pillow.

Isn't it charming?

I recently had a friend come see my master bedroom progress. When she saw my bed, she said "I bet you love to make your bed every morning." I really do. I really, really do.

Thanks for hanging out with me for my Project Master Bedroom update. There are a few things still left to be done, but no promises on how soon I will get it done. The anticipation will be worth it right? Haha.

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Carrot Cake Cookies

Whenever a cookie and a cake marry and make a cake cookie, well I am all on board with that. Yes I a sure am. When it involves carrot cake, then I am HECK YEAH on board. I have always loved carrot cake. When I was younger, I used to take seconds and thirds. And fourths. Okay so not really, but I may or may not have had a really decent sized first piece and then a regular sized second. Especially if it was my best friend's mom's cake. Goosh that was good cake AND really good cream cheese frosting.

Enough already with my love of carrot cake.

So how did these cookies come about? Well aside from the a fore mentioned love of carrot cake, it all comes down to the fact that I found these insanely adorable gummy carrots. I knew I had to get them and I knew they needed to top some kind of carroty cake goodness. I got these gummy carrots at Winco Foods. If you don't live by a Winco, then you can find some similiar HERE

Welcome in these Carrot Cake Cookies.

I made them to give to some new neighbors that just moved in. I also made sure I made some for us to eat, because if I didn't I am not sure I would have had any to give to the neighbors. These cookies are so dang good.

I think you should make yourself some. You and the arrival of Spring deserve it.

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Lumberjack In Training T-Shirt

This is my new favorite made by me t-shirt. I really like making t-shirts. Ain't no secret.

I have been wanting to make a lumberjack t-shirt for awhile. At first it started because like most single females between 20-25 my sister is obsessed with lumberjacks (well the hipster version of lumberjacks) and I thought about making a shirt for her.

Then I realized I have four Little Men and they are basically hipster lumberjacks in training. AKA, they are a little ways away from the quintessential lumberjack requirement...a beard. So it became pretty clear that the first lumberjack themed shirt I needed to make was a Lumberjack in Training T-Shirt. Sorry Sister.

When I started drafting up a design, I knew I wanted a lumberjack beard and a lumberjack beanie.

The shirt would be fabulous that way, but I decided to add the "Lumberjack in training" part.

Pretty sure this Little Man of mine is killing it in this shirt. I don't know what I am going to do when he (or any of the other boys) can actually grow a beard. I am probably going to cry and then start harshly judging all of the girls that try to date him (them).

Kidding. I don't judge. I do, however, cry.

Now I just need to make three more.

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Game Night Snack Station

A few weeks ago we had a Family Game Night and had a rousing game of Monopoly Plus on the Hasbro Game Channel the destination for family game entertainment on the leading game consoles.


Family game nights are fun and we love them. We also love having game nights with just adults. We make a big party of it by inviting over several other couples.

When you have a game night, treats are an absolute must.

Now at our parties we can show off our treats in style with this super cute Snack Station.

Hasbro Game Channel also has a kick butt Trivial Pursuit game, Trivial Pursuit Live.

Remember the traditional Trivial Pursuit game? Remember those little pie pieces. Man it was intense to try and collect all those pieces. Growing up we played this game all the time. There were the questions in some categories that I could answer no problem. Then there were others that I would avoid until I absolutely had to.

Once I was married, The Hubs and I used to take the Trivial Pursuit cards with us on long car trips to see who was smarter.As we went back and for answering questions we nibbled away on our car trip treats.

We have come along with our Trivial Pursuit playing and our treat eating.

Now we have Trivial Pursuit Live on the Hasbro Game Channel. In Trivial Pursuit Live, trivia fans get to test their wits in a new take on such a well-known trivia game. Trivial Pursuit Live transforms the classic game into a TV show setting. There is customizable game lengths and a variety of game rounds and rules to keep the players guessing.

Since the game is better, the treats need to be better, more varied, and much cuter.

I used the oh-so-popular IKEA Raskog cart. This cart is perfect for holding drinks, snacks, and candy. I applied vinyl words to the front of the carts so that the game night players could easily find any treat they need.

This cart can just be rolled out in the middle of the room while everyone is getting their Trivial Pursuit on. Answer a question right, grab a snack. Answer a question wrong, get a snack.

 Any side you are on you can grab a snack.

Now, excuse me as I go and gather some friends, some treats, and we see just who is the smartest of all the smarties in Trivial Pursuit Live.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.