{Current Beauty Favs + More}

Holy Cow!

I dropped my 32 oz Mickey D's cup as soon as I got into my office. On the upside, I was bright-eyed and bushy tailed after spending 20 minutes sopping it all up. To the office custodians: It was I who took the ENTIRE stack of paper towels this morning. Guilty as charged.

A few nights ago, I cleaned up this little mess, too :)

Naughty Rex cannot resist the pipe cleaners. He opened the white shelf and climbed to the top to pull them all out. REEEEXXXXX!!!!!

But, I do have some good news to share  :)

I am happy to report that since Jan. 1st I haven't purchased any new accessories, clothes, or shoes. Go me! That's 24 days people :) However, Travis did catch an awesome t-shirt for me that was thrown into the crowd at NewSpring and my sister Ali gave me a scarf she no longer wanted. I ditched an old t-shirt in place of the new one and I kept the scarf without getting rid of another one because I had plenty of room on the hanger. It's a nice, neutral navy blue that can be worn with a lot a I've already worn it twice in two weeks.

Today I went by Ulta and CVS to use some coupons I'd been saving up and I got some awesome new products!

Retail Value: $57.97 (not including tax)

Total spent minus sales and coupons: $16.90!!!! I can't wait to try the sea salt texturizing spray :)

Now I have to go through my stuff and get rid of one lipstick, two eyeshadows (oh gosh that's gonna be hard!!!), and two nail polishes.

While we're on the topic, here are a few awesome products I've been meaning to brag about----

Hands down the BEST mascara for thickening + lengthening in one tube that I've tried in a long time.

Don't know if you guys can read this, but it's Clinique's bottom lash mascara. It stays on ALL day without flaking or smearing and is so easy to apply to those super tiny lashes.

Victoria's Secret Heavenly Eyes palette. I got this at Christmas in a fragrance gift set and the shades are Ah-mazing! They really have staying power, too :)

I only occasionally use eyeliner on the top lid and when I apply this it doesn't move or smear all day. The color is rich and silky. My eyes are small and most eyeliners I've used on the upper lash line seem to smear onto the lid but this one doesn't. Yay!

I also recently dusted off the eye lash curler. Forgot what a difference this thing makes!

 And last but not least, please remember that makeup is just for fun and doesn't make you beautiful. That, you already are, my friend! Just wanna make sure you know that!!! I really feel like we live in a society fixated on perfection and unrealistic ideals of beauty and there are young girls who read my blog so I like to take advantages of these opportunities to encourage all you super special, GAW-GEOUS ladies out there;) Advice from a girl who went to work with no makeup on today....

proof...hehe!

LOVE,
Laura

{Weekend Update}

The days between Friday and Monday are always the BEST!

Mom and I did a little crafting :) A frame from Dollar Tree, some paint from Martha Stewart, a piece of chalk and before I knowed it I done got myself a fancy new place to write memory verses!

NewSpring with the fam (both sides:) was AWESOME! Started the new series LOVE REVOLUTION and it was groovy, man ;) I have NEVER been so excited about Church! God loves you, He is always with you, and He has EVEN GREATER plans for you! If you wanna come find out what real love looks like it's THE PLACE to be next Sunday! Click HERE for service times and location.

At one point of this FABULOUS weekend, I smoked Ali in a best 2 out of 3 connect four tournament....

BEST GAME EVER!

Some hot tea was sipped from my new Valentine mug (and raggedy old Christmas Bear mug went to the Goodwill heap)....

....and I may or may not have napped today (and for the last year) with my pillow pet

Don't believe them when they say you're too old---it's a LIE I tell you!

Love,
Laura

{'Sup Sunshine?}

Bring on the SUNSHINE!

Today's high temp of 72 and sunny made me HAPPY! HAPPY! HAPPY!

Are we sure it's January?!?

So....quick update on project junk-be-gone----

I finally got around to cleaning out my summer clothes bins----secretly wishing I was prepping for a beach vacay the entire time! ;)

Before the overhaul, I had these 4 large bins full of all my summer clothes, shoes, and accessories. That one green bin is actually twice as big as all the others.

 After paring it down, I ended up with just the 2 small gray bins. (Yay ME!) So much easier to store :) I made sure to keep the essentials since I won't be buying any new clothes this year and don't want to end up needing something important when the warm weather rolls in.

So, on to today's DELICIOUS lunch!

I could eat this EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.

A fresh bed of spinach leaves...
covered with half a cup whole grain brown rice
a few sunflower seeds
one slice of crumbled bacon
cucumbers
a dollop of hummus

Try it!

In other news, Sistah-friend Mo is still rockin' A-MAZING manicures!

 This one is one of my all-time favorites :) How does she do this?

I should really go now because the pizza, turtle brownie, and coffee I just enjoyed at Summa Joe's have mixed in my belly and I'm seriously considering the possibility that I might be having an actual heart attack. EEEK!

WHERE'S THE MYLANTA?!?

Love,
Laura 

{Test "Tar-jay"---look without buying!}

I've recenlty become VERY deliberate about what I decide to bring into our home since the great 2013 junk overhaul :)

For me, one BIG way to prevent an accumulation of unnecessary things and unnecessary spending is to STAY OUT OF STORES!

Sounds pretty simple right?---the problem is my undying love of browsing around and admiring all the pretty things (especially in Target!) and not being able to resist a mindless purchase.

And just so you know...today was test day! I made my first trip to Target this year and I'm proud to report that I was able to get in and out without breaking any of my (flexible and self-imposed) rules.

Here's how it went down :)....

My trip was planned not JUST to shop but to return something I didn't need. Otherwise I wouldn't have gone in the first place. However, since we needed food and drink items, I went ahead and did some grocery shopping while I was there.

 This will be my only "frivilous" shopping trip for this month. I'm pretty proud of myself! (I will still go "shopping" with my friends and family I just won't be "buying!) I'm happy to report that other than consumables, I stuck to spending just $13!

Those funds went to a new Valentine snack bin for my desk.

I have only 1 festive item on my desk to enjoy so it adds no clutter but allows me to still feel festive :) I trashed my Christmas snack storage so I didn't accumulate an "extra" item.

I also bought a set of 6 notecards from the One-Spot. I LOVE writing friends, family, and co-workers encouraging notes and these were super cute. Plus, I had used the last of my old cards earlier in the day and that justified me buying more.

One item I bought was a household item. I invested in two wine bottle stoppers for $5 (packaged together) because we didn't own one and I have needed one on several occasions. This is an item that I could have done without but one I know will be used. This being said, I am not trying to live the most frugal life ever, just trying to keep junk at bay. This won't end up in the junk drawer.

My last purchase was a candle (to-die-for!!!!) called "woodlands" that smelled like a warm cozy fireplace.

I completely finished burning my Holiday Gumdrop candle from B&BW so I needed a new one ;) This purchase is debatable since I have plenty of other candles I could burn but I like to keep two on my table between our chairs in the living room and didn't want to "borrow" one from a different room in the house. Is this cheating??? :)

I'll probably be using my blog to keep myself accountable until junk and clutter are a thing of the distant past! Hopefully you won't find these posts too boring and can even use some of the tips yourself :)

Oh...and I also treated myself to two different varities of hot tea and a new bottle of honey---those count in the consumables, right? ;)

P.S. Did I tell you that I've challenged myself to not buying any new clothing, shoes, or accessories for the entire year??? I'll be giving updates regularly about the ups and downs of this "project". One thing is for sure, I already have WAY MORE than I need :) And just in case you're interested, don't forget to check out my food journal page through the "DAILY BITES" link on the right side of my blog.

Ooops...one more thing!

Today's breakfast was so yummy I had to brag on it:)

That label says it all!

Love,
Laura

{Minimize Me....*update*}

ALL this is sitting in my carport waiting to be picked up tomorrow by Haven of Rest. The neighbors probably think we are high-tailing it outta town :)

At last count, there were over 15 trash bags and random boxes full of things we did not need....and I still have two rooms to go!

My new minimalist wardrobe. I kept only the things I really loved to wear and those that fit me well. I haven't done an inventory yet but I think I got my total clothing in my closet down to under 50 pieces as planned. I was just TOO tired to do anymore organizing or counting tonight ;)

Short stack of pant-cakes....get it? :) I kept 10 pair I think. Gotta do a final count on those tomorrow too. Laundry is in the works so I might find something else I'd rather keep and have to substitute some things out.

Top shelf containing 5 pair of boots. I also kept 2 pair of tennis shoes and about 7 other pairs of shoes including a few sandals for warm winter days. We have those every so often around here:)

And last but not least---a giant laundry basket FULL of hangers that once held unused clothes taking up WAY too much space. What a relief to be rid of it all!

I'll post another update and a final tally with pics tomorrow night (if I can get it all finished!!!)

Love,
Laura

Cleaning out the Closet

I have enough clothes for an ARMY...

....and I'm not kidding!

Today's goal is to pare down my winter wardrobe to 50 pieces or less.

So far my list looks like this:

2 pair black skinny leg pants
1 pair kahki skinny leg pants
4 colored/patterned skinny leg pants
2 pair jeans
3 neutral long sleeve shirts
3 sweaters
3 vests
3 cardigans
2 dresses of any kind
3 hoodies
2 pair tennis shoes
2 black boots
1 brown boot
1 "other" boot
2 pair flats
1 "other" pair of shoes of any kind
3 long tanks
2 dressy tanks
1 scarf
2 hats
1 pair of gloves
2 small purses
2 large purses
1 work bag
1 backpack

= 50 items :)

*This list doesn't include other essentials such as undies, bras, pajamas, accessories other than purses, and socks.*

This is going to be a MONUMENTAL challenge for me but I'm up for it!!!

“The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.”- Socrates

****WISH ME LUCK!****

Love,
Laura