Crickets...

Sorry it's been a while since I last posted. The internet has been out at our place and my car is still in the shop so I can't drive anywhere to get free wifi. (I'm posting this on my phone and it's more than challenging.) Hopefully I will be back to normal by Monday! Until then, I'll leave you with this beauty:

My oldest brother, Austin, took this at dairy queen the other day. It pretty much captures and sums up my life. 

Note: I'm laughing, not puking. 

Bountiful Baskets

Have y'all ever heard of Bountiful Baskets Co-op? Our family had never heard of it until someone suggested it to us. Our family loves fresh produce and normally we have to go to a 'specialty' store (Sprouts) because we just prefer their produce choices over our regular store. I would say that the majority of our grocery budget goes towards fresh produce so when we read about Bountiful Baskets we knew we had to try it! Luckily, it was an A week, so we were just in time.

Our first basket, we wanted to try the regular basket instead of the organic, just to test everything out. We also opted for the extra tomatoes and we also added the 'juicing pack'.

We were amazed when we loaded all of our fresh veggies and fruits into our car! The baskets roughly contain 50% fruit and 50% veggies.

Here is everything we got in the conventional basket:

Plus, here's what our juicing pack looked like:

and finally, our 25lbs of tomatoes.

You won't believe how much all of this cost.... ready? drumroll....

$37.25!!!

Isn't that crazy!?!?!

The conventional basket cost $15
The juicing basket cost $8.50
And the 25lbs of tomatoes cost $13.75

Just to show you, here's everything that came in the conventional basket:

1 bag of grapes
12 apples
1 carton of grape tomatoes
8 bananas
7 potatoes
4 tangelos
1 yellow squash
3 peppers
5 onions
4 comice
4 broccoli heads
1 romaine lettuce

 I can't even begin to tell you how much all of that would cost at the store! Needless to say, we will be eating well (with lots of tomatoes) for the next few weeks.

 Definitely check out Bountiful baskets if you haven't already!

 *not sponsored, I just think it's flippin' awesome!

But if you close your eyes...

Do you ever have a song that just resonates deep within your soul...the kind where you feel as if the words are speaking directly to you?

That's how I feel about this song. (Pompeii by Bastille. In fact, I am loving all Bastille's music!)

 I'm sure you've probably heard it by now, it seems to be quite popular.

 I just love the words to this song but it's also one of those songs that I jump up and dance my heart out to.  I am actually rationing listening to it because I always 'over-listen' to my favorite songs and then they kind of lose their magic. Do you know what I mean? Please say yes. ;)

I've copied the lyrics below and also the music video. If you haven't heard it yet, check it out!

I was left to my own devices
Many days fell away with nothing to show

And the walls kept tumbling down
In the city that we love
Grey clouds roll over the hills
Bringing darkness from above

But if you close your eyes,
Does it almost feel like
Nothing changed at all?
And if you close your eyes,
Does it almost feel like
You've been here before?
How am I gonna be an optimist about this?
How am I gonna be an optimist about this?

We were caught up and lost in all of our vices
In your pose as the dust settled around us

And the walls kept tumbling down
In the city that we love
Grey clouds roll over the hills
Bringing darkness from above

But if you close your eyes,
Does it almost feel like
Nothing changed at all?
And if you close your eyes,
Does it almost feel like
You've been here before?
How am I gonna be an optimist about this?
How am I gonna be an optimist about this?

Oh where do we begin?
The rubble or our sins?
Oh oh where do we begin?
The rubble or our sins?

And the walls kept tumbling down
In the city that we love
Grey clouds roll over the hills
Bringing darkness from above

But if you close your eyes,
Does it almost feel like
Nothing changed at all?
And if you close your eyes,
Does it almost feel like
You've been here before?
How am I gonna be an optimist about this?
How am I gonna be an optimist about this?

If you close your eyes, does it almost feel like nothing changed at all?

One Good Deed A Day

I got this lovely little book for Christmas:

My mom knows me so well. I love pretty journals and this one is no exception.

It's a really neat idea...

basically, you do one good deed or random act of kindness a day. 

When she gave it to me, she told me that she thought it would be a great blog idea. (see, she really does know me.)

 Basically, you complete a good deed and write the date in which you completed it on. 

My question to you is this...

Would this be something you'd like to see me blog about?

One of my biggest pet-peeves is when people 'brag' out doing good things for others. It's one thing to be proud, but it's another thing to brag. I just think that (when someone brags) they are only doing those things to make themselves look like better people, not for just the fact that you are doing good things. Does that make sense? 

With that being said, I think it would be cool to incorporate it into a blog post because not only would it would give others some ideas, it would hold me accountable for actually completing things in the journal!

I think it would be a wonderful thing to be able to look back on.

Not to mention it's just plain beautiful to look at.

See what I mean?!?

Let me know y'alls thoughts!

Saving Mr. Banks

Our family loves movies, but we rarely go to a theater to see them. In our town, it's almost $10 a ticket, times that by 5, plus popcorn.....you see where I am going with this. 

So, we either go to the matinee (it's only $5), wait for it to come out on red box, or if we know we will like it, we will buy it on DVD. 

All of this to say, that this past sunday afternoon, I found myself at the movies which is not the norm. My old friend from Germany was coming back to town and she wanted to catch some American films before she left.

 She picked the movie "Saving Mr. Banks." To be honest, I just hadn't heard much about it and went into it not knowing what to expect. I have to say I was neither excited nor upset with that choice. It just didn't seem like it would be all that spectacular.  

Boy, was I wrong. 

If you haven't seen this movie yet, I so encourage you to do so. It had me laughing and in tears in both the best ways. 

My family is rather fond of all things Disney, so once I said my (tearful) goodbyes to my friend, I rushed home to check the next movie time. Luckily, we had 15 minutes to spare!

I made my mom and brother hop in the car as fast as they could and didn't tell them where we were going.  They both had sour attitudes about it but I knew once they saw it, they'd be changed too. 

And I was right! They both loved it! Even my 17 year old brother thought it was funny and really good. 

If you haven't seen it yet, I highly encourage you to do so. Both you AND your family will love it.

{Oh, my German friend liked it, but with all the different accents she had a hard time understanding it. Luckily I got to explain my take on it to her! }

"You can worry about the future, but you can't do that. Only today."

December Ipsy Bag

Here's what I got in my December Ipsy Bag!

As always, to sign up for ipsy, click here.

1. Eyeshadow Trio by POP Beauty in Smokin Hot

What they say:

This palette of hues adds definition & intensity to lids, creating a broad range of looks that complements all eye colours. From brightening bare to sultry smoke, these hues blend smoothly onto the lid, adding a veil of silky luster that will outlive the day or night! 

What I say: I liked these. They were nicely pigmented and were smooth and had a buttery feel. I don't wear smokey eyes all that often, but when I do, I will definitely use this! 

2. Be a Bombshell The One Stick in Flustered

What they say:

An all-in-one multiple stick with a smooth texture. Apply to eyelids, cheeks or lips for the perfect pop of color anywhere! 

What I say:

I think that this is a very clever idea! I think that this product would be perfect to throw in your purse because it really does have a bunch of different uses. This shade could be used as a lipstick, blush and even a highlight!

3. Nail Color by Nicka K New York in Classic Taupe

What they say:

The Nicka K New York is specially designed to glide across fingernails with minimal effort for vibrancy that is dazzling and long lasting. Formula is free of DBP, Toublene, and formaldehyde. 

What I say: This was the product I was most excited about! I love the color (taupe is my friend) and the bottle is absolutely gorgeous!! I have yet to actually paint this on my nails yet, but I will soon. 

4. Round Lipstick by NYX in Cream

What they say:

A classic lipstick for all occasions that has a mineral-based emollient formula, beautiful velvet texture, saturated color, and resists wear and smudging. 

What I say: While this lipstick may be creamy and might last for a while, the color I received is so bad I will never wear this. It's a dark orangey-brown lipstick, and while it may look good on some people, it certainly does not look good on me. Bummer! 

5. Natural Lash By Ardell in 120 Demi

What they say:

Ardell’s Natural lashes are perfect for enhancing your eyes for an everyday look. These are the most popular lashes as they give the desired, natural look of full, beautiful lashes. Lightweight and reusable, these lashes are permanently curled, waterproof, comfortable to wear and easy to apply. 

What I say:

False lashes are not a typical part of my routine, but I was happy to receive some for any special occasions I might have. These look very natural and feel very lightweight. 

Here are the swatches of the products!

Again, to sign up for Ipsy, just $10 a month, click here.

2014 {tentative} Goals

Happy 2014 to everyone! I am very excited about what this year will bring!

While I really enjoyed doing monthly goals on my blog last year, I decided to not continue them this year. It was a tough choice but ultimately I just wanted to do something different. There are a couple things that I would love to complete this year and I think I will still share them with you, it just won't be every single month per say.  Right now, here are a few things I would like to accomplish in the near future:

1. Start up my couponing again. I did this religiously last year up until I went to Florida for the summer. When I got back, school just took up way too much time for me to be able to. So far, I have reorganized my binder and next week I will begin searching for deals. I don't think I will do a lot of 'extreme' couponing but more of just saving on items I will buy anyway (with a bit of extreme thrown in every once in a while). {Oh, I should mention that grocery shopping is my household chore...It's relaxing to me!}

2. Create a budget and stick with it. Believe it or not, I haven't really made a budget for myself. I do keep a list of everything I need to pay (cell phone, gas, etc), but I never really budget on my extra expenses/ fun money (clothes, makeup, books). Therefor, I plan to use the envelope system. I am actually really excited about this!

3. Track my foods in Myfitness Pal. I'm not making a goal to lose weight (although I want to!) because I know that I need to start small and gradually work my way there. My first step is to track all my eating habits into the app My Fitness Pal. This means that the good, the bad and the ugly will get tracked. I've done this before and it's a really eye-opening process to see exactly how many calories you are actually eating. Now, I just want to (again) stick with it!


Bring it on 2014!