A Better Blogger

I had hoped to be able to get my Mothers Day post out today but I took pictures with a real camera in an effort to be a better blogger. But taking them on the real camera means I have to download them to the computer and upload them to blogger something I loathe doing. So... my attempt at being a better blogger just resulted in my being a worse blogger.

That's what I get for trying, internet.

A 'Hidden' Gem in the Central Valley

Last Saturday, Bryan took us on a surprise family outing. He had asked me to block off the day so that I didn't accidentally make other plans and come Saturday morning, off we were! 

Of course, we stopped on the way out of town to get a Java Heaven. I've really cut back on my Java Heaven trips so this was SUCH a treat. Bryan even got one. 

We ended up going to Exeter. It's a small town east of our hometown and is home to about 10,500 people. And apparently it's a hidden gem. It was even named one of the Top 15 Small Cities in California by Cities Journal! You can seriously tell that the city government is doing it's best to make the downtown area a little hipster hub, and they are succeeding! There are great shops, great restaurants and lots of history. It feels like a little Harry Potter area. No joke! I adore it.

After going to one thrift store and one furniture repurposing store, we decided we were ready to eat. We asked what place would be good and they gestured across the street to the Hometown Emporium. It's this cute little cafe and is also a bakery! They had a lunch special where you got a half sandwich, a pickle, a drink and a cookie. It was yummy!

Luckily, it was really kid friendly. Shepherd has gotten to the point where he is a little... loud. Also, he waves to EVERYONE. Everyone was so nice and would wave back. No dirty looks when he was 'talking' either. It was sweet. There was a lot to look at so he couldn't stay still!

Exeter has all kinds of murals everywhere. I so wish I would have taken more pictures! I'm glad I snapped this one at least. The town is known for it's orange trees (they are everywhere!), so this mural is extremely fitting. 

We saw a sign that there was the Rosebud festival in Three Rivers, so we headed further east. This is Kaweah lake. It is SO low. It makes me so sad that our water situation is so bad. This lake was always nice and full. I took there on the road where there is a bridge a lot of people, including Bryan, jump off. It's super high up. Now it's bone dry with just rocks underneath. So sad.

Here is the bridge and the road leading east, up to Three Rivers and below that, a few other pictures of the lake. I didn't take any pictures of the Rosebud festival because it was actually really small. We bought three jars of homemade jam: blueberry, strawberry and pluot. I also splurged a little and bought Shepherd a hand carved helicopter. It is so cute! I can't believe I haven't snapped a photo of it!

On our way back home, we stopped in Exeter again. I totally spaced at taking some pictures of the actual shops the first time, so I quickly snapped this one of a corner antique store and then of the flower shop/gift shop/book store. The reason for this stop was mainly to get TCBY!  I got so excited that they had one, but I wasn't ready for yogurt when we first went into town, so Bryan said we'd swing in on our way home. It was absolutely delicious and the store was so cute! If you ever find yourself near Exeter, make a stop at TCBY. They have the best frozen yogurt. Nothing else comes close.

I included this shot of my hair because I love it! I did a side braid and then pinned it into a bun. It kind of looks like a flower!  I also did a braid on the other side underneath the hair and then another in the middle top of my head. I loved it. It was perfect for the day.

We had such a great time and will definitely be back to Exeter really soon! Hope you guys have a great weekend! 

My Dream House

I walk by this house on my nightly walks with Shepherd. Last night, I stopped, picked up my phone for the first time in forty-five minutes and snapped this picture. After, I pointed the stroller towards it and pointed it out to him. I told him that one day I would buy this house. We would live in it and take good care of it. As we started walking away, I told him that he and his future siblings would play on the lawn and run through the sprinklers one day. Even if he was 16 years old. I'd make him do it. Because I'm a good mother that puts his needs first. And he needs the memories of running through the sprinklers at this house, regardless of age.

It's funny how a house can make you envision what you want your future to look like. I can see my family in this house. I can see the Christmases and birthday celebration. I want that life. I want my home to be as welcoming as this one seems to be.

It doesn't help that one of my sisters dream house is across the street and a few houses down.

That would just be the cherry on top.

Lurking Like A Creeper

I have one fingernail painted. Just one. It's my right thumb. One fourth of it is chipped off. It's really professional looking. It's like the Michael Jackson glove of fingernails.

I went to Sally's Beauty Supply and they were having a 50% off red tag sale. So, I got some nail polishes and decided to try two of them out. On one finger. However, I don't have the desire to paint my nails. That requires waaaay too much effort.

Why I bought the nail polish is beyond me.

But don't tell Bryan that.

This past week I've just been thinking about a lot of things and trying to figure some stuff out and I tend not to write much when that is happening. I'm overwhelmed and I need to sort things out before I write. It's been almost a week and I have nothing sorted out.

In all honesty I feel miserably unsorted.

Anyways, I'm here. I haven't been posting much on social media, but I'm there, lurking. Sometimes it feels weird, seeing these glimpses of other peoples lives. Especially when you are in a funk. It's like... I'm peeping into their lives but I'm not sharing anything of my own.

Just call me Tom.

Four or More Tag, Because Why Not?

I've been seeing this pop up on YouTube and thought it was such a neat tag. How often have we fallen in love with a beauty product and went to stock up when they were on sale? This tag was created by ItsKeersten (click the link to see the original four or more video) and I considered myself tagged by EmilyNoel83, whom I watch regularly.

I knew that I would for sure have four or more of some things, but I was actually surprised! I guess I didn't realize that I reach of the same products time and again. What can I say, when it works, it works.

I took these pictures at ten at night on my living room rug. Because I'm a professional.

I don't know why, but I was surprised by how many lip products I have. I shouldn't have been, considering this picture I posted on Instagram a while back:

I was carrying all of that.... in my purse. Every Day. 

Yeah I shouldn't have been surprised. 

Back to my four or more collection, if you look closely, you'll see that I have two sets of lip products that only have three. Yup, I'm breaking the rules. 

YOU DON'T OWN ME. 

I figure, I have three and I would have all of them if I could. So, I included them. I'm going to start with the products I have the most of and end with the least. 

Internet, meet Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter. I adore these. Seriously. They are just so comfortable on the lips, nice and sparkly but totally appropriate. I love them. 

060 Gum Drop

This is super neon purple and I like pairing it with NYX Castle (which you'll see later.)

027 Juicy Papaya

This is my most recent purchase and it is perfect for spring! I love it.

095 Creme Brulee

025 Peach Parfait 

This is the first one I purchased - a long, long time ago - and you can tell I love it. It's almost gone. I'll be definitely repurchasing.

045 Cotton Candy

050 Berry Smoothie

070 Cherry Tart

They have so many great colors, I love them. I didn't swatch all of these because I didn't think of it. Oh well. 

To be perfectly honest.... I didn't purchase these Shimmer Glosses from eyes.lips.face. I KNOW. My friend Denise did. While I was visiting her in LA, she gave them to me because she wasn't a fan of the consistency. I, however, love them! They are so light, only stick if you glob it on. I love the pigmentation and they just feel so....smooth. I would TOTALLY buy all of the colors. And it's e.l.f. Cheap and awesome. Boom. These colors are (from left to right) Love, Hope, Inspire and Dream. 

These are the Wet & Wild lipsticks. Super affordable, great pigmentation and a good range of colors. I really love 903C. So pretty. 

I'm sure everyone has heard of the NYX shadow sticks. These are great bases. I use Milk (the white) the most. It makes eyeshadow colors really pop. Next to that, I use Sparkle Nude. It's a great highlight color in the inner corner. I use the brown as a crease color and have only use the blue has a pop of color below the bottom lash line. 

I wrote about these shadows before and I like them. I use the white for the inner corner highlight or even for the brow bone.  The pink and the brown are so pretty all over the lid for one product eyeshadow looks. The blue I've used in the center of the eyelid for a pop of color or to lighten a darker, smokier look. I haven't tried these wet and I wonder if the blue would be cute used with an eyeliner brush? Hmm. Here are the previous photos I shared, they show the colors way better. 

Okay, time for the honorable mentions. I almost have four of each of these and that has to mean something right?! I picked up these three NYX lipsticks when I picked up the individual eyeshadows above. I wear them all the time - especially Castle.

I am straight up obsessed with purple lips. Seriously. I mix Castle with Revlon Gumdrop and it is bright and bold. I love it. On more neutral days I will gravitate towards Rose Bud and I just love the color and tone of Doll. So pretty.

These are the Covergirl LipPerfection Lipcolor's in Delicious, Eternal and Honeyed. I just noticed that the NYX lipsticks is a purple, a red and a neutrally pink. I'm sure a creature of habit. Insane. Anyways, I've been know to mix Honeyed with Castle and Gum Drop to tone down the purple. Makes it a bit more wearable. 

Anyways, that is all folks! My four or more. I'm glad this wasn't a collection post because my lip product collection is ridiculous. 

Elvis, Hot Rollers and Marriage

I'm working on a big post for next week and I realized after taking a bunch of pictures that I had nothing planned for this morning. Luckily, I've got things to tell ya! 

Wednesday was Administrative Assistant day and we attended a luncheon. Elvis was there. No big deal. 

It was a lot shorter of a luncheon that was expected so on the way back to the office my boss treated us to milkshakes. As we were waiting in the drive-through, I got a pretty important e-mail... I was accepted into the program I applied for! I'm waiting for the list of instructions on the next steps and I've got to figure out the financing, but I think this might actually be happening! I'm so excited. This is going to be a crazy year! 

I figured that since I had that luncheon and I needed to look nice for it, I would try out my hot rollers. This was my look of the day. I wasn't in love with it but I'm also not good at rolling my hair. Hopefully with practice things will get better. I see this pictures and I'm so conflicted about those baby hairs. So happy my hair is growing back, so sad that it sticks out all over the place - no matter what product I use. Is it just me or do I kind of have crazy eyes in this photo? Ugh.

OH! I mentioned that Bryan is close to finishing his album and we have been shooting some footage for a super secret project. I have to find the time to load that all onto my computer and see if I got anything good... If it's anything like my photography I'm in trouble!

Side note: Bryan and I have been married for four and a half years today!

I hope you guys have a fantastic weekend. 

xo.