What's New

 It's been such a long time since I've posted anything, that I'm not even sure where to begin.

I've sat here awake in my quiet living room since about 3:30 this morning. Life has held a lot of changes since my last posting. 

The family is well! We just celebrated my husband's 42nd birthday this week, and the girls are growing like tumbleweeds. 

Tuesday will mark 1 year since I started my new job, and I'm loving every minute of it! I accepted an exciting opportunity last year that allowed me to really start my career in healthcare. My nights are busy with work, and my days are well spent with family. 

I do not know when I'll post again. I've put so much focus on bettering myself and on family time that I really am not very active on any social media anymore.

Until the next time, here's to hoping you all have a swell and wonderful day!

New Year, New Goals

 Hello, 2022.

I've spent a lot of time reflecting on what I want to accomplish this year. I have some goals in mind, so I took the time to write them down as a way to hold myself accountable, and to make sure that I make an active effort into achieving them. Some of my goals are personal goals, whereas other goals pertain to my career. Today I'll tell you about my personal goals!

• Less Screen Time: I spend far more time than I should, mindlessly browsing social media throughout the day. I don't accomplish near as much as I could without the screen time. I'm doing well with this goal so far. I also find that I have much less anxiety since I've started paying less attention to social media and all of the negativity that I see on social apps and websites. I call this one a win!
• Stick to a Daily Routine: I'm not the type of person who can get through the day without one. If I don't have a written list of daily goals, they won't get done. I usually have several thought processes flowing through my mind, so it's hard to keep focused on a specific task if there isn't a written list in front of me. 
• Stay Organized With a Planner: These days, there is always something to remember; doctor appointments; extracurriculars for the kids; family events, etc. With a Planner, it will be much easier to remember what needs to be done and when. 
• Library Once a Week: I love to read. It's something that I don't get to do often enough. I started out strong last year, but then I got into a reading rut. I want to change that this year. My plan is to start going to the library at least once a week. I plan to bring the girls with me to help encourage their reading as well!
• Blog/Write More: I use to spend a lot of time writing, and I feel like I don't write nearly enough anymore. In 2022, I want to aim for at least one blog post a week. 

There are other goals, of course, but these are the important ones for me. There are big things happening behind the scenes, and all of the small goals are a means to get to the big ones. I'm so excited to see what 2022 has in store for me and my family!

Our Adventures In Mississippi

 It's been over a year since my last blog post. As always, life has been busy. Here lately, I feel like I'm always on the go, and never able to truly relax.

It has occurred to me that I've yet to write about our family's relaxing adventure over the summer. In July, we went to Mississippi! We rented an Airbnb, and we got away from it all!

When we started our quest for the perfect Airbnb, we weren't sure yet where we wanted to go. What we did know is that we wanted to go somewhere quiet. We wanted the scenery of the woods and nature; somewhere where we could find peace and serenity.

We've never booked an Airbnb before, so the whole process was new for us. It was a pleasant surprise to learn that the Airbnb app had an Outdoors Destinations category. It's where we found this gem! We browsed several other listings, but this is the one that won us over. Who wouldn't want a quiet secluded getaway on 125 wooded acres!? Let's not forget the lake, also!

In total, we spent a week at the cabin. Much of our time was spent down by the water. The girls and I spent lots of time just swimming, relaxing, and playing. It was a peaceful and carefree time for us all! From the moment the sun came up, my youngest would be asking if it was okay for her to go swimming yet. Of course! To relax was the whole purpose of why we were there! Let's not forget fishing. We did a lot of fishing too that week (although none of us actually caught anything). The weather was overcast and rainy some of the time, but we didn't let it stop us from enjoying our time by the water. 

Our evenings were spent indoors watching movies and eating family meals. We actually stopped at the grocery store on our way in and stocked up on groceries, so that we wouldn't have to spend a whole lot on eating out. This, I believe, helped to enhance our relaxing getaway! It really was peaceful. Also, it was super relaxing on the porch. To wake in the morning, and enjoy a good cup of coffee on the porch along with the beautiful view of the lake? There are no words to describe the experience. 

Closer to the end of our stay, we utilized the firepit, and we let the girls roast marshmallows! It took us a while to get the fire going. Many of the sticks and branches we found were damp from the rain we'd had that week. Once we got the fire going, it was time for the fun. It was nice to be able to give the girls a campfire experience where they could roast their marshmallows and make s'mores. It isn't something we get to do very often, and it was a wonderful way to add good family memories to our collection. It's the little things that mean the most. 

There are plenty of other experiences we had that I haven't written about, but that's okay. Altogether, our trip to Mississippi was a wonderful time for us. It's such a beautiful state! We saw gorgeous scenery, celebrated Richard's birthday, discovered an awesome little ice cream shop, and made unforgettable memories. We all can't wait to go back!

New Happenings & More

 Hello, readers! I'm back with some more updates in my life (I'm super proud of myself for not disappearing for so long this time!).

Life has been pretty okay lately. I finally have some updates about the big things happening behind the scenes. At the time of my last post, I didn't want to reveal too much because things can change, and so they did. After putting in a little over two years of hard work and dedication, I received a promotion at work! Initially, the company I work for was acquiring a new store, and I was to become the manager. Things didn't quite fall into place like they were supposed to, however, I can't complain with how things did play out. I'm now a floating manager, and I work between two different stores. I'm loving it! Working between two locations not only changes the scenery a little, but I'm learning new skills along the way as well. I love the challenge of it all. 

One great perk to my new schedule is that I'm able to have more time with my family. We're all developing new routines, and it's working quite well for us.

My oldest daughter is now in 7th grade, and last year she joined band. She started in beginner's band, and this year has been promoted to "Gold" band, which is the highest you can go at her middle school. I'm super proud of her! 

Maddie has always done her own thing. She's got a fun-loving and spunky personality, and she loves to stand out from the crowd. So, it's only natural that she would choose the tuba as her band instrument! Yes, that is a blue tuba she's got. Blue and gold are her school's colors, and the band department recently received some new instruments. 

Thursday night was her first official band performance at the middle school football game, and I'm so happy that I was able to take off of work to be there! I stood by the fence the whole time (and she, equally, pretended that she didn't see me there....but that goes with her spunky personality).

All in all, I really can't complain about my life! I'm thankful for all of the blessings, and grateful to finally be getting more time with my family. I still have more goals I'm working on (my mind is always flowing with ideas), but I'm learning to go with the flow while enjoying all of the little moments in between.

Easy Mexican Style Sauce

Do you ever find yourself browsing through your pantry, trying to figure out what to cook for supper?? That was me last night. I didn't want to make a dreaded trip to the grocery store, so I knew I'd need to be creative. I knew that I had some brown rice on hand, and that was enough to get the ideas churning. I ended up creating a delicious Mexican-style sauce to pour over the rice, and it was all from ingredients that I already had in stock!

Ingredients:

(1) Small whole chicken - cooked and deboned

(3) 8-oz. jars of Pace Picante sauce (I used Medium, but choose intensity according to your own personal preference)

(2) 15-oz. cans of tomato sauce

(1) 15.25-oz. can of corn, drained (Regular, or Mexican style)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a large sauce pan, and stir to mix well

Cook, uncovered, on medium-high heat until boiling (stirring occasionally) 

Once boiling, reduce heat and cover.

Let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally

After the cooking is done, you're all set! Pour over brown rice, and enjoy!

So Much "LIFE"

Where do I even begin?? I know it's been a long time since I've posted any updates....isn't it funny how life happens sometimes?

There are so many things that have happened, that each would need its own blog post. I can give a brief rundown though.

It's been a little over 2 years since Gail had her open heart surgery. It's amazing to see how she's thriving and growing now! I'm amazed with each and every passing day. She just finished kindergarten, and is preparing for First grade. Thanks to lovely Imelda, and the flooding that ensued (and also Covid), her kindergarten year was definitely not average.

So what's happened since my last post?

• Gail's open heart surgery, which went very smoothly.
• I re-entered the workforce (This is the primary reason I haven't updated in so long).
• My husband suffered from a work injury.
• Imelda came through and flooded our home (Which we're still very slowly repairing).
• My husband was hospitalized this past January, and was diagnosed with End Stage Liver Disease (It's been a rough road with this one).
• COVID.....Need I say more?? This lead to the juggling of working to support our family, and playing "teacher" when I wasn't at work. I still have no clue how this upcoming school year will play out...we're all just sort of winging it right now.
• There's another big development, but the details aren't finalized just yet, so I will post about this one once everything is said and done...but it will be a goal I've been working towards for a while that my family will truly benefit from!

I don't know what the future holds, but I do know that I'm optimistic about what lies ahead for myself and my family. I've learned that life gets rough sometimes, but you just have to take things as they come, and you have to keep on keeping positive....no matter what. 

Prepping for Summer

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Life has been crazy busy lately! I believe my last post was back in March.

With everything that's coming within the next few months (as well as everything that's happened over the past few months), I've been actively taking steps to be as stress free as possible. This is why you haven't seen any of the Sunday Coupon posts in recent months.

Last month, we got the call that we've been waiting for. The surgical department at Texas Children's called us with the official date for Gail's open heart surgery. We've known the call was coming since back in December, and we'd met with the surgeon back in February or March (It's all sort of been a blur).

Gail's surgery is scheduled for July 13, which just so happens to be her daddy's birthday!

As part of the process on getting her ready for surgery, we had to get her dental clearance. So, we got that done on the 16th over at Texas Children's. Because of Gail's heart, she needed to have her dental work done in the hospital where they could have the CV anesthesia specialist in the OR with her.

All in all? She did very well! She was also happy to wake up and find that she had silver teeth, ha!

Aside from getting things ready for Gail's surgery, we're also getting ready for Maddie and Kay's summer vacation. I can't believe how fast the time has flown by!! We're in the midst of all those "end of the year" activities. We've had book fairs, field trips, STAAR testing...and we're gearing up for Field Day, and more field trips! Did I mention that Maddie and Kay also have birthdays coming up in June!?!?

Life has been a whirlwind, but I'm learning to roll with the flow. I know it won't always be so crazy, so I'm remembering to just breathe and enjoy the moments!

Tools4Wisdom Yearly Planner

So for a while now, I've been telling myself that I really need to get a planner to keep things more organized. I have 3 kids, and so schedules tend to get very busy! We have ADHD checkups every 3 months for my older 2 daughters, dental checkups every 6 months for all of the girls, and checkups with many specialists for my youngest (she sees several specialists due to congenital heart defects and Heterotaxy Syndrome). Let's not forget all of the important dates for different school functions, field trips, etc.! With all of the girls' things, as well as my own and my husband's, it really was time to finally break down and get a planner so that I can properly keep up with everything.

Needless to say, I was very happy for the opportunity to try this Tools4Wisdom planner for a discounted rate! I love the inspirational quote on its cover, and that it's hardcover and sturdy. As you'll see in the pictures below, there is plenty of writing space in this planner, which greatly helps for everyday reminders as well as with setting daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals. It even comes with two pages of stickers to help with marking those important dates and goals that are reached.

I really do love the design for this planner (which you can get here). I can't wait to see what other inspirational designs are up ahead for future planners from Tools4Wisdom, and I certainly hope they keep the effective layout! I'm kicking myself for not knowing about their planners sooner!

Just A Little Sunday Morning Update

It seems it's been a while since I've posted anything, so I figured that now's as good a time as any! I, honest to goodness, woke up at 3 a.m. this morning, and have been patiently waiting on the Sunday paper to arrive (which it hasn't yet).

My absence has been due to a few things. For starters? There was a 2-3 week period there where I hadn't received the paper at all. I live in a rural area, so it's not always a guarantee that there will be someone available to deliver the paper!

Alas....the paper was delivered last weekend, but life happens. Last Friday, I had a wisdom tooth and another tooth extracted. I won't lie when I say that the pain felt afterwards lasted much longer than expected! I was still very much in a deep recovery mode when Sunday morning rolled around! Honestly, the pain stayed in a crippling state until Wednesday morning. Y'all have no idea how happy I am to be a functioning human being again after that experience!

There are, of course, more updates to give. I figure I'll post those throughout the coming week. There are some pretty big things happening for our family right now, and we're in a busy season.

For now? I'm hopping off to down some more coffee. Here's to hoping you all have a wonderful and blessed Sunday!

My Sincere Apologies

I am truly sorry that I have not posted the Houston Chronicle's inserts. This is the second week in a row that the newspaper has not been delivered to my home. As soon as they start delivering again, I will be back to posting the inserts.

Here's to hoping you all have a lovely Sunday!

My Bath & Body Works Haul!!

Eeeek!!! I'm so happy right now!! Okay, so...part of how I'm able to afford to stay home with my kids is by taking surveys. I'm an active member of somewhere between 6-10 panels. Over time, I've received "Recruit" surveys, which are surveys that recruit you to online discussion communities where you have the chance to earn additional incentives for actively participating. Well, last week I won a $50 gift card from one of these communities for being named the September Expert of the Month. I chose the Bath & Body Works gift card because it's not often that I get to splurge on myself (I have this bad habit of always shopping for the kids, and never for myself).

In true frugal fashion, I actively made a point to make that $50 stretch, and to get the most for my money. I really scored!!! 😊 My goodies just showed up today, and I couldn't be happier!

I knew before I even got to the Bath & Bod Works website that I was ready to stock up on some delicious Fall fragrances. It's been a while since I've actually bought anything from them, so I wasn't exactly up to date on the different scents that they offer now. I was very pleasantly surprised!!

First, the mists and body creams were on sale for Buy 3, Get 2 FREE. For the body creams, I chose Salted Caramel Apricot, and Marshmallow Pumpkin Latte (I've already applied some Marshmallow Pumpkin Latte, and it smells truly DELICIOUS!!). For the body mists, I chose the Marshmallow Pumpkin Latte, Pumpkin Cupcake, and Warm Vanilla Sugar (This last one has always been my favorite).

Second, the lotions [Retired scents] were on sale for $5 each. I chose Brown Sugar & Fig, and French Lavender & Honey.

On top of the already great deals up above, there was a code for $10 off $30 on the day I placed my order. This brought my total down to $51.89 before I used my gift card. I only paid $1.89 out of pocket, plus I used Ebates to earn an additional $0.42 cash back on my purchase, so I really only spent $1.47!!

Great Deals Still Happening Right Now!!

• All 3-Wick candles are $10 off
• All Body Care is Buy 3, Get 3 FREE
• Hand Soaps are 6 for $25 or 4 for $20
• Retired Fragrances are Buy 3, Get 3 FREE
• Aromatherapy Body Care is Buy 3, Get 3 FREE
• Travel Body Care is 3 for $12.50
• Wallflowers Fragrance Refills are 5 for $23
• Scentportable Refills are 4 for $10
• Fragrance Melts are 5 for $15 or 3 for $12
• Concentrated Room Spray is 2 for $12
• Specialty Hand Soaps are 2 for $10
• PocketBac Bundles are $6 and up

Whether you need to restock on your own collection, or are ready to start on the Christmas shopping (My mail carrier told me she's using the sale for the Christmas shopping), now is the perfect time to catch some really great deals at Bath & Body Works!!

Returning to a Normal Routine

It has been a while since I've really had time to sit down and write a good post! Life's been crazy busy. First? There was summer vacation. I don't think it needs to be said about just how busy it can be with 3 kids home all at the same time! Second? We did go through an extended summer vacation, thanks to the flooding effects from Hurricane Harvey.

Things are starting to resemble "normal" again, which I'm so thankful for! My older 2 daughters finally started back to school on September 18. My 2nd grader is really having fun! She's really soared with her reading skills, and is loving the challenge of racking up AR points! She's also having fun with math 😊

My 4th grader still loves reading and math, but she's starting to realize how much extra time she needs to devote to her studies. I'd warned her that 4th grade would be a little harder than K-3, and she's seeing that now.

Before they officially started back to school, we made a point of having a nice, peaceful, day of fishing.

The girls had been bugging us all summer for it, so we took them during their last weekend of vacation. We didn't catch any fish, but we still had a great time! We got to make some fun memories, and the kids got to swim!

I really love that Gail is finally old enough to be able to enjoy these activities with her older sisters. She had a fishing pole in her hand right along with the other two (though not in this particular picture). It was so great to just be able to sit back and relax after everything our community went through!

I'm still an active Avon representative, even though I haven't posted any of those deals lately. I sort of took a break when Harvey came rolling through, but I'm ready to get back in the game!

While my division is technically in Campaign 22 already, the deals in the flyer here are still active! I love that Avon supports these causes. My husband thinks I don't need anymore makeup bags....but what he doesn't know won't hurt, right?? Haha! Actually, he's learned at this point to not fight me on my beauty and jewelry products 😉

If you like to support either of these causes, you can click here to shop for Avon's Breast Cancer Crusade items, and here to shop for their Speak Out Against Domestic Violence items. They're both great causes!

My goal from here forward is to make a point of making at least ONE (possibly more) weekly post about my family's adventures. With the school year here again, I'm hoping that will make it easy to squash the Writer's Block that tends to hit me a lot! I can say, however, that there will be a book fair and some reading adventures to write about soon, so I'm super excited for that!! 😊

I also bought my older two daughters a "Learn to Cook" cookbook shortly before Harvey swept through. They're both capable of reading it themselves and following the directions, so I'm going to let them try their hands at some of the cooking around here. I will be sure to share some of those adventures with y'all as well!

Here's to hoping you all have a wonderful week! 😀

Brief Update

Harvey has things on hold. I promise I'll be back to regular blogging soon! We've finally started getting mail delivery again (and I'm hoping the newspaper will finally be delivered Sunday). Things are finally starting to resemble "normal", though my community has a long way to go. Thank you all for your patience!

HSI Glider Ceramic Flat Iron

If there's one thing I love, it's the ability to try out new beauty products. I always love it when I get to try new hair straighteners!!

I received the HSI Glider Ceramic Flat Iron free in exchange for my honest review, and all opinions stated in this post are genuinely my own!

The straightener I used before trying this one was still fairly new, and I thought it did the job well, but I was proven wrong after using this HSI Glider!

You can't see it well in the picture, but the plate on the straightener that says HSI is actually a very pretty gold color. I really like the sleek but simple design. Additionally, I love all of the little extras that came with this flat iron!

The HSI comes with a pretty red pouch to store it in, which is a very nice touch! It was a little wrinkled straight out of the box, of course, but it's an easy fix to get the wrinkles out. Along with the storage pouch, I also received a heat resistant protective glove (YAY!!!) and a sample of HSI Argan Oil conditioner. I thought these were all very nice touches!! ALSO, inside the box was also the warranty certificate. The HSI comes with a 1 year warranty, which is another plus (Especially if you have young children who like to accidentally break things on occasion). So there are truly a lot of perks that come with the HSI Glider. Another thing I really liked (and sadly not pictured) is a small booklet that was included to showcase other HSI products.

This is another product that came with the flat iron!! I honestly feel like it's a very important "must have" when using the flat iron (The bottle says that it also works on extensions). I sprayed some on my hair before I started straightening it because it's supposed to help with protection from heat. I also sprayed some on my hair after I finished straightening it. It helped to tame the few flyaways that were still there afterwards, and it really left my hair super soft!!

My old hair straightener definitely could NOT do what this one can. It works so well that it actually cut the time down on how long it usually takes me to straighten my hair. It used to take me at least 30 minutes to straighten my hair, but the HSI Flat Iron got the job done in less than 20!!

This is not the CLEAREST picture (It was taken with the webcam on my laptop), but I love how my hair looks after using it! It was actually raining and humid here while I was doing my hair, so I'm pleasantly surprised at how great it turned out, considering!!

So if you're curious to try this yourself, or curious about other HSI products, be sure to click here! 😊

Natrogix Bliss Top 9 Essential Oils Set with FREE E-book!!

So I started using essential oil about 2 years ago. I was reluctant at first. I thought people were just over exaggerating when they'd go on about how well they work for health & wellness purposes. One of my best friends gave me a bottle of Lavender oil, and I was hooked! That's why I was super excited for the opportunity to tell y'all about this Essential Oil GIFT SET!!! (Which I did receive for a discount, but I truly love the amazing benefits offered by essential oils!!!)

The Natrogix Bliss Top 9 Essential Oils Gift Set (Which you can get here) comes with the top 9 oils used by essential oil lovers.

The oils include:

• Tea Tree Oil: Used as a lice repellent. Also works well for on the spot treatment of pimples, fever blisters, warts, etc. (I use this in a spray for my daughters' hair as a preventative, and have used it for those random painful pimples that pop up out of the blue!)
• Frankincense: This oil can be used as an anti-depressant and works very well at reducing anxiety and stress. It also has antibiotic properties and can help in relieving things like congestion. My husband and I sometimes use this in our diffuser at night to help with sleep!
• Lemongrass: This is personally the first time I've ever had this one in my collection of oils! From what I've read though, the benefits are to my liking! Benefits include helping with the relief of muscle aches, anti-fungal properties, and helping to ward off insects. It can also help to reduce fever and kill bacteria.
• Eucalyptus: This is another first for my collection. My aunt has told me great things about it! So has my best friend that got me hooked on oils in the first place. It works as an expectorant to help fight the cold & flu. It can be used for a myriad of respiratory issues, and can be used for treatment of small wounds, among other things.
• Peppermint: This one is one of my favorites just because of the smell alone!! It can also help sooth stomach aches & nausea. Peppermint oil is also another lice repellent! It can also help sooth muscle aches and other pains caused from long term conditions.
• Rosemary: This is one of my favorites to use in a sleep blend at night (I like to blend Rosemary, Lavender, and Patchouli) which makes sense because one of the benefits is that it reduces cortisol levels. It's also used for hair growth, memory improvement, and can be used for different detoxifying purposes to help different organs in the body.
• Sweet Orange: I love love LOVE the scent of this, and it has such an uplifting effect!! It does help as a mood booster, which I love! It's also used as a natural antibacterial, pain reducer, acne fighter, and many other things.
• Lemon: This one can be used as a natural cleanser, can help digestion, help with weight loss, be used for cough relief, and many other things. This is another one my aunt and friend are adamant on using in their diffusers whenever they have cold or allergy issues! 
• Lavender: This one is my favorite because it smells pretty, and it's so calming!! I diffuse this in the room when my kids are home because it helps to calm their ADD. I also use it as one of my "must" oils in my sleep blend at night. Lavender oil can also be used to help relieve headaches, improve eczema & psoriasis, and can help with healing small burns and wounds.

So as you can see, the Natrogix Bliss gift set comes with all of the best oils you can find if you're just starting your collection. It's also great even if you're NOT new to essential oils!! The gift set also comes with a small booklet that has a few recipes for homemade oils blends, as well as a link to a free e-book that has 200 recipe blends! There's also a link in the booklet that includes a discount code for the Natrogix Bliss Totem diffuser.

So if you love essential oils, you know this set is something worth getting!! If you know someone who's just starting out with oils, this would be the perfect gift to get for them! 😊

Earthen #InstaPeel Instant Peel!!

Things have been crazy busy for me in recent weeks!! Not only did our family just finish celebrating my youngest daughter's THIRD birthday, but I have been busy trying some great products that I'm really excited about!!! 😊

The Earthen InstantPeel (which you can get here) is a product I'm actually very pleased with!

Some things to note: This peel is most effective when used in a steamy shower with a damp face so that the pores are really open and the face is more easily able to absorb the peel.

For my first time using this, I was in front of the camera, therefore I had to improvise with a damp rag to keep my face damp. I was still very satisfied with the results though!!

The peel is designed to remove impurities from the skin, and (more importantly) dead skin cells. It is safe for all skin types. I honestly didn't realize just how much dead skin I had on my face until I used this.

You can see some of the dead skin on my fingers, but this picture doesn't do justice to just how much skin fell off throughout the process of using the InstantPeel!!

The frequency of use really depends on your skin type. For oily skin, it's recommended to use the peel once a week. For moderate skin, it's ideal to use once every two weeks. For dry skin, use less often (maybe once a month).

If you care to get a better idea of how well this works, you can check out my YouTube Video 
It should be noted that I was not aware until afterwards that my face wasn't always fully viewable in the camera (Oops!)

I did receive this product free in exchange for my honest review, and all opinions are genuinely my own! I can't explain how soft and smooth my skin was after using this...I was amazed!!!

Another Summer Update

It's been a few weeks since I've written a general update about life, and our family's adventures! We've had a strange combination of "busy" and "lazy" going on at our house (that's what I love so much about summer vacation).

The girls finished off their summer track season a few weeks ago!! They didn't place in their final meet, but did great at the previous one! Maddie got 5th place for her division in the softball throw, and Kay got 3rd place in her division for the same event. They were both super happy when they found out the results!!

While they may not have placed in all of their meets, they had fun during track season, and that's what really matters. I love that they were able to start learning some of the essential track skills for when they get older. I also love that the summer track season gave them the opportunity to build stronger bonds with their friends (even if they didn't like how hot it was outside....none of us did for that matter).

They're sad that the season is over, but they're ready for their next set of adventures (we are still deciding on what those will be). I love seeing them bloom with each new set of endeavors they take on! It's so amazing to be able to see them grow, and to see them each blossom into their personalities, who they are, what they like. The possibilities are endless with these two, and I'm truly blessed to be their mama!!

Life has been busy for me also. Back in April (I think), I made the decision to start my own home business, and signed up to become an Avon Representative.

I've been a fan of Avon since I was around 12, and I was tired of never being able to find a local rep, so I figured why not become one!? Not only do I get to offer people great quality products at an affordable price, but I get to splurge for myself also with the representative discount 😉

I could have chosen one of the numerous "popular" direct sales companies that I see plastered all over social media all the time, but Avon is what was in my heart to do. I see so many companies, and while I would love to try their products, the price tags aren't always suited for the working class who live paycheck to paycheck. Avon offers great products that don't break the bank, so that was a huge motivating factor for me. I am truly enjoying the journey so far (even though my house is drowning in Avon products these days)!!

So now you know a little of what our family's been up to in recent weeks! I'm hoping my next update will have more fun adventures packed into it! For now though? It's Avon order day, so I'm hopping off of here to get back to business. I hope you all are enjoying your summer so far! 😊

Vivo Mineral Clay Mud Mask

It's been a very long time since I've done a review!! It's something that I sort of got out of the habit of doing due to life getting busy. I also just sort of found myself in a "funk" for about a year or so where nothing was really motivating for me.  There have been a lot of positive changes in my life in recent months, and I'm starting to feel that motivation again, so I though it'd be a great time to jump back into the game!

The product I'm reviewing today is one that I received at a discount, and all opinions are genuinely my own.

This is the product I'm reviewing today. I will be perfectly honest and say that I was a little scared before applying this. I've used other mud masks in the past, and some of them really burn! I was very much expecting this one to do the same. I'm very happy to say that it didn't though!!

I really like that this mask has kaolin clay, bamboo charcoal, and other ingredients that help fight the signs of aging. This mask also targets clogged pores and excess oil, which is why I was so excited to be able to review this (I've always had issues with my pores and acne).




I actually got on camera while I was applying this because I wanted to record my "real time" first impressions of the mask as I was wearing it. You can find the link for that here.



Top Things I Like Most About This Mask:

• No Burning Sensation: I think this one speaks for itself! The fact that it didn't burn means that it wasn't an unpleasant experience while using this mask.
• No Hardening: This mask didn't harden while I was wearing it. I was able to talk and move my cheeks freely without worrying about the mask cracking (which has been the case with other masks I've used). I love that my skin was able to breathe while I was wearing it.
• Not Hard to Wash Off: I've used other masks in the past that I almost had to downright SCRUB just to get them off, to the point where my face was left irritated. That wasn't the case with this one. This mask was fairly easy to wash off, and only a slight gentle pressure was needed during the process. YAY to no irritated skin!!
• Super Clean and Soft Afterwards: When I finished washing the mask off, there was a HUGE difference in the way my face looked. It was almost like it had a new radiance to it. Also, it was so soft!! I was halfway expecting to need to use some moisturizer afterwards, but that's not the case! It should be noted, however, that each person has a different type of skin, so some people may find the need for moisturizer afterwards.

I'm really glad that I was given the opportunity to try this mask out!! I'm pretty sure it's going to be a keeper for me. If you're curious to see how this mask will work yourself, you can find it here. Also, for a limited time, you can get 10% off when you use code VIVOMASK. 

Our Simple but Busy July 4th

How was everyone's July 4!? Ours was good, but busy!! After starting my day with laundry & cleaning, some friends of ours invited us to a BBQ lunch. We ate (a lot) and enjoyed ourselves for a few hours while the kids all played.

Upon arriving home, we were greeted with 2 big bags of girls' clothes sitting by our front door. This, of course, led to me calling my neighbors to figure out the mystery of who brought them to us. Not that I'm complaining...it's a blessing! The clothes were just the right sizes for our youngest daughter and our oldest. I am NEVER one to turn down free clothes for the kids! They grow so fast, and clothes can be expensive!! So needless to say, I spent the next 2-3 hours washing, drying, and folding the "new" clothes (This also gave me the perfect excuse for purging the closets of all the excess).

Fast-forward a few more hours. Some more friends invited us over for more food & to watch the local firework show that one of the town residents puts on every year.

The pictures don't do justice to just how beautiful the show was! It's something the girls always look forward to, and it melts my hearts to see the excitement on their faces!

It was a fairly simple day for us with no extravagant plans. It's the memories made that matter the most!

Oh Sweet Summertime...

Every time I tell myself that I'll start posting LIFE posts more often, it seems like life gets too busy for that. Isn't that about typical!?

Life has been a whirlwind since summer vacation started!

These two both have June birthdays (10 days apart, actually) which means that the month was busy BUSY for us!

Not pictured in this post are the birthday activities that took place on the FIRST birthday. On Maddie's birthday we took the girls into town for a day of adventure. We started out at Rao's Bakery, where they each got to pick their own miniature single-serve cakes. They loved it! We followed that with a trip to the book store since both girls love to read, and they got to get a new book! Ending that day, we stopped by the pet store to get some new fish for their aquarium since they love to collect fish (This ended badly for the new fish as well as a few fish we'd already had 😢, but more on that another time [maybe]).

As you can see above, the girls were each allowed to pick their own cake for the day of their actual party. With their birthdays being so close together, it's always easier to combine their party, but we ALWAYS let them each have their own cake!

The girls were delighted on the day of their party to discover that they were getting more books, and fidget spinners! They'd been BUGGING for fidget spinners during the last few weeks of school, and I told them they could wait until summer, because I didn't want them distracted by them during class.

 

Even though her birthday isn't until August, Gail got a new book and fidget spinner too! She loves to be just like her sisters. She loves books just as much as they do, and she's just as fascinated by fidget spinners as they are!

There is no slowing her down. In her mind, she is just as big and as capable of doing things as her sisters are, and I absolutely love that about her!





Aside from all of the birthday excitement, Maddie and Kay have been busy with the summer track season. They've done cheerleading in the past with the same league that does the track meets, but this year is the first year that their school has actively participated in the track events. Last weekend was their first actual track meet, and I think they both did awesome for it being the first time for each of them!! I won't lie though, I'm thankful that we don't have a meet this weekend with it being July 4th weekend!

Kay did so well at her first meet that she came home with a 4th place ribbon for the softball throw. I'm so super proud of her for this!!

Maddie didn't place in anything at this meet, but that's okay. I told her she can place at the next meet if she really practices at what she's aiming for.

Aside from the softball throw, they ran the 40 and the 100, and they ran their hearts out as fast as they could. I'm super proud of them regardless of whether they placed in anything or not!



This is how crazy busy our summer has been so far!! I can't wait to see what else it has in store for us, and what kind of adventures lay ahead!